WHERE DOES MY TICKET MONEY GO?
Almost all of Burning Man's revenue comes from tickets purchased by participants. There are other forms of income as well, including merchandise sales (calendars, t-shirts, movies, posters, etc.), but these are nominal at best, and represent only a tiny fraction of Burning Man's total income.
People often claim (or complain) that Burning Man's ticket price is too high. To give some perspective, here's a price comparison, based on data from 2010. We've compared ticket prices to other "comparable" events. These events come closest in terms of scope and scale, but still fail to come anywhere close to the Burning Man experience, particularly given the fact that Black Rock City is a fully-functioning metropolis for 50,000+ people, constructed in the middle of the remote desert:
Coachella (4 days): $269.00 + $57 camping
Bonnaroo (4 days): $249.50 + $23 fees, + $150 RV pass
Rothbury (4 days): $249.50 + $125 RV pass
Glastonbury (5 days): $272 + $21 parking
Burning Man (8 days): $300 (highest of tiered pricing levels)
For the purpose of this comparison, we used our $300 ticket price, the highest price offered in 2010. It should be noted that we also offer tiered pricing levels, including thousands of tickets at cheaper prices (including scholarship and low income tickets), in order to provide less expensive tickets for those in need. People buying at the highest price effectively subsidize those buying lower-priced tickets. Our average ticket price reflects the approximate amount it costs us to produce Burning Man, per person.
Also notable for this comparison is the fact that Burning Man doesn't take (and therefore doesn't profit from) corporate sponsorships or vendor fees, as most other festivals do. On the other hand, Burning Man doesn't pay for publicity, marketing, advertising, or performers, like other festivals do.
If you want to know where your ticket money is spent, you're encouraged to read through our Financials web page. Where you see a "Miscellaneous" line item, that would be the costs incurred when we helicoptered that diamond-encrusted hot tub onto the roof of our Board Secretary's home so she could soak in style. The cost overruns on that one got a little out of hand, admittedly.
If you'd like to know how your money is being utilized in actuality, read the AfterBurn Report, which details what the Burning Man Organization does - as well as how and why - throughout the year to produce the Burning Man event, and to facilitate the expansion and growth of Burning Man culture out in the world. A lot more happens at the Burning Man Organization than most people realize ... you may just be surprised.
Got an opinion about all this? We welcome your feedback at feedback (at) burningman (dot) com. 
