Red, White, and Broke: The Most Expensive States and Cities for Fourth of July Celebrations

A grill full of meat, a beer in hand, and fireworks ready to rock…what better way to celebrate the Fourth of July? Unfortunately, with the cost of living, groceries, and everyday expenses continuing to soar higher than those Roman candles, the price Americans are paying for backyard bashes is reaching an all-time high, too. To learn more about the state of our celebrations, we calculated the cost of hosting a typical 4th of July party for 15 people and analyzed how these costs compare to incomes nationwide.

Key takeaways:

• The average cost to host a 4th of July party for 15 people is $436.61, or roughly $29 per guest.

• At a cost of 9.55% of the median monthly household income, Mississippi is the most expensive state to host a Fourth of July party, followed by Louisiana, West Virginia, Arkansas, and New Mexico.

• The overall cost of hosting a party is highest in Georgia, at $440.21.

• Indianapolis and Louisville are tied as the most expensive cities to host a 4th of July party. Residents must spend 8.24% of their monthly income on an Independence Day bash, while Jacksonville and Oklahoma City are close behind.

• Massachusetts, Vermont, and Illinois keep things more affordable because their state fireworks regulations don't allow consumer fireworks.

Party in the USA

We crunched the numbers for a typical 15-person 4th of July celebration and discovered that putting together the all-American party experience involves way more line items than you might expect. Our calculation starts with generous consumption patterns because we'll be partying all day and into the night.

Each guest typically devours about 1.5 hot dogs and 2 hamburger patties, along with 3.2 beers throughout the day (because apparently we're all secretly competitive eaters and enthusiastic drinkers on the 4th). But here's where retail reality kicks in: you can't just buy 22.5 hot dogs. You've got to purchase whole packages, which means buying three 8-packs of hot dogs even though you only need the equivalent of 2.8 packs. The same math applies to everything from hamburger buns to potato salad, forcing families to overbuy and inflating the real cost of celebration.

Food and beverages dominate the budget, with hot dogs and hamburgers costing a huge portion of the budget. Add in sides like corn on the cob, potato salad, chips, and the holy trinity of condiments (ketchup, mustard, mayo), and you're looking at substantial grocery bills before you even think about the necessities like paper plates, plastic cups, charcoal, and napkins.

Finally, for a bit more pizazz, we threw five basic fireworks bundles in states where fun is legal.

The United States of Spending

The cost burden of celebrating America's independence varies dramatically based on where you happen to live, creating some pretty stark disparities in how much financial freedom you need to exercise your freedom to party. This isn't just about regional price differences for hot dogs and hamburger buns; we're talking about fundamental differences in economic burden that can make the same celebration feel like either a fun splurge or a serious financial decision.

Families in Mississippi face the steepest burden, spending nearly 10% of their monthly median income on a single 4th of July celebration. Louisiana (9.06%) and West Virginia (8.90%) aren't far behind, creating a situation where hosting Independence Day can feel more like a significant monthly expense than a fun summer gathering. These aren't small differences we're talking about here. In seven states, that $400+ party represents over 8% of what the median household brings home each month.

On the flip side, families in Massachusetts, Illinois, and Vermont get to celebrate their patriotism without breaking the bank quite as dramatically. Massachusetts residents spend just 3.01% of their monthly income on the same celebration. But we should note that these three states are the only three in the United States that generally do not allow fireworks for private use. Therefore, the cost of fireworks was excluded from their party cost calculations.

High incomes in California, Maryland, and New Jersey mean residents of these states are spending the lowest percentage of their income on our typical party while also enjoying the freedom of blowing things up in honor of our founding fathers.

State-by-State 4th of July Party Costs

Cities Where Your July 4th Dollar Goes Furthest

Indianapolis and Louisville top the charts for cost burden, with residents of each city spending 8.24% of their monthly income on a party for 15 people. That's a significant chunk of change for a single day of partying in these working-class cities. Jacksonville rounds out the top three at 8.03%.

Shifting from mid-sized cities where incomes are more modest, when we look at large coastal metropolitan areas such as Boston, San Jose, and Washington, D.C., it becomes clear that a $400 party isn't quite the burden that it is in middle America.

Residents of Beantown would spend just 2.71% (sans fireworks) of their income to host the same party that someone in Indianapolis, Louisville, or Jacksonville would spend over 8% to host. As prices for the food and supplies needed to host our typical American Fourth of July party remain relatively flat across the country, it's clear that those earning less are at a significant disadvantage when it comes to the purchase of everyday essentials.

Methodology:

To calculate the cost of a standard 4th of July party for 15 people, we gathered product pricing from Walmart stores nationwide and sourced food intake data from NHANES and USDA to determine realistic party quantities. We used median household income data from the U.S. Census Bureau to determine what percentage of monthly income these costs represent in each state and major city to compare affordability across different locations. See items below for full breakdown and national average pricing.

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