How Much Does That Weekly Bag of Popcorn Really Cost You?

I’m a big fan of movies and love watching them on the big screen in the movie theatre. Sure movie prices have gone up over the years, but I still enjoy watching them and consider it a treat to myself whenever I go (remember, you have to enjoy life!). The one thing I stay away from though is the concession stand – those snacks are pricey. But have you ever wondered how much that bag of popcorn costs you over a year?

Last time I was at the movies, I saw that a bag of popcorn sells for $6. If you’re like me, you probably go to the movies once every two weeks (depending on what movies are released). Let’s just assume that you go to the movies twice each month. Now, if you buy a bag of popcorn each time you go to the movies, that’s $12 per month – doesn’t sound like a lot does it? But what happens when you look at the cost of popcorn over a year? Well, that $12 per month turns into $144 – still, that doesn’t sound very expensive does it? Over ten years, that’s $1,440 – do I have your attention yet?

Let’s compare that movie theatre popcorn to the same popcorn you can find in the grocery store.  The grocery store I shop at sells a box of 6 bags for $5.89, or roughly $0.98 per bag. So if we made our own popcorn at home instead of buying it at the theatre, we would spend $1.96 every month, $23.52 each year, and $230.52 every ten years.

With this new found information, ask yourself, does that $6 bag of popcorn sound expensive, knowing that over one year you’ll pay $120 more at the movies than the grocery store, and over ten years you’ll pay almost $1,200 more?

The goal of this isn’t to scare you off of popcorn, or to get you to bring your own popcorn into the movies (most theatres won’t let you bring it in anyway). The goal is to get you to understand, that even something as simple as popcorn can affect your budget if you aren’t watching where you spend money. Next time you are at the movies and are in line to buy some popcorn, ask yourself, “What could I do with an extra $120 this year?“  If you don’t have a good answer, or you are just craving some popcorn, treat yourself, just remember, that bag of popcorn needs to go into your budget!

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2 Responses to “How Much Does That Weekly Bag of Popcorn Really Cost You?”

1. Scordo.com says:

   March 5, 2009 at 2:45 pm

   Good post! Saw your blog via Five Cent Nickel. I recently wrote an article on having movie night at home at Scordo.com:

   http://www.scordo.com/2009/02/how-movie-night-at-home-chips-bestmovies-oscars-quacamole-slumdog-millionaire.html

   Best,
   vince from Scordo.com

   Reply
2. Adam Goodman says:

   March 7, 2009 at 12:59 am

   Thanks Vince, glad you enjoyed the post!

   Reply