PITTSBURGH — The cost of celebrating Christmas is climbing again. Now in its 42nd year, the PNC Christmas Price Index (PNC CPI) reveals that the cost of the gifts from the classic holiday carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas” has risen 4.5% compared to last year, outpacing the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (BLS CPI) October yearover- year reading of 3.0%.
The PNC CPI, launched in 1984, is a light-hearted take on the BLS CPI and measures the change in prices consumers could expect to pay for True Love’s gifts. Data is compiled by PNC’s Investment Office using sources from across the country, including dance and theatre companies, hatcheries, pet stores and others. Overall, the 12 gifts that comprise the PNC CPI increased to a tree-topping $51,476.12 this year.
“This year’s increase reflects labor market pressures and economic uncertainty, not tariffs — True Love’s list is all domestic,” says Amanda Agati, chief investment officer of PNC Asset Management Group.
Purchasing all 364 gifts is really going to hit the wallet this year – the “True Cost of Christmas,” that is buying the gifts with verses repeated – is 4.4% higher at a whopping $218,542.98. Tech-savvy Santas might avoid long lines and parking lot adventures by shopping online with its lower inflation rate of 3.1%, but the total shopping bill remains higher at $55,748.05. The convenience of shopping from home is still impacted by elevated shipping and packaging costs.
All that glitters is gold
Five gold rings shine bright, soaring 32.5% yearover- year, the single largest increase by far in 2025, but a bargain compared to the 45.0% jump in gold prices, as of October 31, 2025. The surge wasn’t holiday magic, it was driven by macroeconomic forces that made investors flock to precious metals. Persistent inflationary pressures and expectations of Federal Reserve (Fed) rate cuts lowered the opportunity cost of holding gold, making it more attractive than yield-bearing assets. A frosty U.S. dollar, -4.0% yearover- year as of October 31, 2025, also made gold shine brighter.
Performance pricing pops
The nine ladies dancing, 10 lords-a-leaping, 11 pipers piping and 12 drummers drumming might demand an ovation this year. In aggregate, prices for performers increased 5.4% this year, an encore on top of last year’s 7.9%.
Inflation trends repeat, much like the verses of the song itself
• Although the partridge was unchanged, there was a 14.3% jump in price for the pear tree. Land, labor and fertilizer have driven up tree prices this year. The pear tree can also serve as a proxy for housing costs, which likewise continue to move higher despite average mortgage rates falling off the rooftop by more than 100bps versus a year ago.
• Prices held steady this year for the two turtle doves, three French hens, four calling birds, seven swans-a-swimming and eight maids-a-milking.
• The core version of the PNC CPI, just like the core version of the BLS CPI, which excludes the most volatile components of the index (the swans for the PNC Index and food/energy in CPI), is up 6.1%. Swans typically have the most volatile price among items in the PNC CPI, however, this year, prices remained flat. That might actually be a positive signal for investors who have been bracing for investment “black swan” sightings or finding coal in their stocking even as the market continues to hit new highs.
“With the Fed signaling looser policy, 2026 will reveal whether inflation finally cools or remains the lump of coal in holiday stockings,” Agati says.
Here’s 2025’s prices for “The Twelve Days of Christmas:”
On the first day
Cost for a partridge in a pear tree is $420.18, up 13.5% over last year.
Buying a partridge in a pear tree for your true love this year? You’ll pay 13.5% more for it than last year. But don’t blame the bird. Its pear tree home – impacted by land, labor and fertilizer costs – is entirely responsible for the growing price tag.
On the second day
Two turtle doves costs $750, the same as a year ago.
The two turtle doves didn’t raise their price this year, but at $750 they’re still a surprisingly expensive gift on True Love’s list. It’s a good thing they prefer telephone wires to pear trees.
On the third day
The cost of three French hens remains the same as last year at $346.50.
The hens demanded a modest raise in 2024, but they’re status quo this year. They’re still $346.50 and still the cheapest group of birds True Love has to track down.
