Even the 2024 Met Gala isn’t immune to inflation, it seems. The cost of attending the annual black-tie event, dubbed “fashion’s biggest night,” has risen sharply this year, with the price of an individual ticket surpassing the average down payment on a house.
Officially called The Costume Institute Benefit, the gathering of celebrities from the worlds of entertainment, design, sports and other industries supports the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s fashion-related acquisitions and exhibitions. Attendees often wear extravagant outfits in keeping with the theme of the event.
The co-chairs of this year’s benefit, held on May 6, are Bad Bunny, Chris Hemsworth, Jennifer Lopez, Anna Wintour and Zendaya. It celebrates the opening of the Costume Institute’s spring exhibition, “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.” The dress code? “The Garden of Time,” according to The Met.
The exhibition description provides some clues as to how to translate this into fashion. Tip: Choose styles that evoke nature. It features 250 garments spanning four centuries, which are “visually united by iconography linked to nature, which will serve as a metaphor for the fragility and ephemerality of fashion and a means of examining the cyclical themes of rebirth and renewal,” notes the Met.
But since the gala is a fundraiser, the price of admission isn’t cheap, even if you’re on the exclusive guest list.
How much do Met Gala tickets cost?
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For those invited, the cost of entry to this year’s gala is $75,000, the Met told CBS MoneyWatch. That’s a 50% increase from last year’s price of $50,000.
A table for 10 starts at $350,000, according to The Met.
How much do celebrities have to pay to attend the Met Gala?
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Well, first they have to be invited. Not just anyone can purchase a ticket or table for the event.
Meanwhile, many celebrities don’t pay the full freight. Instead, a design house typically rushes to a table and invites the guests it wants to host, a participant confirmed to CBS MoneyWatch. Thus, for certain particularly brilliant guests, participation is free.
Where do Met Gala ticket profits go?
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Anna Wintour, chief content officer of Condé Nast, global editorial director of Vogue and Met trustee since 1999, controls the event’s guest list. To date, under his leadership, the event has raised more than $223.5 million for the Costume Institute, according to The Met.
Last year’s Met Gala raised nearly $22 million. About 400 guests attended, according to the Associated Press.
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