10 Mag Subscription Steals —and Pricey Alternatives

With ad dollars drying up, some magazines are offering rock-bottom subscription prices to boost circulation and build their brands. Advertising Age looks at the cheapest bets:

• Parents: The least expensive subscription found, at 33¢ an issue.
• TV Guide: A steal at 36¢ an issue.
• Yachting: Just because the reader is upscale doesn't mean the price point can't be down there: 39¢ an issue.
• Seventeen: 42¢ an issue, but to get that price you must commit for 3 years.
• New York: 46¢ an issue.

Not all experts endorse the fire-sale price plan. "Advertisers should be asking more questions about the quality of the circulation being delivered and not the quantity," says the publisher of a pricey title. The most expensive subscriptions:

• Science Illustrated: $3.33 an issue.
• Cigar Aficionado and Garden & Gun: $3.
• FLEX: $2.91.
• Cooking With Paula Deen: $2.57.
• Wine Spectator: $2.50.

For the full lists of the cheapest and priciest periodicals, click the link below.
(More magazine industry stories.)