Cost of Thanksgiving dinner declines – remains higher than pre-pandemic levels

WASHINGTON — Cooking a Thanksgiving feast for your friends and family will cost less than last year but will still be more expensive than before the pandemic.The American Farm Bureau Federation’s 39th annual Thanksgiving dinner survey provides a snapshot of the average cost of this year’s classic holiday feast for 10, which is $58.08 or about $5.80 per person.

This is a 5% decrease from 2023, which was 4.5% lower than 2022.Two years of declines don’t erase dramatic increases that led to a record high cost of $64.06 in 2022.

Despite the encouraging momentum, a Thanksgiving meal is still 19% higher than it was in 2019, which highlights the impact inflation has had on food prices – and farmers’ costs – since the pandemic.