First-year puppy costs: a checklist with prices

The first year is the most expensive year of owning a dog. You pay for the dog itself, a full set of gear, puppy vaccines, a spay or neuter, and training, on top of the usual food and vet bills.

A Labrador Retriever puppy from a breeder costs about $6,560 in its first year, compared with $3,130 in a typical adult year. An adopted Lab costs about $3,860 in year one, because the shelter or rescue has usually covered the surgery, shots and microchip. Across the 111 breeds on this site with breeder prices, buying from a breeder adds a median of about $2,950 to the first year compared with adopting the same breed.

The first-year checklist

The prices below are typical US prices in 2026, taken from the sources behind our cost model. The "Lab from a breeder" and "Lab adopted" columns show the model's estimate for each line.

One-time costs

Purchase price. The price depends on the breed. A Lab from a health-screened breeder costs $1,200 to $2,800, and a French Bulldog costs $2,000 to $5,000. Most adoption fees fall between $50 and $500, according to Rover's 2026 survey. Each breed page lists sourced prices for both.

Gear. Our setup budget is built from Rover's 2026 survey, which reports $260 to $1,125 for essential supplies, $20 to $70 for toys and $55 to $165 for cleaning supplies. Prices for crates and beds rise with size. If you buy a crate with a divider that fits the dog's adult size, you won't need to buy a second one.

Spay or neuter. The 2025 Synchrony study found national averages of $455 for a spay and $487 for a neuter in small and medium dogs, about $490 in 2026 vet prices. No national price by size is published. Our figures for large and giant dogs are estimates that stay within the published range, which tops out around $1,010.

Microchip. The Synchrony study puts a microchip at $48 nationally, or $50 at 2026 prices. Registration is often free.

Training. PetSmart charges $149 for a 6-week puppy class. Private sessions average about $100 each. Four private sessions would add about $400 to the first year.

Puppy vet care

The per-shot prices are national averages from the 2025 Synchrony study, adjusted by 4.4% for vet inflation into 2026. A basic series with only the core shots at low-cost clinics can run around $340. Adding the Lyme and canine influenza series and a fourth visit pushes it past $1,000. Surveys tend to report lower figures than an itemized clinic bill. Rover's respondents reported $180 to $300 for vaccinations plus $80 to $180 for an initial exam, which probably leaves out non-core shots and recheck visits.

Adopted dogs usually arrive with their first shots done. The model gives them a normal adult checkup in year one instead: an exam, vaccines, a heartworm test and a fecal test, which comes to $330.

Running costs in year one

These items don't depend on size:

• Food. Food costs depend on calories. A Lab eats about $850 a year of mid-tier dry food, plus $170 in treats. A Chihuahua eats about $99 a year. Puppies eat more calories per pound than adults, but they weigh less for much of the year, so the model uses the adult rate.
• Grooming. A short-coated dog needs only about $53 a year in brushes and shampoo. Breeds with clipped coats cost several hundred dollars a year at the groomer: $714 for a Goldendoodle and $538 for a Shih Tzu.
• Illness and injury. This is the average yearly cost of unplanned vet visits, estimated from APPA owner-spending data and adjusted for each breed's size and risk. It comes to $763 a year for a Lab. Puppies often swallow socks, eat things they shouldn't, catch parasites or break bones, so set this money aside even if nothing happens.
• Insurance (optional). Puppies are cheaper to insure. In MoneyGeek's 2026 quotes, a puppy's premium is about 32% lower than the same breed at age 6. In the model, a Lab's first-year premium is about $570, against $836 a year later on. See is pet insurance worth it.

Full first-year totals for four dogs

For comparison, Rover's May 2026 survey puts upfront costs at $1,195 to $4,650 and a puppy's first year of running costs at $1,460 to $6,745. The ASPCA's 2021 first-year estimate of $3,221 comes to about $3,930 in 2026 dollars.

What to buy before the puppy comes home

Buy these before pickup day:

• Crate sized for the adult dog, with a divider
• Bed or crate pad (a cheap one at first, since puppies chew)
• Collar or harness, ID tag and a 6 ft leash
• Food and water bowls
• The food the breeder or shelter has been feeding
• Poop bags and an enzyme cleaner for accidents
• Chew toys
• Baby gates or an exercise pen
• Brush, nail clippers and dog shampoo

Book these in the first weeks:

• First vet visit, within a few days of pickup
• The rest of the puppy vaccine series (every 3 to 4 weeks until about 16 weeks)
• Start heartworm, flea and tick prevention
• Puppy class, once the vet says the vaccines allow it
• Spay or neuter, at the age your vet recommends
• Microchip, and register it in your name
• Dog license with your city or county
• Get insurance quotes before the first vet visit records any condition. Insurers exclude pre-existing conditions, including anything in the dog's records from before the policy started, according to Lemonade's policy explainer.

How to keep year one down

• Adopt, or ask what the breeder includes. Adoption fees usually cover spay or neuter, vaccines and a microchip. Best Friends Animal Society charges $150 for puppies 6 months and under, and the fee includes all three. See adopt vs buy.
• Use a low-cost vaccine clinic. CareCredit notes that some shelters, pet stores and community centers run low-cost vaccine clinics.
• Buy preventives in a 12-pack. For a 22-44 lb dog, Simparica Trio costs $43.48 for a single dose but $34.44 a dose in a 12-pack.
• Don't overbuy gear. Puppies destroy beds and outgrow collars. Buy the expensive versions once the dog has stopped chewing.

How to save money on a dog puts dollar figures on each of these savings. To see the yearly cost after the first year, see how much a dog costs.