# Brickonomics

> LEGO price comparison and optimization platform. Compare prices across 20+ retailers, find the cheapest way to buy parts for custom builds, and track price drops on sets.

Brickonomics helps LEGO fans, builders, collectors, and resellers find the best prices on LEGO sets and parts. It aggregates pricing data from over 20 retailers and secondary marketplaces, and uses optimization algorithms to minimize the total cost of buying parts across multiple stores.

The website is localized by country — each user sees prices and retailers relevant to their region.

## Set Price Comparison

Browse and compare thousands of LEGO sets across multiple retailers. For each set, Brickonomics shows:

- The cheapest current price and which retailer offers it
- Price history charts tracking how the lowest price has changed over time
- Discount relative to the official retail price (absolute and percentage)
- Price per piece for value comparison
- Filtering by theme, retirement status, and availability
- Sorting by price, discount, piece count, year, and more

Each set detail page includes retailer price listings with affiliate links, set specifications, images, and structured data for search engines.

## Part Buying Optimizer (Multibuy)

The flagship tool for MOC (My Own Creation) builders. Given a list of LEGO parts, the optimizer finds the cheapest combination of stores to buy all the parts from. It uses a metaheuristic optimization algorithm (Water Cycle Algorithm) to solve this problem, which is computationally hard because it requires evaluating combinations across many stores with different inventories, prices, and shipping costs.

Users can import part lists from:

- Rebrickable (CSV link or file upload)
- Brick Owl (via API key and wishlist import)
- BrickLink (XML upload)

The tool can save up to 40% compared to BrickLink's built-in store selection. Brickonomics also powers Brick Owl's auto-select tool through a partnership.

## Part Out Ratio Analysis

Compares the value of a LEGO set as a whole against the combined value of all its individual parts. This helps identify sets that are worth "parting out" — buying a sealed set and selling the parts individually for profit. Supports multiple pricing sources (BrickLink 6-month average, Brick Owl averages in various time windows, new and used conditions).

## Price Tracking and Wishlist

Registered users can add sets to a personal wishlist (pricewatch). When the price of a watched set changes, the user receives an email notification. This helps buyers wait for the right moment to purchase.

## Match Existing Sets

Given a list of parts (e.g., for a MOC), this tool identifies which official LEGO sets contain the most overlap with the desired parts. This can reveal whether buying an existing set is cheaper than sourcing parts individually.

## Retailer Coverage

Brickonomics tracks prices from 20+ retailers that vary by country. The retailers page shows which stores are tracked in the user's region, along with logos and the number of sets each store carries.

## Secondary Market Data

Set detail pages include a secondary market tab with current offers from platforms like Brick Owl and eBay, showing seller name, country, price, and direct links.

## Data Sources

- Retailer prices from official retailer websites and affiliate networks
- Part pricing from BrickLink and Brick Owl (average selling prices over various time windows)
- Set catalog data from Rebrickable (set metadata, part inventories, images)
- LEGO Pick-a-Brick for official LEGO part pricing