US Average Bread Price Adjusted for Inflation

Tracking inflation-adjusted bread prices reveals how consumer purchasing power has changed over time, providing a clearer picture of real price trends.

The prices in this page represent white bread sold by the pound (453.6 grams) in urban areas across the United States. This includes all white pre-packaged regular bread regardless of size, both frozen and fresh.

Adjusted prices are shown in "today’s dollars", meaning they are benchmarked to the purchasing power of May 2026 (our latest available CPI data baseline).

Key Takeaways
  • The latest average price for a pound of bread was $1.83, in May 2026.
  • In January 1980, the nominal price was $0.501, which is equivalent to $2.158 in today's dollars.
  • Since January 1980, the inflation-adjusted price has fallen 15.2%, an average decline of -0.36% per year.
  • The peak inflation-adjusted price was $2.256, reached in December 2008.

As one of America's fundamental dietary components, bread serves as a key economic indicator in consumer spending patterns and food price monitoring systems nationwide.

This historical data reveals how bread prices have changed over time due to factors such as wheat prices, production costs, market competition and consumer preferences.

Although nominal prices have risen steadily, inflation-adjusted values show that the real cost of bread has remained relatively stable, with only modest fluctuations over time.

Inflation-Adjusted Values by Month

By examining the inflation-adjusted price over time, consumers and analysts can better understand the underlying purchasing power cost of bread, separate from the general rise in the cost of living.

The following table provides a month-by-month breakdown.

