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 September 2026 (our latest available CPI data baseline).

Key Takeaways
  • The latest average price for a pound of bread was $1.83, in September 2026.
  • In January 1980, the nominal price was $0.501, which is equivalent to $2.17 in today's dollars.
  • Since January 1980, the inflation-adjusted price has fallen 15.66%, an average decline of -0.36% per year.
  • The peak inflation-adjusted price was $2.268, 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
Sep 2026 1.83 1.83
Aug 2026 1.823 1.834
Jul 2026 1.82 1.836
Jun 2026 1.814 1.83
May 2026 1.83 1.84
Apr 2026 1.869 1.891
Mar 2026 1.808 1.845
Feb 2026 1.85 1.907
Jan 2026 1.843 1.909
Dec 2025 1.833 1.906
Nov 2025 1.79 1.861
Sep 2025 1.867 1.937
Aug 2025 1.841 1.915
Jul 2025 1.851 1.931
Jun 2025 1.864 1.947
May 2025 1.876 1.966
Apr 2025 1.913 2.009
Mar 2025 1.88 1.981
Feb 2025 1.925 2.033
Jan 2025 1.925 2.042
Dec 2024 1.912 2.041
Nov 2024 1.916 2.046
Oct 2024 1.937 2.068
Sep 2024 1.976 2.112
Aug 2024 1.951 2.088
Jul 2024 1.975 2.116
Jun 2024 1.973 2.116
May 2024 1.971 2.115
Apr 2024 1.998 2.147
Mar 2024 1.997 2.154
Feb 2024 2.006 2.178
Jan 2024 2.033 2.221
Dec 2023 2.024 2.223
Nov 2023 1.976 2.168
Oct 2023 2.002 2.192
Sep 2023 1.972 2.159
Aug 2023 1.97 2.162
Jul 2023 1.98 2.182
Jun 2023 1.937 2.139
May 2023 1.951 2.161
Apr 2023 1.989 2.209
Mar 2023 1.936 2.161
Feb 2023 1.896 2.124
Jan 2023 1.888 2.126
Dec 2022 1.873 2.126
Nov 2022 1.847 2.09
Oct 2022 1.814 2.051
Sep 2022 1.749 1.985
Aug 2022 1.756 1.998
Jul 2022 1.715 1.95
Jun 2022 1.691 1.923
May 2022 1.606 1.851
Apr 2022 1.612 1.879
Mar 2022 1.607 1.883
Feb 2022 1.578 1.874
Jan 2022 1.555 1.864
Dec 2021 1.532 1.851
Nov 2021 1.547 1.875
Oct 2021 1.526 1.859
Sep 2021 1.58 1.941
Aug 2021 1.467 1.807
Jul 2021 1.491 1.84
Jun 2021 1.51 1.873
May 2021 1.511 1.891
Apr 2021 1.51 1.905
Mar 2021 1.526 1.941
Feb 2021 1.537 1.969
Jan 2021 1.546 1.991
Dec 2020 1.538 1.99
Nov 2020 1.515 1.962
Oct 2020 1.503 1.945
Sep 2020 1.492 1.931
Aug 2020 1.495 1.938
Jul 2020 1.485 1.931
Jun 2020 1.474 1.927
May 2020 1.412 1.856
Apr 2020 1.406 1.848
Mar 2020 1.374 1.794
Feb 2020 1.375 1.791
Jan 2020 1.351 1.765
Dec 2019 1.363 1.787
Nov 2019 1.361 1.783
Oct 2019 1.325 1.735
Sep 2019 1.296 1.701
Aug 2019 1.275 1.674
Jul 2019 1.281 1.682
Jun 2019 1.28 1.684
May 2019 1.289 1.696
Apr 2019 1.285 1.694
Mar 2019 1.261 1.671
Feb 2019 1.282 1.709
Jan 2019 1.274 1.705
