"Walking GDP"! Taylor Swift's Eras Tour concert revenue exceeds $2.077 billion
Taylor Swift's Eras Tour has been confirmed as the most successful commercial tour in history, with revenue exceeding $2.077 billion, far surpassing Elton John's record. The tour consisted of 149 shows, with an average ticket price of $204, attracting huge audience demand that led to ticketing system crashes. Swift performed songs from all her albums during the tour and created a new album titled "The Tortured Poets Department" in between
According to Zhitong Finance APP, Taylor Swift's Eras Tour has been confirmed as the most successful commercial tour in history, with revenue exceeding twice that of the previous record holder. As the tour concluded on Sunday in Vancouver, Swift's company Taylor Swift Touring confirmed the final revenue figures to the media: over $2.077 billion (approximately £1.62 billion). This is the first official disclosure of the tour's revenue figures, far surpassing the previous record set by Elton John's Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, which had a total revenue of $939 million. Swift achieved this milestone with just 149 performances, less than half of Elton John's 330 shows.
At the same time, Coldplay's Music of the Spheres tour has also surpassed $1 billion in revenue and is scheduled to continue until mid-2025. If additional shows are added, it may challenge Swift's revenue record.
In addition to its commercial success, the Eras Tour has received widespread acclaim. During the tour, Swift performed songs from all her albums, with each show lasting over three and a half hours. Furthermore, during breaks in the tour, Swift took the time to write and record her latest studio album, The Tortured Poets Department. This album, released in April this year, quickly became a significant feature of the later performances in the tour.
The average ticket price for the tour was $204, a relatively high price that reflects the emotional and financial investment of Swift's fan base. When tickets went on sale in November 2022, unprecedented demand led to 3.5 billion purchase requests, causing Ticketmaster's system to crash. This incident even prompted the U.S. Senate to hold hearings on Ticketmaster's parent company Live Nation, accusing it of having a monopoly in the ticketing market.
Record-breaking box office and ancillary revenue
London's Wembley Stadium became the venue with the highest audience attendance, hosting 8 shows and attracting 753,112 attendees. The highest single-show attendance record was set at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which drew 96,006 attendees for one of its three shows.
It is noteworthy that the revenue of over $2 billion does not include substantial income from merchandise sales. During the tour, many venues set up temporary shops outside, selling hoodies, friendship bracelets, and other merchandise. Additionally, the Eras Tour documentary released in October 2023 has grossed $261 million worldwide, breaking the box office record for concert documentaries. The previous record was held by Justin Bieber's 2011 documentary Never Say Never, which grossed $99 million. The documentary was later released on Disney+, with reports indicating that the platform paid approximately $75 million for it