A pound of ground beef cost $6.79 in September 2026, up 7.4% from a year earlier. In 2000 the average was $1.57, about $3.07 in today's dollars.
Adjust any amount for inflation
Every year since 1984
- Price at the time
- In September 2026 dollars
| Year | Average price | In today's dollars |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $6.09 | $6.37 |
| 2024 | $5.39 | $5.79 |
| 2023 | $5.02 | $5.55 |
| 2022 | $4.81 | $5.54 |
| 2021 | $4.33 | $5.38 |
| 2020 | $4.12 | $5.36 |
| 2019 | $3.81 | $5.02 |
| 2018 | $3.72 | $4.98 |
| 2017 | $3.64 | $5.01 |
| 2016 | $3.75 | $5.26 |
| 2015 | $4.17 | $5.92 |
| 2014 | $3.90 | $5.55 |
| 2013 | $3.40 | $4.92 |
| 2012 | $3.03 | $4.45 |
| 2011 | $2.78 | $4.16 |
| 2010 | $2.37 | $3.66 |
| 2009 | $2.22 | $3.49 |
| 2008 | $2.34 | $3.67 |
| 2007 | $2.30 | $3.74 |
| 2006 | $2.22 | $3.71 |
| 2005 | $2.30 | $3.96 |
| 2004 | $2.16 | $3.85 |
| 2003 | $1.95 | $3.57 |
| 2002 | $1.71 | $3.21 |
| 2001 | $1.71 | $3.26 |
| 2000 | $1.57 | $3.07 |
| 1999 | $1.45 | $2.94 |
| 1998 | $1.41 | $2.92 |
| 1997 | $1.40 | $2.93 |
| 1996 | $1.37 | $2.94 |
| 1995 | $1.37 | $3.03 |
| 1994 | $1.48 | $3.36 |
| 1993 | $1.57 | $3.66 |
| 1992 | $1.54 | $3.70 |
| 1991 | $1.60 | $3.95 |
| 1990 | $1.59 | $4.09 |
| 1989 | $1.44 | $3.91 |
| 1988 | $1.37 | $3.89 |
| 1987 | $1.31 | $3.88 |
| 1986 | $1.23 | $3.79 |
| 1985 | $1.24 | $3.88 |
| 1984 | $1.29 | $4.17 |
Yearly averages of monthly U.S. city average prices; a year counts once BLS published at least 10 of its months. Today's dollars use the all-items CPI to September 2026.
Against inflation
| Since | Ground beef prices | All prices |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | up 333% | up 96% |
| 1984 | up 428% | up 224% |
Since 2000, ground beef prices outpaced inflation; since 1984, ground beef prices outpaced it.
Biggest yearly jumps
- 2011: up 17.3% from 2010 ($2.37 to $2.78)
- 2014: up 14.6% from 2013 ($3.40 to $3.90)
- 2003: up 13.8% from 2002 ($1.71 to $1.95)
Minutes of work
At the average hourly wage of production and nonsupervisory workers, a pound of ground beef took 9.1 minutes of work in 1984 ($8.49 an hour) and 12.5 minutes in September 2026 ($32.54 an hour).
What moved ground beef prices
ERS says cattle numbers, cattle prices and beef production move in a cycle of about 10 years. It says drought forced ranchers to cull cows faster from 2011 through 2014, and a seven-year liquidation left the herd in January 2014 at its smallest since 1952; ground beef rose 17.3% in 2011 and 14.6% in 2014. As the herd regrew, prices fell 10.0% in 2016. After a 2019 peak, the herd shrank 8% to 86.7 million head by January 2025, and the average price rose from $3.81 a pound in 2019 to $6.09 in 2025. Over the year to September 2026 it rose another 7.4%, with ERS reporting beef production about 2% lower year over year.
Reviewed October 17, 2026. Sources:
- USDA ERS: Amber Waves, "Livestock Production Cycles Affect Long-Term Price Outlook for Cattle, Hogs, and Chickens" (March 2025)
- USDA ERS: Cattle & Beef, Sector at a Glance
- BLS: data series APU0000703112
- USDA ERS: Food Price Outlook, Summary Findings (September 2026 edition)
Sources
- BLS series APU0000703112: Ground beef (U.S. city average, to September 2026)
- BLS Consumer Price Index, all items (CPI-U)
- BLS average price data and average hourly earnings of production and nonsupervisory workers (CEU0500000008)
- How we use these figures: our methodology
General information, not financial advice.