Dec 2018 1.29 1.73
Nov 2018 1.274 1.703
Oct 2018 1.277 1.701
Sep 2018 1.288 1.719
Aug 2018 1.302 1.74
Jul 2018 1.293 1.729
Jun 2018 1.279 1.71
May 2018 1.293 1.732
Apr 2018 1.281 1.723
Mar 2018 1.309 1.767
Feb 2018 1.265 1.712
Jan 2018 1.281 1.741
Dec 2017 1.316 1.799
Nov 2017 1.295 1.769
Oct 2017 1.328 1.814
Sep 2017 1.349 1.842
Aug 2017 1.348 1.85
Jul 2017 1.327 1.827
Jun 2017 1.335 1.836
May 2017 1.327 1.827
Apr 2017 1.328 1.83
Mar 2017 1.329 1.837
Feb 2017 1.358 1.878
Jan 2017 1.351 1.875
Dec 2016 1.362 1.901
Nov 2016 1.362 1.901
Oct 2016 1.343 1.872
Sep 2016 1.329 1.855
Aug 2016 1.341 1.876
Jul 2016 1.349 1.889
Jun 2016 1.333 1.864
May 2016 1.382 1.938
Apr 2016 1.406 1.98
Mar 2016 1.416 2.004
Feb 2016 1.407 1.999
Jan 2016 1.425 2.027
Dec 2015 1.428 2.034
Nov 2015 1.409 2
Oct 2015 1.418 2.009
Sep 2015 1.432 2.028
Aug 2015 1.42 2.008
Jul 2015 1.447 2.043
Jun 2015 1.467 2.071
May 2015 1.463 2.073
Apr 2015 1.454 2.071
Mar 2015 1.44 2.055
Feb 2015 1.435 2.06
Jan 2015 1.479 2.132
Dec 2014 1.466 2.104
Nov 2014 1.42 2.026
Oct 2014 1.414 2.007
Sep 2014 1.405 1.989
Aug 2014 1.396 1.978
Jul 2014 1.413 1.998
Jun 2014 1.4 1.979
May 2014 1.401 1.984
Apr 2014 1.388 1.973
Mar 2014 1.359 1.938
Feb 2014 1.388 1.992
Jan 2014 1.365 1.966
Dec 2013 1.385 2.002
Nov 2013 1.382 1.998
Oct 2013 1.358 1.959
Sep 2013 1.419 2.042
Aug 2013 1.408 2.028
Jul 2013 1.434 2.068
Jun 2013 1.439 2.076
May 2013 1.401 2.026
Apr 2013 1.409 2.042
Mar 2013 1.412 2.044
Feb 2013 1.411 2.048
Jan 2013 1.422 2.081
Dec 2012 1.436 2.107
Nov 2012 1.418 2.075
Oct 2012 1.422 2.071
Sep 2012 1.401 2.04
Aug 2012 1.407 2.058
Jul 2012 1.427 2.099
Jun 2012 1.403 2.06
May 2012 1.412 2.07
Apr 2012 1.426 2.088
Mar 2012 1.395 2.049
Feb 2012 1.442 2.134
Jan 2012 1.423 2.115
Dec 2011 1.42 2.12
Nov 2011 1.399 2.084
Oct 2011 1.457 2.168
Sep 2011 1.477 2.193
Aug 2011 1.474 2.192
Jul 2011 1.513 2.256
Jun 2011 1.49 2.224
May 2011 1.472 2.195
Apr 2011 1.42 2.127
Mar 2011 1.415 2.134
Feb 2011 1.398 2.128
Jan 2011 1.401 2.144
Dec 2010 1.386 2.131
Nov 2010 1.375 2.117
Oct 2010 1.407 2.168
Sep 2010 1.386 2.138
Aug 2010 1.372 2.118
Jul 2010 1.36 2.102
Jun 2010 1.383 2.138
May 2010 1.359 2.099
Apr 2010 1.363 2.107
Mar 2010 1.368 2.118
Feb 2010 1.361 2.116
Jan 2010 1.36 2.115
Dec 2009 1.39 2.169
Nov 2009 1.373 2.138
Oct 2009 1.392 2.17
Sep 2009 1.34 2.091
Aug 2009 1.375 2.147
Jul 2009 1.391 2.176
Jun 2009 1.385 2.164
May 2009 1.413 2.226
Apr 2009 1.395 2.204
Mar 2009 1.41 2.233