On the fourth day
Four calling birds costs $599.96, the same as a year ago.
If consistency were a virtue, these calling birds would be the most noble gift in the index. Their price hasn’t changed since 2014.
On the fifth day
Cost for five gold rings is up 32.5% from last year at $1,649.90.
Inflation, Fed rate cut expectations and a declining U.S. dollar have sent investors racing for gold and other precious metals. The subsequent 32.5% increase in the price of the five gold rings may have you racing to other options this holiday season.
On the sixth day
Six geese-a-laying cost only 3.3% more than a year ago at $930.
Geese are loud creatures – honking for all manner of reasons and likely no reason at all. That’s why their modest 3.3% increase feels so uncharacteristically quiet this year.
On the seventh day
There’s no change for seven swans-a-swimming, still at $13,125.
The swans had the decency not to raise their price in this economically turbulent year. They just weren’t decent enough to drop the $13,125 price tag or relinquish their spot as the most expensive group of birds in the index.
On the eighth day
The cost for eight maids-a-milking remains unchanged at $58.
Tied to the Federal Minimum Wage, the eight maids-a-milking remain priced at $58 this year.
On the ninth day
Nine ladies dancing will cost $8,856.88, up 3.5% from a year ago.
Sometimes being third is great. Just ask the nine ladies dancing, who keep raising their price – another 3.5% in 2025 – and their status as the third most expensive item on True Love’s shopping list.
On the 10th day
It costs 8.1% more this year at $16,836.14 for 10 lords-a-leaping.
The lords leapt the swans as the most expensive gift in the index a few years back and apparently nobody told them there’s nobody left to leap. They’re tacking another 8.1% on True Love’s bill in 2025 as live entertainment costs continue to rise.
On the 11th day
Eleven pipers piping cost $3,797.48, up 2.2% over last year.
If it’s cheap entertainment ideas you seek from the index, well, there are no options. But the Eleven Pipers Piping are the most affordable, with their price tag jumping just 2.2% this year due to the rising cost of performers.
On the 12th day
Also up 2.2% from a year ago are 12 drummers drumming, at $4,106.08.
Being the last item on the shopping list means sometimes you are forgotten. But we haven’t forgotten the drummers, and they haven’t forgotten to price in the increased cost of performers this year – another 2.2% in 2025.
About the CPI
The PNC CPI is an annual tradition which shows the current cost for one set of each of the gifts given in the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” It is similar to the U.S. Consumer Price Index, which measures the changing prices of goods and services like housing, food, clothing, transportation and more that reflect the spending habits of the average American.
The goods and services in the PNC CPI are far more whimsical, of course. And most years, the price changes closely mirror those in the U.S. CPI. It’s a fun way to measure consumer spending and trends in the economy. So, even if pipers piping or geesea- laying didn’t make your gift list this year, you can still learn a lot by checking out why their prices have increased or decreased over the years.
It all started 42 years ago as a way to engage clients during the traditionally light holiday weeks. What hatched as the creative brainchild of the bank’s thenchief economist has since grown into one of PNC’s most popular and anticipated economic reports.
Over the years, trends have emerged, and the PNC CPI has often increased or decreased at a rate consistent with the U.S. CPI, a measure of inflation produced by the U.S. Department of Labor. Four factors have largely driven changes in the index over the past 42 years:
• The Internet makes it easier to find the gifts from the song online, but these goods and services tend to be expensive, mainly due to added shipping and handling costs.
• The price of services overall has increased, while the price of goods has slowed. This is a flip from 42 years ago, when goods were much higher than services.
• Fuel costs have a major effect on the cost of shipping. And, as we know, fuel prices have been especially volatile over the past few years.
Since the PNC CPI launched, the BLS CPI has increased 223%, while the PNC CPI increased 157%. The methodology differences are obviously going to give distinct results, but the overall inflation trends have remained remarkably consistent over the years.
