Are prices lower in stores compared to a year ago?

Short answer: No, overall prices are still higher than a year ago — but not uniformly

Overall, prices in stores are not lower than a year ago on average, though a handful of specific items have gotten cheaper.

The big picture:
The average price of food in the United States rose by 2.7% in the 12 months ending August, after posting an annual increase of 3% for July, according to the latest inflation data published September 11, 2026, by the U.S. Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics. Similarly, 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.

But some items ARE cheaper:
A few notable exceptions exist — eggs, for instance. On average, eggs are down from $5.45 in January 2025 to $2.05 in January 2026. Chicken is down from $8.85 to $6.91. Bread is slightly down from $1.87 to $1.57. Milk is also slightly down from $3.46 to $3.26 (based on a Twin Cities grocery survey). More broadly, the latest Consumer Price Index data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that several everyday grocery staples now cost less than they did a year ago.

But many other items are still rising sharply:

One retailer bucking the trend — Walmart:
Interestingly, grocery prices are up about 3% over the past year nationally, but things look a bit different at the number one seller of groceries, Walmart. At the beginning of the year, Walmart said it rolled back prices on 7,200 items. Then, the company announced in its last earnings call that it did it again — on 11,000 more items. This has been possible partly because they got a massive windfall this year — nearly $3 billion of tariff refunds in Q2, and Walmart said they were going to use some of those refunds to lower prices.

Looking ahead:
Don't expect broad relief soon — while grocery inflation has eased in recent months, food industry economists caution a temporary relief as other input costs moving through the supply chain could put renewed pressure on food prices later this year.

Bottom line: If you're comparing your total grocery bill to a year ago, it's almost certainly higher, not lower. However, if you're looking at specific items — eggs, chicken, some dairy, and select staples — you may genuinely be paying less than you were a year ago, even as coffee, produce, and other categories continue climbing.