Here Is How Much The 12 Days of Christmas Costs

You’ve probably heard the Christmas carol, “The 12 Days of Christmas.”

For the uninitiated, the traditional Christmas carol was composed by Andrew Carter and Frederic Austin and released in the late 18th century. It describes a series of gifts that are presented on each of the 12 days of Christmas, commencing with Christmas Day, in an ever-increasing number.

Have you ever thought about how much it costs?

Benzinga has — and so has PNC Bank, which calculated the prices of the 12 gifts from the classic song for 39 years.

With inflation roaring near 40-year highs, let's take a look at how much those 12 gifts would cost in 2022. “On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…”

1. A Partridge in a Pear Tree
Cost: $280.18
Increase: 25.8% 

While the price of a partridge is unchanged, continued growth in the cost of its tree, due in part to higher fertilizer costs, means an overall price increase for the first gift in the 2022 index, according to PNC.

2. Two Turtle Doves
Cost: $600
Increase: 33.3% 

Thanks in part to the rising cost of feed, you will be paying more for two turtle doves in 2022.

3. Three French Hens
Cost: $318.75
Increase: 25% 

You’ll pay more for the French hens, primarily reflecting the price it costs to feed them.

4. Four Calling Birds
Cost: $599.96
Increase: 0%

The birds are still expensive, just no more than they were in 2021.

5. Five Gold Rings
Cost: $1,245
Increase: 39.1% 

According to PNC, the price of gold rings grew by nearly 40% in 2022, the highest increase in this year’s index.

6. Six Geese-A-Laying
Cost: $720
Increase: 9.1%

Not sure why anyone would want to buy six geese, but if you did, you’d pay nearly 10% more than you did in 2021.

7. Seven Swans-A-Swimming
Cost: $13,124.93
Increase: 0.0%

While these birds haven’t increased in cost over 2021, buying seven swans will cost you more than $13,000.

8. Eight Maids-A-Milking
Cost: $58
Increase: 0.0%

This has to be per hour because the federal minimum wage is $7.25.

9. Nine Ladies Dancing
Cost: $8,308.12
Increase: 10%

Entertainment is not cheap.

10. Ten Lords-A-Leaping
Cost: $13,980
Increase: 24.2%

This gift tops the year’s index with a $13,980 price tag — the most expensive gift in the 2022 index.

11. Eleven Pipers Piping
Cost: $3,201.40
Increase: 2.6%
The 11 pipers grew in cost by a modest 2.6% — reflecting rising compensation in 2022.

12. Twelve Drummers Drumming
Cost: $3,266.93
Increase: 2.6%
Similar to the 11 pipers, the drummer's cost rose 2.6% year-over-year, reflecting the rise in compensation.

All right, so some of those gifts are pretty expensive, but some are affordable. Like, eight maids-a-milking would only cost $58 and a single partridge with the pear tree comes in at an affordable $280.18.

All of the gifts combined? Well, this will set you back a whopping $45,523.27 — a total increase of 10.5% year-over-year.

Here’s to true love!

About The Index: The PNC Christmas Price index is similar to the U.S. Consumer Price Index, which measures the changing prices of goods and services such as housing, food, clothing, transportation and more that reflect the spending habits of the average American.

And, What Do The 12 Days of Christmas Mean?: In Christian theology, the 12 days indicate the span between the birth of Christ and the coming of the Magi, the three wise men. It begins on Dec. 25 and runs through Jan. 6, called Epiphany, Three Kings’ Day or Twelfth Night, which also marks the first day of Carnival, ending on Mardi Gras. 

Read Next: Will Santa Claus Visit The Stock Market This Year? The History Of Holiday Rallies

Photo: HelloSSTK via Shutterstock