Month Nominal Inflation-Adjusted
May 2026 1.83 1.83
Apr 2026 1.869 1.881
Mar 2026 1.808 1.835
Feb 2026 1.85 1.897
Jan 2026 1.843 1.899
Dec 2025 1.833 1.896
Nov 2025 1.79 1.851
Sep 2025 1.867 1.926
Aug 2025 1.841 1.904
Jul 2025 1.851 1.92
Jun 2025 1.864 1.937
May 2025 1.876 1.956
Apr 2025 1.913 1.998
Mar 2025 1.88 1.97
Feb 2025 1.925 2.022
Jan 2025 1.925 2.031
Dec 2024 1.912 2.03
Nov 2024 1.916 2.035
Oct 2024 1.937 2.056
Sep 2024 1.976 2.1
Aug 2024 1.951 2.077
Jul 2024 1.975 2.104
Jun 2024 1.973 2.105
May 2024 1.971 2.103
Apr 2024 1.998 2.135
Mar 2024 1.997 2.143
Feb 2024 2.006 2.166
Jan 2024 2.033 2.209
Dec 2023 2.024 2.211
Nov 2023 1.976 2.157
Oct 2023 2.002 2.181
Sep 2023 1.972 2.147
Aug 2023 1.97 2.15
Jul 2023 1.98 2.171
Jun 2023 1.937 2.128
May 2023 1.951 2.15
Apr 2023 1.989 2.197
Mar 2023 1.936 2.15
Feb 2023 1.896 2.112
Jan 2023 1.888 2.115
Dec 2022 1.873 2.115
Nov 2022 1.847 2.079
Oct 2022 1.814 2.04
Sep 2022 1.749 1.975
Aug 2022 1.756 1.987
Jul 2022 1.715 1.94
Jun 2022 1.691 1.912
May 2022 1.606 1.841
Apr 2022 1.612 1.869
Mar 2022 1.607 1.873
Feb 2022 1.578 1.864
Jan 2022 1.555 1.854
Dec 2021 1.532 1.841
Nov 2021 1.547 1.865
Oct 2021 1.526 1.849
Sep 2021 1.58 1.93
Aug 2021 1.467 1.797
Jul 2021 1.491 1.83
Jun 2021 1.51 1.863
May 2021 1.511 1.881
Apr 2021 1.51 1.895
Mar 2021 1.526 1.931
Feb 2021 1.537 1.958
Jan 2021 1.546 1.981
Dec 2020 1.538 1.979
Nov 2020 1.515 1.951
Oct 2020 1.503 1.934
Sep 2020 1.492 1.921
Aug 2020 1.495 1.928
Jul 2020 1.485 1.921
Jun 2020 1.474 1.916
May 2020 1.412 1.846
Apr 2020 1.406 1.838
Mar 2020 1.374 1.784
Feb 2020 1.375 1.781
Jan 2020 1.351 1.755
Dec 2019 1.363 1.778
Nov 2019 1.361 1.773
Oct 2019 1.325 1.725
Sep 2019 1.296 1.692
Aug 2019 1.275 1.665
Jul 2019 1.281 1.673
Jun 2019 1.28 1.675
May 2019 1.289 1.687
Apr 2019 1.285 1.685
Mar 2019 1.261 1.662
Feb 2019 1.282 1.7
Jan 2019 1.274 1.696
Dec 2018 1.29 1.721
Nov 2018 1.274 1.694
Oct 2018 1.277 1.692
Sep 2018 1.288 1.71
Aug 2018 1.302 1.73
Jul 2018 1.293 1.719
Jun 2018 1.279 1.701
May 2018 1.293 1.722
Apr 2018 1.281 1.713
Mar 2018 1.309 1.758
Feb 2018 1.265 1.703
Jan 2018 1.281 1.732
Dec 2017 1.316 1.789
Nov 2017 1.295 1.759
Oct 2017 1.328 1.804
Sep 2017 1.349 1.832
Aug 2017 1.348 1.84
Jul 2017 1.327 1.817
Jun 2017 1.335 1.826
May 2017 1.327 1.817
Apr 2017 1.328 1.82
Mar 2017 1.329 1.827
Feb 2017 1.358 1.868
Jan 2017 1.351 1.864
Dec 2016 1.362 1.891
Nov 2016 1.362 1.891
Oct 2016 1.343 1.862
Sep 2016 1.329 1.845
Aug 2016 1.341 1.866
Jul 2016 1.349 1.879
Jun 2016 1.333 1.853
May 2016 1.382 1.928
Apr 2016 1.406 1.969
Mar 2016 1.416 1.993
Feb 2016 1.407 1.989
Jan 2016 1.425 2.016
Dec 2015 1.428 2.023
Nov 2015 1.409 1.99
Oct 2015 1.418 1.998
Sep 2015 1.432 2.017
Aug 2015 1.42 1.997
Jul 2015 1.447 2.032
Jun 2015 1.467 2.06
May 2015 1.463 2.062
Apr 2015 1.454 2.059
Mar 2015 1.44 2.044
Feb 2015 1.435 2.049
Jan 2015 1.479 2.121
Dec 2014 1.466 2.092
Nov 2014 1.42 2.015
Oct 2014 1.414 1.996
Sep 2014 1.405 1.978
Aug 2014 1.396 1.967
Jul 2014 1.413 1.988
Jun 2014 1.4 1.968
May 2014 1.401 1.974
Apr 2014 1.388 1.962
Mar 2014 1.359 1.927
Feb 2014 1.388 1.981
Jan 2014 1.365 1.956
Dec 2013 1.385 1.992
Nov 2013 1.382 1.987
