Egg Prices Remain Largely Stable

The retail price of eggs fell again in February and is now down more than 42% from a year ago.

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Edited by other Updated Mar 13, 2026 Updated May 12. Updated May 12. Retail egg prices rose 1.5% in April, according to the latest consumer price index. Prices are now down 39.2% from a year ago, however. Egg prices have climbed down steadily from their historic highs of early 2025. Those spikes in late 2024 and early 2025 were driven by a virulent strain of avian flu that was devastating flocks nationwide. The threat remains but outbreaks have declined since then, though they have not disappeared entirely. To date in 2026, 15.2 million birds have been culled in flocks after outbreaks in several states, according to the latest market summary from the Agriculture Department.

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In recent years, farmers have battled a fatal strain of bird flu that has persistently disrupted the U.S. egg supply. Large-scale outbreaks of the virus across multiple states from October to February took a massive toll on the U.S. flock of egg-laying hens. With limited supplies, shoppers at the time encountered skyrocketing prices, buying restrictions, empty store shelves and restaurant surcharges on eggs.

Egg prices now sharply lower than a year ago

The average cost of a dozen Grade A large eggs was $2.25 in April, down from $2.35 in March and less than half of the $6.23 recorded at their peak in March 2025, according to data from the BLS, retrieved from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis’ FRED site. » Stay informed: Stay informed: Check out NerdWallet's news hub for all the latest. Subscribe to one of NerdWallet's free newsletters. The latest consumer price index, or CPI, however, shows the price index of eggs rose 1.5% from March, interrupting a long, steady decline. Prices are down 39.2% from April 2025. Food prices overall rose 3.2% in the past year. Avian flu remains a threat, and tariffs could impact prices as well, now that the U.S. has ramped up imports of shell eggs and other egg products (such as liquid eggs and dried eggs). » MORE: Will prices ever go down? » MORE: BLS data tracking egg prices goes back to at least 1980, when large, Grade A eggs cost $0.88 a dozen, not adjusted for inflation. Before February 2022, the average cost of a dozen had largely stayed below $2. The price of eggs more than doubled from the beginning of 2022 until hitting a peak of $4.82 per dozen in January 2023. Prices largely fell until September 2023 before returning to a steady climb. A new price record was set in March 2025 at $6.23 per dozen.

Why are eggs so expensive?

Egg prices have repeatedly hit record highs because of H5N1, a highly transmissible and fatal strain of avian influenza, or bird flu, that has devastated flocks of egg-laying hens. Outbreaks started in early 2022 and quickly grew into the largest bird flu outbreak in U.S. history. When an outbreak occurs, egg producers are forced to cull their flocks, per USDA policy, which impacts the supply of eggs headed for grocery stores. Generally, as the number of egg-layers shrinks, egg supplies tighten and egg prices rise. That’s for at least two reasons: First, consumer demand for eggs has held steady despite persistently high prices. The mismatch between supply and demand tends to drive prices up. While cases are well off their peak, bird flu remains a threat. Explore more on About the author Phaneuf Taryn Phaneuf is a lead writer & content strategist covering wealth management, financial planning and other investing topics at NerdWallet. She previously reported on personal finance news. Prior to joining NerdWallet, she spent more than a decade covering education, public policy and business for various news outlets. She also taught journalism as an adjunct instructor at her alma mater, the University of Minnesota. She lives in Minnesota. Published in Why Is Everything So Expensive? U.S. Inflation Climbs to 4.2% as Energy Costs Rise Will Prices Ever Go Down? For Some Things, They Already Have Trump’s Tariffs Begin: Here’s What Could Get More Expensive By Taryn Phaneuf Austin Is Booming. So Why Are Rents Falling? By Taryn Phaneuf Can Trump Lower Gas Prices as President? By Taryn Phaneuf Why Is My Car Insurance So High? By Kayda Norman, Ryan Brady, CFP® Travel Inflation Report: June 2026 By Sally French, Benjamin Din Are Car Prices Going Up or Down? By Shannon Bradley How to Shop Amid Tariff Uncertainty By Kimberly Palmer Southwest Ditches Free Bags, Adds Basic Fares By Craig Joseph