This year, Americans can be thankful for a more affordable Thanksgiving feast. The traditional Thanksgiving spread is giving wallets a much-needed break, with the cost of feeding 10 people dropping to $58, a 5% decrease from last year’s prices. This welcome relief comes as retailers wage a fierce battle for holiday food spending while improved supply chains and moderating inflation help tame grocery costs.

• Turkey, which makes up 44% of the total meal cost, has fallen 6% from 2023 — despite farmers raising the fewest turkeys since 1985.
• Major retailers are competing aggressively, with WalmartWMT
  offering a 29-item feast for under $55, while TargetTGT
  has cut its four-person meal deal to $20, a $5 reduction from last year.

It’s not all gravy, though: Though prices have dropped, the total cost is still 19% higher than in 2019 before the pandemic. However, Wells Fargo Agri-Food Institute’s Robin Wenzel believes, “Makers of some familiar brands realized they ‘overshot’ with some of their post-pandemic price increases and are retrenching.” Still, with 44% of hosts worried about entertaining costs this year, the price drop serves up a welcome portion of financial relief just in time for the holidays.