The Super Bowl isn’t just the biggest stage for the game that’s being played, but it’s the biggest stage for just about everything. From the national anthem to the halftime show, there’s a lot to take in with the Super Bowl. When it usually pits the two best teams in a respective season against each other, it magnifies the game.
But the one thing fans look forward to aside from the performances and the game itself are the Super Bowl ads. And to get a 30-second slot in a primetime window for the Super Bowl is costly. Over the last 30 years it has cost millions to get in front of a Super Bowl audience, and this year will reach a new milestone.
How much does a commercial cost for Super Bowl 60?
For the first time since Super Bowl 1 back in 1967, it will now cost eight figures to get a 30-second ad for this year’s Super Bowl. It’s the most expensive commercial slot in Super Bowl history. Last year, it cost $8 million and then $7 million the two years before that. This is also the biggest jump from one Super Bowl to the next.
The $2 million jump from last year’s cost for a commercial to this year is the highest of any individual year, with most going up no more than $1 million. The cheapest increase year over year in the last few years is $500,000 from Super Bowl 56 to Super Bowl 57.
What is the trend of Super Bowl prices going up?
YEAR | SUPER BOWL | COMMERCIAL COST |
|---|---|---|
2016 | Super Bowl 50 | $4.5 million |
2017 | Super Bowl 51 | $5 million |
2018 | Super Bowl 52 | $5.2 million |
2019 | Super Bowl 53 | $5.3 million |
2020 | Super Bowl 54 | $5.6 million |
2021 | Super Bowl 55 | $5.5 million |
2022 | Super Bowl 56 | $6.5 million |
2023 | Super Bowl 57 | $7 million |
2024 | Super Bowl 58 | $7 million |
2025 | Super Bowl 59 | $8 million |
2026 | Super Bowl 60 | $10 million |
Super Bowl ads have steadily increased over the years, except for this year. Why was there a big jump, I’m not sure. But every year has seen an increase of several hundred thousand. There’s only been two jumps of $1 million or more. From the 2023 Super Bowl to the 2024 Super Bowl, there wasn’t an increase at all.
In the last 25 years, the price of a Super Bowl ad has gone up from $2.2 million to $10 million. In the last 30 years, there’s been a $9 million gap. Since Super Bowl 1, there’s only been three times where the price for a Super Bowl commercial decreased, year over year. From Super Bowl 29 to Super Bowl 30, the price for an ad went from $1.15 million to $1.085 million; from Super Bowl 40 to Super 41, the price went from $2.5 million to $2.385 million; from Super Bowl 55 to Super Bowl 56, the priced dropped from $5.6 million $5.5 million.
On a few occasions, the price of a Super Bowl ad didn’t go up altogether. This year’s historic milestone of $10 million sets a new precedent for what it will cost to get in front of one of the biggest TV audiences.
A few memorable Super Bowl commercials
Super Bowl 34 – Budweiser “Whassup”
Budweiser has had some memorable commercials air during the Super Bowl, but one of the most notable ones happened in the 2000 Super Bowl when two friends call each other during the game. A third friend walks in and says, “Whassup!” in an elongated and silly manner, prompting the two on the phone to mimic it. They get their other friends involved and before you know it, it was a phrase coined amongst friends that lasted long after the game ended.
Super Bowl 44 – Betty White’s Snickers cameo
It’s hard to beat a Betty White cameo – RIP to a legend in the movie industry. Snickers took it’s “You’re not you when you’re hungry” phrase to a new level when a game of flag football turned one of the players into Betty White. One of the friends even said, “Hey, you’re playing like Betty White.” It wasn’t until he got his Snickers that he turned into his normal self. Iconic.
Super Bowl 45 – May the Force be with you (Volkswagen)
It’s something about kids in a commercial that instantly captures your attention. Back in 2011, it was a kid that was dressed up as Darth Vader, which will always have your attention. He spent the bulk of the commercial trying to “use the force” to no avail. It wasn’t until his dad pulled the Volkswagen into the driveway that the kid wanted one last try at using the force. With a few movements of his hands, boom, the car starts. The kid couldn’t believe it. It was Volkswagen’s way of introducing remote start on their new line of vehicles.