Some Steelers fans may not need tips on saving money at Heinz Field…
Indeed, Pittsburgh Steelers ticket prices have been quite reasonable over the last 4 years…
With an average face value price of $85.66 (16th highest), that could be the case —
If you’re a season ticket holder.
And if you’re not? Well, here are some of the costs you face:
- $1079 – real cost index for 2015¹ (9th-highest)
- $286 – average initial resale ticket price for 2013-2016² (8th)
- $114 – cheapest average resale cost for parking (9th)
Scary, no? Especially when you consider that the monthly median household income of $4160¹ (2015) in Pittsburgh ranked 25th among the 31 NFL cities.
How to save money at Heinz Field
Steelers tickets for less
As you can see, Steelers home games can be pricey. But if you’re willing to wait until the last minute, you can lop nearly one-third off the going cost. According to SeatGeek, over the past five years fans who purchased Pittsburgh Steelers tickets the week of the game saved 32% compared to those who bought tickets a month or more out from the game.
It also pays to comparison shop, as you can save $13 bucks per ticket on the get-in price for the Steelers 2017 home opener:
| Stub Hub | Razor Gator | Vivid Seats | Ticket Liquidator | Coast To Coast | Ticket City | Gold Coast | Ticket Monster | Tick Pick | Ticket IQ | Seat Geek |
| $162 | $158 | $160 | $161 | $180 | $159 | $179 | $170 | $153 | $161 | $156 |
Cheap food
At Buckhead Saloon you can get a 1/2-lb burger for $9.95, or a generous-sized hoagie, brisket, or Reuben sandwich for $12.95. Why Buckhead Saloon, you ask? It’s located down the block from the Station Square East garage, where it’ll cost you just $10 to park you car. From there, you can ride the T line shuttle to the stadium for free.
Since you’re allowed to bring your own food to the game, stop by one of the nearby Primanti Bros. and grab one of their iconic sandwiches for less than the price of nachos or popcorn at Heinz Field. While there is a Primanti Bros. inside the stadium, but it doesn’t offer the promotions & discounts that the outside locations do.
Cheap beer
Buckhead Saloon offers daily drink specials, most notably to NFL fans is the $10 bottomless Mimosas and $3 domestic draft beers on Sundays.
Or, for $21 ($15 round-trip fare + $6 parking at the 24 St. garage) – which is about half the face value cost of a stadium parking pass – you can take the Pittsburgh Water Limo, where the beer is $3 and cocktails or wine is $6.
Tailgate Sailgate
For $85, you can join a “sailgate” party aboard a luxury yacht. What do you get?
- Beer/wine,
- All you can eat buffet,
- A short scenic cruise,
- Bar with flat-screen TVs, aaaand…
- An autograph & photo opportunity with a Steeler legend.
This is really not a bad deal, especially when you consider that you can easily spend just as much or more, if hosted your own medium size tailgate party.
Offsite parking
There are over 20,000 additional parking spaces provided by the parking authority garages throughout downtown Pittsburgh. With all of these spaces, you’d think that you wouldn’t have to pay a ridiculous amount for a parking pass online, right?
Here are 15 much, much cheaper options for a Heinz Field parking pass.
Bargain hotels
According to this article, the average daily hotel rate in Pittsburgh is $159 and falling.
And yet, prices for hotels near Heinz Field are going for waaay more than that. The average rate for 4 of the hotels nearest to the stadium is $416.50*.
| Hotels near Heinz Field Pittsburgh PA | Avg. rate* | Avg. rating** |
|---|---|---|
| Comfort Inn & Suites, 1100 Banksville Rd | $115 | 90 |
| DoubleTree by Hilton, 500 Mansfield Ave | $116 | 83 |
| Quality Inn, 3401 Boulevard of the Allies | $149 | 72 |
| Wyndham Pittsburgh, 100 Lytton Ave | $151 | 80 |
| Crowne Plaza Pittsburgh, 401 Holiday Dr | $174 | 84 |
| Residence Inn, 574 W Gen. Robinson St | $328 | 92 |
| Allegheny Inn, 1010 Cedar Ave | $349 | 98 |
| Fairmont Pittsburgh, 410 Market St | $390 | 95 |
| Hyatt Place Pittsburgh, 260 N Shore Dr | $599 | 86 |
* Rates are the average from 3 sites for a 1-night stay (12/10 – 12/11/2017).
**Ratings are based upon cumulative scores from at least 3 of 4 sites (Expedia, hotels.com, booking.com, & Kayak) – a 3 (out of 5) rating on Expedia = 60, 7 (out of 10) rating on booking.com = 70.
As you can see, the pricier hotels are very highly rated, and they’re closer to the stadium (within 1.3 miles). With a cumulative rating of 82, the bargain spots aren’t too shabby either, and they’re not much further (within 5 miles). Best of all, they’re about one-third the cost.