Super Bowl 2022 ad cost hits new high: $7M for 30 seconds in biggest-ever price jump

Average cost of a 30-second ad on national TV during primetime averages $115K

The price of a Super Bowl commercial in 2022 hit a new peak as multiple companies paid $7 million for a 30-second spot. 

The Super Bowl regularly ranks as the most-watched event in the United States year-to-year, which means the channel hosting the contest gets to charge a premium for advertising. 

And if this year’s host was worried that businesses still suffered lingering effects from pandemic lockdowns and a shrinking economy, those worries have evaporated: NBC sold out all of its Super Bowl ad spots across all platforms – NBC, Telemundo and digital platforms including Peacock. Only a handful of pre-game slots remain open, the company announced in a press release Thursday. 

HOLLYWOOD, CA - JANUARY 18: General view of a billboard near Hollywood & Vine featuring the Vince Lombardi Trophy, promoting Super Bowl 56 (Super Bowl LVI) to be held at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on January 18, 2022 in Hollywood, Califo (Photo by AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images / Getty Images)

The blockbuster price is a first, marking a significant jump in price following a few years of stagnation at around $5.5 million. NBC did not specify the average price, but noted it was a new average with "multiple" ads hitting the new peak. 

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And the price isn’t the only Super Bowl first this year: Frank’s RedHot will try to distinguish itself from the pack with an "edible" NFT, and DiGiorno launched a free pizza contest based on the score of the championship game. 

This year will also see Guy Fieri in his first-ever Super Bowl ad as he teams with Bud Light Seltzer to promote its Hard Soda line. 

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The price of a Super Bowl ad has always attracted attention for the outsized cost: the average cost of a 30-second ad on national TV during primetime averages $115,000 – a number the Super Bowl surpassed in the 1970s, according to Nielsen Media Research

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
HMC HONDA MOTOR CO. LTD. 37.23 -0.10 -0.27%
TM TOYOTA MOTOR CORP. 251.68 -0.47 -0.19%
F FORD MOTOR CO. 13.28 +0.21 +1.61%

The automobile and food and beverage industries make up the bulk of spending. A FOX Business analysis in 2020 marked out Honda, FedEx, Miller, Dodge, Toyota, Ford, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Budweiser as the companies that have spent the most over the years, with Budweiser spending $449.5 million on 135 ads across 53 Super Bowls. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
BUD ANHEUSER-BUSCH INBEV 60.78 -0.06 -0.10%
PEP PEPSICO INC. 175.01 +1.44 +0.83%
KO THE COCA-COLA CO. 61.16 +0.12 +0.20%

The Super Bowl crossed the landmark $1 million mark in 1995, climbing to $2 million in the new millennium. The price steadily rose over the following decade, reaching 2.95 million in 2010. 

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The price skyrocketed after that, climbing to $5 million by 2017 before appearing to hit a limit as the cost leveled off, rising only another $300,000 over the next three years. The cost had still almost doubled in a decade.

The pandemic had a minor but noticeable effect as the cost of a 30-second spot in the 2021 Super Bowl was $5.5 million – down $100,000 from the pre-pandemic high of $5.6 million. 

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YouTube announced that it will bring back the AdBlitz for the 16th year running, noting that 72% of fans rewatch at least some football commercials. AdBlitz already has several 2022 teaser ads to provide a taste of what will be the most expensive advertisement offering ever.