We all know how devoted K-pop fans can get, but has this ever been quantified or measured? Well, iPrice Group, Southeast Asia’s leading e-commerce aggregator, just did.
With iPrice’s aggregated data, they found out how much a K-pop superfan spends (on average) if he/she bought at least one merchandise per shopping category, purchased all their idols’ albums, and attended one concert a year. The results may surprise you.
Which K-pop fan group can spend the most?
If you have an undying love for BTS, then you know how much you need to save up to stay in the army. A devoted member of the BTS army must have spent an average of US$1,422. It’s a huge number, but that person has collected at least 15 studio albums/EPs and attended 5 concerts aside from having numerous merch. Worth it!
Blackpink fans, or “blinks,” have also spent a huge sum on their idols. A devoted blink can spend up to about $665. Although this amount is much lower than how much a BTS army or Twice fans, aka “onces,” would spend, it’s important to consider that Blackpink is a younger group than the others. Hence, Blackpink has fewer albums and concerts available.
Twice stans, on the other hand, have been existing longer. A Twice superfan can spend up to $824 after purchasing a whole lot of merch, 14 albums, and attending 4 concerts.
The breakdown of K-pop fan kits
Apparently, merchandise can bankrupt superfans as much as concert tickets can (unless of course, they’re tycoons). There are so many different kinds of merch available for each K-pop fan, from home & decor items to lomo cards to phone cases to clothing, you name it!
If a superfan is devoted enough to purchase one item per shopping category (i.e. buys one light stick, a shirt, a lomo card, and so on), that person can spend up to $545 if he is part of the BTS army. A blink would spend about $349 on merch, while a once would spend $173.
Surprisingly, purchasing albums is the least costly. This is good news for fans who solely appreciate these groups for their music (which, realistically, may only be a small percentage of the fans). Purchasing all albums may cost $336 for BTS fans, $161 for Blackpink fans, and $205 for Twice fans.
Lastly, we all know how attending a K-pop concert can be so much fun. What would stand in the way between a K-pop superfan and seeing their idols in the flesh? Well, sold out tickets. But that’s beside the point. If a super fan was able to buy one concert ticket a year to see their idols, it would cost them an average of $541 for BTS, $155 for Blackpink, and $446 for Twice.
In conclusion, you must be pretty devoted to burning cash for your idols. To put things in perspective, the latest iPhone 12 Pro can cost US$1,409 on iPrice; this is about how much BTS superfans can potentially spend on their idols! To non-fans, it seems ridiculous considering the things you can buy with that amount of cash, but for these superfans, it is money well-spent.
