Thanksgiving dinner cost 2026 — the Thanksgiving Dinner Index

A classic Thanksgiving dinner for 10 — 16-lb turkey, potatoes, sweet potatoes, rolls, butter, milk, eggs, flour, sugar and coffee — costs $74.69 at 2026-07 shelf prices ($7.47 a head), +1.8% vs a year ago. Last Thanksgiving (2025-11) the same basket cost $69.87; in November 2019 it was $47.01. Projection for 2026-11: $71.63 (graded when the November print lands in mid-December).

ItemQuantityPriceLineYoY
Turkey, whole frozen16 lb$2.42/lb$38.79+8.4%
Potatoes, white5 lb$0.94/lb$4.71-3.7%
Sweet potatoes *3 lb$0.94/lb$2.83-3.7%
Dinner rolls (12) *1 lb$1.82/lb$1.82-1.7%
Butter, stick1 lb$3.92/lb$3.92-18.2%
Milk, whole1 gal$4.31/gal$4.31+3.6%
Eggs, grade A large1 doz$2.19/doz$2.19-39.2%
Flour, all-purpose5 lb$0.54/lb$2.72-2.5%
Sugar, white4 lb$1.02/lb$4.1-2.1%
Coffee, ground roast1 lb$9.32/lb$9.32+10.7%

Biggest movers vs a year ago: turkey, whole frozen +8.4% (+$3), eggs, grade a large -39.2% ($-1.41), coffee, ground roast +10.7% (+$0.9), butter, stick -18.2% ($-0.87). Turkey: $2.42/lb; farm-gate turkeys $1.25/lb (+23.4% YoY, USDA NASS). BLS average price for whole frozen turkey through Feb 2020, then the same-calendar-month 2017–19 level moved by the BLS CPI item index for other uncooked poultry including turkey (NSA), calibrated to the last 12 published months of the average-price series.

Every line = BLS Average Price (US city average, published with each CPI) × quantity. Totals are computed only for months where every line has a price; a missing month (BLS skipped October 2025) falls back to the nearest published month within two. Projection = each item's October price × its average November/October seasonal ratio since 2018 (geometric mean), summed. Updated with each CPI/AP release. Quantities: 16-lb turkey, 5 lb white potatoes, 3 lb sweet potatoes (white-potato proxy), 12 rolls (≈1 lb white bread), 1 lb butter, 1 gal whole milk, 1 dozen eggs, 5 lb flour, 4 lb sugar, 1 lb coffee. Cranberries, stuffing and pie ingredients have no BLS average price and are left out. Context: American Farm Bureau Federation annual survey, classic dinner for 10. Different basket (adds stuffing, cranberries, pie mix and shells, whipping cream, peas, veggie tray) and a different method (volunteer shoppers, November feature prices) — context, not an input. AFBF survey totals: 2024 $58.08, 2025 $55.18. Updated with each CPI/AP release.

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