$5.75 to Laugh, 18% on the Food: St. Louis Comedy Clubs
Revised October 14, 2026
How much is it to go to a comedy club in St. Louis?
Cheap on a weeknight, more once a touring name and a minimum stack up. The Funny Bone’s Tuesday open mic at Westport Plaza is listed at $5.75, and its Wednesday open mic at the Streets of St. Charles is $3.45. The Improv Shop says most shows are under $12, and Helium adds a two-item per person minimum in the showroom.
Keep reading ↓The cocktail comes in a souvenir cup, and it is a double. That is printed right on the Funny Bone’s drink menu at Westport Plaza, a few lines above a shot called the Tanquerschäger and the menu’s own verdict on it: “It’s that kinda night!” The house lights drop. Chairs scrape. A spotlight finds a stool and a mic stand, and for the next hour a stranger is going to try to make a room full of St. Louisans laugh at things they would never say out loud.
That is the part everybody pictures. Nobody pictures the check. It slides onto a table the size of a dinner plate, in a room too dark to read it, while the headliner is still mid-bit. You tilt it toward the stage light, squint, and find a line you never budgeted for.
Better to know it now. Every price, minimum and rule below comes straight from the St. Louis clubs’ own pages: the two Funny Bone rooms at Westport Plaza and the Streets of St. Charles, Helium, and The Improv Shop in The Grove, the one that promises in writing not to pick on you.
How much is it to go to a comedy club in St. Louis?
Cheap on a weeknight, more once a touring name and a minimum stack up. The Funny Bone’s Tuesday open mic at Westport Plaza is listed at $5.75, and its Wednesday open mic at the Streets of St. Charles is listed at $3.45. The Improv Shop says most of its shows are under $12. Helium adds a two-item per person minimum in the showroom on top of the ticket.
The ticket is the cheap part on a Tuesday. At Westport that is a five-dollar bill and three quarters, and you are in. So price the exact show you want, not the club. The good news is that the two Funny Bone rooms post their prices the way you wish everyone did: the club’s own pages say “All in pricing includes taxes and fees,” so the number you see is the number you pay at checkout.
Helium works a little differently. Its FAQ says ticket prices “include all fees (before taxes),” so expect the total to tick up once tax hits. Neither one is a trick. You just want to know which kind of price you are looking at before the group text starts doing math. Questions about a specific show go to the box office: Helium lists 314.727.1260, and the Funny Bone at Westport Plaza lists (314) 469-6692.
The 18 percent nobody mentions at the door
Here is the line most people only find on the receipt. Helium’s own FAQ says “there will be an 18% administrative fee on all food and beverage purchases.” Same FAQ, same answer: “Food and drinks purchased in our bar and lounge do not count towards the two-item minimum.”
Read those two sentences together and the move is obvious. That cold beer you grabbed at the bar while you waited for the doors, the one sweating a ring onto the counter, does not count. You still owe two items once you sit down in the showroom. So wait. Order your first drink from your seat, and every sip counts toward the minimum instead of sitting on top of it.
That is the tip worth texting the friend who is buying. The two items do not have to be cocktails, either: Helium says the minimum “can be fulfilled with any food or drink items from the menu,” so a basket of something fried and a soda clears it. And if you want a real dinner first, Helium says food and drinks bought with a pre-show dinner reservation for the Thursday, Friday and Saturday early shows count toward the two-item minimum.
Which room fits the night you want?
Four very different evenings hide under the word comedy, and picking the wrong one is how a good night goes flat. It almost never has anything to do with the club.
The cheap, loud, hit-or-miss night: open mic
The Funny Bone calls Tuesday “our weekly Open Mic Night” at Westport Plaza, a room the club says has hosted St. Louis talent and nationally touring comedians since 1984. Open mic is where jokes get tested in front of strangers. Some land so hard the table shakes. Some die in a silence so complete you can hear the ice settle in your glass. For a few dollars, that swing is the whole show, and comics who love the craft will tell you it is the most honest hour in the building.
The night where nobody gets picked on: improv
The Improv Shop sits at 3960 Chouteau in The Grove, and its FAQ answers the question every nervous first-timer is quietly asking: will they pick on me? “No. We may ask for audience suggestions, but that’s about it.” Then the line worth repeating: “we won’t single you out. We think that’s annoying.” Seating is open, parking is free in the club’s own lot east of the building, and after the show there is a fire pit on the patio. The shop rates its shows like an R movie, and says 17 is probably the minimum recommended age.
The big-name night: touring headliners
This is the polished hour from someone you might have seen in a special or on TV. Helium says its shows usually run between 90 and 105 minutes, and it gives advice more clubs should: research the comedian first, because comedy is subjective and certain comics are not for everybody. Watch one clip before you buy four tickets. If the clip makes you wince, the live set will too.
The sampler night: showcases
A showcase stacks several comics on one bill. It is the safest bet for a mixed group, because if one voice is not your thing, a different one is up in ten minutes. It is also how you find the local comic you will be telling people about next year.
Do you need a reservation, and how old do you have to be?
For a weekend headliner, buy ahead. For age, it depends on the room, so check the exact show. Helium says plainly, “We are an 18+ venue.” The Improv Shop leaves kids to your discretion but calls its shows rated R. Wherever you go, bring a valid ID even if nobody has carded you in a decade.
Seats are the other surprise. At Helium, general admission is “first-come, first-sat,” and the club recommends arriving no later than 30 minutes before showtime, adding that late arrivals are not guaranteed seats. Want your whole party at one table? Helium says general admission groups should arrive at least an hour early and walk into the showroom together. It also says all sales are final, so be sure of the date before you click.