Feb 2009 1.404 2.229
Jan 2009 1.381 2.204
Dec 2008 1.415 2.268
Nov 2008 1.377 2.184
Oct 2008 1.393 2.167
Sep 2008 1.379 2.124
Aug 2008 1.381 2.124
Jul 2008 1.384 2.12
Jun 2008 1.373 2.114
May 2008 1.37 2.131
Apr 2008 1.373 2.153
Mar 2008 1.35 2.13
Feb 2008 1.321 2.103
Jan 2008 1.281 2.045
Dec 2007 1.28 2.053
Nov 2007 1.235 1.98
Oct 2007 1.274 2.055
Sep 2007 1.212 1.959
Aug 2007 1.21 1.961
Jul 2007 1.209 1.956
Jun 2007 1.193 1.929
May 2007 1.192 1.931
Apr 2007 1.201 1.958
Mar 2007 1.161 1.905
Feb 2007 1.168 1.934
Jan 2007 1.153 1.919
Dec 2006 1.137 1.898
Nov 2006 1.143 1.911
Oct 2006 1.097 1.832
Sep 2006 1.083 1.798
Aug 2006 1.088 1.798
Jul 2006 1.071 1.773
Jun 2006 1.074 1.784
May 2006 1.086 1.807
Apr 2006 1.072 1.793
Mar 2006 1.04 1.754
Feb 2006 1.029 1.745
Jan 2006 1.046 1.777
Dec 2005 1.046 1.791
Nov 2005 1.055 1.799
Oct 2005 1.043 1.764
Sep 2005 1.052 1.783
Aug 2005 1.06 1.819
Jul 2005 1.067 1.84
Jun 2005 1.09 1.888
May 2005 1.086 1.882
Apr 2005 1.004 1.738
Mar 2005 1.002 1.747
Feb 2005 0.982 1.725
Jan 2005 0.997 1.762
Dec 2004 0.97 1.717
Nov 2004 0.976 1.722
Oct 2004 0.972 1.716
Sep 2004 0.985 1.748
Aug 2004 0.996 1.771
Jul 2004 0.985 1.752
Jun 2004 0.979 1.739
May 2004 0.96 1.711
Apr 2004 0.974 1.746
Mar 2004 0.947 1.703
Feb 2004 0.943 1.706
Jan 2004 0.946 1.721
Dec 2003 0.954 1.744
Nov 2003 0.953 1.74
Oct 2003 0.969 1.765
Sep 2003 0.994 1.808
Aug 2003 0.996 1.818
Jul 2003 1.002 1.836
Jun 2003 0.961 1.763
May 2003 1.001 1.838
Apr 2003 1.047 1.919
Mar 2003 1.042 1.906
Feb 2003 1.048 1.929
Jan 2003 1.042 1.932
Dec 2002 1.026 1.911
Nov 2002 1.054 1.959
Oct 2002 1.015 1.886
Sep 2002 1.016 1.891
Aug 2002 1.012 1.887
Jul 2002 1.015 1.899
Jun 2002 1.011 1.894
May 2002 1.012 1.896
Apr 2002 1.005 1.883
Mar 2002 1.012 1.907
Feb 2002 1.008 1.91
Jan 2002 1.001 1.904
Dec 2001 1.005 1.916
Nov 2001 1.012 1.922
Oct 2001 1.01 1.915
Sep 2001 0.996 1.882
Aug 2001 0.991 1.881
Jul 2001 0.987 1.874
Jun 2001 0.989 1.872
May 2001 0.995 1.887
Apr 2001 1.008 1.92
Mar 2001 1.02 1.951
Feb 2001 0.994 1.905
Jan 2001 0.982 1.89
Dec 2000 0.987 1.911
Nov 2000 0.953 1.844
Oct 2000 0.934 1.809
Sep 2000 0.918 1.781
Aug 2000 0.923 1.8
Jul 2000 0.935 1.823
Jun 2000 0.915 1.788
May 2000 0.915 1.798
Apr 2000 0.927 1.823
Mar 2000 0.924 1.819
Feb 2000 0.924 1.834
Jan 2000 0.907 1.81
Dec 1999 0.899 1.8
Nov 1999 0.899 1.8
Oct 1999 0.889 1.781
Sep 1999 0.878 1.762
Aug 1999 0.884 1.782
Jul 1999 0.893 1.805
Jun 1999 0.885 1.794
May 1999 0.886 1.796
