MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The price of eggs fell, just in time for Easter. Overall, however, the prices consumers paid for their groceries in April are still higher than earlier in the year.
In an effort to help you watch your wallet and hopefully save some money, NewsChannel 3 recently launched a new segment called the WREG Price Tracker.
Our team has been tracking the cost of more than 20 grocery items at Kroger, Target, and Walmart since early February.
This includes pantry and fridge staples like milk, eggs, and bread that people buy to feed their families all the time.
Which Grocery Items Were More Expensive?
- Milk
- Ground Beef
- Eggs
When reviewing prices in early February compared to mid-April, the items above rose the most. For example, a gallon of whole milk was up by nearly 13%.
Eggs were up roughly 10%.
The WREG Price Tracker also shows eggs are the one grocery item that saw the biggest price difference across the six weeks of our tracker. The price of a dozen eggs jumped from $4.22 in early February to $5.75 a month later.
There is some good news, however. The price of eggs fell by more than a quarter just in time for Easter.
In addition, there were several other grocery items that cost less money in mid-April, compared to earlier this year.
Which Grocery Items Were Cheaper?
There were also a few grocery staples where the average price didn’t change at all across any of the weeks we tracked prices. Those include: bread, jelly, bananas, and cheese.
The summer party season may be a bit pricier, as the average price for beer was the item that topped the list for the highest dollar amount increase when comparing February 3 to the week of April 14. The average price for a 12-pack of Bud Light rose to $15.20 compared to $14.15.
Your morning cup of coffee also cost more in mid-April. The average price was up more than a dollar compared to late March.
When reviewing the total cost for our groceries, the most expensive week fell in mid-March at just over $110. The price decreased in April, but is still higher than when WREG began tracking prices in early February.
Strategies to Save
Shop by the Grocery Sale
- Build your grocery list strictly by what’s on sale, not based on what you want.
- This allows you to stock up on items when they’re at their lowest price, then plan meals accordingly.
- This strategy can save money at the store and time at home, since meals are already mapped out.