The most expensive Lego sets of all time

For a very broad sweep of fans, the Lego Space Command Center, and the rest of the nostalgia-inducing classic ‘Space’ line, capture the very heart of what Lego is. Launched in 1978, it’s visual styling and theming continue to influence modern sets, with it sitting front and center of 2014’s Lego Movie thanks to the role of Benny the ‘1980-something Space guy’.

Ask anyone to imagine a LEGO minifigure, and a good number of them will conjure up a vision of an astronaut with the planet logo on their chest; the star of LEGO Space. All of that might explain why the Lego Space Command Center is worth a little over $10,100 (£8,300) today. On launch in the US, it retailed at $24.99.

Offering a moonbase, astronauts, and space buggies, it’s rather charmingly primitive by today’s standards. But in capturing so many childhood memories, it is both the most expensive and most defining Lego set money can buy.

Lego builders who can remember the late 1970s and early 1980s will remember that time when Lego Castle sets were vibrant yellow. The most famous of those castles is the 1978 variant, which was one of the most coveted on release, and is now one of the most expensive. The set’s value in mid-2022 hovered around $9,900 (£7,800), according to Lego pricing site Brick Economy – should anyone find one in like-new condition.

The reason for its value? It was the first of the eight ‘classic castles’ released, and like the Lego Space Command Center up top, it utterly captures so many childhood memories of Lego. It’s just that most of us grew into adults without a spare eight grand to put down on Lego.

Not to worry! If you can bear an unboxed played-with version with a part or two missing, you could scoop this Lego Castle for less than $360 (£300). A… bargain?

The most expensive Lego sets list concludes with – you guessed it – even more Star Wars. First appearing in Episode V The Empire Strikes Back, Cloud City is the floating mining colony where space opera fans first met Lando Calrissian on-screen for the first time.

While (once again) there are multiple iterations of Lego Cloud City, it’s the 10123 set that has the most eye-watering price. Not currently available from retailers, second-hand hunters were paying about $790 (£950) in 2020.

In late 2022, the value of a like-new set had climbed to $3,270 (£2,700). By January 2023, spot prices had soared to over $9,500 (£7,609). After a thousand-dollar price dip in February, as of April 2023, the top end price is at an all-time high of $9,762 (£7,821).

And there you have it – Lego pricing can offer a tempting investment opportunity; and a troubling volatile market.

The Lego Creator Expert: Green Grocer set was an early Modular Building introduced in 2008. It was the third in the series, which gave advanced builders a realistic grocery store to put together.

Unlike the previous two Modular Buildings, the Green Grocer came with a highly-detailed interior. While the outside has railings, opening windows, a fire escape, and a courtyard, the inside boasts a fully-furnished first floor, complete with food to sell to minifig customers.

This history lesson should tell you a lot about why this set is so coveted. It’s a beautiful, complex build that’s an important part of Lego history. It was also discontinued in 2010, so sets are somewhat scarce.

Nowadays, you can pick one up for anywhere between $800 and $4,000, depending on condition. Our current price estimate is based on a sale made on eBay in September 2023.

This is a particularly fun and fascinating one. We won’t list a single set here – because we’re talking about the Lego wooden toys the company made from 1932 until 1960, before it moved onto plastic.

The 1935 Lego Duck might be the most famed. Multiple Lego ‘Quacking Duck’ toys were made in the 1930s and 1940s, but it is the 1935 version that was and is the most iconic, pushing its value today to $2,000 (£1,649). Indeed, it’s so popular that in 2022 Lego released a plastic brick version, set 40501 – officially named The Wooden Duck, of course.

There are a host of other gorgeous wooden Lego toys from that era, from fixed axle yo-yos to absurdly stylish VW Vans. And the beautiful Lego Chevrolet Bel Air Car Nr 600, which in 1957 set a new standard for the toy firm’s wooden line, even featuring real rubber tires. The Lego Bel Air doesn’t sell often, but tends to command around $1,000 (£824). We can but dream!

There are few pieces of Star Wars memorabilia more iconic than the Lego Millennium Falcon. In fact, this entry in the guide is so memorable that you can still order a box from the Lego store – but you will have to backorder it, and it’s going to cost you $850 (£735).

Under $1,000 might seem like small fry, but the relative scarcity of this set means that the used set sellers are the ones really driving up the price.

The 75192 Collector’s Set – which Lego calls “the largest, most detailed Lego Star Wars Millennium Falcon model we’ve ever created” – is the box to beat, which has sold on eBay recently for anywhere between $500 and $1,750.

Heck, we’ve seen people try to sell the instructions alone for $60. Read our list of the best Lego Star Wars sets for more like this.

“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled bricks yearning to build free.” Okay, so maybe that isn’t exactly what it says on the Lego Statue of Liberty, but it probably would if it was large enough to have a readable plaque. This is a symbol of freedom that you can fit on your table without having to take a trip to New York.

Once again, there are multiple Lego sets designed to imitate the great American landmark. The 21042 model from Lego’s Architecture series is still available from the Lego shop for a meager $118 (£90) – while the 3450 Lego Statue of Liberty sold for a whopping $1,661 (£1,366) at the close of 2022.

If you’re super into your Batman comics and lore, you’ll already know that the Tumbler is the name of the off-road military vehicle Bruce Wayne uses in the Christopher Nolan Batman trilogy. If you didn’t already know that, you may know the car by its more common name – The Batmobile.

There are many different versions of Lego Batman: The Tumbler in the brick-i-verse. More common sets like the Lego Batman Tumbler Set For Adults can be picked up more easily from online retailers for around $260 (£200). However, the rarest of the rare is The Tumbler: Joker’s Ice Cream Surprise, which comes with a sugary escape vehicle and the Clown Prince of Crime himself.

It’s clear from second-hand sales of The Tumbler: Joker’s Ice Cream Surprise that crime does, in fact, pay. Unboxed and played-with, this version of Lego Batman: The Tumbler goes for around $300 on Ebay – but boxed, like-new sets crop up far less often and fetch $1000 minimum; one sold for around $1,500 (£1,146) on eBay in 2022.

For more like this, check out our guide to the best Batman Lego sets.

This sci-fi icon needs no detailed introduction: the Imperial Star Destroyer – the primary warship of Star Wars’ Galactic Empire throughout the original trilogy of movies – is simply among the most famous spaceships in history. So it’s no surprise that its massive, 4,784-piece Ultimate Collector Series Lego set is highly sought after by fans.

Released in 2019, this spectacular, dagger-shaped display piece remained on shelves for only three years before being retired from production in 2022 in favor of the comparatively titchy, 630-piece Executor Super Star Destroyer set.

As a result, Lego Star Wars lovers wanting to add it to their collections – and, let’s face it, who wouldn’t – are forced to seek out the set on the used market, where it sells for far more than its original RRP of $700.

As of April 2024, this set is selling for between $1000 and $1200 on Ebay. Whether you want to spend used-car money on a 43-inch-long plastic replica of the 1970s’ favorite grey space battleship is your business – but we want you to know we’re on your side if you do.