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Returning to school "costs a lot": Up to 34 thousand lek for one child, over 60 thousand for two

2026-09-14 08:43:51Biznes SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Returning to school "costs a lot": Up to 34 thousand lek for one

Back-to-school presents a paradox: public education is free, but access to it is not. A survey of prices in Tirana shows that, if a family has to buy a backpack, stationery, sneakers and a basic wardrobe from scratch, the September basket can reach around 37,200 lekë for one child. For two or more children, the bill becomes even more expensive…

September has a way of making small expenses seem big. A notebook costs little. A pencil costs little. Even a T-shirt, taken separately, doesn't seem like a blow to the budget.

But school doesn't start with a notebook, a pencil, or a T-shirt. It starts with a list. And lists have the unpleasant habit of, when added together, producing a figure quite different from what the parent had in mind when they entered the store.

In the same basket end up notebooks, pens, colored pencils, rulers, pencil cases, drawing materials, book covers, and dozens of other items that cost from a few dozen to a few hundred lek each. Then comes the bag, usually one of the biggest purchases of the beginning of the year. After it, sneakers, pants, T-shirts, sportswear, and, depending on the school, uniforms.

And that's just the first day. Back to school is not a single expense, but the beginning of a series of small payments that continue even after the first bell has rung. A material that the teacher asks for later, another notebook, photocopies, tools for a project, a pair of sneakers that are only needed for gym or an item of clothing that was missing from the first purchases.

In families with two or three children, these expenses do not always multiply in a direct way, because some things can be inherited from one child to another, but the pressure on the budget increases significantly.

For a family that can reuse last year's bag, buy just a few clothes, or wait for sales, the cost can be significantly lower. For another, where the child's foot size has changed, the bag is worn out, and the wardrobe needs to be refreshed, September is practically starting from scratch. Thus, the cost of school is not determined only by the price of the items, but often also by the economics of reuse.

The bag is no longer a bag.

In the school supplies market, the difference between what we need and what we want can be measured in thousands of lekë. Bags are perhaps the clearest example. At Ramovi's, school models published online range from 1,200–3,000 lekë.

At King Office, the range expands, from around 2,900 lek for some models to 10,900–11,800 lek for wheeled bags or licensed models. A Seven bag released by Zed costs 6,990 lek. For our calculation, we took 6,000 lek as a guide price, a level that stands between economical alternatives and more expensive products.

The large gap between 1,200 and nearly 12,000 lek shows that the school bag is no longer a product with one function and one approximate price. Products that address completely different budgets and requirements are marketed in the same category. One family can choose this part of the list for less than 2,000 lek, while another can spend five or six times more on the bag alone.

The price varies according to the material, dimensions, internal compartments, ergonomic structure, the presence of wheels and additional accessories. But not only that. Part of the difference is related to the brand and license. Movie and animation characters, sports clubs or well-known brands move the product from the category of an ordinary school tool to an item where the design and name are also paid for.

This has also changed the way a bag is purchased. For a parent, the criteria may be weight, durability, and the ability to use it for more than a year. For a child, the decision may be based on a completely different criterion: character, color, pattern, or what their peers have chosen. Where these two requirements meet determines how much will be spent.

For the family, the choice has another calculation: how many years it will be used. A 6,000 or 7,000 lek bag that lasts two or three years may be more economical than a cheaper model that needs to be replaced every September. But this calculation only works if the bag doesn't get small, doesn't get damaged and, perhaps most importantly for children, continues to please them next year.

Notebooks are free. Cart not

Stationery is the best example of September arithmetic. A 32-page notebook costs from 25 lek to 150 lek, depending on the quality of the paper and the quality of the cover. Tool bags are displayed around 1000-2500 lek, while a pack of pencils or pens can cost from a few hundred lek to around 1,200 lek, depending on the model and brand.

Then come the colors, the rulers, the compass, the sharpener, the eraser, the glue, the scissors, the drawing notebook. Each item seems insignificant. Together, not. In the “Monitor” indicative basket, the stationery and basic materials are calculated at about 11,000 lek. When other elements are added, the burden of parents’ payment for a child increases.

But the most expensive part of back-to-school may not be what goes in the bag. It's what you wear. A survey of sportswear and footwear retailers shows that a children's T-shirt often sells for around 1,500-3,600 lekë, while a pair of children's sneakers at Sport Vision ranges widely: from around 3,600 lekë for Champion models, to 5,500-7,900 lekë for Nike models, and up to 10,900 lekë for some higher-end models. For teenagers, the cost easily includes sneakers for 6,500-10,900 lekë.

Back to School Guide Basket – 2026

Note/ The basket is an indicative calculation by “Monitor”, not an official statistic. Prices were revised on September 11, 2026 from offers published online in Tirana and store observations. For items with a wide price range, a representative value of the middle segment was used, not the arithmetic average of the entire market. The total assumes that the main items are purchased from scratch; families that reuse their bags, clothes or shoes will have a lower bill. Books are not counted, which are a high cost for most families.

Two children? Another problem

For a family that doesn't need to replace their bag, sneakers, or entire wardrobe, the bill could be significantly lower. That's why 34,200 lek should not be read as an amount that every parent will pay. They show how much a relatively complete "reset" for the start of school costs, with mid-range products.

For two children, the same basket exceeds 60 thousand lekë, so it is more than a minimum wage. If we compare it with the average wage in our country, which according to INSTAT is 90,119 lekë, the basket for one child is equivalent to about 38% of the average wage; for two children, the weight reaches about 76% of it.

The most direct way to reduce your September bill remains reuse: a bag, a pair of sneakers or clothes that can be used for another year can significantly reduce your basket. While families try to buy only what needs to be replaced, for retailers "Back to School" is one of the seasons of consumption, where offers, sets and licensed products aim to expand the list beyond basic needs. / Deada Hyka / Monitor.al


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