BAYC closes ApeFest 2026 early access merch shop Sept. 4 as ticket rules get an overhaul

In Brief:

• The Bored Ape Yacht Club shuts its early access shop for ApeFest 2026 merch on Sept. 4, wrapping a one-week pre-order run that began Aug. 31.
• Anyone can pre-order — holder status isn’t required — and the drop arrives ahead of ApeFest, set for Oct. 17 at Beeple Studios in Charleston, South Carolina.
• Yuga Labs reworked ApeFest ticketing for 2026: one ticket for each BAYC and MAYC held, a refundable $99 deposit, and Glyph taking over ownership checks from tokenproof.

Bored Ape Yacht Club will close its early access shop for ApeFest 2026 merch on Sept. 4, capping a one-week pre-order window on the first batch of this year’s apparel.

The shop went live Aug. 31, with 47 days to go until ApeFest, and the club billed it as a selection of previously classified gear. “ApeFest Early Access is live,” it said in a post. A second post pointed followers back to the lineup: “A closer look, from every angle.”

Orders are being taken at store.bayc.com, and the shop is open to all comers. Earlier ApeFest stores were tokengated, with wallet verification required before anyone could buy.

One item followed its own path: the BAYC Yacht Jacket. The club ran a presale sign-up giving entrants a chance to buy a limited edition colorway priced at $250 plus shipping, with delivery expected before ApeFest. That presale entry period is now shut.

What changed on tickets

Ticketing has already opened, and this year’s terms look different. Each BAYC and MAYC a holder owns is now good for one ticket claim. Previously, the allowance was one ticket and one guest ticket per holder rather than per NFT.

Claiming a ticket costs nothing, though every claim carries a $99 deposit plus any applicable taxes at the time it’s made. Yuga Labs returns the deposit to attendees who scan their ticket at the event, within 90 days of ApeFest’s final day and through the same payment method used to claim.

Guest tickets are capped by collection: two for BAYC owners, one for MAYC owners. They run $99 apiece plus taxes, and the same scan-to-get-your-money-back condition applies.

Those figures are lower than last year’s. At ApeFest 2025 in Las Vegas, holders put down a $169 refundable deposit, while guest tickets carried a $269 charge that was not a deposit.

Verification of ownership has moved to Glyph, the wallet app found at useglyph.io, replacing tokenproof. Anyone claiming must be 18 or older and confirm ownership via Glyph. Both tickets and guest tickets are limited, available while supplies last on a first come, first served basis.

Anyone cancelling has until 11:59 p.m. Eastern on Sept. 17 to do so at tickets.apefest.com/tickets. Later requests will not be honored or processed, and neither claims nor guest ticket purchases can be refunded, exchanged or rolled over to a future ApeFest.

The venue

The festival takes place Saturday, Oct. 17, from 7 p.m. to midnight at Beeple Studios. The 50,000-square-foot venue at 2325 Charleston Regional Pkwy. houses a 13,000-square-foot immersive space.

Its owner is Mike Winkelmann, the digital artist known as Beeple, whose “Everydays: The First 5000 Days” fetched $69 million at Christie’s in 2021.

How the merch usually moves

Merch at previous ApeFests has moved through three channels: a pre-order window with event pickup and no shipping, in-person sales during the festival itself, and ship-to-home orders that open on day one. Deliveries to homes have stretched to six to eight weeks. Buying limits are typical too — usually two of any item per order, dropping to one per customer on select collaboration pieces.

A weekend, not a night

Although the main event covers a single night, the club has put out a surrounding calendar that blends official programming with community-organized gatherings: paintball, poker, a donut pop-up, parties, hangouts and happy hours. BAYC said further details are on the way and directed people to apefest.com.

“It’s a pretty full weekend if you want it to be one,” the club said.