What a jersey bar costs
There is no menu price, because a two-hour backyard party and an eight-hour fan zone are not the same job. Here is exactly what moves the number, so you can estimate before you ever call us.
The six inputs
Every jersey bar quote is built from the same six things. Change any one and the total moves in a way you can predict.
1. Guest count
Not headcount at the party — expected participation. At a wedding welcome party where the jersey bar is the main attraction, nearly everybody goes through. At a large fan zone with six other things happening, participation is a fraction of attendance. Give us your best honest guess and we will plan blanks and lanes against it rather than against the guest list.
2. Hours on the clock
Staffing is $250 per hour and the clock covers setup and teardown, not just the window when guests are present. A four-hour party is usually a six-hour crew day. Building this in up front is why our quotes rarely move afterwards.
3. Who buys the blanks
Jerseys are typically the biggest single line. Sourcing them through us means you get sized stock, a planned size curve and delivery to the venue. Supplying your own removes the line entirely, which is why teams and clubs that already own kit find this format unusually cheap.
4. Lanes and crew size
One press lane plus one operator is the base unit. Two to four lanes covers most guest-facing events. More lanes means more throughput and more cost, so the right question is not "how many can you run" but "how long can my guests reasonably be asked to wait" — then we back into the lane count from there.
5. Art prep
A name-and-number-only bar needs almost no art work. Add a front graphic, a sponsor lockup, a set of design options for guests to choose between, or a custom numeral typeface, and there is real design and file preparation time before the event. It is a modest line, but it is a line.
6. Travel
Zero inside Orange County, Los Angeles and San Diego. $900 outside that radius, which covers the crew getting equipment to the venue and back. Las Vegas and long-haul nationwide programmes are quoted individually and need more lead time, mostly for freight rather than for the crew.
How to make the number smaller
- Shorten the window, not the party. A jersey bar open for three of your five hours still serves nearly everyone, because participation front-loads hard.
- Use jerseys you already own. Removes the largest line item outright.
- Keep the design menu short. Three options prep faster than twelve and photograph better as a set.
- Cap the sizes honestly. Ordering a full curve for a room that skews one direction is money left on a table at the end of the night.
What is always included
Presses and lane equipment, transfers, a trained operator per lane, the tablet intake and queue board, setup and teardown inside the quoted hours, and a finished-item handoff. We do not quote a station and then bill you for the table it sits on.
Common questions about the money
What does a jersey bar cost?
Local staffed stations start around $5,000. Staffing is $250 per hour including setup and teardown, travel is $0 inside Orange County, Los Angeles and San Diego and $900 outside that radius, and most corporate events land between $25 and $40 per guest all in. Guest count, hours and whether we source the jerseys are what move the figure.
Does supplying our own jerseys lower the price?
Yes, meaningfully. Blanks are usually the largest line item on a jersey bar, so a client-supplied garment removes it. You still pay for the crew, the presses, transfer production and travel, but you are no longer buying inventory you might not fully use.
Do we pay for jerseys that never get printed?
You pay for the blanks that are sourced, which is why the guest count conversation matters more here than on most formats. We plan the size curve with you and can cap sizes to avoid over-ordering a size the room will not use.