Package of granulated sugar illustration

Thanksgiving groceries:
How much can you buy with $100?

Does it feel as if shopping for your Thanksgiving meal is more expensive than it was before the pandemic? It is. The cost of filling your cart this year is about 42% higher than it was in 2019, according to Datasembly, which tracks prices at hundreds of stores. This year, retailers such as Walmart and Kroger are offering deep discounts on turkey to get shoppers in the door, and as of mid-November, the average price for a cart of Thanksgiving basics is down 2.67% from last year. Still, thanks to the first major inflation spike in more than a decade many families are feeling the price pinch.

See for yourself. Which year is your buying power greater? Drag and drop everything you need for your Thanksgiving dinner into the shopping cart. First, go back to 2019 then shop for 2024. You have a $100 budget.

Grocery Shopping
2019

Drag and drop everything you need for your Thanksgiving dinner into the cart.

Click to
start shopping

illustration of multiple packs of stuffing mix

$1.98

illustration of multiple tins of cut green beans

$1.13

multiple packs of buttermilk biscuits illustration

$1.92

Remaining: $100.00

Checkout

illustration of multiple tins of pumpkin pie mix

$3.30

Remaining: $100.00

Checkout

illustration of multiple whipped toppping

$1.51

illustration of multiple packs of pastry pie crust

$3.75

$0.70

illustration of multiple tins of cranberry sauce

$1.55

illustration of multiple jars of turkey gravy

$1.75

illustration of multiple tins of sweet corn

$1.14

illustration of multiple packs of granulated sugar

$4.05

$4.18

illustration of multiple blocks of butter

$6.87

$9.80

illustration of multiple packs of whole flour

$2.47

Remaining: $100.00

Checkout

Grocery Shopping
2024

Click "Add to cart" on everything you need for your Thanksgiving dinner.

Click to
start shopping

CART

Remaining:
$100.00

$3.34

$2.11

$3.74

$5.56

$2.29

$4.25

$0.90

$2.89

$2.92

$1.47

$6.08

$4.60

$9.99

$10.40

$4.97

Why did prices spike and will they come down?

Did you notice a pretty significant difference? That's because there were steep U.S. grocery price increases between 2020 and 2023. Typically, they rise around 2% each year.

The recent surge in inflation was due to multiple factors. In 2020, the pandemic initially disrupted food supplies, shutting down plants due to illness. As the economy rebounded in 2021, food manufacturers and grocers faced labor shortages and raised pay as a result. Higher energy prices also made it more expensive to transport goods and make packaging materials like aluminum cans. In 2022, the war in Ukraine caused global wheat and corn prices to surge, while a severe outbreak of avian flu in the U.S. caused a spike in egg and poultry prices. Droughts, tree disease and other environmental factors have also raised prices for products like oranges, coffee and chocolate.

But there has been some relief. Grocery price inflation has been cooling since the second half of 2022. Supply chain problems and fuel prices have eased. In some cases, food companies are lowering prices to lure back inflation-weary customers.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects U.S. grocery prices to rise 1.2% in 2024.

Thanksgiving groceries:How much can you buy with $100?

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Thanksgiving groceries:
How much can you buy with $100?

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