Here's How Much Less Thanksgiving Dinner Will Cost Consumers In 2025
The average cost of a Thanksgiving dinner for 10 people across the U.S. is $55.18, marking a decline of 5% from 2024, according to a survey by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).
The survey by the AFBF, an advocacy group that represents farmers in all 50 states plus Puerto Rico, was conducted by volunteer shoppers who researched prices for Thanksgiving staples during the first week of November. In addition, the Weekly Retail Turkey Feature Activity report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) found that between November 15 and November 21, 2025, 49.8% of stores sold budget-friendly bundled Thanksgiving deals compared to 33.5% in 2024. Meanwhile, 18.6% of stores offered free turkeys with an additional purchase.
Indeed, multiple store chains are offering affordable Thanksgiving turkey deals. The drop in price comes even as inflation has increased 2.7% year-over-year for retailers in September 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The price drop also defies a previous outlook from the USDA that wholesale frozen turkey prices would go up 40% in price from November 2024 (per CBS News).
Thanksgiving items have gone down in price, but not everything is cheaper
Per the AFBF, the average price of a 16-pound turkey is $21.50, or $1.34 per pound, a decrease of 16.3% from 2024. An AFBF market intel report added that this retail price drop means that turkey made up just 39% of the price of a Thanksgiving dinner, its lowest share since 2000. As for why turkey prices are down despite an avian flu that killed large numbers of poultry, it's partly due to a drop in demand for turkey outside of Thanksgiving, according to the AFBF.
Other Thanksgiving item price drops, per the AFBF, include cubed stuffing mix ($3.71, down 9%), a dozen frozen dinner rolls ($3.56, down 14.6%), and 12-ounce bags of fresh cranberries ($2.28, down 2.8%). That said, some Thanksgiving prices did go up. A veggie tray of carrots and celery went up 61.3%, and 3 pounds of sweet potatoes cost $4 in November 2025, a jump of 37% from 2024. Natural disasters caused the spike in these prices, according to the AFBF intel report. For example, Hurricane Helene devastated North Carolina, where more than 50% of the country's sweet potatoes are grown. Also, don't go too crazy with the whipped cream: A half-pint now costs $1.87, an increase of 3.2%.
The price of a Thanksgiving dinner is not the same everywhere
The price of a Thanksgiving dinner may have dropped nationally, but not everyone across the U.S. will have the same opportunity to save money when hosting the holiday meal. Per the AFBF, Thanksgiving dinner is cheapest in southern states, where the average price of groceries needed to cook the dinner is $50.01. The Midwest has the second cheapest price point at $54.38, followed by the Northeast at $60.82.
In the last place in terms of affordability is the West, where the price of a Thanksgiving dinner sits at $61.75. This is not surprising, considering three out of the five most expensive places in the U.S. are the western states of Hawaii, California, and Alaska as of the third quarter of 2025, according to Missouri Economic Research and Information Center. If you live in a place where food prices are painfully high this time of year, knowing where to shop for the best deals may save you money on groceries.