No, You're Not Imagining It, Groceries Are More Expensive – Here's Where It's Felt the Most

In October, Food & Wine reported on a survey that showed that the rising cost of groceries and inflation are driving decisions for who Americans are choosing to vote for in the upcoming presidential election. As the survey by Swiftly showed, 70% of respondents said they are struggling to afford groceries, marking the third year in a row that "grocery affordability has been a significant challenge for households, despite a slight easing of interest rates." And now, ConsumerAffairs has released its own report showing just how big of a "significant challenge" buying groceries really is for those living in the U.S.

In late October, the customer review platform released its findings on how much Americans spend on groceries and looked into whether wages kept up with the rising cost of food by compiling data from the U.S. Census Bureau on household spending and income. From there, it was able to determine how much of consumers' wages went to groceries and which regions of the U.S. spent more or less.

"When households are complaining about the cost of living rising and the cost of groceries in particular, they're not imagining things," David Andolfatto, an economics professor at the University of Miami, added in the report. 

As the ConsumerAffairs team found, households across the U.S. spent, on average, 13% of their monthly income on groceries in 2023, marking a 1% increase over 2022. And that's good news to Andolfatto, who said that wages have indeed risen alongside the cost of groceries in recent years. The findings also noted that almost all 50 states saw an increase of 1% or less in the share of household income going to groceries between 2022 and 2023. 

However, even as people made more, the cost of groceries did make a significant leap in pricing. According to the data, households across the U.S. spent an average of $1,174 per month on groceries in October 2023, up from $1,108 in November 2022, which is nearly a 6% increase in spending year over year. And, as the team noted, "grocery bills in 24 states grew even more rapidly during that period." 

It found that Hawaii and Alaska, two states already well known for their expensive food due to the cost of importing goods, had the highest average monthly grocery bills at about $1,451 and $1,428, respectively. Next up was California with an average of $1,294, Nevada at $1,281, and Mississippi at $1,263. 

And even as inflation returned to normal levels, data from the U.S. Census Bureau showed that 74% of people it surveyed said they felt grocery prices and the cost of other "key goods" had increased. Just 31% of respondents said they had "no difficulty" paying for weekly expenses. 

Additionally, one region, in particular, was hit harder than others due to the rising cost of food. The ConsumerAffairs report stated that those living in the Southern region of the U.S. put the biggest share of their wages toward "necessities like groceries, rents, and mortgages." Mississippi, in particular, was hit hard by rising costs. It was home to the highest share of residents’ income going to groceries, with residents spending an average of 20% of their monthly income on groceries in 2023. However, ConsumerAffairs noted that was at least partially due to the 7% tax on food sales, the highest state-imposed grocery tax in the U.S. It was joined by residents of both Louisiana and New Mexico, where residents spent 18% and 17% of their income on food, respectively. Oklahomans, Arkansans, and Alabamians also spent 17%, while Kentuckians spent 16%.

Those living in New Hampshire can count themselves among the lucky, as they spent the lowest share of their monthly incomes on groceries at about 10%. See all the data on where grocery prices have affected people the most at consumeraffairs.com, then try the 6-to-1 grocery shopping method to save a little bit more on your next grocery run.