Oct 2013 1.358 1.949
Sep 2013 1.419 2.031
Aug 2013 1.408 2.018
Jul 2013 1.434 2.057
Jun 2013 1.439 2.065
May 2013 1.401 2.016
Apr 2013 1.409 2.031
Mar 2013 1.412 2.033
Feb 2013 1.411 2.037
Jan 2013 1.422 2.069
Dec 2012 1.436 2.096
Nov 2012 1.418 2.064
Oct 2012 1.422 2.06
Sep 2012 1.401 2.029
Aug 2012 1.407 2.047
Jul 2012 1.427 2.087
Jun 2012 1.403 2.049
May 2012 1.412 2.059
Apr 2012 1.426 2.077
Mar 2012 1.395 2.038
Feb 2012 1.442 2.123
Jan 2012 1.423 2.104
Dec 2011 1.42 2.109
Nov 2011 1.399 2.072
Oct 2011 1.457 2.156
Sep 2011 1.477 2.182
Aug 2011 1.474 2.18
Jul 2011 1.513 2.244
Jun 2011 1.49 2.212
May 2011 1.472 2.183
Apr 2011 1.42 2.116
Mar 2011 1.415 2.122
Feb 2011 1.398 2.117
Jan 2011 1.401 2.132
Dec 2010 1.386 2.119
Nov 2010 1.375 2.106
Oct 2010 1.407 2.156
Sep 2010 1.386 2.126
Aug 2010 1.372 2.106
Jul 2010 1.36 2.091
Jun 2010 1.383 2.126
May 2010 1.359 2.087
Apr 2010 1.363 2.095
Mar 2010 1.368 2.107
Feb 2010 1.361 2.104
Jan 2010 1.36 2.103
Dec 2009 1.39 2.157
Nov 2009 1.373 2.127
Oct 2009 1.392 2.158
Sep 2009 1.34 2.079
Aug 2009 1.375 2.135
Jul 2009 1.391 2.165
Jun 2009 1.385 2.152
May 2009 1.413 2.214
Apr 2009 1.395 2.192
Mar 2009 1.41 2.221
Feb 2009 1.404 2.217
Jan 2009 1.381 2.192
Dec 2008 1.415 2.256
Nov 2008 1.377 2.172
Oct 2008 1.393 2.156
Sep 2008 1.379 2.112
Aug 2008 1.381 2.112
Jul 2008 1.384 2.109
Jun 2008 1.373 2.103
May 2008 1.37 2.119
Apr 2008 1.373 2.142
Mar 2008 1.35 2.119
Feb 2008 1.321 2.091
Jan 2008 1.281 2.034
Dec 2007 1.28 2.042
Nov 2007 1.235 1.969
Oct 2007 1.274 2.043
Sep 2007 1.212 1.948
Aug 2007 1.21 1.95
Jul 2007 1.209 1.945
Jun 2007 1.193 1.919
May 2007 1.192 1.921
Apr 2007 1.201 1.947
Mar 2007 1.161 1.895
Feb 2007 1.168 1.923
Jan 2007 1.153 1.909
Dec 2006 1.137 1.888
Nov 2006 1.143 1.901
Oct 2006 1.097 1.822
Sep 2006 1.083 1.789
Aug 2006 1.088 1.788
Jul 2006 1.071 1.764
Jun 2006 1.074 1.774
May 2006 1.086 1.797
Apr 2006 1.072 1.783
Mar 2006 1.04 1.744
Feb 2006 1.029 1.735
Jan 2006 1.046 1.768
Dec 2005 1.046 1.781
Nov 2005 1.055 1.789
Oct 2005 1.043 1.755
Sep 2005 1.052 1.773
Aug 2005 1.06 1.809
Jul 2005 1.067 1.83
Jun 2005 1.09 1.878
May 2005 1.086 1.872
Apr 2005 1.004 1.729
Mar 2005 1.002 1.737
Feb 2005 0.982 1.716
Jan 2005 0.997 1.752
Dec 2004 0.97 1.708
Nov 2004 0.976 1.712
Oct 2004 0.972 1.706
Sep 2004 0.985 1.738
Aug 2004 0.996 1.761
Jul 2004 0.985 1.743
Jun 2004 0.979 1.729
May 2004 0.96 1.701
Apr 2004 0.974 1.736
Mar 2004 0.947 1.693
Feb 2004 0.943 1.697
Jan 2004 0.946 1.712
Dec 2003 0.954 1.735
Nov 2003 0.953 1.731
Oct 2003 0.969 1.755
Sep 2003 0.994 1.799
Aug 2003 0.996 1.808
Jul 2003 1.002 1.826
Jun 2003 0.961 1.753
May 2003 1.001 1.828
Apr 2003 1.047 1.909
Mar 2003 1.042 1.896
Feb 2003 1.048 1.918
Jan 2003 1.042 1.922
Dec 2002 1.026 1.901
Nov 2002 1.054 1.948
Oct 2002 1.015 1.876
Sep 2002 1.016 1.881
Aug 2002 1.012 1.877
Jul 2002 1.015 1.889
Jun 2002 1.011 1.883
May 2002 1.012 1.886
Apr 2002 1.005 1.873
Mar 2002 1.012 1.897
Feb 2002 1.008 1.9
Jan 2002 1.001 1.894
Dec 2001 1.005 1.906
Nov 2001 1.012 1.912
Oct 2001 1.01 1.905
Sep 2001 0.996 1.872
Aug 2001 0.991 1.871
Jul 2001 0.987 1.863
Jun 2001 0.989 1.862
May 2001 0.995 1.876
Apr 2001 1.008 1.91
Mar 2001 1.02 1.94
