Finances of Fortnite (Season 2): In-Game Spending Increases by 21%

Nearly two years ago, as Fortnite-mania was sweeping the planet, we released the results of a survey of 1,000 Fortnite gamers that found some pretty interesting trends, especially those of a financial nature.

The free cooperative survival game that makes its money off optional in-game purchases is still going strong in 2020 and has changed the industry landscape forever.

With Fortnite not showing any signs of slowing down, we decided to revisit the topic by surveying 1,000 Fortnite gamers to see how their habits have changed since 2018.

Click here to jump to the full survey results

Observations & Analysis

Fortnite In-Game Spending Has Increased in Frequency & Amount

When we first conducted this survey in June of 2018, 69% of respondents indicated that they had spent money on Fortnite in-game purchases. This time around, that increased by eight percentage points, with 77% of respondents in 2020 stating that they have spent money on the video game.

And, Fortnite spenders are coughing up quite a bit more cash on average compared to our first Finances of Fortnite report.

Average spending on in-game purchases increased by 21% between the 2018 and 2020 surveys, rising from $84.67 to $102.42. Additionally, we found that 58% of the total money spent by the average Fortnite spender in 2020 was done in the last 12 months, which perhaps serves as proof that this video game phenomenon has no intention of slowing down.

Interestingly, 35% Fortnite spenders from the 2020 survey admitted they were unaware that in-game purchases did not give them an advantage over other players. That percentage was only 20% in the 2018 study.

For 34% of this year’s spenders, Fortnite was the first game that they started making in-game purchases, which was close to the first report’s percentage of 37%. Fortnite being able to bring in a considerable percentage of first-time in-game purchasers speaks volumes of the game’s uniqueness.

About That IRS Thing…

With tax season upon us, there have been some stories circulating that the IRS was going to require tax filers to report their V-bucks in this year’s tax forms. V-bucks are the in-game currency provided to Fortnite gamers to spend after they have deposited real dollars.

Up until this past Wednesday, February 12th, the IRS guidance for taxpayers included language that V-bucks were to be treated like virtual currency and would subsequently need to be declared on tax forms. The IRS guidance stated the following:

“Virtual currency that has an equivalent value in real currency, or that acts as a substitute for real currency, is referred to as ‘convertible’ virtual currency. Bitcoin, Ether, Roblox, and V-bucks are a few examples of a convertible virtual currency.”

After attention was brought to this, the IRS removed the language on its website referring to V-bucks, but confusion remains as the agency has maintained the definition of a convertible virtual currency and has not yet excluded in-game currencies from that definition.

We asked our Fortnite in-game spenders a couple of questions related to this.

Judging from the results of question five, it appears the confusion surrounding this issue has carried over to Fortnite in-game purchasers as well.

Looking at Video Game-Related Spending Outside of Fortnite In-Game Purchases

The video game industry, in part due to the advent of Fortnite, has boomed in recent years and evolved into something much, much bigger than the days of buying a game at GameStop, beating it, and then returning it.

There are eSport leagues that pit video game teams from cities against each other and mega-star gamers like Ninja, who reportedly makes $18 million a year largely from playing video games.

We asked some questions related to these other moneymakers revolving around video games. For example, 50% of respondents have paid for merchandise related to Fortnite or a specific video game streamer like Ninja, who has his own Adidas apparel line.

A couple of the questions were related to Twitch, the video game streaming service that enables consumers to buy subscriptions to watch certain professional gamers. In 2020, 22% of respondents pay for a Twitch subscription account, while 76% do not. Comparatively, 25% of respondents from the 2018 survey indicated they paid for a Twitch subscription account, while 72% had not.

eSports vs. Traditional Sports

The last three questions of the survey pitted eSports against traditional sports to gauge how much ground, if any, video games are making on sports like baseball, football, and basketball, amongst others.

Before you scoff at that notion, major cities around the world are building eSport stadiums that can host tens of thousands of spectators, while eSport tournaments are easily attracting tens of millions of viewers via television and other streaming mediums.

While eSport’s takeover of traditional sports will not happen overnight, the numbers from the questions are certainly encouraging for eSport fans and are indicative of the major inroads the burgeoning industry has made already.

Compared to 2018, It Appears Fortnite Has Become Slightly Less Time Consuming

In both versions of the Fortnite survey, poll participants were asked to estimate how many hours per week they spend playing the cooperative survival game.

And, judging by the results it looks like Fortnite gamers are committing slightly less time each week to playing the video game.

Full Survey Results

All survey results come from an online survey of 1,000 Americans that play Fortnite. The survey was commissioned by LendEDU and conducted by Pollfish.

(1) Have you ever spent money on in-game purchases for Fortnite?

• 77% of respondents answered “Yes”
• 21% of respondents answered “No”
• 2% of respondents answered “I’d rather not say”

(2 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q1) In your best estimation, how much money have you spent in total on in-game purchases for Fortnite?

