Are prices lower in stores compared to a year ago?

Short answer: No, overall prices are still higher than a year ago — but some specific items have gotten cheaper.

The big picture

Prices overall are not lower than a year ago. According to the latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the annual inflation rate in the United States was 3.4% for the 12 months ending August, meaning the broad basket of consumer goods and services costs more than it did last year.

Groceries specifically

Grocery prices are a mixed bag, but overall they're still higher:

•Grocery prices are rising more slowly, but groceries are not getting cheaper overall — the U.S. food-at-home price index was unchanged in August 2026 and stood 2.2% above its August 2025 level.

•An inflation rate like this means prices are increasing more slowly than during the worst of the price surge, but it does not mean the earlier increases have been erased.

What's actually cheaper

Despite the overall trend, several individual items are cheaper than last year:

•Eggs have seen the sharpest decline — eggs have seen the biggest year-over-year price decline, falling 25.7% as supplies continued to recover from the avian flu outbreak that caused record prices in 2025.

•A local grocery price tracker found eggs were nearly 40% cheaper than last year's price at this same time.

•Other items like tomatoes, potatoes, bread, and chicken have also dropped year-over-year in some reports, while gasoline has fallen in certain categories too.

What's more expensive

On the flip side, several staples have jumped significantly:

•Beef prices are up sharply — the cost of a pound of ground beef rose the most between 2025 and 2026, from $5.55 to $6.75, a 21.8% increase.

•Coffee prices are up nearly 35% since the start of 2025.

•Other categories like housing/shelter, medical care, and airline fares have also risen notably over the past year.

Bottom line

So the honest answer is: it depends on what you're buying. The overall cost of living and grocery basket is still higher than a year ago, but thanks to easing supply issues (especially for eggs) and slower inflation in some categories, a handful of specific items are now cheaper than they were 12 months ago.

Citations (7)

1usinflationcalculator.comData and tools
Current U.S. Inflation Rates: 2000-2026
Source excerpt: “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 ...”
2foodtradenews.comNews and media
Are Groceries Getting Cheaper? Why Your Bill May Say Otherwise - Food Trade News & Food World
Source excerpt: “Grocery prices are rising more slowly, but groceries are not getting cheaper overall. The U.S. food-at-home price index was unchanged in August 2026 a...”
3foodtradenews.comNews and media
Are Groceries Getting Cheaper? Why Your Bill May Say Otherwise - Food Trade News & Food World
Source excerpt: “* An inflation rate of 2.2% means prices are increasing more slowly than they were during the worst of the food-price surge. It does not mean the earl...”
4betterreport.comLow provenance
Some Grocery Prices Are Finally Going Down — Here’s What’s Getting Cheaper - Better Report
Source excerpt: “## What’s Getting Cheaper According to the latest BLS data, eggs have seen the biggest year-over-year price decline, falling 25.7% as supplies continu...”
5wreg.comNews and mediaquality 0.63
Price Tracker September 2026: Grocery basket totals drop slightly from last month
Source excerpt: “Our average across Kroger, Walmart, and Target was $1.72, but that price is still nearly 40% cheaper than last year’s price at this same time.”
6usafacts.orgData and toolsquality 0.91
Are groceries more expensive than last year?
Source excerpt: “Out of nine grocery staples defined by the BLS, the cost of a pound of ground beef rose the most between 2025 and 2026, from $5.55 to $6.75, a 21.8% i...”
7kiplinger.comCommercial contentquality 0.85
How Prices Changed Since Trump Took Office
Source excerpt: “Coffee prices are up nearly 35% since the start of 2025, for example. ”