How much does a Thanksgiving dinner cost in 2024? Thankfully, less than last year.

One thing Americans can be thankful for this year is a lower price tag on Thanksgiving dinner staples.

For the second year in a row, the cost of buying Thanksgiving dinner has decreased from the year before, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation's annual report released Wednesday.

Inflation rose at a 2.6% annual rate in October, according to the consumer price index report released last week. But, most importantly in the report to America's home chefs: Food at home prices are up just 1.1% from 2023. Compare that to 2022 when prices jumped more than 10% from 2021.   

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How are turkeys doing this year?

U.S. farmers are expected to raise about 205 million turkeys this year, the lowest amount since 1985 because of an increase in avian influenza, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's September report. Despite the lower supply, demand for turkey has fallen this year and prices have followed. The farm bureau's volunteer shoppers found a 16-pound turkey costs $25.67 on average – a 6% decrease from last year.

How about the other items on the table?

The American Farm Bureau Federation has given the same shopping list to volunteer shoppers from all 50 states and Puerto Rico since 1986 to calculate the average cost of Thanksgiving dinner. Along with turkey, the list includes cubed stuffing, sweet potatoes, dinner rolls, frozen peas, fresh cranberries, celery, carrots, pumpkin pie mix and crusts, whipping cream and whole milk.

More than half of the items dropped in price since last year, leading to an 8.7% decrease from 2023. Aside from fresh cranberries, all the items that increased in price were processed foods: dinner rolls, whipping cream and cubed stuffing.