US Average Chicken Price Adjusted for Inflation

This page shows historical chicken prices adjusted for inflation, offering a clearer view of how the real purchasing power needed to buy chicken has evolved over time.

The prices represent fresh, whole boiler/fryer chickens sold by the pound (453.6 grams) in urban areas across the United States. This includes both organic and non-organic options, as well as chickens with various marketing claims.

Adjusted prices are shown in "today’s dollars", meaning they are benchmarked to the purchasing power of December 2025 (our latest available CPI data baseline).

Key Takeaways
  • The latest average price for a pound of chicken was $2.02, in December 2025.
  • In January 1980, the nominal price was $0.699, which is equivalent to $2.911 in today's dollars.
  • Since January 1980, the inflation-adjusted price has fallen 30.62%, an average decline of -0.79% per year.
  • The peak inflation-adjusted price was $3.052, reached in September 1980.

Chicken is one of the most widely consumed proteins in the United States. Its price is tracked as part of the broader effort to monitor food costs and their economic impact.

This historical data reveals how chicken prices have fluctuated over time due to factors such as feed costs, production efficiencies, disease outbreaks and changing consumer preferences. Despite these fluctuations, the inflation-adjusted price declined significantly from the 1980s to the early 1990s, and has remained relatively stable since then.

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 chicken, separate from the general rise in the cost of living.

