The same LEGO set, 58 % apart: how much prices differ between shops

Price comparison only matters if prices actually differ. For LEGO they differ a great deal. On 23 September 2026 we looked at every set in our Danish catalogue that was in stock at three or more of the 19 retailers we track: 864 sets. For each one we compared the cheapest in-stock price with the most expensive.

The size of the gap

• For the median set, the most expensive shop charged 58 % more than the cheapest.
• For one set in ten, the gap was 76 % or more.

These are not marketplace outliers priced at three times RRP; they are ordinary retailers, all with the set in stock, on the same day. On a set with a four-figure price, a gap of that size is several hundred kroner, or the price of a second, smaller set.

Where the gap comes from

RRP anchoring. Some retailers, particularly physical toy chains and LEGO's own channels, price at the recommended retail price and stay there. They compete on range and service rather than price, and they are usually the top of the spread.

Policy discounters. Several online retailers price their entire LEGO range a fixed percentage below RRP as a matter of policy. They are rarely the absolute cheapest on any given set, but they are reliably below the anchor shops.

Promotions and clearance. The bottom of the spread is almost always a temporary promotion at one shop: a weekly offer, a multi-buy, or stock being cleared ahead of retirement. These are the prices that produce the 40-50 % discounts described in our guide on how often LEGO goes on sale. They are also the prices that vanish first.

Stock position. A retailer with a pallet of a slow-moving set prices differently from one with two boxes left. That is why the spread widens for sets late in their life.

Shipping can close the gap or reopen it

The spread above is on item price. Where retailers publish shipping costs, Brickheist ranks by the total, because a set that is 30 kroner cheaper but 60 kroner more to ship is not cheaper. On small sets shipping can be the entire difference; on large sets it rarely matters. Free-shipping thresholds are the reason bundling a second, small set with a large one is often the cheapest way to buy both.

How to be on the right side of the spread

1. Compare every time. The cheapest shop changes from set to set and from week to week. The retailer that wins on a Star Wars UCS set is not necessarily the one that wins on a Friends house.
2. Check the total, not the sticker. Include shipping, and be wary of a low price that requires a membership or a minimum basket.
3. Use the price history to judge the bottom. If the cheapest price today is also the lowest we have ever recorded, buy. If the set has been cheaper before, an alert will tell you when it happens again.
4. Distrust "was" prices. A retailer's own crossed-out price tells you nothing. Only the comparison to RRP, and to other shops, does. Our price per piece figure helps when comparing sets of different sizes.

How we collect the prices behind these figures, and why no retailer can pay for placement, is described on our methodology page. The short version: every price is fetched daily, every change is logged, and the cheapest total always comes first.