In this post, I break down everything I’ve spent on pickleball since I started playing back in January.
If you’ve been following me on Instagram, then I’m sure you’d know from watching my daily stories (and I even include it in some feed posts too!) that I started playing pickleball at the beginning of this year – and I LOVE IT!
Seriously, starting this hobby has been one of the best decisions I’ve made recently.
But that’s another story for another day.
In this post, I’m sharing how much money I’ve spent on my newfound hobby thus far.
Keep reading if you’re interested in seeing that!
Below, I made a cute little table and categorized each expense by category – court reservations, open play registrations, league expenses, and gear/equipment:
I’ve spent a total of $662 ever since taking up this hobby.
Now let’s break down each expense.
Club Membership – At the beginning of January, a new pickleball club opened up close to where I live so I decided to purchase a membership. This costed $96 and it’s good for the whole year. That equates to $8 a month, which I think is worth it for the benefits members get.
Equipment/Gear – I purchased a pickleball paddle and a pack of balls and spent $96 total on these. I do have plans to pick up some cheap paddles so my friends and family can try it one day.
Court Reservations – You may not remember me talking about this in my stories but I created a short-lived group with people I found on from a local Reddit sub. And it worked! We only went twice but it was still a lot of fun and I loved being able to meet new people and introduce them to a fun sport. It cost me a total of $100 ($50 each) for these court reservations at my club.
Open Plays – I sometimes go to beginner open plays on Saturday mornings in order to learn from others, socialize with new people, and practice my skills. I spent a total of $175 on this.
League – I joined a social pickleball league that ran from late February to early April and I spent $195 to join, making it my biggest single expense on this hobby so far. Through this league, I met so many nice people, had fun playing this sport, learned a lot, and even made a networking connection. So I’d say it was well worth the price!
I wrote this post to show you that, yes, pickleball can be a costly hobby sometimes.
But if you are interested in trying pickleball, don’t let these expenses discourage you from picking up this hobby.
There are many ways to mitigate these expenses – playing outside at a local park that has a court, buying inexpensive paddles and balls from Amazon, not purchasing a membership, etc. It really just depends on your personal preferences!
Since I run a personal finance blog, I thought writing this post would be a fun way to be transparent on the things I spend my money on.
Of course, these expenses probably won’t be the same for you. You may spend more or less depending on your interest level in pickleball. But I thought writing this post would give a general idea on some of the costs you may incur along the way.
(Plus it was interesting for me to see exactly how much I’ve spent!)
With all that being said, I hope you enjoyed this post and even got some value out of it. Feel free to leave a comment below or DM me on Instagram if you have any questions or comments! I’d love to hear from you!