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

Month Nominal Inflation-Adjusted
Dec 2025 2.02 2.02
Nov 2025 2.044 2.044
Sep 2025 2.061 2.056
Aug 2025 2.076 2.076
Jul 2025 2.078 2.084
Jun 2025 2.086 2.096
May 2025 2.061 2.078
Apr 2025 2.059 2.08
Mar 2025 2.064 2.091
Feb 2025 2.051 2.083
Jan 2025 2.061 2.102
Dec 2024 2.061 2.116
Nov 2024 2.076 2.132
Oct 2024 1.987 2.04
Sep 2024 1.979 2.034
Aug 2024 1.988 2.046
Jul 2024 1.988 2.048
Jun 2024 2.007 2.07
May 2024 2.013 2.077
Apr 2024 1.953 2.018
Mar 2024 1.991 2.066
Feb 2024 1.951 2.037
Jan 2024 1.987 2.088
Dec 2023 1.955 2.065
Nov 2023 1.976 2.085
Oct 2023 1.926 2.029
Sep 2023 1.901 2.001
Aug 2023 1.958 2.067
Jul 2023 1.891 2.005
Jun 2023 1.953 2.074
May 2023 1.92 2.046
Apr 2023 1.873 2.001
Mar 2023 1.868 2.006
Feb 2023 1.894 2.04
Jan 2023 1.855 2.009
Dec 2022 1.83 1.998
Nov 2022 1.843 2.006
Oct 2022 1.863 2.026
Sep 2022 1.891 2.065
Aug 2022 1.879 2.056
Jul 2022 1.88 2.056
Jun 2022 1.826 1.997
May 2022 1.824 2.022
Apr 2022 1.794 2.011
Mar 2022 1.724 1.943
Feb 2022 1.632 1.864
Jan 2022 1.622 1.87
Dec 2021 1.606 1.867
Nov 2021 1.583 1.846
Oct 2021 1.523 1.784
Sep 2021 1.504 1.777
Aug 2021 1.472 1.744
Jul 2021 1.435 1.703
Jun 2021 1.474 1.758
May 2021 1.486 1.789
Apr 2021 1.515 1.838
Mar 2021 1.543 1.888
Feb 2021 1.583 1.95
Jan 2021 1.595 1.976
Dec 2020 1.621 2.017
Nov 2020 1.639 2.041
Oct 2020 1.58 1.966
Sep 2020 1.542 1.92
Aug 2020 1.609 2.006
Jul 2020 1.712 2.141
Jun 2020 1.747 2.196
Apr 2020 1.571 1.986
Mar 2020 1.4 1.758
Feb 2020 1.362 1.706
Jan 2020 1.409 1.77
Dec 2019 1.45 1.829
Nov 2019 1.43 1.802
Oct 2019 1.538 1.937
Sep 2019 1.487 1.877
Aug 2019 1.514 1.912
Jul 2019 1.562 1.973
Jun 2019 1.59 2.012
May 2019 1.479 1.871
Apr 2019 1.463 1.855
Mar 2019 1.468 1.871
Feb 2019 1.486 1.905
Jan 2019 1.473 1.896
Dec 2018 1.466 1.891
Nov 2018 1.501 1.93
Oct 2018 1.444 1.85
Sep 2018 1.487 1.909
Aug 2018 1.511 1.942
Jul 2018 1.519 1.953
Jun 2018 1.514 1.947
May 2018 1.523 1.962
Apr 2018 1.511 1.954
Mar 2018 1.502 1.95
Feb 2018 1.478 1.924
Jan 2018 1.509 1.973
Dec 2017 1.47 1.932
Nov 2017 1.451 1.906
Oct 2017 1.484 1.95
Sep 2017 1.48 1.943
Aug 2017 1.489 1.965
Jul 2017 1.496 1.98
Jun 2017 1.497 1.98
May 2017 1.499 1.985
Apr 2017 1.444 1.914
Mar 2017 1.462 1.943
Feb 2017 1.473 1.959
Jan 2017 1.418 1.892
Dec 2016 1.463 1.964
Nov 2016 1.478 1.984
Oct 2016 1.502 2.014
Sep 2016 1.487 1.996
Aug 2016 1.426 1.919
Jul 2016 1.445 1.946
Jun 2016 1.408 1.893
May 2016 1.489 2.009
Apr 2016 1.496 2.026
Mar 2016 1.463 1.991
Feb 2016 1.478 2.02
Jan 2016 1.429 1.955
Dec 2015 1.437 1.969
Nov 2015 1.484 2.026
Oct 2015 1.43 1.948
Sep 2015 1.415 1.927
Aug 2015 1.428 1.942
Jul 2015 1.487 2.019
Jun 2015 1.515 2.057
May 2015 1.483 2.021
Apr 2015 1.539 2.108
Mar 2015 1.545 2.12
Feb 2015 1.55 2.14
Jan 2015 1.546 2.144
Dec 2014 1.541 2.127
Nov 2014 1.533 2.104
Oct 2014 1.549 2.114
Sep 2014 1.543 2.101
Aug 2014 1.572 2.142
Jul 2014 1.495 2.033
Jun 2014 1.503 2.043
May 2014 1.556 2.119
Apr 2014 1.53 2.091
Mar 2014 1.544 2.117
Feb 2014 1.504 2.076
