When getting into the paintball industry you may be wondering how much does paintball cost? Well, let’s dive into it! Paintball is a sport that’s growing in popularity each year. What’s not to love about this fun pastime? You can play with friends and family, and you can even get competitive if you so choose. Once you have decided that paintball is for you then you have to look into the cost of the hobby.
How Much Does Paintballing Cost?
If you’ve ever wanted to give paintball a try, you’re probably wondering how much paintballing costs. If you’re an adult, expect to pay anywhere from $10-$20 per person for a day ticket for a field paintball game. But, you can expect to pay up $20-30 for equipment rental if you don’t have your own gear though.
Depending on where you play, you will ultimately need to purchase some protection and a paintball gun, which can increase the price quite a lot. But, if you’re serious about paintballing then this can pay off quite nicely as you won’t need to rent gear every time and you can customize your gun to make it exactly how you want it to look and perform!
You can also often get deals for your local field, you can often get season passes for a hundred or two hundred dollars a year which gives you unlimited access to the field.
Whether you’re a drop-in player for one of your friends or part of a league, the cost for most fields is just about $18 per person per season.
How Much Does it Cost to go Paintballing?
If you are going to rent everything then you can get away with spending less than $50 each for a fun day with your friends. You will need to pay for a day pass which is typically about $10-$20 and rental equipment which will be about $20-$30!
But if you’re looking into really getting serious in the sport and buying your own equipment I will break down the cost.
Paintball Gun
Typically paintball guns are the biggest expense when getting into the hobby. You can expect to spend about $200 on a decent mid-quality gun that you will be able to use for a year or two. You can also opt to a starter kit which will include low-quality gear just to get you started. Those starter kits usually are about $200 but they include a gun, mask, hopper, Co2 or compressed air for the gun, and some protection.
These starter kits are pretty good value, but you pay for what you get so you can’t expect the quality to be amazing with these cheaper $200 all in one kits!
Mask
A mask or some type of eye and face protective equipment is vital to playing paintball, fields won’t let you play without the proper safety gear. They help protect your face and eyes from any paintballs which could seriously injure you, if not even blind you.
Most paintball masks will cost you about $50, but they can go up to over $150 for a high-quality mask such as the dye 14 or i5 which are top of the line and offer the best protection.
Season Pass
If you are really serious about playing paintball then it may be worth getting a season pass to your favorite local field. Instead of paying $10-$30 every time you want to use their field you can get a season pass for unlimited uses a year for a set price.
Since this is a huge deal the season passes often cost about $200-$300 a year, but if you are visiting over 20 times a year it can make it well worth it!
Paintballs
Obviously, you will need some paintballs to shoot! So we have to factor that in. You can get about 2,000 paintballs for about $40 online, or you can buy them usually from your paintball field for a little bit more about 50-60 since they put a bit of a premium on them.
It is definitely worth buying your paintballs in advance instead of coming short at the field and having an unpleasant expense.
Air Tank
Usually, your paintball gun will come with an air tank, but you may need to get an extra at some point so we included this in our paintballing cost guide. Air tanks can cost about $50-$70, but they usually last you for quite a long time, and refilling your co2 tank only costs a few dollars!
What are the base costs of playing paintball?
The regular entry fee to a paintball field is usually around $30 per person. The cost of each additional pod of paintballs you buy is usually around $15. For reference, my local field charges $20 for 500 paintballs, or you can do 2000 paintballs for $65. You can even do bulk deals for 10 or more players you can get the price down to $25 per person for rentals and an all-day pass.
The cost of renting a marker (the paintball gun) is around $25 to rent for a day. You can usually rent a pod pack (the backpack to carry your pods of paintballs in) for around $7.
For my friend and I to play it costs a total of about $50, which includes a weekly pass for three months, a paintball gun, and enough paintballs to last for quite a while.
Let’s break down each of the costs so you understand how much you’ll have to spend in order to get started with playing paintball! Each weekend, we typically go to a different field to switch it up!
What makes a good paintball field worth it?
The first thing you need to look at when considering playing paintball is where you will be playing! The field is the most important part of the experience because that’s where the paintball action takes place. The quality of the field will determine how much fun you can have. The fields are usually made of wood or plastic. Both types of fields are available at the major facilities.
They differ mainly in the depth of the holes and whether or not they have lighting. The cost of the field will also affect the price you pay. It can range from a few dollars a day to a quite considerable increase for a super nice field. The price of the field will usually consist of rent (if the facility is at all available), insurance, and maintenance fees. These can rack up quite quickly for field owners so they have to push the price up for the consumer.
Paintball is a sport that requires tremendous forethought when choosing the right facility. These factors will affect the overall cost of the paintball field. My local field has decommissioned helicopters and cars to replicate a war-torn land which really makes the experience special. But, those cool vehicals and excavators to build bunkers costs quite a lot of money.
You also need to consider the size of the field and make sure it is big enough for you and all of your team to comfortably play and have fun! Because, what fun is paintball without your group!
How much does a paintball gun cost?
Paintball guns are generally priced based on their quality and their features. Entry-level guns will cost you less than $200. Mid-level guns will cost between $200 – $400. High-end paintball guns will cost more than $400 and up to $800.
Here are the different types of paintball guns: The features on a gun typically come down to their price point. However, there are some features that will fluctuate based on the market availability of certain types of guns. For example, the price of a paintball gun will increase over time because more affordable models will come out.
If you are just starting out then you probably don’t need to go with an over-the-top expensive gun, I would opt to get a cheaper option that you can modify to your needs as you get more involved in paintball.
Paintball guns have several parts that are used: There is a big difference between a high-end and mid-range gun. The mid-range guns will have some great attachments and components, while the high-end guns will have the most advanced features and you can really tell the difference.
Certain accessories might be exclusive to a specific brand of gun. For example, the AR-15 is a popular gun that has accessory options.
Some of those included tactical straps, flashlights, lasers, vertical grips, and suppressors are often specific to just that gun so you have to watch out for that! Something else to consider is paintball guns can also be played in your yard, but keep in mind that the range must be at least 300 feet away from your home. This keeps you away from doing harm to windows, siding, and anyone who may have the misfortune of getting hit by a stray paintball.
Paintball guns aren’t too big of an issue, but they do need to be contained and kept at a safe distance from any children. When it comes to their safety, both recreational and pro-paintball guns typically have two things in common. Safety training is definitely nice to have when you’re new to the sport. It helps make sure you can properly take care of your new marker and can make informed decisions of when and where to shoot.
The safety training can cover everything from the rules of the game to basic first aid techniques. Depending on the safety training used, it can often take six to eight weeks to learn the proper shooting techniques, as well as the various shooting stances. Rules vary by tournament organization. If you are very serious about paintball then it may be worth looking into some safety training as it helps you be more knowledgable and competitive on the field.
Oliver has been a paintball enthusiast since he first stepped on the field at just 11. He quickly joined clubs and teams all throughout New Hampshire! He started Paintball Hive to share his passion and knowledge with other paintball heads out there!