Fireworks are so expensive right now mainly because of higher import, shipping, and production costs layered on top of inflation and tariffs, all passed down to consumers. Most consumer fireworks in the U.S. are made in China, so any disruption or extra cost in that supply chain hits your wallet fast.

Quick Scoop

The basic money math

  • Import dependence: Around 90–99% of U.S. fireworks are imported from China, so prices are tied to global shipping rates, fuel costs, and trade policy rather than local costs. When those go up, the shelf price jumps too.
  • Inflation stacking: From 2019 to 2022, U.S. fireworks costs rose roughly 50%, and wholesale prices per pound jumped about 42% from 2021 to early 2024, which retailers then pass on to buyers.

Shipping, fuel, and “hazmat” headaches

  • Expensive to ship: Fireworks are classified as hazardous materials, so they need special handling, paperwork, and insurance, making each container more costly than regular goods.
  • Fuel and logistics: Rising fuel prices and pandemic-era shipping snarls pushed freight costs way up, and while some pressures eased, the higher baseline prices never fully dropped back down.

Tariffs and geopolitics

  • Tariffs on Chinese goods: Recent U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports add a direct surcharge to fireworks, since almost the entire consumer market is imported.
  • Limited alternatives: Industry voices point out that “re-shoring” fireworks manufacturing to the U.S. is nearly impossible at the scale of hundreds of millions of pounds per year, so there’s no cheap backup source.

Retail markups and “BOGO” psychology

  • Seasonal, high-risk business: Stands and tents operate for a short window, need temporary staff, permits, and insurance, so they bake all that risk and cost into each item’s price.
  • Big “deals,” big margins: Forum discussions often complain that buy-one-get-one and “spend $800, get a bonus” deals mask high base prices and rely on people overbuying for the spectacle.

Demand, trends, and the post-2020 hangover

  • Pandemic spike, post-pandemic drag: Backyard fireworks boomed when big shows were canceled, pushing demand and prices up; in recent years, demand has cooled but the higher price structure largely stayed.
  • Squeezed shows and families: Reports in 2025 note that family bundles that once cost about $100 can now run over $200, and some cities are trimming or canceling displays because of budget strain.

“Why are fireworks so expensive?” is really “Why did every layer of the supply chain get more expensive at once?” — from Chinese factories to U.S. ports to your local tent.

Forum flavor & public sentiment

  • Some people now skip fireworks entirely, calling them a waste of money and noise, especially as prices rise.
  • Others still justify the cost as a once-a-year tradition, but you see more people looking for community shows or smaller packs instead of huge backyard “finales.”

TL;DR: Fireworks are expensive because they are heavily imported, costly and risky to ship, hit by tariffs and inflation, and sold through short-season businesses that need high margins to survive.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.