Jan 2014 1.529 2.118
Dec 2013 1.52 2.114
Nov 2013 1.518 2.111
Oct 2013 1.543 2.141
Sep 2013 1.528 2.115
Aug 2013 1.489 2.063
Jul 2013 1.484 2.059
Jun 2013 1.509 2.094
May 2013 1.466 2.039
Apr 2013 1.473 2.053
Mar 2013 1.471 2.048
Feb 2013 1.456 2.032
Jan 2013 1.497 2.107
Dec 2012 1.482 2.092
Nov 2012 1.512 2.128
Oct 2012 1.53 2.143
Sep 2012 1.455 2.038
Aug 2012 1.433 2.016
Jul 2012 1.454 2.057
Jun 2012 1.39 1.963
May 2012 1.347 1.899
Apr 2012 1.401 1.973
Mar 2012 1.372 1.938
Feb 2012 1.356 1.93
Jan 2012 1.334 1.907
Dec 2011 1.34 1.924
Nov 2011 1.304 1.868
Oct 2011 1.312 1.878
Sep 2011 1.294 1.848
Aug 2011 1.296 1.854
Jul 2011 1.306 1.873
Jun 2011 1.305 1.874
May 2011 1.302 1.867
Apr 2011 1.261 1.817
Mar 2011 1.269 1.84
Feb 2011 1.266 1.854
Jan 2011 1.241 1.826
Dec 2010 1.28 1.892
Nov 2010 1.277 1.891
Oct 2010 1.302 1.929
Sep 2010 1.276 1.893
Aug 2010 1.254 1.861
Jul 2010 1.28 1.903
Jun 2010 1.239 1.842
May 2010 1.259 1.87
Apr 2010 1.23 1.828
Mar 2010 1.231 1.833
Feb 2010 1.265 1.891
Jan 2010 1.265 1.892
Dec 2009 1.267 1.901
Nov 2009 1.256 1.881
Oct 2009 1.244 1.865
Sep 2009 1.258 1.888
Aug 2009 1.287 1.932
Jul 2009 1.261 1.898
Jun 2009 1.282 1.926
May 2009 1.304 1.976
Apr 2009 1.296 1.969
Mar 2009 1.301 1.982
Feb 2009 1.29 1.97
Jan 2009 1.292 1.983
Dec 2008 1.305 2.012
Nov 2008 1.304 1.989
Oct 2008 1.205 1.803
Sep 2008 1.214 1.798
Aug 2008 1.223 1.809
Jul 2008 1.191 1.755
Jun 2008 1.181 1.749
May 2008 1.194 1.786
Apr 2008 1.176 1.774
Mar 2008 1.168 1.773
Feb 2008 1.159 1.774
Jan 2008 1.163 1.785
Dec 2007 1.166 1.799
Nov 2007 1.161 1.79
Oct 2007 1.135 1.76
Sep 2007 1.142 1.775
Aug 2007 1.145 1.785
Jul 2007 1.13 1.758
Jun 2007 1.134 1.764
May 2007 1.118 1.742
Apr 2007 1.115 1.748
Mar 2007 1.064 1.679
Feb 2007 1.039 1.655
Jan 2007 1.033 1.654
Dec 2006 1.057 1.697
Nov 2006 1.049 1.687
Oct 2006 1.038 1.667
Sep 2006 1.063 1.698
Aug 2006 1.048 1.666
Jul 2006 1.04 1.656
Jun 2006 1.055 1.685
May 2006 1.034 1.655
Apr 2006 1.054 1.695
Mar 2006 1.047 1.698
Feb 2006 1.045 1.704
Jan 2006 1.062 1.735
Dec 2005 1.061 1.747
Nov 2005 1.059 1.737
Oct 2005 1.062 1.728
Sep 2005 1.056 1.721
Aug 2005 1.042 1.719
Jul 2005 1.067 1.77
Jun 2005 1.075 1.791
May 2005 1.052 1.754
Apr 2005 1.07 1.782
Mar 2005 1.061 1.779
Feb 2005 1.038 1.754
Jan 2005 1.026 1.743
Dec 2004 1.03 1.754
Nov 2004 1.039 1.763
Oct 2004 1.078 1.83
Sep 2004 1.078 1.84
Aug 2004 1.092 1.867
Jul 2004 1.077 1.843
Jun 2004 1.06 1.811
May 2004 1.039 1.78
Apr 2004 1.12 1.931
Mar 2004 1.1 1.902
Feb 2004 1.06 1.845
Jan 2004 1.062 1.858
Dec 2003 1.05 1.846
Nov 2003 1.068 1.876
Oct 2003 1.022 1.79
Sep 2003 1.022 1.788
Aug 2003 1.023 1.796
Jul 2003 1.027 1.81
Jun 2003 1.033 1.822
May 2003 1.031 1.821
Apr 2003 1.053 1.857
Mar 2003 1.049 1.845
Feb 2003 1.031 1.825
Jan 2003 1.004 1.791
Dec 2002 1.048 1.877
Nov 2002 1.044 1.866
Oct 2002 1.027 1.836
Sep 2002 1.074 1.923
Aug 2002 1.035 1.856
Jul 2002 1.077 1.938
Jun 2002 1.066 1.92
May 2002 1.094 1.972
Apr 2002 1.11 2.001
Mar 2002 1.11 2.012
Feb 2002 1.111 2.025
Jan 2002 1.091 1.996
