Tooth Fairy payouts rose 17% in 2026. See how nearly 30 years of data connects lost-tooth cash with the economy and family budgets.
By Genni Burkhart, Editor
Long before the Tooth Fairy started leaving money under the pillows of American children, families across the world were putting a price on lost teeth. A 13th-century Norse custom known as tand-fé, or “tooth fee,” involved giving children a small payment for their first lost tooth, which was considered a symbol of good luck.
Centuries later, the familiar U.S. folklore version followed. In 1908, the Chicago Tribune suggested that parents tell children a Tooth Fairy would leave 5 cents under the pillow in exchange for a lost tooth. More than a century later, children are still making the trade, although the going rate has increased considerably.
Believe it or not, Delta Dental has actually tracked Tooth Fairy payouts since 1998 through its Original Tooth Fairy Poll®. The poll was started as a fun way to gauge how generous the Tooth Fairy had been during the previous year, while also using the tradition to encourage conversations about oral health and positive dental habits.
Over time, those annual payouts revealed something no one was really looking for when the poll began. They often moved in the same direction as the S&P 500.
With National Tooth Fairy Day on Aug. 22, we’ll take a look at how this fictional tradition has ended up with a surprisingly real connection to the economy and family budgets.
TFI and the Financial Market
Delta Dental calls that economic comparison the Tooth Fairy Index™ (TFI). The index pairs annual changes in Tooth Fairy payouts with the S&P 500 to see whether the two move in the same general direction.
Remarkably, they often do. By 2022, Tooth Fairy payouts and the S&P 500 had moved in the same direction in 17 of the previous 20 years. The relationship did diverge for several years after that, but in 2026, the two lined up once again. For example, the average payout for a lost tooth rose 17%, from $5.01 to $5.84, while the S&P 500 increased about 16% over the comparable period.
Delta Dental describes the TFI as a lighthearted barometer of the overall direction of the economy and even compares it with Punxsutawney Phil’s annual Groundhog Day forecast. The comparison works because both traditions take something familiar and playful and put it beside a very real measure, whether that’s the weather or the stock market.
Of course, the TFI isn’t an actual economic forecast. Yet, 28 years of data make it more interesting than a one-time coincidence. This poll has repeatedly shown that the amount of money families leave for lost teeth moves in the same direction as one of the country’s best-known financial benchmarks.
For the 2026 Original Tooth Fairy Poll®, Delta Dental surveyed 1,000 parents of children ages 6 to 12 from Jan. 5 through Jan. 15. The sample was designed to represent a broad cross-section of the U.S. population, not only families with dental insurance. (The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.)
Kids Got a Raise
This year’s payout increase also comes at an interesting time for family spending.
Deloitte’s July 2026 Back-to-School Survey found that parents expect to spend about $557 per K-12 student this year, roughly flat from 2025 and 6% lower after adjusting for inflation. In addition, 57% expect the economy to worsen during the next six months, the highest percentage Deloitte has reported since 2020.
At the same time, the average Tooth Fairy payout rose by nearly a dollar.
Delta Dental doesn’t use this poll to suggest that one caused the other. Instead, the comparison is interesting because Tooth Fairy money comes from the same household budgets affected by prices, confidence, and broader economic conditions.
The long-term data also puts that comparison into perspective. When Delta Dental began tracking payouts in 1998, the average lost tooth was worth $1.30. Today, it’s $5.84, while the first lost tooth brings an average of $7.17.
GRAPH: Average Tooth Fairy payouts in 1998, 2025, and 2026, including the 2026 average for a first lost tooth.
A Tradition That Pays
Nearly three decades after Delta Dental launched the Original Tooth Fairy Poll®, it has provided a surprisingly long-running look at what families spend on this tradition. Of course, the Tooth Fairy belongs to folklore, but the money behind the tradition is very real. The Tooth Fairy is paid directly from family budgets, and over time, those payments have aligned with the broader economy often enough for Delta Dental to compare them with the S&P 500.
More than a century after a “Household Hints” article introduced the Tooth Fairy to American families, the tradition remains. Nearly three decades of Delta Dental data also show just how closely a tradition built on make-believe can resemble the real world.
Author: With over 16 years as a published journalist, editor, and writer, Genni Burkhart's career has spanned politics, healthcare, law, business finance, technology, and news. She resides in Northern Colorado, where she works as the editor-in-chief of the Incisor at DOCS Education.
References
- Wagner, J. (2023, August 21). How did the story of the Tooth Fairy begin? And what’s the going rate nowadays? CBS News Minnesota. https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/tooth-fairy-origin/
- Delta Dental Plans Association. (2026, February 25). The Tooth Fairy gives kids a raise.
https://www.deltadental.com/about-us/press-center/2026-press-releases/t… - Delta Dental Plans Association. (n.d.). Original Tooth Fairy Poll®.
https://www.deltadental.com/tooth-fairy/the-original-poll/ - Delta Dental Plans Association. (2022, February 23). Tooth Fairy sets new record high for value of a lost tooth.
https://www.deltadental.com/about-us/press-center/2022-press-releases/t… - Delta Dental Plans Association. (2024, August 20). Delta Dental poll finds the Tooth Fairy brings joy and encourages positive oral health habits in children.
https://www.deltadental.com/about-us/press-center/2024-press-releases/d… - Deloitte. (2026, July 9). 2026 Deloitte Back-to-School Survey. Deloitte Insights.
https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/retail-distribution/ba… - Deloitte. (2026, July 9). Back-to-school spending holds steady as parents remain cautious amid economic uncertainty.
https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/about/press-room/deloitte-back-to-school…
