Holy crackers people. Hole. Lee. Crackers.
Do you know anyone who would pay $4.99 for a head of cauliflower? I sure don’t. I mean c’mon, how are people suppose to eat their veggies when they are so expensive?
Cilantro $2.49 a bunch!! A packet of seeds costs about half that. 
How about $5.49 for a 14 ounce box of Cheerios? Any takers?
Do you think $4.29 for a gallon of milk is high? I start to cringe when I have to pay $2.99 a gallon for regular milk. Wowza!
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts for $2.99 is about average for a grocery store. I get mine for less through Zaycon, but I think $2.99 is about normal for a grocery store this time of year.
And last but not least, $3.99 for a 4-pack of Activia. Hmmm, I’m thinking Jamie Lee Curtis is the only one who can afford to buy it.
What do you think? Are prices sky high in NYC or am I crazy? What are the prices on these common items in your hometown?
Mavis wants to know.
meaghan mcd says
I’m from Long Island, so they’re pretty close :/
Maranda says
It IS that expensive, and that’s if you live near a regular grocery store and not a Whole Foods. Since you have to lug those groceries home by foot, and up three flights of stairs to your walk-up apt in my case, you ant go too far to scope out better prices. But most of us lived on take-out and restaurant food since our kitchens were smaller than most people bathrooms. But those prices are definitely normal. Hence my move to NJ- I love my garden now!!!
Jana Williamson says
Those don’t look to high to me, but I don’t shop in grocery stores. I get my raw milk from the farm and pay $8/gallon, 3 gallons every 2 weeks. I get chicken from the farm too which is $15 each for a whole fryer. Now these that I get are organic and not fed GMO feed, so a far cry from what you get in a store and taste so much better. I contacted Zaycon about their chicken but they could not guarantee they were not fed GMO feed, so I opted out of those chickens. The yogurt I pay $3.50 for a pint of plain raw yogurt. So to me the prices themselves are not bad, but the ingredients of the items I would not feed my family. Just a personal preference really.
Lauren says
Groceries in Iowa are ridiculous, too. Those produce prices are right around what we pay. (Just bought 3 beets for $4, and nearly cried the other day). I never realized how much cheaper groceries were in OR than elsewhere. Time to plant a bigger garden! 🙂
PattyB says
Groceries have always been uber expensive in NYC. I can remember when I was 16 and stayed the summer with my aunt and was outraged by the prices. I went grocery shopping with my mom every weekend so I knew prices. She was also a coupon clipper. That was 49 years ago.
Kat C says
I live in Canada…in a large city in the western prairies. those prices are pretty standard. Milk doesn’t go on sale here and is around $4.00 a gallon. Boneless skinless chicken breasts are usually between $9-11/lb…I’d buy them all for $2.99/lb!,my yogurt was $4.99 for a 4 pack. I am usually amazed by how inexpensive food is when I travel to the US.
Irene says
It is that expensive. Luckily there are plenty of good and cheap places to eat. And it’s true, most apartments have a toaster oven sized oven. Goes with the apartment size. You should look at rent in Manhattan – that is more shocking.
Megan says
I have to admit that I don’t think they look all that expensive compared to what we pay in NZ, of course you have to remember that the currency is not equal, I think we are around the 84 US cents to a dollar, but cauli will regularly be priced around the $3-4 mark, if you want a little plastic container of dried out looking herbs then be prepared to pay $4, the cheapest milk I have come across is $3 for 2 litres (3.7L to a gallon there abouts) I really good special for chicken breasts is $10 per kilo, that will be skin on though and you are more likely to find it at $13-14 per kilo on special and regular price is anywhere between $16-20, I don’t buy activa yoghurt although we do get it here, I normally pay between $3 and $4 for a six pack of yoghurt, I don’t usually buy cherios so have no idea of the price. I do have a vege garden and had spinich, silver beet, celery and spring onions growing during the winter to help out with the food bill but we regularly spend $200+ a fortnight on food for the two of us. We don’t eat extravagantly, I have shopped at dedicated vege stores before but found that the prices were just as high as the supermarket and often the veges didn’t look or feel as fresh. I am hoping the next place we buy will have a much larger back yard so more veges and some fruit trees!
