How Much Does Hockey Gear Cost? (& Tips For Affordability)
It isn’t a secret that ice hockey gear prices are usually high. The question is how high and whether you can get off cheaper because the cost of hockey is a real obstacle for many people, even when they would like to pursue it or provide the opportunity for their children. So, how much does hockey equipment cost?
A full set of new hockey equipment can cost between $400 to $3000, depending on the brand and quality. Beginner, recreational, and junior equipment costs $400 to $800, intermediate from $800 to $1200, advanced $1200 to $2000, and the top NHL level gear from $2000 to $3000.
The gap in the price range of hockey gear is wide, and your personal choices, demands, and quality standards will drastically affect the final price. Also, those prices are for the players only, and hockey goalie equipment can cost nearly $10,000!
The average price range for a full set of hockey gear for regular hockey players hovers at both sides of $1000. Note that even the $400 can be enough for a full set of hockey gear; however, it will be of lesser quality. For NHL-level equipment, you’ll need to spend on the end of the price range, usually $2000 – $3000.
Now, stick with me, and I’ll show the exact prices for each hockey item, reveal how you can shop even cheaper than the low end of new equipment, and the best brands if you’re willing to invest in quality.
Related: What Do Hockey Referees Wear?
Contents
Hockey Equipment Cost
The equipment needs for hockey players are at the top of the list of all sports, and they aren’t cheap either. The final price will be high when you need over a dozen expensive items.
Here’s a list of hockey equipment & gear a player needs;
- Skates
- Stick
- Helmet
- Mouthguard
- Neck Guard
- Shoulder Pads
- Elbow Pads
- Gloves
- Hockey Pants
- Athletic Cup
- Shin Guards
- Uniform
- Equipment Bag
Now, let’s examine each item individually.
1. Skates
Hockey skates are one of the most important items for hockey players. The quality between brands, design, and manufacturing can be drastic, which is why the cheapest skates cost $50, and the most expensive ones can get as high as $1000.
For regular hockey players, I recommend the range of $100 to $200, where you can find the best price-quality ratio.
Hockey players’ and goalies’ skates aren’t the same, with differences in boot, blade, and protection. When you’re in the market for new skates, acknowledge the difference and get the right skates for your hockey position.
Blade guards
Blade guards are also part of every hockey player’s equipment. This way, you can protect your skates’ blades when moving them around in your equipment bag or walking around the hockey rink. You don’t want to contact the blade anywhere else than ice because they will become dull, and you need to sharpen your hockey skates.
2. Stick
Hockey sticks are also vital in hockey, and they aren’t the same. Differences in thickness, stick flex, material, and more make choosing the right stick important.
Hockey sticks cost $30 – $300, and I wouldn’t recommend a stick below $100 if you take hockey seriously because quality sticks don’t cost $30. However, you certainly don’t need to spend $300 because that’s NHL level, and even they don’t always use sticks that cost that much.
I highly recommend reading my article if you’re interested in the most used hockey stick brands.
Blade Tape
Blade tape is important because it protects the sticks’ blades from the rough surface of the ice. In addition, it gives a grip against the puck, so your handling will improve. A hockey tape roll costs around $10, and you can use it many times, so it’s inexpensive.
3. Helmet
You can find ice hockey helmets from $40 to $300, and their average price hovers around $80-$100. The helmet protects your head, so it’s the most important piece of protective equipment you can get.
4. Mouthguard
Mouthguards are essential in ice hockey, especially for adults who don’t have the wire face guard but visors. Even with a mouthguard, you can lose teeth if a puck comes to your face, so imagine what would happen without one.
They are inexpensive with a price range of $10 – $50, but they are important items you should always use.
However, any mouthguard won’t do, so you need to know how a mouthguard should fit. If you don’t know, feel free to learn from the article I linked.
5. Neck Guard
Another inexpensive yet essential item for hockey players is the neck guard. They are cheaper than mouthguards, priced between $10-$30. They are well-cushioned, so if an unlucky shot comes straight to your neck, it won’t do serious damage. Also, they protect the neck from skates’ blades.