Feb 2001 0.994 1.895
Jan 2001 0.982 1.879
Dec 2000 0.987 1.901
Nov 2000 0.953 1.834
Oct 2000 0.934 1.799
Sep 2000 0.918 1.771
Aug 2000 0.923 1.79
Jul 2000 0.935 1.813
Jun 2000 0.915 1.779
May 2000 0.915 1.788
Apr 2000 0.927 1.814
Mar 2000 0.924 1.809
Feb 2000 0.924 1.824
Jan 2000 0.907 1.801
Dec 1999 0.899 1.79
Nov 1999 0.899 1.79
Oct 1999 0.889 1.771
Sep 1999 0.878 1.752
Aug 1999 0.884 1.773
Jul 1999 0.893 1.795
Jun 1999 0.885 1.784
May 1999 0.886 1.787
Apr 1999 0.897 1.809
Mar 1999 0.883 1.793
Feb 1999 0.88 1.793
Jan 1999 0.872 1.779
Dec 1998 0.866 1.771
Nov 1998 0.855 1.747
Oct 1998 0.849 1.735
Sep 1998 0.86 1.762
Aug 1998 0.869 1.782
Jul 1998 0.867 1.78
Jun 1998 0.859 1.766
May 1998 0.866 1.783
Apr 1998 0.863 1.78
Mar 1998 0.853 1.762
Feb 1998 0.86 1.78
Jan 1998 0.855 1.773
Dec 1997 0.884 1.837
Nov 1997 0.897 1.861
Oct 1997 0.899 1.864
Sep 1997 0.885 1.84
Aug 1997 0.872 1.817
Jul 1997 0.872 1.821
Jun 1997 0.874 1.827
May 1997 0.854 1.788
Apr 1997 0.855 1.789
Mar 1997 0.855 1.791
Feb 1997 0.858 1.802
Jan 1997 0.862 1.816
Dec 1996 0.875 1.849
Nov 1996 0.88 1.859
Oct 1996 0.873 1.848
Sep 1996 0.886 1.882
Aug 1996 0.915 1.949
Jul 1996 0.889 1.898
Jun 1996 0.886 1.895
May 1996 0.869 1.86
Apr 1996 0.865 1.855
Mar 1996 0.852 1.834
Feb 1996 0.858 1.856
Jan 1996 0.86 1.867
Dec 1995 0.837 1.827
Nov 1995 0.821 1.791
Oct 1995 0.809 1.764
Sep 1995 0.808 1.767
Aug 1995 0.797 1.747
Jul 1995 0.789 1.734
Jun 1995 0.781 1.716
May 1995 0.768 1.691
Apr 1995 0.776 1.712
Mar 1995 0.775 1.715
Feb 1995 0.767 1.703
Jan 1995 0.767 1.71
Dec 1994 0.748 1.674
Nov 1994 0.766 1.715
Oct 1994 0.756 1.695
Sep 1994 0.776 1.741
Aug 1994 0.753 1.694
Jul 1994 0.759 1.714
Jun 1994 0.761 1.723
May 1994 0.765 1.738
Apr 1994 0.765 1.739
Mar 1994 0.755 1.719
Feb 1994 0.756 1.727
Jan 1994 0.768 1.76
Dec 1993 0.76 1.747
Nov 1993 0.771 1.772
Oct 1993 0.75 1.725
Sep 1993 0.748 1.728
Aug 1993 0.745 1.724
Jul 1993 0.762 1.768
Jun 1993 0.752 1.745
May 1993 0.752 1.748
Apr 1993 0.744 1.731
Mar 1993 0.742 1.732
Feb 1993 0.751 1.759
Jan 1993 0.748 1.758
Dec 1992 0.738 1.743
Nov 1992 0.747 1.763
Oct 1992 0.752 1.777
Sep 1992 0.756 1.793
Aug 1992 0.776 1.846
Jul 1992 0.771 1.839
Jun 1992 0.757 1.809
May 1992 0.752 1.804
Apr 1992 0.746 1.792
Mar 1992 0.747 1.797
Feb 1992 0.73 1.765
Jan 1992 0.726 1.762
Dec 1991 0.717 1.742
Nov 1991 0.731 1.778
Oct 1991 0.72 1.756
Sep 1991 0.717 1.751
Aug 1991 0.714 1.752
Jul 1991 0.7 1.722
Jun 1991 0.705 1.737
May 1991 0.705 1.742
Apr 1991 0.701 1.738
Mar 1991 0.702 1.743
Feb 1991 0.701 1.743
Jan 1991 0.705 1.755
Dec 1990 0.7 1.753
Nov 1990 0.71 1.778
Oct 1990 0.706 1.772
Sep 1990 0.7 1.768
Aug 1990 0.713 1.816
Jul 1990 0.685 1.76
Jun 1990 0.687 1.772
May 1990 0.678 1.759
Apr 1990 0.686 1.784
Mar 1990 0.68 1.771
Feb 1990 0.701 1.835
Jan 1990 0.689 1.812
Dec 1989 0.688 1.828
Nov 1989 0.676 1.799
Oct 1989 0.674 1.798
Sep 1989 0.671 1.799
Aug 1989 0.674 1.813
Jul 1989 0.671 1.808
Jun 1989 0.664 1.793
May 1989 0.655 1.773
Apr 1989 0.655 1.783
Mar 1989 0.654 1.792
Feb 1989 0.652 1.797
Jan 1989 0.653 1.807
Dec 1988 0.657 1.827
Nov 1988 0.645 1.797
Oct 1988 0.642 1.79
Sep 1988 0.636 1.779
Aug 1988 0.619 1.743