• The average Fortnite player that has spent money on the game has spent $102.42 on in-game purchases.
• Encompassing all Fortnite players (spenders & non-spenders), the average amount spent on in-game purchases was $78.55.

(3 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q1) What percentage of your total money spent on Fortnite in-game purchases has been spent in the last 12 months?

• 58% of the total money spent by the average Fortnite player that has spent money on in-game purchases has been spent in the last 12 months.

(4 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q1) Are you aware that the IRS had included language that would require the use of in-game virtual currency that was purchased with real dollars, like V-bucks, to be reported on tax forms?

• 25% of respondents answered “Yes”
• 75% of respondents answered “No”

(5 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q1) While the IRS has since scrubbed that language, many still believe video game currencies will need to be reported on tax returns. Do you, or your parents, plan on accounting for dollars spent on V-bucks when filing taxes this year?

• 30% of respondents answered “Yes”
• 63% of respondents answered “No”
• 7% of respondents answered “I’d rather not say”

(6 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q1) Are you aware that in-game Fortnite purchases do not give you an advantage over other players?

• 65% of respondents answered “Yes”
• 35% of respondents answered “No”

(7 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q1) Did you ever pay for in-game purchases before you started playing Fortnite?

• 64% of respondents answered “Yes, I have always done this.”
• 34% of respondents answered “No, Fortnite was the first game I started purchasing in-game.”
• 2% of respondents answered “I’d rather not say”

(8 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q1) Have you ever used a credit card, either your own or your parents, to make in-game purchases on Fortnite?

• 79% of respondents answered “Yes”
• 19% of respondents answered “No”
• 2% of respondents answered “I’d rather not say”

(9 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q1 & “Yes” to Q8) After using the credit card for in-game Fortnite purchases was the balance from those purchases paid off during the next credit card billing cycle?

• 89% of respondents answered “Yes”
• 10% of respondents answered “No”
• 1% of respondents answered “I’d rather not say”

(10) Have you ever paid for merchandise related to Fortnite (ex. a Fortnite shirt) or a specific streamer (ex. Ninja’s Adidas apparel line)?

• 50% of respondents answered “Yes”
• 49% of respondents answered “No”
• 1% of respondents answered “I’d rather not say”

(11) Do you pay for a Twitch subscription account to watch other people (ex. Ninja) play Fortnite?

• 22% of respondents answered “Yes”
• 76% of respondents answered “No”
• 2% of respondents answered “I’d rather not say”

(12 – Asked only to those who answered “Yes” to Q11) How much money do you pay per month as part of your Twitch subscription?

• 29% of respondents answered “$4.99”
• 57% of respondents answered “$9.99”
• 14% of respondents answered “$24.99”

(13) In your best estimation, how many hours per week do you spend playing Fortnite?

• 36% of respondents answered “0 to 5 hours”
• 34% of respondents answered “6 to 10 hours”
• 17% of respondents answered “11 to 15 hours”
• 8% of respondents answered “16 to 20 hours”
• 5% of respondents answered “21 hours or more”

(14) Would you rather pay money to watch someone, like Ninja, play Fortnite or watch a major sporting event, like the Super Bowl, for free?

• 21% of respondents answered “Pay to watch someone play Fortnite“
• 67% of respondents answered “Watch a major sporting event for free”
• 12% of respondents answered “Not sure”

(15) Would you rather pay money to watch someone, like Ninja, play Fortnite or pay to watch a major pay-per-view sporting event, like a title UFC Fight?

• 31% of respondents answered “Pay to watch someone play Fortnite“
• 52% of respondents answered “Pay to watch a major pay-per-view fight”
• 17% of respondents answered “Not sure”

(16) Are you a bigger fan of eSport leagues or professional sport leagues, like the MLB, NFL, or NBA?

• 21% of respondents answered “eSport leagues”
• 68% of respondents answered “Major sport leagues”
• 11% of respondents answered “Not sure”

Ways to Finance Fortnite Purchases

It’s no secret anymore that gamers are spending a whole ton of cash on the video game Fortnite.

LendEDU highlights ways that Fortnite gamers can finance their in-game purchases.

Credit Card

Perhaps the most traditional method of financing, a credit card could certainly be used to afford additional Fortnite purchases without busting a bank account.

When it comes to choosing a credit card, it really depends on what you are looking for. For example, there are cashback credit cards, student credit cards, or rewards credit cards. Just be wary of what current credit card interest rates are looking like so that you know if you are getting a good deal or not on the credit card you are interested in.

Methodology

All data found within this report is based on an online survey commissioned by LendEDU and conducted online by research company Pollfish. In total, 1,000 Americans that indicated they play Fortnite were surveyed. The appropriate respondents were found via a screener question. This survey was conducted on February 18, 2020. All respondents were asked to answer all questions truthfully and to the best of their abilities.

See more of LendEDU’s Research