Average Grocery Spending in America (2026): By Household Size, Income & Age

U.S. households spent an average of $6,224 on groceries (food at home) in 2024 — about $519 a month — according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey. One-person households spent about $283 a month and four-person households about $725. Those are 2024 figures; BLS’s food-at-home price index was about 32% higher in September 2026 than in January 2020.

Two kinds of numbers are on this page: what households actually spend (BLS survey data) and what a nutritious diet costs under USDA’s food plans. They answer different questions, and the USDA plans usually come out higher because they assume every meal is cooked at home from a full, balanced diet.

Average Grocery Spending by Household Size

Source: BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2024, food at home by size of consumer unit (series CXUFOODHOMELB0501M–0507M). “Per month” is the annual figure ÷ 12, a wealthvieu calculation. A consumer unit is roughly a household.

Per-person spending falls as households grow — four-person households spent about $2,174 per person in 2024, against $3,395 for people living alone.

What USDA Says Groceries Should Cost (August 2026)

USDA publishes four food plans at successively higher cost levels — Thrifty, Low-cost, Moderate-cost and Liberal — and updates their costs every month. The Thrifty plan is the basis for SNAP benefits. USDA prices each age-sex group separately; to get a household total you add up the members and apply USDA’s suggested household-size adjustment (1 person +20%, 2 people +10%, 3 people +5%, 4 people none, 5–6 people −5%).

Monthly cost. Source: USDA, Thrifty Food Plan and Cost of Food at Home at Three Levels, U.S. average, August 2026. Household totals are a wealthvieu calculation using USDA’s method: the sum of each member’s published monthly cost times USDA’s suggested size adjustment, rounded to the dollar. The four-person row is USDA’s reference family (Thrifty: $1,023.70 as published).

The male Thrifty figure comes out slightly above the male Low-cost figure because the plans rest on different data: the Thrifty plan was reevaluated in 2021, while the other three plans are based on 2001–02 data updated for inflation. For single adults in more detail, see average grocery cost for one person.

Weekly grocery budget by household

USDA’s published August 2026 weekly costs, summed and adjusted the same way.

Grocery Spending by Income Level

Higher-income households spend more on groceries in dollars, but a much smaller share of their income.

Source: BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2024, by quintile of income before taxes (series CXUFOODHOMELB0102M–0106M and CXUINCBEFTXLB0102M–0106M). Per month and share of income are wealthvieu calculations.

Rule of thumb: many budgeting guides suggest keeping groceries to roughly 10–15% of take-home pay. That is a convention, not an official standard. As arithmetic:

Grocery Spending by Age

Household grocery spending peaks when the household head is 35–54, the years most likely to include children, and falls after that.

Source: BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2024, by age of reference person (series CXUFOODHOMELB0402M–0409M). Figures are per household, not per person; per month is a wealthvieu calculation.

Grocery Inflation: 2020–2026

BLS’s food-at-home price index (U.S. city average) rose from 243.110 in January 2020 to 321.758 in September 2026, an increase of about 32%.

Source: BLS CPI, food at home, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted (CUUR0000SAF11). Changes are a wealthvieu calculation from the index values.

Individual items moved very differently: in BLS average prices, ground beef rose about 75% between January 2020 and September 2026, while butter is close to its January 2020 price and eggs have fallen back from their March 2025 peak. Item-by-item figures are on our grocery cost for one person page.

How to Spend Less on Groceries

• Plan meals before you shop and write a list, so less food goes to waste and fewer impulse buys end up in the cart.
• Compare unit prices (price per pound or ounce on the shelf tag) rather than package prices, and try store brands.
• Buy perishables in amounts you can use; large packs are only cheaper if you finish them. Freeze bread, meat and leftovers in portions.
• Cook in batches and plan for leftovers — the USDA plans assume all meals are made at home.
• Watch the categories that moved most. Beef has risen far more than chicken since 2020 in BLS average prices, so the protein mix you choose has a real effect on the total.

Am I Spending Too Much on Groceries?

A quick self-audit:

1. Pull your last 3 months of grocery spending from your bank or credit card statements
2. Calculate your monthly average
3. Compare to the benchmarks above: the BLS figures for your household size show what similar households actually spent in 2024, and the USDA table shows what a nutritious cook-at-home diet costs now
4. Identify the gap — if you’re well above the Moderate-cost plan for your household, there is likely room to cut
5. Check your waste rate — if you regularly throw out food, that’s where to start

If your grocery spending looks high, track category-level detail for one month. Overspending is usually concentrated in a few categories rather than spread evenly.

For a full picture of your spending, see average monthly expenses, the 50/30/20 budget rule, and cost of living by state.

Written by WealthVieu

WealthVieu researches and writes data-driven personal finance guides using primary sources including the IRS, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Federal Reserve, and Census Bureau.