Prefer a mellower night out? Try a St. Louis candle-making class instead.
Where to park
Helium’s FAQ says parking right outside is limited, with more on the east side of the building near Dillard’s and in the parking garage. The Improv Shop has its own free lot. Downtown and Soulard nights are a different story, so give yourself ten extra minutes to circle.
How do you find comedy shows in St. Louis this week?
Go straight to the club calendars, because lineups change weekly and the clubs post their own prices there. Then follow the two or three comics you like, since touring dates get announced on their feeds first. When you want to compare rooms side by side by neighborhood and night, the unique things to do for adults guide pulls the city’s grown-up nights into one place.
Read the listing before you buy. Look for the words headliner, showcase or open mic, note whether there is an early and a late show, and check the age rule on that show’s own page rather than the venue’s homepage. The show is where the real rules live.
What the clock looks like on show night
Timing is where first-timers lose the good seats. The clubs publish their own schedules, and they are more specific than most people expect.
At The Improv Shop, the first shows start at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and at 7 p.m. on Thursdays, with a later 10 p.m. show on Fridays and Saturdays. Doors open at 6 p.m., the box office opens thirty minutes before showtime, and the shop says its shows typically last around 60 to 90 minutes. The kitchen runs until 11 p.m. on Thursdays and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, so you can order a burger from your seat while the scene builds.
A night out, priced
How much is it to go to a comedy club?
Cheap on a weeknight. The Funny Bone’s Tuesday open mic at Westport Plaza is listed at $5.75 and its Wednesday mic at the Streets of St. Charles at $3.45, and the Improv Shop says most of its shows are under $12. Touring headliners cost more, and Helium adds a two-item minimum per person.
At Helium, the venue opens two hours before shows that start between 6 and 8 p.m., and 45 minutes before shows that start at 8:30 p.m. or later. The box office closes between shows, so a late show ticket cannot be picked up during the early one. At the Funny Bone at Westport Plaza, the Tuesday open mic lists doors at 7 p.m. and the show at 7:30 p.m.
Put those together and the rule is simple. Get there early, eat or drink from your seat so it counts, and leave your phone in your pocket once the lights go down. The comic can see the glow from the stage, and so can everyone behind you.
Plan the whole night, not just the hour in the dark. Browse comedy clubs across the St. Louis metro, pick the room that fits your crowd, and check that show’s price, minimum and age rule before you leave the house.
If you run the club, the bar next door or the late-night kitchen where the crowd lands after the show, the people reading this are deciding where to spend tonight. Put your business where they are looking and turn that crowd into customers.
Make the hour on either side count
Eat first, and eat somewhere you love, because a comedy-club kitchen is built for a dark room and a minimum, not a long meal. If this is a date, pair the show with one of the city’s best date night restaurants and let the jokes be dessert.
Curious what it looks like from the other side of the microphone? Here’s how St. Louis open mic comedy nights actually work.
Then plan the after. A comedy crowd spills onto the sidewalk loud, buzzing and suddenly starving, and six people deciding what is still open in a parking lot can kill a great night in ten minutes. Have a spot from our late-night eats in St. Louis guide picked before the headliner walks off. And the front row? Sit there only if you want to be part of the act.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a drink minimum at St. Louis comedy clubs?
At Helium, yes: a two-item per person minimum in the showroom, which any food or drink from the menu can fill. Items bought in the bar and lounge do not count, and an 18% administrative fee applies to all food and beverage. Rules differ by club, so check each show page.
How early should you get to a comedy show?
Helium recommends arriving no later than 30 minutes before showtime and says late arrivals are not guaranteed seats. Groups who want to sit together should come at least an hour early. The Improv Shop opens its doors at 6 p.m. and its box office thirty minutes before each show.
What are some fun adult activities in St. Louis?
Comedy is one of the easiest, because a single ticket buys you a room full of strangers laughing at the same moment. Beyond the clubs, the city has dance floors, cocktail bars, live music, trivia nights and late-night kitchens. The Improv Shop also teaches improv classes, if you would rather be on the stage than in the seats.
What are some fun things to do in St. Louis tonight?
Check the club calendars first, since open mic and weeknight shows often still have seats. The Funny Bone runs a Tuesday open mic at Westport Plaza and a Wednesday open mic at the Streets of St. Charles. If the headliners are sold out, live music or a late-night bite fills a spontaneous evening.
What are some fun date nights in St. Louis?
A comedy show gives you something to react to together and something to argue about in the car home. Eat dinner first, watch one clip of the headliner so you both know what you are walking into, arrive early for decent seats, and skip the front row unless you both like attention.
Where is the best nightlife in St. Louis?
It depends on the night you want. The Grove and Soulard draw late, loud crowds, Downtown pulls visitors and event-goers, and there is a Funny Bone at the Streets of St. Charles and another at Westport Plaza in Maryland Heights. Pick the neighborhood first, then the room.
Is St. Louis a party town?
It holds its own, but it leans more friendly than wild, which suits a comedy night perfectly. Between comedy rooms, bars, dance floors and late-night food, most neighborhoods can carry a full evening. Book ahead on weekends and pace yourself.
Where do 40 year old singles go on a Friday night in St. Louis?
A comedy show is a low-pressure pick, because the room does the talking and you get an easy opener afterward. Improv works especially well if you are nervous about being singled out, since The Improv Shop says it will not do that. Catch an early show, then grab a nightcap.
More St. Louis guides
- Beyond the Arch: Unique Things to Do in St. Louis for Adults
- Best Date Night Restaurants in St. Louis
- Discover the Best Dance Clubs in STL
- Best Late-Night Eats in St. Louis
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