Are prices lower in stores compared to a year ago?

Overall, prices are generally still higher than a year ago—not lower

Based on the latest data, most prices in stores remain higher than they were a year ago, though the picture is mixed depending on the specific product category:

Overall Inflation Trend

The annual inflation rate in the United States was 3.4% for the 12 months ending August, the same as in July, according to U.S. Labor Department data released September 11, 2026. This means, on average, prices across the economy are about 3.4% higher than a year ago—not lower.

Grocery Prices

Grocery prices specifically have been rising as well: The food-at-home (grocery store or supermarket food purchases) CPI was unchanged from June 2026 to July 2026 and 2.7 percent higher than in July 2025.

However, the picture within groceries is uneven:

Some Bright Spots

Certain items and regions have seen local price drops. For example, a Minnesota price check found eggs down from $5.45 in January 2025 to $2.05 in January 2026, chicken down from $8.85 to $6.91, bread slightly down from $1.87 to $1.57, and milk slightly down from $3.46 to $3.26. Some retailers are also actively cutting prices—Walmart said it rolled back prices on 7,200 items at the beginning of the year, then announced in its last earnings call that it did it again on 11,000 more items, partly funded by nearly $3 billion of tariff refunds in Q2.

Bottom Line

While a minority of specific items (like eggs, certain dairy, and some staples) have gotten cheaper, the broad trend is that prices are still higher than a year ago, with overall inflation running at 3.4% annually and grocery prices up roughly 2.7–3% year-over-year. Individual store or regional experiences can vary, and some retailers are cutting prices on specific items to attract cost-conscious shoppers.