Apr 1999 0.897 1.819
Mar 1999 0.883 1.803
Feb 1999 0.88 1.802
Jan 1999 0.872 1.788
Dec 1998 0.866 1.78
Nov 1998 0.855 1.757
Oct 1998 0.849 1.744
Sep 1998 0.86 1.771
Aug 1998 0.869 1.792
Jul 1998 0.867 1.79
Jun 1998 0.859 1.776
May 1998 0.866 1.792
Apr 1998 0.863 1.789
Mar 1998 0.853 1.772
Feb 1998 0.86 1.79
Jan 1998 0.855 1.783
Dec 1997 0.884 1.847
Nov 1997 0.897 1.871
Oct 1997 0.899 1.874
Sep 1997 0.885 1.85
Aug 1997 0.872 1.827
Jul 1997 0.872 1.831
Jun 1997 0.874 1.837
May 1997 0.854 1.797
Apr 1997 0.855 1.798
Mar 1997 0.855 1.801
Feb 1997 0.858 1.811
Jan 1997 0.862 1.826
Dec 1996 0.875 1.859
Nov 1996 0.88 1.87
Oct 1996 0.873 1.858
Sep 1996 0.886 1.892
Aug 1996 0.915 1.96
Jul 1996 0.889 1.908
Jun 1996 0.886 1.905
May 1996 0.869 1.87
Apr 1996 0.865 1.865
Mar 1996 0.852 1.844
Feb 1996 0.858 1.866
Jan 1996 0.86 1.877
Dec 1995 0.837 1.837
Nov 1995 0.821 1.801
Oct 1995 0.809 1.773
Sep 1995 0.808 1.777
Aug 1995 0.797 1.756
Jul 1995 0.789 1.743
Jun 1995 0.781 1.726
May 1995 0.768 1.7
Apr 1995 0.776 1.721
Mar 1995 0.775 1.725
Feb 1995 0.767 1.713
Jan 1995 0.767 1.719
Dec 1994 0.748 1.684
Nov 1994 0.766 1.724
Oct 1994 0.756 1.704
Sep 1994 0.776 1.75
Aug 1994 0.753 1.703
Jul 1994 0.759 1.723
Jun 1994 0.761 1.733
May 1994 0.765 1.748
Apr 1994 0.765 1.749
Mar 1994 0.755 1.728
Feb 1994 0.756 1.736
Jan 1994 0.768 1.77
Dec 1993 0.76 1.756
Nov 1993 0.771 1.782
Oct 1993 0.75 1.734
Sep 1993 0.748 1.737
Aug 1993 0.745 1.734
Jul 1993 0.762 1.778
Jun 1993 0.752 1.755
May 1993 0.752 1.757
Apr 1993 0.744 1.741
Mar 1993 0.742 1.741
Feb 1993 0.751 1.768
Jan 1993 0.748 1.767
Dec 1992 0.738 1.752
Nov 1992 0.747 1.772
Oct 1992 0.752 1.787
Sep 1992 0.756 1.803
Aug 1992 0.776 1.856
Jul 1992 0.771 1.849
Jun 1992 0.757 1.819
May 1992 0.752 1.814
Apr 1992 0.746 1.802
Mar 1992 0.747 1.807
Feb 1992 0.73 1.775
Jan 1992 0.726 1.771
Dec 1991 0.717 1.752
Nov 1991 0.731 1.787
Oct 1991 0.72 1.766
Sep 1991 0.717 1.761
Aug 1991 0.714 1.761
Jul 1991 0.7 1.732
Jun 1991 0.705 1.747
May 1991 0.705 1.752
Apr 1991 0.701 1.747
Mar 1991 0.702 1.752
Feb 1991 0.701 1.752
Jan 1991 0.705 1.765
Dec 1990 0.7 1.763
Nov 1990 0.71 1.788
Oct 1990 0.706 1.782
Sep 1990 0.7 1.777
Aug 1990 0.713 1.826
Jul 1990 0.685 1.77
Jun 1990 0.687 1.782
May 1990 0.678 1.768
Apr 1990 0.686 1.793
Mar 1990 0.68 1.78
Feb 1990 0.701 1.845
Jan 1990 0.689 1.822
Dec 1989 0.688 1.838
Nov 1989 0.676 1.809
Oct 1989 0.674 1.808
Sep 1989 0.671 1.809
Aug 1989 0.674 1.823
