Inflation-Adjusted Super Bowl Spending Still in a Rut

As close to a national holiday as it gets (even if it's on the weekend), Super Bowl Sunday has become an important event in the American calendar. It's a welcome occasion to get together with family and friends but it's also embraced by retailers. The National Retail Federation has forecast spending of $86.04 per household - which is a continued recovery from pandemic lows in nominal terms. However, when looking at these figures adjusted for inflation, they are still far below pre-pandemic levels as increases to the cost of living continue to weigh down on consumers.

In total and before inflation adjustment, the NRF even forecast a new record of $17.3 billion in U.S. Super Bowl spending this year as people buy everything from beer and snacks to new TVs. This is up from the $17.2 billion spent for the last pre-pandemic Super Bowl in 2020. Adjusted for 2024 prices, however, 2020's total would be worth $20.5 billion - much higher than this year's tally.

Another record - or tie for it - that the 2024 Super Bowl is expected to produce does not pale in perspective. 77 percent of respondents to the NRF survey said they were planning to watch the game, as many as only once before, in 2016, when the Denver Broncos faced off against the Carolina Panthers in Santa Clara, Calif.