Christmas Price Index: ’12 Days of Christmas’ Gifts Now Cost More Than $100,000

Who knew that a partridge in a pear tree was so expensive? If you want to treat some one to all the items mentioned in the “12 Days of Christmas” carol, you’ll have to fork out more than $100,000.

This is the first year that the 364 items from the “12 Days of Christmas” carol will cost more than $100,000. According to PNC Wealth Management’s annual Christmas Price Index, it would cost $101,119 to buy all 364 items, which is an increase of 4.4% over 2010.

PNC Wealth Management has been creating the Christmas Price Index for the last 28 years. PNC Wealth Management writes:

“It all started 28 years ago as a way to engage clients… during the traditionally light holiday weeks…. Over the years, trends have emerged, and the PNC Christmas Price Index® (CPI) has often increased or decreased at a rate consistent with the other CPI, the Consumer Price Index, a measure of inflation produced by the U.S. Department of Labor.”

If you bought every item mentioned in the song, every time it was mentioned, you’d end up spending more than $100,000. If you just bought one set of each item mentioned, your total would be $24,263.18

Here’s the breakdown.

• Partridge in a Pear Tree – $184.99 (up 14.2%)
• Two Turtle Doves – $125.00 (up 25%)
• Three French Hens – $150.00 (no change)
• Four Calling Birds – $519.96 (down 13.3%)
• Five Golden Rings – $645.00 (up 0.8%)
• Six Geese-a-Laying – $162.00 (Up 8%)
• Seven Swans-a-Swimming – $6,300.00 (Up 12.5%)
• Eight Maids-a-Milking – $58.00 (no change)
• Nine Ladies Dancing – $6,294.03 (no change)
• Ten Lords-a-Leaping – $4,766.70 (no change)
• Eleven Pipers Piping – $2,427.60 (up 3%)
• Twelve Drummers Drumming – $2,629.90 (up 3%)

PNC Wealth Management has been creating the Christmas Price Index for the last 28 years. The company says that the invention of the internet and fuel costs have greatly influenced price changes. PNC also notes that the price of goods has slowed while the price of services keeps going up. PNC writes:

“In the 1984 PNC Christmas Price Index, goods were by far the more expensive component of the Index. Today it’s services. The cost of entertainment, in particular, has greatly increased over the last 25 years. As a result, the nine ladies dancing have seen a 300% increase in performance fees.”

Can you afford the “12 Days of Christmas?” Me either. Maybe I’d be able to if Black Friday or Cyber Monday sold maids-a-milking.