The price of a child’s smile

The global toys market is projected to reach revenues of more than $100 billion in 2019, according to analysts. In other words, its scale will be comparable to the size of economies of countries such as Luxembourg, the Dominican Republic or Slovakia. Although there is a wide range of toys available, Barbie and Lego seem to be the most desired ones.

Barbie first appeared 60 years ago and throughout the decades, she has changed her appearance, profession and ethnicity a number of times. The world both loves her and hates her. She entertains and educates, but is also a subject of fierce criticism. Then, there are Legos which revolutionised the toy sector with their construction playsets. Suddenly, everyone could build and renovate, regardless of age, gender or skills.

Picodi.com Analysis Team decided to check the average prices of the popular Barbie Mermaid Doll and the Lego Medium Classic Brick Box in hundreds of shops in 50 countries. The prices vary from country to country and sometimes they can increase up to three times. From the infographic below, you’ll learn in which countries giving such gifts to a child is considered a minor expense and in which it could really affect the family budget.

In the US, you would have to pay $24 on average for the Barbie Mermaid doll. The best price is offered in Mexico — only $18.2 converted from the local currency. The dolls are not as affordable in Singapore and in the UAE where they cost $56.5 and $53.4 respectively.

The average price of the Lego Classic Brick Box (484 pieces) is about $27.5 in American stores. However, the lowest price of the brick box can be noted in France — $26.8. The same Lego box is three times more expensive in such Latin American countries like Peru or Colombia ($82.4 and $80.9 respectively).

In a ranking compiled basing on the prices of these two products, the US places in a very favourable position — you would pay $51.5 for both products so the prices are rather low compared to other countries. The highest prices are noted in less prosperous countries like Colombia, Peru or the Philippines and in Gulf countries like the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Both the Barbie doll and the LEGO set can be bought in multiple stores, including Lego, Walmart, Aliexpress, Best Buy and Zavvi. With Picodi you can save money on your purchase through cashback.

Methodology

This report is based on the average retail prices in local online stores in 50 countries without including temporary discounts. For currency conversion, the average exchange for May 2019 was used.

Public use

Are you willing to share the information about toy prices in the US and other countries with your readers? Feel free to use all the data and infographics presented in this report for both commercial and non-commercial purposes as long as you indicate the author of the research (Picodi.com) with a link to this subpage.