Jul 1988 0.602 1.702
Jun 1988 0.601 1.707
May 1988 0.598 1.706
Apr 1988 0.595 1.703
Mar 1988 0.587 1.689
Feb 1988 0.586 1.693
Jan 1988 0.586 1.697
Dec 1987 0.571 1.658
Nov 1987 0.559 1.623
Oct 1987 0.559 1.625
Sep 1987 0.551 1.606
Aug 1987 0.546 1.599
Jul 1987 0.544 1.602
Jun 1987 0.533 1.574
May 1987 0.54 1.6
Apr 1987 0.542 1.612
Mar 1987 0.541 1.617
Feb 1987 0.539 1.619
Jan 1987 0.544 1.639
Dec 1986 0.566 1.717
Nov 1986 0.564 1.712
Oct 1986 0.565 1.717
Sep 1986 0.566 1.721
Aug 1986 0.57 1.741
Jul 1986 0.564 1.726
Jun 1986 0.569 1.741
May 1986 0.562 1.729
Apr 1986 0.561 1.731
Mar 1986 0.56 1.725
Feb 1986 0.563 1.726
Jan 1986 0.566 1.731
Dec 1985 0.568 1.742
Nov 1985 0.564 1.734
Oct 1985 0.566 1.745
Sep 1985 0.561 1.736
Aug 1985 0.553 1.716
Jul 1985 0.556 1.728
Jun 1985 0.546 1.701
May 1985 0.542 1.693
Apr 1985 0.544 1.705
Mar 1985 0.544 1.713
Feb 1985 0.544 1.72
Jan 1985 0.551 1.75
Dec 1984 0.544 1.731
Nov 1984 0.543 1.728
Oct 1984 0.54 1.719
Sep 1984 0.539 1.72
Aug 1984 0.543 1.741
Jul 1984 0.541 1.742
Jun 1984 0.542 1.752
May 1984 0.541 1.753
Apr 1984 0.536 1.742
Mar 1984 0.542 1.77
Feb 1984 0.541 1.771
Jan 1984 0.543 1.786
Dec 1983 0.547 1.81
Nov 1983 0.547 1.811
Oct 1983 0.535 1.775
Sep 1983 0.536 1.784
Aug 1983 0.539 1.803
Jul 1983 0.544 1.825
Jun 1983 0.542 1.825
May 1983 0.542 1.831
Apr 1983 0.538 1.829
Mar 1983 0.544 1.862
Feb 1983 0.544 1.862
Jan 1983 0.541 1.854
Dec 1982 0.537 1.844
Nov 1982 0.534 1.826
Oct 1982 0.534 1.822
Sep 1982 0.536 1.835
Aug 1982 0.534 1.832
Jul 1982 0.534 1.835
Jun 1982 0.525 1.814
May 1982 0.529 1.851
Apr 1982 0.526 1.857
Mar 1982 0.526 1.865
Feb 1982 0.534 1.892
Jan 1982 0.537 1.908
Dec 1981 0.521 1.857
Nov 1981 0.527 1.885
Oct 1981 0.521 1.869
Sep 1981 0.524 1.884
Aug 1981 0.519 1.884
Jul 1981 0.521 1.906
Jun 1981 0.523 1.935
May 1981 0.525 1.959
Apr 1981 0.519 1.952
Mar 1981 0.538 2.037
Feb 1981 0.533 2.032
Jan 1981 0.531 2.045
Dec 1980 0.519 2.015
Nov 1980 0.519 2.034
Oct 1980 0.514 2.031
Sep 1980 0.511 2.039
Aug 1980 0.507 2.04
Jul 1980 0.511 2.071
Jun 1980 0.503 2.038
May 1980 0.504 2.065
Apr 1980 0.507 2.098
Mar 1980 0.502 2.1
Feb 1980 0.507 2.153
Jan 1980 0.501 2.158

About the Data

Price data is collected and published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on a monthly basis. The US Average Bread Price represents the average cost of a pound of white, pan bread in urban areas across the United States.

We have adjusted these prices for inflation based on the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). While a specific CPI for "Food" exists, using the broader CPI-U allows us to compare bread prices against the overall cost of goods and services typically purchased by households, revealing whether bread has become relatively more or less expensive compared to general inflation over time.

This data allows consumers and policymakers to understand trends in staple food prices and their impact on household budgets. By adjusting for inflation, this page provides insights into the real cost of bread over time, helping users make informed decisions and conduct meaningful analyses.

More in Consumer Prices

Other Inflation-Adjusted Data