How do LEGO retirements work? Why do some sets stay on shelves for years while others disappear quickly? How can you ensure you don’t miss out on a set before it’s found its way off the shelf and into the secondary market? In this Guide to LEGO Retirement Dates we’ll explore the retirement cycles, factors that influence duration and pricing and how to stay current on the retirement dates of your desired sets. Understanding how LEGO retirement dates work can help you better plan your purchases by prioritizing the sets you want and making sure you get them at a good price before they are no longer readily available.
Why retirement dates matter
LEGO has become more than just a toy for children; it has become a collector’s item and an investment for many. For most, retirement dates matter because you want to make sure you get that set while you can before the prices go up in the secondary market. Others rely on that secondary market and the fact that you didn’t purchase your set within the allotted timeframe to make profits. FOMO, or fear of missing out, is a driving force in LEGO sales. When a popular set, or sets, release there will be lines at the LEGO store and getting into lego.com can be difficult. However, knowing when a set will retire allows you time to save for the set and often find it on sale the closer it gets to retirement. That does mean that you have to curb your excitement for a bit and wait it out if you want to save money.
How long are LEGO sets available?
On average, most LEGO sets remain in production for 1 to 2 years before being retired. However, this varies widely depending on factors like sales performance, theme popularity, seasonal offerings and special edition sets. Standard LEGO themes such as City, Friends, Speed Champions and Ninjago are usually produced to this standard. Limited edition and seasonal sets are meant for a short run only and can retire within a year of being released. Larger and more iconic sets like UCS Star Wars, LEGO Icons and modular buildings can remain available for 3 to 5 years and sometimes longer.
Why do LEGO sets retire?
Money. Sales performance and profits are the driving force for LEGO set retirements. If a set is underperforming the originally planned retirement date can be moved up. Retiring a set allows for more room on the shelves for more desired and better selling sets. If a set is consistently selling well the retirement date may be pushed back and more may go into production to allow a longer run.
Some sets however, were meant to exist for a very short specified time. For example, LEGO Advent Calendars for Disney, Star Wars, Harry Potter, City and Minecraft are released each year around September and retire at the end of the year after Christmas. Though these sets tend to have some great minifigs and sell very well, their designed use just doesn’t work for eleven months of the year.
Another reason LEGO sets retire is licensed theme rotation. Themes like Star Wars have large cannon with new shows and movies coming out frequently. The fans range from die-hard original trilogy to Clone Wars army builders to Mandalorian must-haves. In order to meet the demand, and sales figures for the licensed theme, these sets are often retired to make room for new sets to keep collectors interested and stay fresh based on the new films. LEGO Disney sets and themes like Wednesday and Wicked work the same. Disney has many classic films to explore while constantly releasing new popular films. Wednesday and Wicked have a short span of hyped popularity allowing sets to be produced with dependable sales but only while the hype lasts. Once the shows are older and there is a new popular show out LEGO will switch their attention to the new show.
What causes LEGO prices to go up when sets retire?
LEGO set prices go up when they retire for a few reasons. First, and foremost, is availability. When a product is no longer in production, or being sold in stores, it makes it more difficult to get that set. You can no longer go to lego.com or walk into your local toy retailer and walk out with the LEGO set you want. Now, if you really must have that desired set, you have to scour the internet markets and visit resale stores to get a price that you can accept. Luckily we have the internet now. Before the web if you were looking for a collectible item it was very difficult and prices were sky high. A great example of this is Star Wars action figures by Kenner. Princess Leia out of package would have cost you $800! But with the internet, and the birth of eBay, you can now get that figure for under $100.
Another reason prices increase is the minifigs. Though many minifigures can be found in multiple sets there are a lot that are exclusive to one set. Sticking with the Star Wars examples, you may have the Lando Calrissian minifig appear in multiple sets but only a special print, cape or color variation came in just one set. You can get a Lando figure for a few bucks but the Cloud City Smooth Hair Lando Calrissian from set 10123 Cloud City will cost you several hundred dollars to add to your collection. And if you want the complete set you’re spending thousands!
Let’s not forget about the basic building brick that is LEGO itself. Some sets contain special molds or colors that cannot be found in any other sets or it was the last time they were used in a set. A great example of this is brick 1×2 with groove in sand green found in 2011’s 10217 Diagon Alley and 2008’s 10185 Green Grocer. Because this was a limited element that became no longer available, and came in abundance in the Green Grocer set, it contributed to the price of the set going up to a couple thousand dollars. Even if you wanted to build the set from scratch with your own pieces and source pieces from BrickLink, those pieces alone are around $4 each and there were 54 of them in the set. That’s over $200 just for those bricks! However, with the release of 11371 Shopping Street in January 2026, those pieces in that color are available again and hopefully will cause a price drop in the Green Grocer set to make it more affordable to add to your modular city if you didn’t get a chance to acquire it when it was out.
Useful tips for buying LEGO sets before they retire
Stay up to date on retirement dates as they can change constantly depending on sales performance and production. LEGO Sets: Retirement Dates and Price Per Piece is updated frequently and new sets are added every time LEGO makes an official announcement.
Prioritize your must-have sets. Most of us don’t have millions of dollars, or even hundreds, to spend on LEGO every time a set we want comes out. Keeping an eye on retirement dates allows you to budget for the sets you want and make your purchases wisely, providing more opportunity to get that big expensive set like the Death Star.
Waiting to get a set until it gets closer to retirement can also mean savings. Many sets, even on lego.com, can be discounted as much as 40%. Be careful with this method as you may not be the only one waiting for the price to drop and once it does that set may sell out before you can even get it in your cart.