Lynn says
Yup. That’s what we pay WAaaaay up North here in Canada in the big cities…worse in the smaller towns where they are taken advantage of {meaning….no other places to shop near by…so forced to pay}. Sad. I do remember when it was a lot less expensive to buy groceries.
Debbie says
I only live about 3 hours away from you, but in Canada (north of Wenatchee), and those prices are pretty standard here. In fact, a gallon of milk runs right around the $5 mark around here. I’m lucky to live within 15 minutes of the border though, so can travel into the US for a lot of my groceries, which are much less expensive. 🙂
Rachele says
Those prices are pretty standard here in Colorado. That’s actually cheaper than I just paid for milk at my local king Soopers.
Cecily says
My MIL lives in Montana and practically fainted when she saw the price of produce here (Tacoma). She said she was paying over $4 a pound for tomatoes in season and their local flathead cherries were going for almost $9 a pound when our Rainiers were under $3. She said ours tasted better too. I am so thankful that I live in the PNW where groceries are affordable and we have access to some of the freshest, most inexpensive produce in the country.
Pauline says
Those price are cheap, especially the chicken breasts. In Australia we pay big money for food. Regular chicken breasts would be 9.99kg. The milk is cheap too. Yoghurt is on the cheaper side. In Australia, everything is fresh and organic, nothing really is canned or in packets but we pay a lot for it as well. I think in the US overall most things are really cheap , clothing, shoes, especially housing – you might not think so but they are.
Michele says
I’ve totally paid more than $5 for a head of organic cauliflower in Bellingham.
Holly says
I live in NYC and those prices are normal unfortunately. The chicken is clearly on sale – it is usually closer to $6-$8/lb for skinless boneless breasts. As someone said, you think the food is bad, look at the cost of housing – I have many friends who pay close to $4,000/month for apartments under 700 sq ft. The city has its upsides too though, and just like anywhere, you can find deals if you know where to look. I always buy produce on sale, etc. You are blessed to live in a bountiful place, where things can be had reasonably!
Kathleen says
I live in SW Ohio and shop mostly at Aldi. I pay $1.89 for a gallon of milk, $1.89 for Aldi brand cheerios . I buy my eggs from my friends farm for $2.50/doz and beef for $3 /lb. All summer long I bought a box of produce from the farm down the road for $24.50 a week (tomatoes, cucumber, broccoli, apples, peaches etc.).
Thanks for sharing your info Mavis !
Beckie says
All these prices sound about right. I live in Canada (the east coast, Prince Edward Island if you want to be specific). All the prices you’ve listed are exactly what we pay for these types of groceries. Now, sometimes things go on sale I’ve bought cauliflower for 0.99 but that’s in season. Food is expensive here!
This is why I follow your blog. Thank you Mavis. You have inspired me to think outside the box and stretch our dollar. I have a family of five and my three children are still small (under 5). My goal is to keep our budget the same while being able to feed my family well.
aurelie says
I am in Ontario, Canada…and those prices seem totally normal to me. Thankfully I grow most of our vegetables during the summer and we raise most of our meat. But when I see the deals you get every week, I just cant understand 🙂
krista says
i live in California and the milk and cereal are the same, some places the milk is higher around here.
yas says
south-central Montana here, and those prices seem pretty normal for non-organics at a regular grocery chain.
Jill says
I will weigh in from the Southeast. Our milk is about $3.89 to 4.29 per gallon. Our produce is a bit less expensive. I just paid $2.99 for a head of cauliflower the other day. And chicken breasts in the grocery store for for $2.99 per pound on sale – $4.89 if not on sale. Our grocery prices aren’t great but our gas is the least expensive in the nation at $2.99 per gallon this week. But Alaska and Hawaii still have NYC beat on high prices ( if you call that winning) When we stayed in Skagway, Alaska last year a gallon of milk was $6 and a loaf of bread was $5 and a head of yucky supermarket lettuce was$2.59!
