Most sporting events feature commercials with catchy jingles about Whoppers and Albert Einstein wondering why his network has gone kaput. But companies up the quality when it comes to the Super Bowl.
That will be the case again for Super Bowl 57 between the Eagles and Chiefs. The most-watched program of the year sees companies line up each year to put together their best commercials on the TV for a massive audience. And for a lot of viewers, the ads are a main reason why people tune into the game.
Getting the commercial put together is costly enough, but the price it takes to get the finished product in front of all those eyes is always expensive, as networks command a lofty price tag for these companies to air ads during the big game.
MORE: Watch Super Bowl 57 live with fuboTV (free trial)
How much does it cost? Here's the price of a Super Bowl commercial in 2023.
How much do Super Bowl commercials cost in 2023?
Front Office Sports reported that in 2023, Fox has set the cost of a 30-second ad at $7 million. The price of the commercials mark the most expensive Super Bowl ad spots of all time.
The last time Fox hosted a Super Bowl, which happened back in 2020, the cost of a commercial was $5.6 million. Advertisers hoping for a spot in the big game will see a 25 percent increase from that game.
How much was a Super Bowl commercial in 2022?
This is the second straight year the cost of a Super Bowl commercial has gone up by 20 percent or more. It cost companies $6.5 million for a 30-second ad during NBC's broadcast, according to NBC Los Angeles.
It was a drastic jump up from the cost of $5.5 million in 2021 and $5.6 million in 2020. Between 2017 and 2021, the cost of an ad sat in the $5 million range.
How long are Super Bowl commercials?
Companies tend to pay for a 30-second commercial in the Super Bowl. There are some companies that will pay for the commercial to last longer, up to 45 seconds or a minute, while others might keep it a bit shorter at only 15 seconds.
One company likely to have some lengthy commercials is Anheuser-Busch, which reportedly spent 3.5 times more on ads to have three minutes worth of commercials, per Front Office Sports.
MORE: Super Bowl commercials 2023: Watch the best ads before the game
How many commercials are in a Super Bowl?
Part of what makes the Super Bowl such a lucrative broadcasting opportunity for a network is the number of commercials that can fit into the window. According to Statista, the Super Bowl can have between 80 and 100 commercials, with 70 airing during 2020.
Statista reports there are an average of 50 minutes of advertisements. For networks, that would mean $700 million worth of 30-second ads.
First Super Bowl commercial cost
Back in 1967, the inaugural Super Bowl aired on CBS and NBC. It was the only year the big game was carried by two different networks. Ads sold on NBC cost $37,500, while those on CBS cost $45,500, according to SuperBowl-ads.com.
There were 24,430,000 viewers of NBC's broadcast and 26,750,000 of CBS's, for an average of $651.47 per view on NBC and $587.91 per view on CBS.
Super Bowl commercial price history
| Year | Price of 30-second commercial |
|---|---|
| 1967 | $37,500 (NBC)/$42,500 (CBS) |
| 1968 | $54,500 |
| 1969 | $55,000 |
| 1970 | $78,200 |
| 1971 | $72,500 |
| 1972 | $86,100 |
| 1973 | $88,100 |
| 1974 | $103,500 |
| 1975 | $107,000 |
| 1976 | $110,000 |
| 1977 | $125,000 |
| 1978 | $162,300 |
| 1979 | $185,000 |
| 1980 | $222,000 |
| 1981 | $275,000 |
| 1982 | $324,300 |
| 1983 | $400,000 |
| 1984 | $368,200 |
| 1985 | $525,000 |
| 1986 | $550,000 |
| 1987 | $600,000 |
| 1988 | $645,500 |
| 1989 | $675,500 |
| 1990 | $700,400 |
| 1991 | $800,000 |
| 1992 | $850,000 |
| 1993 | $850,000 |
| 1994 | $900,000 |
| 1995 | $1,150,000 |
| 1996 | $1,085,000 |
| 1997 | $1,200,000 |
| 1998 | $1,291,100 |
| 1999 | $1,600,000 |
| 2000 | $2,100,000 |
| 2001 | $2,200,000 |
| 2002 | $2,200,000 |
| 2003 | $2,200,000 |
| 2004 | $2,302,200 |
| 2005 | $2,400,000 |
| 2006 | $2,500,000 |
| 2007 | $2,385,365 |
| 2008 | $2,699,963 |
| 2009 | $2,999,960 |
| 2010 | $2,954,010 |
| 2011 | $3,100,000 |
| 2012 | $3,500,000 |
| 2013 | $3,800,000 |
| 2014 | $4,000,000 |
| 2015 | $4,250,000 |
| 2016 | $4,500,000 |
| 2017 | $5,000,000 |
| 2018 | $5,200,000 |
| 2019 | $5,300,000 |
| 2020 | $5,600,000 |
| 2021 | $5,500,000 |
| 2022 | $6,500,000 |
Source: SuperBowl-ads.com (Nielsen Media Research)
