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

The 2024 average price is 19% higher than it was in 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic caused worldwide inflation that had a big impact on food prices.

For turkey this year the average price for a 16-pound bird is $25.67, down 6% from 2023.

“The turkey is traditionally the main attraction on the Thanksgiving table and is typically the most expensive part of the meal,” said AFBF Economist Bernt Nelson in a statement. “The American turkey flock is the smallest it’s been since 1985 because of avian influenza, but overall demand has also fallen, resulting in lower prices at the grocery store for families planning a holiday meal.”

For the other Thanksgiving dinner ingredients, most saw a drop in prices. But dinner rolls and cubed stuffing prices were up 8% while cranberry prices rose 12% over 2023 costs.

“We should all be thankful that we live in a country with such an abundant food supply,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall in a statement. “We are seeing modest improvements in the cost of a Thanksgiving dinner for a second year, but America’s families, including farm families, are still being hurt by high inflation.”

Not everybody has the traditional turkey Thanksgiving meal. So the farm bureau priced an expanded menu that includes boneless ham, Russet potatoes and frozen green beans. Adding those items raises the average dinner price for ten this year to $77.34.

Whole milk prices are down 14.3% from last year. Sweet potatoes are down 26.2%.

This year the average Thanksgiving dinner price is lowest in the South at $56.81 and highest in the West at $67.81. In the Northeast, it’s $57.36 and it’s $58.90 in the Midwest.

Last year the farm bureau found an average Thanksgiving dinner for ten price of $61.17, 4.5% less than 2022. The 2022 cost was 20% higher than it was in 2021.