The mind-blowing cost of kids’ birthday parties

You will spend more than €5,000 on average on kids’ parties from pre-school to sixth class.

These figures on the cost of kids birthday parties will blow your mind! And I don’t just mean the toll on your eardrums or your furniture. Or THAT child is coming again who is gonna refuse to do anything or throw a tantrum if they don’t win EVERY TIME.

It costs just under €400 to host a birthday party and €15 for a present according to a mummypages.ie survey. At an average 12 birthday party invitations a year for your little darling, that adds up to a hefty €180 a year just to attend. I’ve broken down the surprising costs in an easy-to-follow infographic below.

I am more than ever in favour of beleaguered parents organising and deciding – at least – on a maximum spend per birthday present. According to my canny sister-in-law, the parents of her school class contribute €5 each for a birthday party. Anyone else got any novel ideas on how to deal with the birthday money drain?