# Retail egg prices US shoppers pay an average of $2.19 for a dozen grade A large eggs as of July 2026 (BLS). A mixed-basket national average, with the wholesale benchmark and the eggs inflation rate alongside. _Data through Jul 2026 · source last checked Aug 20, 2026 · page revised Aug 20, 2026_ > US shoppers paid an average of $2.19 for a dozen grade A large eggs in July 2026, down 25.7% from a year earlier by the eggs Consumer Price Index (BLS). The USDA wholesale benchmark (large white, loose) was $0.42 a dozen around the same time; the $1.77 gap is a wholesale-to-retail spread across different baskets, not a markup. The retail price for a dozen grade A large eggs was $2.19 in July 2026, up 2.2% month over month but down from $3.60 a year earlier. The USDA wholesale benchmark for large white loose eggs stood at $0.42 around the same time, with the $1.77 retail-to-wholesale gap reflecting the spread across basket compositions and channel. ## US retail average price (BLS APU0000708111), month over month and year over year | Period | Current | Prior | Change | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Month over month | $2.19 | $2.14 | +2.2% | | Year over year | $2.19 | $3.60 | -39.2% | ### Wholesale vs retail (different baskets, not a markup) | Series | Latest | Basis | | --- | --- | --- | | Retail average (BLS, July 2026) | $2.19 | Cartoned, mixed basket, US city average | | USDA wholesale benchmark (August 2026) | $0.42 | Large white, loose, FOB plant | | Wholesale-to-retail spread | $1.77 | Difference between two different baskets, not a markup | ### Egg price inflation — the eggs Consumer Price Index (its year-over-year change is the inflation rate) | Period | Current | Prior | Change | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Month over month | 267.1 | 268.3 | -0.4% | | Year over year | 267.1 | 359.7 | -25.7% | ## About Retail egg prices This is the price shoppers actually pay at the grocery register, from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The dollar figure is BLS's average retail price for a dozen grade A large eggs across US cities (series APU0000708111). It is a survey mean across whatever eggs sell, a MIXED basket of conventional, cage-free and organic, so it is not a conventional-only price and it is not the wholesale benchmark. Grocery prices differ from the wholesale number this site tracks for concrete reasons: the wholesale quote is for loose eggs priced at the plant, while the shelf price adds grading and candling, cartons and packaging, transport to the distribution center and the store, and the retailer's own margin. Much of retail moves on contracts rather than the daily spot market, and there is a reporting lag in both directions, so the shelf is slower to rise and slower to fall than wholesale. For the rate of change, read the eggs Consumer Price Index rather than the dollar average: BLS notes that a price index is built to measure inflation, while an average price can be pulled around by shifts in which eggs shoppers buy. ## Common questions ### What is the current price of a dozen eggs? US shoppers pay an average of $2.19 for a dozen grade A large eggs as of July 2026 (BLS). That is a national average across a mixed basket of conventional, cage-free and organic eggs, not a conventional-only price, and what any one store charges varies by region and carton type. The figure updates monthly with each BLS release. ### Are egg prices going up or down right now? At the wholesale layer, the leading edge of this market, egg prices are falling right now, 3 consecutive weeks. The grocery shelf follows wholesale with a lag, so retail typically moves later and less. The retail average itself was up 2.2% month over month in July 2026. [Why are egg prices falling right now?](/why/egg-prices-falling) has the current story. ### Why is the store price different from the USDA wholesale egg price? They measure different things. The [USDA wholesale benchmark](/national/large-white) prices loose large white eggs at the plant; the retail average prices cartoned eggs across a mixed basket at the register, after grading, packaging, transport and the retailer's own margin. The gap between them is a wholesale-to-retail spread across two different baskets, not a markup, and much of retail moves on contracts rather than the daily spot market. ### Where does this egg price data come from? The dollar figure is the US Bureau of Labor Statistics average retail price for a dozen grade A large eggs, US city average (series APU0000708111), published monthly. The inflation rate beside it is the BLS eggs Consumer Price Index, and the wholesale comparison is USDA's daily national benchmark. The [methodology page](/methodology) has the full sourcing. ### Why are eggs so expensive? When egg prices spike, the cause is usually on the supply side: a bird-flu (HPAI) outbreak removes whole laying flocks at once, and rebuilding takes months, with inventories and the demand calendar deciding how far the move carries. [Why are eggs so expensive right now?](/guides/why-are-egg-prices-high-right-now) is the live answer, and the [HPAI tracker](/hpai/layer-flocks) follows the detections behind it. ## About this data - Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Average Price Data - Series: Eggs, grade A, large, per dozen (APU0000708111); eggs CPI (CUUR0000SEFH) - Basis: Consumer retail, mixed basket (conventional/cage-free/organic), cartoned - Geography: US city average - Unit: US dollars per dozen - Calculation period: Monthly average price, not seasonally adjusted - Last observation: Jul 2026 - Update frequency: Monthly --- Cite: The US average retail price for a dozen grade A large eggs was $2.19 in Jul 2026, a mixed-basket consumer price, not a wholesale quote (BLS). The Scramble. https://the-scramble.com/retail-egg-prices/us-average Canonical URL: https://the-scramble.com/retail-egg-prices/us-average