Sh*t Costs Too Much: Back to School
Getting one kid ready for school now runs close to $4,000 — nearly 11% more than last year — as tariffs and the war in Iran push up the price of every supply-list item while paychecks stall.
Sh*t Costs Too Much.
Fact sheet · August 2026
$4,000
Cost to get one child ready for the school year — nearly 11% more than last year
45%
Of parents plan to take on debt to cover back-to-school shopping, up from 34% in 2024
1 in 3
Parents say they cannot afford back-to-school shopping at all this year
Americans are paying more for everything these days, especially when it comes to getting kids ready for the classroom. Notebooks, lunch boxes, sneakers, and laptops all cost more than they did a year ago, and paychecks just aren’t keeping pace. Tariffs have driven up prices on the imported goods that fill every school supply list, and the war in Iran has sent fuel costs climbing for everything that has to be shipped, refrigerated, and packaged. For millions of families, making ends meet has gone from hard to impossible, and getting a kid ready for the first day of school is dropping to the bottom of the to-do list as working families make difficult decisions between filling the car with gas and taking on more debt to buy new backpacks.
Key points
- New data shows inflation has been outpacing paycheck growth over the past year, leaving working parents in the dust — a typical back-to-school haul now eats up nearly 13% of a month’s income.
- The school year will cost families close to $4,000 per child — nearly 11% more than last year.
- Back-to-school spending is hitting a record $146.8 billion, with K-12 families expecting to spend an average of $863.86 and college families a record $1,437.79.
- A typical school supply list costs nearly 8% more than last year, running parents an average of nearly $175 — lunch boxes are up nearly 27%, notebooks up 23%, index cards up around 22%, notebook paper up 20%, and children’s footwear up 4.7% over the past year.
- Electronics are now the single largest back-to-school expense, and laptop prices have soared.
- Lunch staples are up around 11% this year — packing lunch will cost families more than $3,800, nearly $400 more than last year — with fresh blueberries surging nearly 48%, sandwich bread up around 22%, and apple juice up 20%.
- 45% of parents plan to take on debt to cover back-to-school shopping this year, up from 34% in 2024. One-third say they cannot afford it at all, and nearly half expect to give up essentials like groceries or bills to pay for it.
Core drivers
Tariffs Are Raising the Price of Nearly Everything on School Supply Lists
A fresh round of import taxes on 59 countries and the European Union just took effect in late July, reaching more than 99% of everything the country imports. This year, a majority of goods on school supply lists are facing higher tariff rates imposed by the federal government and paid for by Americans because pencils, crayons, paper goods, and classroom electronics are mostly imported. Top school supply brands like Sharpie, Paper Mate, Expo markers, Logitech, and Elmer’s glue raised prices repeatedly in 2025 while absorbing $174 million in tariff costs, and experts expect another massive price hike in 2026.
The War With Iran Is Driving Up Costs In Every Aisle
Ever since the U.S. started a war with Iran and shuttered the Strait of Hormuz, fuel prices have gone through the roof. Gas and diesel both increased 60% on average between January and May, raising the cost of producing the petroleum-based plastic that wraps juice boxes and snacks, trucking school supplies to supermarket shelves, transporting lunch staples, and more. With gasoline sitting at over $4 a gallon nationwide, the daily drive to school is costing families more, too.
Every figure here is sourced and linked to public reporting, government data, and independent analysis.
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