The cost of a traditional Thanksgiving meal has fallen sharply this year, dropping to its lowest price since 2021, according to the American Farm Bureau (AFB). The AFB’s 40th annual survey found that a classic Thanksgiving dinner for 10 people will cost $55.18 , marking a five percent decrease from last year.
Since 1986, volunteers across all 50 states and Puerto Rico have been organized by the AFB to record local prices for a full menu including turkey, cubed stuffing, sweet potatoes, dinner rolls, frozen peas, fresh cranberries, celery, carrots, pumpkin pie mix and crusts, whipping cream, and whole milk.
The survey results highlight the volatile price increases seen during the presidency of Joe Biden. Amid a period of inflation that rose to its worst pace in forty years, the price of a classic Thanksgiving meal surged 14 percent in 2021, Biden’s first year in office, hitting a then-record high of $53.31. Despite the administration’s insistence that the price increases were “transitory” or the result of a temporary supply shock, the following year saw further escalation. The price of a Thanksgiving meal jumped another 20 percent , skyrocketing to $64.05 in 2022. By Biden’s final Thanksgiving, the cost of a traditional family holiday meal was 24 percent higher than it was when he took office.
This year’s decline was mainly driven by a significant fall in the price of turkey. A 16-pound turkey will cost an average of $21.50 , which is down 16 percent from 2024, according to the AFB. Three other items on the AFB’s menu also dropped in price this year: cubed stuffing, fresh cranberries, and dinner rolls. However, five of the dishes or ingredients—sweet potatoes, frozen green peas, a vegetable tray of carrots and celery, whole milk, and whipping cream—rose in price. Pumpkin pie mix and pie shells remain virtually unchanged from 2024.
Even with the recent price decline, the current cost of the meal has not yet fully recovered from the years of high inflation experienced under Biden. The decrease in price is seen by some as a vindication of President Trump’s recent claims about the Thanksgiving meal becoming more affordable for American families. This decline is particularly notable because it runs counter to predictions that President Trump’s trade and immigration policies would generally drive consumer prices up.