The average Thanksgiving dinner will cost more dollars than ever this year, according to the American Farm Bureau, but, factoring for inflation, the cost has actually dropped over the last two decades.
Last week, the AFB published its annual analysis of the average cost of a Thanksgiving dinner for 10, and came to $42.26 for the total, including turkey, stuffing, vegetables and pie. That’s $4.16 more than last year’s average. In 1986, the earliest year covered in the report, the average dinner cost $28.74.
Turkey saw the biggest increase, at $1.93. Other items, such as creme, milk and pumpkin pie mix, jumped in price more than a quarter, but cube stuffing and a carrots-and-celery relish tray actually fell. Green peas held steady at $1.46 a pound.
The bureau used 151 volunteer shoppers from 31 states to conduct the survey, it reported. It has used the same methodology since 1986, when it first conducted the survey. Check out the complete comparison tables and press release on the bureau’s site.
Thanksgiving Dinner Cost Inches Higher This Year