I recommend choosing a neck guard that covers as much of your neck as possible for maximum protection. A great example of such a neck guard is Bauer Premium Neck Guard.
6. Shoulder Pads
Shoulder pads are the item giving hockey players the bigger, wider look under the jersey. They also protect the chest from hits.
Shoulder pads can cost anywhere between $30 to $200. Generally, only junior shoulder pads cost $30, whereas adult shoulder pads start from +$70.
7. Elbow Pads
Elbow pads have a similar price range of $20 – $200 as shoulder pads, surprisingly. However, the average price is lower when looking at great elbow pads. They protect your elbows that will get hit a lot when falling or getting tackled against the boards.
8. Gloves
Hockey gloves are one of the most important items as well. When falling down and fighting for the puck, they protect your hands from pucks, sticks, other players, and the rink. Also, they provide traction against the stick, so your handling will improve.
A quality pair of hockey gloves costs +$50; however, you can find ones for as low as $30 or as high as $100.
9. Hockey Pants
Hockey pants are loose pants that allow full range of motion, yet they protect your leg area from ice, hits, pucks, sticks, and everything that could injure you in hockey. They are one of the most pricey protective equipment, costing $40 to $230, depending on the quality.
Athletic Cup
A jockstrap or an athletic cup inside compression shorts is necessary because your genital area is extremely vulnerable, especially against extremely fast and hard rubber pucks. Depending on the model, they cost $10 to $50. Personally, I prefer Shock Doctor Compression Shorts & Athletic Cup, but jockstrap is a great alternative.
10. Shin Guards
Shin guards cost between $40 – $200, so they can be cheap or expensive. Their purpose is to protect your legs from pucks, skates, and any hits that could damage your legs. Shin guards are covered with large socks to complement the uniform.
11. Uniform & Clothes
Hockey uniform and clothing includes items such as;
- Jersey
- Socks
- Sports socks
- Underwear
- T-shirt
- Compression pants
Jersey and socks that come over your shin guards are considered part of the uniform. However, regular athletic wear, such as a shirt under your protective gear, sports socks on your feet, compression pants to hold an athletic cup and keep you comfortable, and regular underwear are all needed. This can cost anywhere between $50 to +$240, especially because you have some of them already.
Related: Why Are Hockey Jerseys Expensive? (& How To Find Cheap Ones)
12. Equipment Bag
Last but not least, the equipment bag to hold everything! You can get a cheaper bag without wheels as low as $40, or you can invest in a hockey-specific equipment bag resembling a suitcase that can cost over $200. Whichever you choose, you need to carry your gear from point A to B.
If you reached the end of this list, you can feel overwhelmed as there is so much equipment, and they will add up the cost. Don’t worry; there are ways around it, and if you’re willing to skimp on quality, you can get off quite cheap.
Here’s an easily scannable list of each hockey item and price range.
| Hockey Equipment | Price Range |
|---|---|
| Skates | $50 – $1000 |
| Stick | $30 – $300 |
| Helmet | $40 – $300 |
| Mouth Guard | $10 – $50 |
| Neck Guard | $10 – $30 |
| Shoulder pads | $30 – $200 |
| Elbow Pads | $20 – $100 |
| Gloves | $30 – $100 |
| Hockey Pants | $40 – $230 |
| Athletic Cup / Jockstrap | $10 – $50 |
| Shin Guards | $40 – $200 |
| Uniform & Clothing | $50 – $240 |
| Equipment Bag | $40 – $200 |
| Cost of All Equipment | $400 – $3000 |
Looking at the data table above, you can see that hockey equipment can cost as little as $400 even if you buy everything new or over $3000 from NHL standard hockey equipment. It all comes down to the brands, models, and qualities of the equipment you get or are willing to use.
Next, you’ll learn how to buy hockey equipment even cheaper.
Where to Buy Cheap Hockey Equipment?
