The National Football League saw a resurgence in television ratings despite a lasting hangover from the now-infamous national anthem protests. Despite the Cincinnati Bengals and Miami Dolphins "tanking" in order to rebuild their franchises (and selecting their franchise quarterbacks), NFL teams still draw massive crowds each and every week. However, that number is slowly declining.
According to attendance figures tracked by ESPN, only eight franchises averaged 100 percent capacity at home games in 2019 — the fewest since 2009. The 2021 numbers look similar, too. With attendance stagnant, stadiums are doing whatever they can to fill the seats. Eating crazy food and buying souvenirs is the simple solution, but even that's not helping the often tough-to-stomach game ticket prices. If you're planning to attend a game, how much is it actually going to cost when everything is all said and done?
It ain't cheap to watch your favorite NFL players live on the field, but just how much does it cost to attend an NFL game at every stadium across the country?
From average ticket prices to finding yourself a good parking spot, the folks at OnlineGambling.com developed a formula to figure out how much money you'll likely hand over whether you wanted to see the Los Angeles Rams play out west or visit the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field. If they get you into the team store, you might as well back up the Brinks truck.
Want to know how much three tickets, two nachos, six beers and a hat are going to cost you to see your favorite team play? Find out by experimenting with OnlineGambling.com's NFL Gameday Calculator for yourself.
In what stadiums will you be shelling out the most dough, though?
Average NFL Ticket Prices
Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images
Whether you're catching the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium or hoping to see the New England Patriots in Gillette Stadium, prepare to pay up when it comes to ticket sales. It doesn't even matter if those teams are Super Bowl contenders at the time.
The most expensive tickets for a regular season game? Those can be found in the "Entertainment Capital of the World." The Las Vegas Raiders, who have the fancy new Allegiant Stadium, are charging more than anyone. The cheapest seats on the market? Freeze your butt off in Buffalo to watch Josh Allen and the Bills. Just to be clear, we're not talking about playoffs or season tickets.
Here are the average ticket prices for every NFL team, according to 2020 rankings from Statista.
Most Expensive NFL Tickets
1. Las Vegas Raiders: $153.47
2. San Francisco 49ers: $139.71
3. New England Patriots: $131.45
4. Green Bay Packers: $128.93
5. Philadelphia Eagles: $127.06
6. Chicago Bears: $122.90
7. Houston Texans: $118.07
8. Seattle Seahawks: $117.86
9. New York Giants: $115.31
10. Pittsburgh Steelers: $114.24
Least Expensive NFL Tickets
21. Tennessee Titans: $92.16
22. Detroit Lions: $91.89
23. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $89.48
24. Arizona Cardinals: $84.83
25. Miami Dolphins: $84.36
26. Cleveland Browns: $82.82
27. Jacksonville Jaguars: $80.09
28. Cincinnati Bengals: $79.37
29. Los Angeles Chargers: $78.38
30. Buffalo Bills: $74.95
Some of these average prices aren't too shabby. Even if you strike gold on the secondary market, it's not easy getting in the door.
Now that you've (hopefully) got your tickets, it's time to get snacks.
NFL Beer & Food Prices
The most critical part of any NFL game day experience is obviously the food. The team at OnlineGambling.com found average pricing of beer, soda, hot dogs, peanuts and nachos at every NFL stadium.
The cheapest place to get a beer? That would be Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the home of the Atlanta Falcons, where you can get a cold one for $5. Most other stadiums average somewhere around 10 bucks for a beer, but only one place is the most expensive — head west to Levi's Stadium to see the San Francisco 49ers play where a beer is going to run you $14.
But nachos? This is where you'll be forking over the dough for a tray of chips, cheese and fixings.
Most Expensive NFL Nachos
1. Dallas Cowboys: $20
2. Minnesota Vikings: $18.50
3. Oakland Raiders: $15
4. Detroit Lions: $14
5. Jacksonville Jaguars: $13
The priciest soda resides with the Washington Redskins at $10 and the most expensive hot dog lives with the Raiders at $15.
NFL Souvenirs
NFL souvenir shops are the hotbed for new jerseys and hats on game day, and they're mostly reasonably priced across the board. The Online Gambling team found that the average NFL jersey is going to cost you around $148 at the Club Shop, with the most expensive being at Buffalo Bills' games.
Most t-shirts in the Club Shops are going to range between $30 and $40, and hats are going for about the same price.
Interested in an iconic, classy foam finger? The most expensive is green and yellow up in Lambeau Field, where the Green Bay Packers sell them for $10.99 a pop.
NFL Parking Prices
It's both the most annoying part of NFL game days, but also one of the most critical. Finding cheap parking is everybody's dream, but sometimes you have to bite the bullet and hand over some money just for a place to leave your car for the day while you tailgate.
The highest parking rate closest to the stadium is in Atlanta where it'll cost $114 to park (don't worry that's not all parking), and the cheapest, but furthest away, is with the Tennessee Titans, where you can park and walk to Nissan Stadium for about $5.
Cheapest Parking Costs (Avg. of Closest and Furthest Spots)
T-1. Arizona Cardinals, Carolina Panthers, Houston Texans and Green Bay Packers: $20
5. Indianapolis Colts: $20.25
6. Cincinnati Bengals: $20.50
T-7. New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans: $29
Want to go see the Minnesota Vikings play? It's going to cost you $100 to park your car. I'd recommend taking a cab..
It's certainly not a cheap date to head out for an NFL game, but the most popular sport in the United States is going to capitalize on their popularity any way they can. With the help of the NFL Gameday Calculator and extensive research courtesy of OnlineGambling.com, the picture is a little bit more clearer on how much it'll cost you. Whether you're a fan of the Baltimore Ravens, Denver Broncos or Kansas City Chiefs, make sure you add everything up before getting to an AFC or NFC game this NFL season.
Bust out the throwback jersey, ice up the coolers and head out to the stadium. The NFL never sleeps and those seats aren't going to fill themselves.
This article was originally published October 19, 2018. We brought it back during the 2021 season. Figures and values represent research conducted from 2016 to 2020.
