Including reports submitted by the campaigns Thursday, the winner, Republican Tom Corbett, spent about $24 million while Democrat Dan Onorato spent about $20 million.
Losing primary candidates spent approximately $10 million in 2010.
The total fell short of the record $68 million set in the 2002 gubernatorial campaign won by Gov. Ed Rendell.
In the campaign's final two weeks, Corbett spent nearly three times as much as Onorato, shelling out about $10 million to Onorato's $3.7 million.
In the Nov. 2 election, Corbett received one vote for roughly every $9 he spent in the preceding five months. Onorato received one vote for about every $6 he spent over the same period.