Live numbers, not folklore
How Much Does a Warhammer Army Cost?
What starting each game system actually costs today, computed from live prices at every shop we compare — and the honest answer to "is Age of Sigmar cheaper than 40k?".
Warhammer 40,000
£84
median start · 25 armies priced
from £77.89 to £89.00
Age of Sigmar
£73
median start · 24 armies priced
from £30.49 to £89.00
The Horus Heresy
£93
median start · 3 armies priced
from £91.99 to £107.99
Is Age of Sigmar cheaper than 40k?
Age of Sigmar is cheaper to start today: the median Age of Sigmar start is £72.80 (24 armies priced) against £84.00 for 40k (25 armies). The spread matters more than the medians, though — 40k starts run £77.89–£89.00 and AoS £30.49–£89.00, so the army you pick moves the answer more than the game does.
Is Horus Heresy more expensive than 40k?
Yes — today it is the median Horus Heresy start is £92.99 (3 forces priced) against £84.00 for 40k. Heresy armies are built from bigger boxes with more plastic in them, so the per-model price is usually better even when the entry price is higher.
What "the cost of an army" means here
These figures are the cost of each army's cheapest currently-priced box — the recognised starting point for its game (Combat Patrol, Spearhead, or a Horus Heresy force box) — at the lowest live price across the shops we compare. We don't publish 2,000-point army estimates: points values are Games Workshop's numbers, revised on their schedule, and every "a 2000pt army costs £350–550" figure you'll read elsewhere is a guess that was stale the day the points changed. A box price is checkable, so we check it.
Prices were last checked 17 Aug and can change — the retailer's own page always has the final say. Affiliate links — how we make money.