The average American household spent about $519 per month on groceries in 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey. But whether that number is useful to you depends almost entirely on how many people you’re feeding.
That $519 represents average food-at-home spending for a BLS consumer unit, not a recommended budget for any specific household size. The BLS consumer unit covers everyone from financially independent single adults to large families, so the $519 average blends across very different situations.
This article gives you two sets of verified benchmarks using 2024 BLS data and May 2026 USDA food plan figures: what Americans actually spend on groceries, and what the federal government’s food plans say a nutritious home-cooked diet should cost at four different budget levels. Together, they help you figure out a realistic monthly grocery budget for your specific situation.
Quick Answer
Based on May 2026 USDA food plan data, monthly grocery benchmarks range from approximately:
- Single adult: $303 to $582
- Couple (two adults): $626 to $1,004
- Family of four: $1,018 to $1,675
The BLS reports that the average U.S. consumer unit spent about $519 per month on food at home in 2024. These two figures answer different questions and are not directly comparable. More on that distinction below.
What the Average American Household Spends on Groceries
The BLS tracks food spending in two separate categories: food at home (groceries) and food away from home (restaurants, takeout, and delivery). Based on the 2024 Consumer Expenditure Survey:
- Average annual food-at-home spending: $6,224 per household
- Monthly equivalent: roughly $519 per month
- Average annual food-away-from-home spending: $3,945 per household, or about $329 per month
Those two figures together come to roughly $847 per month in total food spending for the average U.S. consumer unit.
The BLS average captures actual reported spending across all household sizes, income levels, and eating habits, including households that dine out frequently and therefore spend much less on groceries. Treat it as national context, not as a personal spending target.
What the USDA Says a Nutritious Grocery Budget Should Be
The USDA Food and Nutrition Administration (FNA, formerly the Food and Nutrition Service) publishes monthly cost estimates for what a nutritious diet of entirely home-cooked meals would cost at four different budget levels. These figures are updated every month using the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers to reflect current food prices.
The four plan tiers are:
Thrifty is the most budget-conscious option. It assumes meals prepared from scratch, consistent weekly meal planning, bulk buying, and store brands throughout. Federal law uses this plan as the basis for setting SNAP benefit allotments. The Thrifty Food Plan was last formally reevaluated in 2021.
Low-Cost offers more variety while staying below the national median food spending level. It still relies on regular home cooking and planning.
Moderate-Cost sits in the second-highest quartile of food spending nationally. It accommodates more variety, some brand-name products, and less rigid planning, while still keeping all meals at home.
Liberal reflects the top quartile. It allows premium ingredients, the most variety, and the fewest day-to-day restrictions.
The Low-Cost, Moderate-Cost, and Liberal plans were last formally reevaluated in 2007. Their cost levels are updated monthly for inflation using CPI data, but their underlying food baskets reflect that earlier reevaluation. This is one reason the four plans should be understood as distinct frameworks rather than a single basket priced at four different levels.
All four plans share one important assumption: every meal and snack is prepared at home. These benchmarks do not include restaurant meals, takeout, or food delivery.
Monthly Grocery Budgets by Household Size (May 2026)
The table below is based on USDA food plan data from May 2026. The USDA’s base figures are calibrated for a 4-person household. The USDA publishes recommended adjustment factors for other household sizes: add 20 percent for a 1-person household, 10 percent for a 2-person household, and 5 percent for a 3-person household.
Single-person figures apply those adjustments to the 4-person rates. Couple and family of 3 figures sum individual age-sex costs and then apply the relevant factor. Family of 4 figures require no adjustment. The Thrifty plan family of 4 figure ($1,018) is published directly by the USDA; all other multi-person figures are calculated by summing individual age-sex costs per USDA methodology.
| Household | Thrifty | Low-Cost | Moderate-Cost | Liberal |
| Single adult (woman, 20–50) | $303/mo | $330/mo | $403/mo | $514/mo |
| Single adult (man, 20–50) | $381/mo | $379/mo | $476/mo | $582/mo |
| Couple (man + woman, 20–50) | $626/mo | $650/mo | $806/mo | $1,004/mo |
| Family of 3 | $817/mo | $895/mo | $1,089/mo | $1,331/mo |
| Family of 4 | $1,018/mo | $1,122/mo | $1,387/mo | $1,675/mo |
Family of 3: man + woman (20–50) + one child (age 6–8). Family of 4: man + woman (20–50) + two children (ages 6–8 and 9–11). All figures represent monthly food-at-home estimates; all meals and snacks are assumed to be prepared at home. Sources: USDA Food and Nutrition Administration, Cost of Food at Home, May 2026; BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2024.
One thing readers often notice: the Low-Cost plan for a single man ($379) comes in just below his Thrifty plan figure ($381). That’s not a data error. Because the Thrifty plan and the other three plans were developed at different times using different methodologies and different food baskets, they don’t follow a strict linear sequence. The Thrifty plan was last reevaluated in 2021; the Low-Cost, Moderate-Cost, and Liberal plans were last reevaluated in 2007. They are not four versions of the same basket at four price points.
Why the BLS and USDA Figures Are Different
A natural question arises when you see these two sets of numbers side by side: if the USDA estimates a nutritious diet for one adult costs $303 to $582 per month, why does the BLS report an average of only $519 across all consumer units?
