Why Does It Cost So Much To Climb Everest?

High Adventure Expeditions wishes there was a cheap way to reach the roof of the world. But the reality is that Everest is an expensive mountain to climb; the days of “doing it on the cheap” are pretty much over. In 2021 you’ll need to spend somewhere between $36,000 and $100,000 to be on a climbing team in Nepal. Personally, I wouldn’t want to be on the $36,000 team because corners will have been cut somewhere. I’ll explain:

Firstly, everyone has to pay the Nepal government a permit fee. This is $11,000 per person. Secondly, you’ll need oxygen bottles and equipment. You’ll also need to cover the cost of the oxygen bottles and equipment for the Sherpas that are on your team. You’ll probably want the best quality oxygen mask, the best regulator and the best oxygen (oxygen that has humidity in it can cause freeze-ups at altitude). One of the best chances you’ll have of dying will be if you run out of oxygen high on the mountain – don’t skimp here. So all the O2 equipment will cost you about another $11,000. So you’ve got your permit and your oxygen and you’re already down $22,000.

Staying Warm on Everest:

Now lets add some personal equipment: (prices are estimates):

You can spend a lot more on some of these items than I’ve put down, but you’re probably not going to spend much less. Do you want to get frostbite? No, I thought not. So that’s about another $6,000.

Expedition Equipment:

Now, lets talk about the equipment that your team supplies for you: tents at basecamp for you and all the Sherpa staff. Cooking and dining tents at base camp and C2. Tents for other camps (C1, C3, and C4 at the South Col). Now stoves, gas, pots & pans for all the camps. There are many more items that expeditions need (radios, tables & chairs, first aid & medicines, etc.) and other fees they incur such as the Liaison Officer’s fee (usually over $3000) and his transportation costs. This is a large investment for any company (over $50,000) and you’ll need to pay for part of it.

Food:

You (and your Sherpas) need to eat. For about 6 weeks on the mountain. All that food has to be packed in by porters and yaks. Then some of it is carried up to stock higher camps. This is a huge logistical task, accomplished with mystifying ease by your local team, but it costs thousands.

Mess Tents and Sleeping Tents at Everest Camp 2
Mess Tents and Sleeping Tents at Everest Camp 2

Sherpas:

Let’s talk Sherpas. Even if you don’t have a climbing Sherpa personally assigned to you as you climb (recommended, but around $6,000) you’ll need Sherpa climbers to help fix the line, build the camps, stock the camps (get all those oxygen bottles to C3 and C4) and bring everything down at the end. Most Sherpa are paid a base fee and then a per-load fee. They also get bonuses depending on how far the team members get. As a rule of thumb, you probably need a Sherpa to climber ratio of at least 1:1 to accomplish all this (unless your team is very small or very large). At roughly $5,000 each, you’ll need to pay your share of the Sherpa costs.

Everything Else!

Other expenses that are smaller, but add up are: transportation (your flight from Kathmandu to Lukla), housing costs of hotels (in Kathmandu) and lodges (on the trek to and from EBC), transportation of all the staff, costs of porters and yaks to carry your equipment to base camp, insurance for the Sherpa staff, and tips to kitchen staff & porters.

All these costs add up to making Everest very expensive. I haven’t even mentioned the costs of western guides, partly because there are a few very well run companies that are owned and operated by Nepalis that don’t share the bulk of the western guides’ cost. But experience, resources, and decision making count for something. Reputable companies run by western guides are an excellent option.

Really, today I would expect anyone who wants to climb Everest to be thinking about a total cost starting at $45,000. If its anything less, start to ask yourself “where have they cut corners?”.


For exact amounts in US dollars, you can check out how much it costs to climb Mount Everest, as of 2020, here.