Jul 1989 0.671 1.817
Jun 1989 0.664 1.803
May 1989 0.655 1.783
Apr 1989 0.655 1.793
Mar 1989 0.654 1.802
Feb 1989 0.652 1.807
Jan 1989 0.653 1.817
Dec 1988 0.657 1.837
Nov 1988 0.645 1.807
Oct 1988 0.642 1.8
Sep 1988 0.636 1.789
Aug 1988 0.619 1.753
Jul 1988 0.602 1.712
Jun 1988 0.601 1.716
May 1988 0.598 1.715
Apr 1988 0.595 1.712
Mar 1988 0.587 1.698
Feb 1988 0.586 1.702
Jan 1988 0.586 1.707
Dec 1987 0.571 1.667
Nov 1987 0.559 1.632
Oct 1987 0.559 1.634
Sep 1987 0.551 1.614
Aug 1987 0.546 1.608
Jul 1987 0.544 1.611
Jun 1987 0.533 1.582
May 1987 0.54 1.609
Apr 1987 0.542 1.62
Mar 1987 0.541 1.626
Feb 1987 0.539 1.627
Jan 1987 0.544 1.648
Dec 1986 0.566 1.726
Nov 1986 0.564 1.721
Oct 1986 0.565 1.726
Sep 1986 0.566 1.731
Aug 1986 0.57 1.751
Jul 1986 0.564 1.735
Jun 1986 0.569 1.751
May 1986 0.562 1.739
Apr 1986 0.561 1.741
Mar 1986 0.56 1.734
Feb 1986 0.563 1.736
Jan 1986 0.566 1.74
Dec 1985 0.568 1.751
Nov 1985 0.564 1.743
Oct 1985 0.566 1.754
Sep 1985 0.561 1.745
Aug 1985 0.553 1.725
Jul 1985 0.556 1.738
Jun 1985 0.546 1.71
May 1985 0.542 1.702
Apr 1985 0.544 1.715
Mar 1985 0.544 1.723
Feb 1985 0.544 1.729
Jan 1985 0.551 1.76
Dec 1984 0.544 1.741
Nov 1984 0.543 1.737
Oct 1984 0.54 1.728
Sep 1984 0.539 1.73
Aug 1984 0.543 1.751
Jul 1984 0.541 1.751
Jun 1984 0.542 1.761
May 1984 0.541 1.763
Apr 1984 0.536 1.752
Mar 1984 0.542 1.78
Feb 1984 0.541 1.78
Jan 1984 0.543 1.795
Dec 1983 0.547 1.819
Nov 1983 0.547 1.821
Oct 1983 0.535 1.785
Sep 1983 0.536 1.793
Aug 1983 0.539 1.812
Jul 1983 0.544 1.835
Jun 1983 0.542 1.835
May 1983 0.542 1.841
Apr 1983 0.538 1.838
Mar 1983 0.544 1.872
Feb 1983 0.544 1.872
Jan 1983 0.541 1.864
Dec 1982 0.537 1.854
Nov 1982 0.534 1.836
Oct 1982 0.534 1.832
Sep 1982 0.536 1.845
Aug 1982 0.534 1.842
Jul 1982 0.534 1.845
Jun 1982 0.525 1.824
May 1982 0.529 1.861
Apr 1982 0.526 1.868
Mar 1982 0.526 1.875
Feb 1982 0.534 1.902
Jan 1982 0.537 1.919
Dec 1981 0.521 1.868
Nov 1981 0.527 1.895
Oct 1981 0.521 1.88
Sep 1981 0.524 1.894
Aug 1981 0.519 1.895
Jul 1981 0.521 1.916
Jun 1981 0.523 1.945
May 1981 0.525 1.97
Apr 1981 0.519 1.963
Mar 1981 0.538 2.048
Feb 1981 0.533 2.043
Jan 1981 0.531 2.056
Dec 1980 0.519 2.026
Nov 1980 0.519 2.045
Oct 1980 0.514 2.042
Sep 1980 0.511 2.05
Aug 1980 0.507 2.051
Jul 1980 0.511 2.082
Jun 1980 0.503 2.049
May 1980 0.504 2.076
Apr 1980 0.507 2.109
Mar 1980 0.502 2.112
Feb 1980 0.507 2.165
Jan 1980 0.501 2.17

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