Joy says
I live in Columbus, Georgia and the milk is the same here. I can get a gallon of Publix brand organic milk for $5.99 but regular ole store brand milk is always at least $4. The chicken is the same price here when it is on sale which is fairly often. The vegetables are also pretty on par (I think I paid $4 for 2 heads of broccoli a few weeks ago). I coupon so that I can shop at Publix (it is so clean and awesome and the staff is amazing!) With their BOGO’s and coupons I can get Cheerios for around a dollar a box but they start out around $4. I am always CRAZY jealous when I see the prices you pay for produce. I find that $1.99 a pound for in season produce (apples and such) is pretty normal around here.
suzy says
I am in Birmingham, AL and the price you listed for the milk is normal here. That chicken price is actually not bad. Chicken breast is usually $4.29 a pound and $2.99 on sale. All meat is ridiculously expensive here. Produce is high here too. I don’t understand why apples are over $2.00 a pound during apple season. (yes, I know, transportation but it is not a cheap snack anymore). I am very jealous of the NW produce prices, and the produce is beautiful compared to the old looking stuff we get. I can only say that we have great peaches from Chilton County, AL and great strawberries and prices from Florida during their growing season. California has nothing on those peaches and strawberries. Bottom line, if you want to eat healthy, it is expensive. if you want to give your kids crap, it is cheap. And we wonder why Americans are fat, diabetic and sick.
$7.50/ hour = poor nutrition.
Susan says
Washington State has one of the highest minimum wages in the country – $9.19 an hour
And some of the best grocery prices/product.
And the best weather/temperatures (I’m good with the rain – can’t handle over 70 degrees)
Really fortunate to live here! 🙂
Cindy says
I’m from PA, and those prices are about average here too. Cereal prices are ridiculous, I won’t buy unless they’re on sale and I have a coupon (I aim for $2 a box). The yogurt I like is over $1 a container (serving of 1). We only have two grocery stores in town, so our shopping options are limited! And there’s a farmer’s market every weekend, but their prices are sometimes higher than the grocery stores.
Laura says
Those are high! Very high! I just shopped at Winco yesterday, in Oregon, and my milk was $2.84. That wasn’t the cheapest brand either, but Darigold. I do think that cereal is overpriced everywhere. I rarely get name brands, the store ones are fine, and my son likes the Winco bin cereals.
We drink a LOT of milk, so I am glad I don’t pay $8 like someone above! That is raw milk though, which I would never buy. I met a woman who was regaining her ability to walk after a life-threatening illness caused by raw milk. This was in a canning class with the Extension’s Master Gardeners, and the teacher agreed it is different now than it used to be, and she advised the class not to drink raw milk. The best I can afford is milk from cows not given hormones.
Amber says
Those prices sound like sales to me! I am from the Canadian prairies and groceries cost $$$$! Straight from my grocery receipt:
4L skim milk – 6.69
2 c sour cream – 3.29
astro multi-pack of yogourt – 8.79
package of bacon – 6.49
pineapple – 1 for 4.49
3 pk of romaine hearts – 3.99
mangoes – 2 for $1
So you can imagine our grocery bill…..a far cry from $100 per month. I think I am doing well if it is under $200 per week.
Dale Ann says
In northern Minnesota those prices look about the same (for non organic). Organic would be far higher.. Chicken would be a bit higher here as well.