When I explain to people that you can get new hockey equipment for $400, most people are surprised as they usually think it’s more. To be fair, it usually is, but $400 is possible. However, if you want to get equipment even cheaper and are willing to buy used equipment and look harder, you can get them even cheaper. Here are five great places to look from;
1. Facebook Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace has grown in popularity since it was invented as part of the Facebook platform in 2016. Facebook is by far the most used platform online, so its marketplace isn’t a small thing.
You can easily find cheap hockey equipment that is barely used, so I recommend using it. It’s like a massive flea market with higher quality where even local businesses sell their stuff.
2. Craigslist
Craigslist needs no introduction, but it’s a website for viewing and posting local advertisements. You can select your area, search for things, or browse items and that’s a recipe for success in finding affordable hockey equipment!
3. Sideline Swap
Sideline Swap is specifically tailored for athletes, where they can buy and sell equipment! That’s a perfect place for finding highly or barely used hockey gear with cut-off prices. Sideline Swap has an amazing selling experience as well. Oh, and they have iOS and Android applications as well!
4. Amazon
Amazon is a marketplace for anything, including hockey equipment you won’t find anywhere else. From Amazon, you can find the most high-quality brands, such as CCM and Bauer, or you can get lesser-known brands that usually have great quality too (read the reviews) for a fraction of the price.
5. Local Selling & Buying Websites
Lastly, every local community, area, and state has a website where locals sell items. Think about it, do you know any website that works in your local area where your friends and family may buy things. If so, check them out, and you will find affordable hockey equipment.
What are the Best Hockey Equipment Brands?
If you want quality instead of affordability, you should know the best trustworthy brands with decades of expertise in the field. Here are the best hockey equipment brands.
By clicking the brand name, you can browse their equipment from Amazon. Anyways, CCM and Bauer are the most popular and respected ice hockey brands. You can’t go wrong with ordering equipment from them if you want the highest quality.
Warrior, Easton, and STX are amazing choices as well. It depends on your preference, as all the mentioned brands are great.
If you need quality equipment and don’t want to make mistakes, I advise that you don’t buy anything from brands you haven’t heard of before and always read reviews before buying.
How Much Does It Cost to Play Hockey?
Equipment cost aside; those aren’t the only cost you need to pay if you want to play hockey on an established team. If you’re a recreational player and like to hit the rink for the general public, there are rarely fees, and if so, the entry fee isn’t much. However, how much does it cost to play ice hockey on a team?
The lowest level of competitive hockey, “A” costs $400/month, on average. “AA” and “AAA hockey are more expensive, with a typical cost of $600/month, and if it involves out-state or country trips, it can cost close to $20,000 per year.
All this is on top of the initial equipment cost ranging from $400 to $3000. If your kid is growing, you need to buy new equipment every couple of years so the costs can be astronomical.
In fact, it has been calculated that if a child plays travel ice hockey but decides to save the money, you could pay for four years of Harvard in cash.
Let’s do some math.
Let’s say that the monthly cost of hockey is a flat $500. A kid starts hockey at 8 years old, meaning he would need new equipment (full gear set is $1000 on average) every 2 years to 18. In addition, two out state or country trips are made annually, costing $2000 each.
This means that during the 10 years from age 8 to 18, you need to spend $60,000 on monthly fees, $40,000 for traveling fees for tournaments, etc., and $6000 for equipment, totaling $106,000 during 10 years of ice hockey.
This doesen’t necessarily need to be the case as you can get equipment cheaper than $1000 and don’t need to attend all the trips. However, $500 is perfectly normal for monthly fees, and there will be more costs to it, so it certainly isn’t cheap.
Even a study made by Utah State University states that an American family can expect to pay $7000 for youth ice hockey, on average, up to $19,000 per year. During 10 years, this is between $70,000 – $190,000.
So, ice hockey definitely is expensive, even when the numbers can and will vary drastically depending on the area, state, country, and organization.
Related: Why Is Ice Hockey So Expensive? (7 Reasons & Cost Of NHL)
