How Much Does A Thanksgiving Turkey Cost?
I looked at the turkey I had just put in my cart and wondered if I was about to overpay for the centerpiece of my Thanksgiving feast. An estimated 46 million turkeys will be sold in the United States to be served on Thanksgiving Day, being sold at grocery stores and club stores everywhere. With so many choices from which to buy a turkey, I couldn’t help but wonder how much turkeys were being sold for at different locations.
Not being one to let my curiosity get the best of me, I did some research on turkey prices in my area to find out not only what the difference in price might be, but also to find the best place to buy a turkey. I visited and recorded the price per pound for the least expensive brand of turkey I could find at 4 popular local retailers, and then calculated what the price would be for a 15-pound turkey. Here are the results:
Walmart:
- Brand: Great Value
- Price Per Pound: $0.96
- Price For 15 Pound Turkey: $14.40
Costco:
- Brand: Butterball
- Price Per Pound: $0.98
- Price For 15 Pound Turkey: $14.70
Cub Foods:
- Brand: Young Essentials
- Price Per Pound: $0.96
- Price for 15 Pound Turkey: $14.40
HyVee Grocery Store:
- Brand: Butterball
- Price Per Pound: $1.69
- Price for 15 Pound Turkey: $25.35
The lowest priced turkey was very close at three of the retailers, with a regional grocery store coming in much higher, which significantly affected the price of the turkey.
Thanksgiving is only a few days away, but I would bet there are still many people who haven’t yet purchased their turkey. Prices certainly may vary by location, but hopefully, this information gives you an idea as to what you should expect to pay for your turkey, and where to go to get the most gobble gobble for your cash.
If you’re into getting a really, really inexpensive Thanksgiving Turkey, check out savingadvice.com’s article on How To Get A Free Turkey. There are ways to get a free turkey, but all require some effort.
Have you purchased your turkey for Thanksgiving yet? How much per pound did you pay?
Brought to you courtesy of Brock
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Brock is a software engineer by day and personal finance blogger at night. He is a fitness junkie and enjoys grilling and smoking meat. Married with two children, Brock strives to improve his skills as a husband and father, and is always on the lookout to stretch his family’s budget as far as he can.
Phew, a lot of stuff to digest, pun intended 😀
We don’t celebrate Thanksgiving here, but Christmas is round the corner and we do consume a LOT of pork. We usually try to get meat that’s been ‘raised’ in more natural conditions as much as possible. Chicken that’s not being raised in huge factory like farms, pigs that have seen the light of day etc.
HAHA, great pun, Romona! I would bet you pay a premium for the specialized pork you buy for Christmas, but in that case you’re not going for the cheapest, you’re buying with a purpose!
I prefer ham for Thanksgiving. It tastes much better with gravy and mashed potatoes.
I love a great ham as well, James, but I’m not giving up my Turkey! 🙂
You can always skip the bird and go for ham as James has recommended. Or you could pardon a burd and go vegetarian. However, in seriousness, thanks for pointing out where to get a free Turkey. Everybody should have a warm meal for Thanksgiving.