Margery says
I live in Central New York
Milk- 1.89 a gallon ( the little store in town has it at 2.49)
Cheerios- 2.99 ( I buy the no name at Aldi’s for 1.89 a box)
Activia- 2.39 ( not something I buy )
Cauliflower – 3.49 ( but the local farmstand has it for 2,00 for a large head)
Cilantro- 1.99
Chicken boneless- 1.99 lb
Food prices here are not bad as long as you buy in season and know where to shop. I like Wegmans and Alidi’s
Nadia says
Moving from Westcoast Canada to East Coast USA has us in sticker shock for sure. It is cheaper to buy ‘bad for you’ food than for fresh. $2 per lb for apples??? It has been a hard adjustment for us.
bridget says
Wow cilatro s 3/$1 and milk is $1.69 in the midwest
Gretchen says
I cannot imaging buying food that costs so little. We live on Maui and the price of food is ridiculous. We have 5 growing children, too. The generic gallon of milk is 5.99. Closer to $9 if you want the “dairymaid” brand. We grow a bit of fruit, veggies, and herbs to supplement. We also have chickens so that we don’t have to pay $8/doz for organic eggs. We are now on our first cycle of processing our own chickens. We’ll see how that pans out. I’m not complaining at all. I wouldn’t trade it for living anywhere anywhere else in the world.
Beth says
Gretchen, we are lucky, we live on Oahu which is cheaper then Maui. I cringe every time I see your gas prices. That is great you are growing so much of your own food. We are trying to do that too but on Oahu we can only have two chickens and my husband doesn’t want to “process” them, they have become the children’s pets. It is a bad ratio – two chickens, four kids = not enough eggs. Its a long story but we are getting an unusually small mortgage and would you believe our food bill will be more then our mortgage bill? We wouldn’t live anywhere else either though.
Gretchen says
Aloha Beth 🙂 we came from Oahu too. I was still a little shocked by prices at Costco on Maui. Happy for you to have gotten a piece of this paradise, however you came upon it 😉 Congrats!
Rachel says
Bit hard to compare some things as we use metric measures here in Australia.
2L no-brand milk is $2 ($1/L) but more like $3.50 for 2L of a brand name milk. Flavoured milk is $5+ for 2L
A loaf of supermarket brand sliced bread is $1 but a brand name loaf is $2.50+
Cheese starts at about $10/kilo
Herbs are usually $2+ per bunch for fresh or about $2-5 per packet for dried herbs
Packaged yoghurt starts at about $5/L and is more for the individual serves compared to the 1L tub.
Meat here is pretty expensive – about the cheapest we can get is chicken wings or beef mince for about $4/kilo but premium cuts like chicken breast are more like $8-10/kilo or a whole chicken is about $5/kilo (it is cheaper to buy the whole chicken and cut the breasts off – you effectively get the marylands for free)
Lamb and beef tend to be pretty pricey – lamb loin chops are around $20/kilo, shanks (once an offcut) are around $12+/kilo, leg is around $7/kilo. Apart from the beef mince most cuts are $10+ up to scotch or eye fillet which can be in excess of $40/kilo.
I wouldn’t call our meat organic (unless it is branded as such) but pretty much all our red meats are pasture fed (not usually grain fed) so we don’t have such an issue with GMO feed, but some are treated with antibiotics and other growth enhancers.
This week I paid $2.50 for a head of lettuce (can be as low as $1/head in season) and $9/kilo for truss (vine ripened) tomatoes (can be as low as $4-5 in season). Oh, and button mushrooms are $10/kilo year round.
With these prices I figure I’m doing ok if we can shop for about $120/week for a family of 4.
Elaina says
Okay, I just moved to South Carolina from Issaquah Wa… And nearly had a hard attack when I saw the food prices…I absolutely do not understand it. I have also found out there are two growing seasons here… even more baffling… what is the deal…. it drives me nuts to pay for stuff here. … I feel sorry for people here who try to eat right… and now myself because I am one of them now …lol
Preppy Pink Crocodile says
I live in Upstate NY (like true Upstate…not a suburb…Albany) and milk is @ $3.59 for the store brand. Name brands and of course organic are much more expensive. Middle of the road brands of bread are over $4, which I think is insane. And gas…OMG gas in NY compared to most other states in insane.
KK @ Preppy Pink Crocodile
Jules says
I don’t think i can ever complain about grocery prices here in Oregon again!