The two figures answer different questions, so they are not meant to match.
The BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey measures what consumer units actually reported spending on food at home, averaged across all household sizes, income levels, and eating habits throughout the country.
The USDA food plans estimate the cost of specified nutritious food baskets at four budget levels, calibrated for a 4-person household and then adjusted for other sizes. They represent what a nutritious home-prepared diet could cost, not what households currently spend.
Use the BLS average to understand where national grocery spending sits as a whole. Use the USDA benchmarks to evaluate your own household against a nutrition-based target. Neither figure is more correct. They serve different purposes.
Grocery Budget by Household Size
Single-Person Households
Single people consistently pay more per person than larger households. Buying in bulk is less practical when you’re cooking for one, portioning to avoid waste is harder, and staple ingredients get used more slowly. The USDA accounts for this by building in a 20 percent premium for 1-person households.
For a single adult aged 20 to 50, the USDA benchmarks run from roughly $303 per month on the Thrifty plan to about $582 on the Liberal plan. The difference between male and female figures reflects different average caloric assumptions built into each market basket.
If you’re consistently spending well above the Liberal benchmark while eating mostly at home, it may be worth examining how much of your budget is going toward convenience foods, premium products, or food that gets thrown away. If you’re spending significantly below the Thrifty benchmark, it’s worth comparing your actual food choices against what the plan assumes to confirm your nutritional needs are being met.
Two-Person Households
Couples begin to see economies of scale. Cooking together, buying in larger quantities, and sharing staples all reduce the per-person cost compared to two people shopping separately. On a Thrifty plan, two adults should budget around $626 per month combined. A Moderate-Cost approach runs about $806.
Families of Four
The USDA’s reference family of four is two adults aged 20 to 50 with two school-age children, making this the most directly published benchmark in the table. According to May 2026 USDA data, the Thrifty plan for this household runs $1,018 per month. A Moderate-Cost approach is about $1,387, and the Liberal plan reaches $1,675.
For a practical month-by-month plan built around these figures, the detailed monthly budgeting guide for families of four covers how to structure weekly spending within a target.
Larger Households
Families of five or six receive a 5 percent per-person reduction from the USDA benchmarks; households of seven or more see a 10 percent reduction. The total monthly bill still rises with each additional person, but the per-person cost continues to fall as household size grows.
What Else Affects Your Grocery Budget
Household size explains most of the variation in grocery spending, but several other factors can move your number meaningfully.
Where you live. Food prices vary substantially by region. The USDA publishes separate Thrifty Food Plan cost estimates for Alaska and Hawaii because grocery costs there differ significantly from the national average. If local prices in your area are higher than the national average, your grocery costs may run above the USDA benchmarks even with disciplined shopping.
What you eat. A household built around whole grains, beans, eggs, and seasonal produce can often stay within the Thrifty or Low-Cost range with consistent effort. A household prioritizing organic produce, grass-fed meat, specialty products, or medically necessary items like gluten-free foods will typically fall into the Moderate-Cost or Liberal range regardless of how carefully they shop.
How much you cook from scratch. The USDA plans assume from-scratch cooking throughout. Adding meal kits, pre-cut produce, marinated proteins, or other convenience items pushes costs above the benchmarks, even when the underlying ingredients are similar.
Food waste. Groceries you buy and throw away are fully reflected in your spending but contribute nothing to your diet. Reducing waste through consistent weekly meal planning is one of the most reliable ways to lower your effective grocery spending without eating differently.
How to Set Your Own Grocery Budget
Rather than picking a round number and hoping it holds, a grounded approach tends to produce better results.
Step 1: Identify your USDA range. Use the table above to find the plan level that honestly fits your situation. If you plan meals each week and cook mostly from scratch, Thrifty to Low-Cost may be achievable. If you prefer more flexibility with less planning, Moderate-Cost is a more realistic starting point.
Step 2: Adjust for your location. If local grocery prices run noticeably above the national average, build some buffer into your target. If you’re in a lower-cost region, you may naturally come in below the benchmarks.
Step 3: Compare to what you actually spend. Pull two to three months of grocery receipts or bank statements and calculate an honest average. Compare it to your USDA range. A significant gap tells you whether you’re spending well above a nutritious benchmark or potentially below it.
Step 4: Make one specific change. Rather than overhauling your grocery routine all at once, pick one adjustment — switching to store brands in one category, shopping with a list every week, reducing produce waste — and measure the difference before moving on to the next.
For a complete system covering everything from setting a number to making it stick at checkout, the complete guide to grocery budgeting walks through the full process. If rising food costs have made your current budget feel impossible, the article on strategies for cutting your grocery bill when prices rise has specific tactics that hold up even when costs are climbing.
The Bottom Line
The USDA food plans give you the most reliable household-specific benchmarks. The BLS national average of $519 per month is useful context, but it reflects actual reported spending across all household sizes and doesn’t represent a nutritional target for any particular situation.
For many households, the Moderate-Cost plan can serve as a practical reference point because it allows more flexibility than the Thrifty plan without reaching the highest-cost tier. Which benchmark makes the most sense for you depends on your household size, income, location, and how much time you’re willing to invest in planning and from-scratch cooking.
Start with your USDA range for your household size, compare it to what you’re actually spending, and adjust from there. The gap if there is one tells you exactly where to focus.
