RESEARCH
How ski-pass prices changed
Adult full-pass launch prices for Epic and Ikon, season by season. Nominal prices are compared with general U.S. consumer inflation, while material access changes are kept visible.
THE PASSTRACKS TAKE
The sticker price rose. The real story is different for each pass.
From 2018–19 through 2026–27, Epic’s launch price rose from $899 to $1,089, or 21%. Ikon rose from $899 to $1,349, or 50%. Through the last complete inflation year, Epic’s 2025–26 launch price was below the 2018 price expressed in 2025 dollars; Ikon’s was above it.
That does not make either pass a constant product. Resort networks, included access and purchase timing changed alongside price.
PRICE HISTORY
One definition, two comparable lines.
Every figure below is the publicly announced U.S. adult price when the full pass first went on sale for that season. Renewal, promotional, final-season and restricted-tier prices are excluded.
Epic
Ikon
| Season | Epic | $ change | % change | Ikon | $ change | % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | $899 | — | — | $899 | — | — |
| 2019–20 | $939 | +40 | +4.4% | $949 | +50 | +5.6% |
| 2020–21 | $979 | +40 | +4.3% | $999 | +50 | +5.3% |
| 2021–22 | $783 | -196 | -20.0% | $999 | +0 | +0.0% |
| 2022–23 | $841 | +58 | +7.4% | $1,079 | +80 | +8.0% |
| 2023–24 | $909 | +68 | +8.1% | $1,159 | +80 | +7.4% |
| 2024–25 | $982 | +73 | +8.0% | $1,249 | +90 | +7.8% |
| 2025–26 | $1,051 | +69 | +7.0% | $1,329 | +80 | +6.4% |
| 2026–27 | $1,089 | +38 | +3.6% | $1,349 | +20 | +1.5% |
WHAT CHANGED YEAR TO YEAR
The two price paths were not smooth.
Epic cut its launch price from $979 to $783 for 2021–22, then increased it in each subsequent launch. The largest later annual increase in this series was $73 for 2024–25. Ikon held at $999 for 2021–22, then rose $80, $80, $90, $80 and $20 across the next five launches.
Over the complete nine-season series, Epic added $190. Ikon added $450.
PRICES VS. INFLATION
General inflation changes the comparison.
Using the BLS CPI-U U.S. city average annual index, $899 in 2018 equals approximately $1,153 in 2025 dollars. Epic launched at $1,051 for 2025–26, about 9% below that benchmark. Ikon launched at $1,329, about 15% above it.
CPI is a benchmark for general U.S. consumer inflation, not ski-industry inflation. The 2026–27 prices remain nominal because 2026 is not a complete calendar year.
THE PASS DID NOT STAY IDENTICAL
Access moved while prices moved.
Epic’s 2022–23 launch described unlimited access to 40 owned resorts; the 2023–24 and 2024–25 launches described 42, with mobile-pass changes and evolving European access. For 2025–26, Verbier access expanded across more pass products.
Ikon’s 2025–26 launch described 61 destinations and added Ischgl; the 2026–27 launch described 76 destinations and expanded Colorado access, including unlimited Arapahoe Basin access on Base. These selected changes matter enough to keep the price lines from being treated as identical products.
WAITING HAS A PRICE
One dated example is clean enough to quantify.
Ikon launched the 2026–27 full pass at $1,349. At the September 25, 2026 observation, its official product page listed $1,449: a $100 increase, or 7.4%. The current adult 23+ price starts at US$1,529. That is a documented comparison between two public windows for the same season and tier. For current 2026/27 tier prices and access restrictions, see our ski-pass market report.
Epic’s official material confirms that prices rose after its launch windows, but the first-party evidence retained for this page does not establish a complete matching sequence of later adult full-pass amounts. We therefore do not publish an Epic waiting-cost number.