Dec 2001 1.109 2.034
Nov 2001 1.133 2.07
Oct 2001 1.115 2.033
Sep 2001 1.107 2.012
Aug 2001 1.11 2.026
Jul 2001 1.102 2.012
Jun 2001 1.106 2.014
May 2001 1.095 1.997
Apr 2001 1.101 2.017
Mar 2001 1.103 2.029
Feb 2001 1.09 2.009
Jan 2001 1.091 2.019
Dec 2000 1.078 2.008
Nov 2000 1.065 1.982
Oct 2000 1.09 2.03
Sep 2000 1.087 2.028
Aug 2000 1.086 2.037
Jul 2000 1.089 2.042
Jun 2000 1.069 2.009
May 2000 1.052 1.988
Apr 2000 1.069 2.022
Mar 2000 1.064 2.014
Feb 2000 1.046 1.996
Jan 2000 1.059 2.033
Dec 1999 1.053 2.028
Nov 1999 1.078 2.076
Oct 1999 1.055 2.033
Sep 1999 1.08 2.084
Aug 1999 1.043 2.023
Jul 1999 1.045 2.031
Jun 1999 1.041 2.03
May 1999 1.026 2
Apr 1999 1.057 2.061
Mar 1999 1.057 2.076
Feb 1999 1.064 2.096
Jan 1999 1.072 2.114
Dec 1998 1.06 2.096
Nov 1998 1.084 2.142
Oct 1998 1.076 2.126
Sep 1998 1.074 2.127
Aug 1998 1.059 2.1
Jul 1998 1.033 2.051
Jun 1998 1.016 2.02
May 1998 1.032 2.054
Apr 1998 1.029 2.052
Mar 1998 1.032 2.062
Feb 1998 1.007 2.016
Jan 1998 1.022 2.049
Dec 1997 1.001 2.011
Nov 1997 1.018 2.043
Oct 1997 0.984 1.973
Sep 1997 0.992 1.994
Aug 1997 0.988 1.991
Jul 1997 1.005 2.029
Jun 1997 0.993 2.007
May 1997 1.007 2.038
Apr 1997 1.002 2.027
Mar 1997 1.009 2.044
Feb 1997 1.008 2.047
Jan 1997 1.016 2.069
Dec 1996 1.002 2.047
Nov 1996 1.003 2.049
Oct 1996 1.021 2.09
Sep 1996 1.006 2.066
Aug 1996 0.99 2.04
Jul 1996 0.972 2.006
Jun 1996 0.968 2.002
May 1996 0.949 1.964
Apr 1996 0.947 1.963
Mar 1996 0.933 1.942
Feb 1996 0.94 1.966
Jan 1996 0.941 1.975
Dec 1995 0.939 1.982
Nov 1995 0.948 2
Oct 1995 0.93 1.961
Sep 1995 0.939 1.986
Aug 1995 0.908 1.924
Jul 1995 0.919 1.953
Jun 1995 0.908 1.929
May 1995 0.891 1.897
Apr 1995 0.911 1.943
Mar 1995 0.917 1.963
Feb 1995 0.893 1.918
Jan 1995 0.897 1.934
Dec 1994 0.895 1.937
Nov 1994 0.904 1.957
Oct 1994 0.889 1.927
Sep 1994 0.901 1.954
Aug 1994 0.905 1.968
Jul 1994 0.92 2.009
Jun 1994 0.918 2.01
May 1994 0.902 1.982
Apr 1994 0.899 1.976
Mar 1994 0.891 1.961
Feb 1994 0.888 1.962
Jan 1994 0.899 1.993
Dec 1993 0.91 2.023
Nov 1993 0.918 2.04
Oct 1993 0.893 1.986
Sep 1993 0.897 2.003
Aug 1993 0.896 2.005
Jul 1993 0.89 1.997
Jun 1993 0.891 2
May 1993 0.888 1.996
Apr 1993 0.874 1.967
Mar 1993 0.879 1.984
Feb 1993 0.871 1.972
Jan 1993 0.875 1.988
Dec 1992 0.879 2.007
Nov 1992 0.885 2.02
Oct 1992 0.865 1.977
Sep 1992 0.881 2.02
Aug 1992 0.882 2.028
Jul 1992 0.878 2.025
Jun 1992 0.861 1.99
May 1992 0.854 1.981
Apr 1992 0.861 2
Mar 1992 0.859 1.998
Feb 1992 0.849 1.985
Jan 1992 0.878 2.06
Dec 1991 0.864 2.03
Nov 1991 0.857 2.015
Oct 1991 0.878 2.071
Sep 1991 0.874 2.064
Aug 1991 0.869 2.062
Jul 1991 0.888 2.113
Jun 1991 0.878 2.092
May 1991 0.883 2.11
Apr 1991 0.885 2.121
Mar 1991 0.899 2.158
Feb 1991 0.903 2.171
Jan 1991 0.886 2.133
Dec 1990 0.858 2.078
Nov 1990 0.88 2.131
Oct 1990 0.883 2.143
Sep 1990 0.907 2.215
Aug 1990 0.912 2.246
Jul 1990 0.917 2.279
Jun 1990 0.928 2.315
May 1990 0.902 2.262
Apr 1990 0.897 2.255
Mar 1990 0.928 2.337
Feb 1990 0.896 2.268
Jan 1990 0.882 2.243
Dec 1989 0.883 2.269