Silvia says
I live in Southern CA and I’m shocked at those prices. I can get 25 lbs of carrots for $4.95, 15lbs of oranges for $5.
Zucchini 3lbs for $0.99. Organic strawberries 3 baskets for $8. I can’t comment on meat and dairy prices since we don’t consume them. I shop at ethnic supermarket and the farmer’s market.
Amy says
Just discovered your site and LOVE it! But I live in London, UK and inner city it’s tough finding anything that’s cheap or even really affordable. I do a lot of online shopping and home delivery for groceries to keep costs down. Unfortunately there are no smaller shops/markets anywhere nearby.
Jana Williamson says
I am not sure who it was that commented on being afraid of raw milk, but we just returned from the Otolaryngologist (ENT doctor) and she emphatically recommended raw milk that is grass fed vs grain fed as well as grass fed meats vs grain fed meats. She feels there is no danger in it at all and that it has more health benefits than processed milk and meats. Just thought I would throw that out there. I have had an internal medicine doctor tell me the same thing as well. Do your research and know where you food comes from and then make a decision for you and your family, not just on one or two peoples comments. It is expensive, I know, but you can either spend money on good food for health benefits, or pay the doctor later for poor health and/or diseases. Just my 2 cents. Knowledge is power, so do your own research and do what you feel is best for your family.
Christina says
I live in Canada and those prices don’t surprise me at all, one thing to remember though is that the standards for animal products are higher in Canada in terms of how animals are raised (intensity of farms, drugs allowed, etc), so that increases the cost but also the quality. We had family visit from the US whose children were born and raised there and the kids couldn’t get enough of our milk when they were here but apparently hardly drink it at all at home. We also lead the world in greenhouse vegetable production so although the price of tomatoes on the vine is higher in winter but they are much more flavorful because they are grown in province and not gassed.
Elizabeth S. says
Hi! I live right outside of Washington D.C. and I can sympathize with high grocery prices. Apples rarely ever go below $1.99+ a lb. I can’t justify a red pepper being $3.99/lb. If I want broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers, lettuce, and tomatoes I have to get them at Costco and share half with my mom (or rather my mom shares half with me). Produce is just too expensive to buy in the regular grocery store. I don’t buy a lot of milk since it is just my husband and I, but a gallon of non-organic milk is over $4. Meat is better quality and priced at Costco, so again I shop there for meat. That boneless chicken breast price is average on sale price for grocery stores here, but Costco is $1.99/lb if I remember correctly. I can’t get over that bananas are .79/lb! I don’t buy cereal, but that is about right for a box of regular old Cheerios. Dairy products (cheese & yogurt) are insanely priced if not on sale with coupon. I try to get those at Costco too, I could never give up my Costco executive membership, ever. I know many people hate on Costco, but the one here is fantastic. Crazy busy, but fantastic! Although I have many grocery stores within a 3 mile radius (Giant, Safeway, Harris Teeter, MOM’s Organic Market, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s) I typically shop at Giant, Safeway, and Costco. I coupon for healthy stuff. Although the rent prices aren’t as high as NYC, they are pretty crazy here. $2,000+ a month for a small 2 bedroom/1 bathroom apartment if you are lucky. It is a nice suburb of D.C. if that makes up for it though. Great place to raise a family and there are still jobs around here for people.
Maggie says
Those prices are high to me in southern Texas. We can grow gardens for the most part year round. I make my own yogurt.
It is simple to do and you can add your own fruit and sweetener. I just watched You Tube to learn how to make yogurt and simple soft cheeses. It was fun, looked and tasted like the expensive deli cheeses. Just watch a few You Tubes and pick one that is the easiest and less complicated.
esther says
A gallon of milk in my neighborhood is $4.50. I think that is a crime. Local stores are charging too much for a gallon of milk in my neighborhood so I usually have to go to BJ’S and buy 3 gallons for my boys. Where can I file a complaint against my local stores so they can’t get away with price gouging in my neighborhood?