The 10 most expensive states to buy a Thanksgiving turkey — and the 10 cheapest

Erin McDowell

2024-11-18T16:34:39Z

thanksgiving turkey — Here's where Thanksgiving turkeys are cheapest and priciest this year. Mphillips007/Getty Images

Your Thanksgiving turkey might be more or less expensive depending on where you live.
The average price of a 15-pound turkey for Thanksgiving in 2024 is $31.16.
Remote states like Hawaii and Alaska have the highest turkey prices.

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, many shoppers are worried about how the holiday will impact their grocery budgets, especially the cost of a turkey, which can vary depending on where you live.

FinanceBuzz ranked the most expensive and least expensive states to purchase a 15-pound Thanksgiving turkey this year. The study found that Americans can expect to pay an average of $31.16 for a 15-pound turkey for their Thanksgiving feast, or about $2.08 per pound.

The two most expensive states for buying a turkey — Hawaii and Alaska — are often considered to be the most remote states in the country with high transportation costs, while states with the least expensive turkeys also had lower average costs of living.

Other factors that could affect turkey prices in different states are the efficacy of supply chains, healthy turkey supply, and demand for the Thanksgiving staple.

However, while grocery prices are still high, there's a little holiday cheer to be found. FinanceBuzz reported that turkey prices in 2024 are down 12% on average from last year. CBS reported that the drop in turkey prices could be because of a return to pre-pandemic supply chain status and lower levels of bird flu in Minnesota, which has affected turkey supplies in recent years.

Here are the 10 most expensive states to buy a turkey, ranked, followed by the 10 least expensive states to buy a turkey, ranked.

We also included each state's cost-of-living ranking , as reported by Forbes, which ranked the average cost of living in each state from 1 to 50, with 1 having the highest cost of living and 50 having the lowest.