Nov 1989 0.879 2.262
Oct 1989 0.91 2.348
Sep 1989 0.942 2.442
Aug 1989 0.954 2.481
Jul 1989 0.964 2.511
Jun 1989 0.982 2.564
May 1989 0.961 2.515
Apr 1989 0.932 2.453
Mar 1989 0.913 2.419
Feb 1989 0.899 2.396
Jan 1989 0.905 2.422
Dec 1988 0.885 2.38
Nov 1988 0.892 2.403
Oct 1988 0.932 2.513
Sep 1988 0.975 2.637
Aug 1988 0.961 2.617
Jul 1988 0.937 2.562
Jun 1988 0.868 2.384
May 1988 0.796 2.195
Apr 1988 0.76 2.103
Mar 1988 0.753 2.095
Feb 1988 0.745 2.081
Jan 1988 0.74 2.073
Dec 1987 0.736 2.067
Nov 1987 0.756 2.123
Oct 1987 0.791 2.223
Sep 1987 0.793 2.235
Aug 1987 0.785 2.224
Jul 1987 0.755 2.15
Jun 1987 0.771 2.201
May 1987 0.782 2.241
Apr 1987 0.792 2.277
Mar 1987 0.804 2.324
Feb 1987 0.832 2.416
Jan 1987 0.821 2.393
Dec 1986 0.865 2.537
Nov 1986 0.878 2.577
Oct 1986 0.9 2.644
Sep 1986 0.91 2.676
Aug 1986 0.958 2.83
Jul 1986 0.889 2.631
Jun 1986 0.795 2.353
May 1986 0.769 2.288
Apr 1986 0.752 2.244
Mar 1986 0.767 2.284
Feb 1986 0.771 2.286
Jan 1986 0.766 2.265
Dec 1985 0.776 2.301
Nov 1985 0.778 2.313
Oct 1985 0.749 2.233
Sep 1985 0.762 2.28
Aug 1985 0.757 2.271
Jul 1985 0.753 2.264
Jun 1985 0.761 2.292
May 1985 0.745 2.25
Apr 1985 0.764 2.316
Mar 1985 0.769 2.342
Feb 1985 0.772 2.36
Jan 1985 0.773 2.374
Dec 1984 0.753 2.317
Nov 1984 0.771 2.373
Oct 1984 0.764 2.351
Sep 1984 0.79 2.438
Aug 1984 0.788 2.444
Jul 1984 0.829 2.581
Jun 1984 0.817 2.553
May 1984 0.811 2.542
Apr 1984 0.844 2.653
Mar 1984 0.848 2.678
Feb 1984 0.867 2.744
Jan 1984 0.839 2.668
Dec 1983 0.812 2.598
Nov 1983 0.766 2.453
Oct 1983 0.737 2.365
Sep 1983 0.769 2.475
Aug 1983 0.74 2.393
Jul 1983 0.724 2.348
Jun 1983 0.699 2.277
May 1983 0.687 2.244
Apr 1983 0.676 2.222
Mar 1983 0.698 2.31
Feb 1983 0.699 2.314
Jan 1983 0.689 2.283
Dec 1982 0.682 2.264
Nov 1982 0.694 2.295
Oct 1982 0.7 2.31
Sep 1982 0.713 2.36
Aug 1982 0.717 2.378
Jul 1982 0.74 2.459
Jun 1982 0.732 2.445
May 1982 0.72 2.435
Apr 1982 0.712 2.431
Mar 1982 0.715 2.452
Feb 1982 0.726 2.487
Jan 1982 0.712 2.447
Dec 1981 0.7 2.413
Nov 1981 0.702 2.428
Oct 1981 0.712 2.47
Sep 1981 0.728 2.531
Aug 1981 0.752 2.64
Jul 1981 0.767 2.713
Jun 1981 0.717 2.565
May 1981 0.706 2.548
Apr 1981 0.734 2.67
Mar 1981 0.755 2.765
Feb 1981 0.759 2.798
Jan 1981 0.749 2.79
Dec 1980 0.76 2.854
Nov 1980 0.766 2.903
Oct 1980 0.792 3.027
Sep 1980 0.791 3.052
Aug 1980 0.751 2.922
Jul 1980 0.71 2.782
Jun 1980 0.64 2.508
May 1980 0.628 2.488
Apr 1980 0.638 2.552
Mar 1980 0.655 2.65
Feb 1980 0.673 2.764
Jan 1980 0.699 2.911

About the Data

The US Average Chicken Price represents the average cost of a pound of fresh, whole chicken in urban areas across the United States, collected and published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

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 chicken prices against the overall cost of goods and services typically purchased by households, revealing whether chicken has become relatively more or less expensive compared to general inflation over time.

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