The 5 Best LEGO Sets to Buy in 2022 for Minifigures

16th August 2022

The minifigure is an icon of the LEGO brand and they have become highly collectible, with many of the rarest selling for astonishing prices. If you’re the owner of one of these you can make a handsome profit, especially if you bought the set or polybag they were included in at or below the retail price.

Most LEGO sets contain multiple minifigures and their combined value, once the set retires, can often exceed the original RRP. There are instances where this is true of a single minifigure, with some of the more recent examples including Ahsoka Tano (swo0759) who’s now worth more than the RRP of the Rebel Combat Frigate (75158) from 2016; Jango Fett (sw0845) who’s value is now greater than the Jedi Starfighter with Hyperdrive (75191) of 2017; and Davy Jones (poc031), who’s price now eclipses that of the Black Pearl (4184) from 2011.

Therefore, it can be worth proactively buying sets that are available now at retail price, which are likely to contain desirable minifigures of the future. Buying the set yourself also ensures that the enclosed minifigures will arrive in perfect condition, and you will also get a load of LEGO bricks to boot.

However, knowing what minifigures are going to perform well in the years to come is not easy to predict. To prevent you from splashing the cash unnecessarily and clogging up your spare room, we’ve put together a list of sets and their minifigures that we think will prove to be fruitful purchases.

Mos Eisley Cantina (75290)

The Mos Eisley Cantina was released as part of the Ultimate Builder Series in 2020. It contains a whopping 21 minifigures, seven of which were characters that had never before been seen in minifigure form. Three of these, Hrchek Kal Fas, Ponda Baba, and Momaw Nadon, include unique whole headpiece moulds, while a further three have unique mould elements, namely Garindan, Labria (Kardue’sai’Malloc), and Kabe.

The cast of included minifigures is therefore very distinctive and unusual, which is good in terms of investment potential. Minifigures of characters that have only appeared once have historically fetched large sums after they’ve entered retirement, as have minifigures with interesting designs and colour palettes. Our personal favourite and investment pick from this set is Garindan. The minifigure looks great and excellently captures the mysterious nature of the legendary spy, as well as having a good likeness to his on-screen depiction.

Minifigures from the original trilogy have traditionally performed better value-wise than those from the prequels and sequels, largely because Episode IV, V, and VI are by far the best movies and celebrated the world over.

Although this set will have been around for a while when it eventually retires, which is expected at the end of 2023, its high RRP of £309.99 / $399.99 / €349.99 will deter all but the most serious collectors from buying it. Therefore, its minifigures are going to be rarer than those in cheaper sets.

Daily Bugle (76178)

The Daily Bugle shares the crown of most minifigures in a LEGO set with the (75159) Death Star, both having 25 apiece. However, while the Death Star contained some duplicate minifigures, each one in the Daily Bugle is different.

Superheroes have always been among the most desirable minifigures and occupy many of the top spots in the list of most valuable minifigures. The Daily Bugle contains eight exclusive superheroes / villains minifigures, two of which depict characters that have ever before had their own minifigures. These are Firestar and Daredevil, both of which have some excellent printing and look fantastic. We expect both to rocket up in price in the years following their retirement.

Firestar has not appeared in any recent movies or TV series, whereas Daredevil has been much more prominent on-screen and is due to have his own Netflix series in 2024. The popularity of a character can have a large bearing on minifigure price, so given that Daredevil is a favourite among Marvel fans, we expect him to be worth the most from this set.

Like Mos Eisley, the Daily Bugle has a similarly high RRP of £264.99 / $349.99 / €299.99, which will push its minifigures towards the rarer end of the spectrum. The set is due to retire at the end of 2023, which will mean a relatively short shelf life of just over two and a half years, which is another factor favouring the minifigure’s investment potential.

Diagon Alley (75978)

Diagon Alley was released in 2020 and contained 14 minifigures, two of which are exclusive new characters to the LEGO wizarding world: Florean Fortescue and the Daily Prophet Photographer. Although the photographer looks very good, named minifigures perform far better as investments than generic characters, and therefore we wouldn’t expect him to be at the top of many people’s wishlist. Florean Fortescue is also a very minor character in the Harry Potter franchise, having only appeared in The Prisoner of Azkaban movie, so is also not going to be among the most desirable.

Gilderoy Lockhart on the other hand was a very memorable character from the movies and books, and has only appeared three times previously in LEGO sets. The minifigure of him in this set is visually the best, thanks to his uniquely and brightly coloured outfit and cloak. One of the two early versions of the pompous professor (hp029), which appeared in the Chamber of Secrets (4730) set, now fetches a tidy sum on the secondary market. This serves as a good indication that this minifigure will perform similarly well.

One of the downsides to the investment potential of Diagon Alley’s minifigures, is that the set is due to stick around until the end of 2024. This would equate to a shelf-life of over four years, which is far longer than average, and gives people a big window to purchase the set. But being the most expensive set on this list, coming in at a colossal £349.99 / $449.99 / €399.99, and requiring over a metre of shelf space to display it, fewer Diagon Alleys will be bought than more affordable sets.

Back to the Future Time Machine (10300)

The Time Machine has proven nigh on impossible to get hold of since it was released earlier this year. This is down to the cult-like status of the Back to the Future movie and the iconic nature of the DeLorean. One of the reasons for the movie’s popularity is its likeable cast. Both Marty McFly and Doc Brown are loved by fans of the show, so minifigures of these characters are going to be in high demand. Luckily this set contains both and they are of superb quality. They are also already selling for impressive prices, despite them being a long way off from retirement.

Of the two, Doc Brown’s minifigure is much more recognisable and striking, with his yellow and red colour combo and lab goggle printing, so is expected to have the best investment potential. At the moment their prices are being driven by the sets limited availability, which is expected to ease eventually. If it does continue for an extended period, and the Time Machine’s shelf life is kept relatively short, both the Doc and Marty could see a steep upward trajectory on their price charts.

Wolverine Mech Armour (76202)

Like all the minifigures mentioned in this list, Wolverine is a rare sight in LEGO sets. The one in the Wolverine Mech Armour is only the fourth to be made, and one of those four was included in a Mighty Micros set so cannot be considered a credible depiction of the mutant. This version is very similar to the Wolverine that was included in the X-Men vs. The Sentinel () set from 2014 as it uses the same headgear piece, and that version is the most expensive of the four Wolverine minifigures.

Although The X-Men belong to the Marvel franchise, with which LEGO have a prolific relationship, they have only been given a handful of LEGO sets. This is likely because they have not featured as a team in any recent Hollywood films, with the Avengers being favoured of late. However, they are popular and among the most well-known Marvel protagonists, with Wolverine being a firm favourite mutant. His popularity and scarcity in minifigure form therefore bode well for his price upon retirement. The Wolverine Mech Armour is one of the cheapest sets around, having a RRP of only £8.99 / $9.99 / €9.99 so it's affordable for everyone and will find its way into many homes. However, it’s due to retire at the end of this year, meaning an availability period of only nine months, which will help Wolverine’s rarity.

If you’ve enjoyed this article, you might find our article on the 5 LEGO Sets to Buy in 2022 Before They Retire.

Disclaimer: This article or any others on brickranker.com should not be considered financial advice and investing in LEGO is risky.

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