Photo: Piotr Piatrouski (Shutterstock)
Music festivals have come a long way from the muddy fairgrounds of Woodstock in 1969. What started as an expression of counterculture has turned into a mainstream, billion-dollar industry. According to Nielsen’s Audience Insights Report on Music Festivals, approximately 32 million Americans attend at least one music festival in the U.S. each year. The appeal is simple: You get to see all of your favorite acts in the same place at the same time, all for one sticker price. But are these festivals actually worth their big-ticket cost? Let’s take a look at three of the biggest music festivals in the country and find out.
Coachella
Location: Indio, Calif.
Cost: Starts at $449 plus fees
Headliners: Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, The Weeknd
According to SeatGeek, the average ticket on the secondary market is $171 to see Harry Styles, $294 to see Billie Eilish, and $140 to see the Weeknd. This combined cost already puts you over the Coachella entry fee, making Coachella a theoretical bargain before even factoring other notable acts like Doja Cat, Meghan Thee Stallion, and the incomparable Danny Elfman.
Lollapalooza
Location: Chicago
Cost: Starts at $350 plus fees
Headliners: Metallica, Dua Lipa, J Cole, Green Day
According to SeatGeek, the average ticket on the secondary market is $273 to see Metallica, $253 to see Dua Lipa, $136 to see J Cole, and $176 to see Green Day. This combined cost not only puts you over the Lollapalooza sticker price, but offers a nice, wide range of musical genres while doing so.
Governors Ball
Location: New York City
Cost: Starts at $319 plus fees
Headliners: Kid Cudi, Halsey, J Cole
According to SeatGeek, the average ticket on the secondary market is $107 to see Kid Cudi, $134 to see Halsey, and $136 to see J Cole. This narrowly ellipses the Governor’s Ball entry fee, but still makes for a solid deal when factoring in access to seeing other high profile supporting acts, like Migos and Jack Harlow.
There are, of course, drawbacks to attending musical festivals in lieu of seeing your favorite musical acts on their own headlining tour. These include:
General admission. Music festivals are not for the faint of heart. With no assigned seating (nor seating at all) you must be prepared to stand for hours on end. If you want to see your favorite headliner from the comfort of a bolted-down chair, opt for their headlining tour and not a music festival.Transportation costs. Transportation to and from these festivals can often be a huge headache, as well as a hidden cost. For Coachella, be prepared to drop an extra $84 plus fees for a shuttle pass just to get to and from the concert grounds. Lodging. If you’re coming in from out of town to attend a festival, be prepared to throw down some serious cash for a hotel or Airbnb. Some music festivals offer camp grounds as a cheaper alternative, but still a necessary line item for your budget. Exhaustion. The music festival’s greatest convenience is also one of their biggest drawbacks: These events can take a lot out of you, making it tougher to enjoy your favorite acts performing on the later days of the festival. Before you buy your pass, imagine how you’ll feel on the fourth consecutive night of movin’ and groovin’.
