Pantry
Flour, white all-purpose, per lb

The price of flour

A pound of flour cost 20.3¢ in January 1980 and 54.5¢ in September 2026.

In Sep 2026 dollars it cost 87.9¢ in January 1980, so it is 38% cheaper now after inflation. The record is 57.5¢, in June 2024; the low was 19.8¢, in December 1986.

Download the data (CSV)See the BLS series
Jan 198020.3¢Sep 202654.5¢
87.9¢

The Jan 1980 price in Sep 2026 dollars: what it cost then, in today’s money.

In one year
down 3.2%From 56.3¢ in Sep 2025
In ten years
down 0.4%From 54.7¢ in Sep 2016
Record high
57.5¢June 2024
Record low
19.8¢December 1986

Flour, per lb, every month since Jan 1980

Price at the timeIn Sep 2026 dollars
Flour, white all-purpose: monthly U.S. average price, Jan 1980 to Sep 2026Two lines. The solid line over the yellow area is the price at the time, from 20.3¢ in January 1980 to 54.5¢ in September 2026. The dashed blue line is the same price in Sep 2026 dollars, from 87.9¢ to 54.5¢. Record high 57.5¢ in June 2024.0¢20¢40¢60¢80¢100¢19802000202057.5¢, 202454.5¢Flour, white all-purpose: monthly U.S. average price, Jan 1980 to Sep 2026Two lines. The solid line over the yellow area is the price at the time, from 20.3¢ in January 1980 to 54.5¢ in September 2026. The dashed blue line is the same price in Sep 2026 dollars, from 87.9¢ to 54.5¢. Record high 57.5¢ in June 2024.0¢20¢40¢60¢80¢100¢19801990200020102020Record 57.5¢, 202454.5¢Flour, white all-purpose: monthly U.S. average price, Jan 1980 to Sep 2026Two lines. The solid line over the yellow area is the price at the time, from 20.3¢ in January 1980 to 54.5¢ in September 2026. The dashed blue line is the same price in Sep 2026 dollars, from 87.9¢ to 54.5¢. Record high 57.5¢ in June 2024.0¢20¢40¢60¢80¢100¢1980198519901995200020052010201520202025Record 57.5¢, 202454.5¢

Solid line, yellow area: the average price in each month, in the dollars of that month. Dashed blue line: the same price restated in Sep 2026 dollars using the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers (CPI-U). Where the dashed line falls, the item got cheaper compared with everything else. Months with no published price are left as gaps when they are long, and bridged when they are a single month. Hover, tap or use the arrow keys to read any month.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, average price series APU0000701111 (U.S. city average); CPI-U CUUR0000SA0.

A January in every decade

“Now vs then” is the plain change on the shelf. “After inflation” compares the old price in Sep 2026 dollars with today’s: negative means it takes less of today’s money than it did.

Flour, white all-purpose: January prices in past decades compared with September 2026
MonthPrice thenIn today’s $Now vs thenAfter inflation
Jan 198020.3¢87.9¢up 168.5%down 38.0%
Jan 199025.3¢66.9¢up 115.4%down 18.5%
Jan 200028.6¢57.1¢up 90.6%down 4.6%
Jan 201049.1¢76.3¢up 11.0%down 28.6%
Jan 202043.8¢57.2¢up 24.4%down 4.7%

Year by year

Averages of the monthly prices in each calendar year, newest first. Years with fewer than nine published months are left out; partial years are marked.

Flour, white all-purpose: yearly average price
YearAveragevs year beforeLowest monthHighest month
20269 of 12 months54.8¢down 2.2%54.3¢ Apr56.5¢ Jan
202511 of 12 months56.0¢down 0.9%55.2¢ Nov57.4¢ Jun
202456.5¢up 2.6%54.8¢ Dec57.5¢ Jun
202355.1¢up 11.5%53.8¢ Dec56.6¢ Aug
202249.4¢up 22.3%42.4¢ Jan55.6¢ Sep
202140.4¢down 10.5%35.6¢ Jun44.6¢ Jan
202011 of 12 months45.1¢up 2.3%43.8¢ Jan46.8¢ Jun
201944.1¢down 4.5%41.7¢ Nov45.4¢ May
201846.2¢down 9.0%43.3¢ Nov47.2¢ Apr
201750.7¢down 3.4%46.2¢ Dec53.1¢ Mar
Every year back to 1980
Flour, white all-purpose: yearly average price
YearAveragevs year beforeLowest monthHighest month
201652.5¢up 1.6%50.3¢ Dec54.7¢ Sep
201551.7¢down 2.5%49.6¢ Nov54.5¢ Jan
201453.0¢up 1.6%50.1¢ Oct55.5¢ Feb
201352.2¢up 0.9%49.9¢ Mar53.3¢ Jun
201251.7¢down 0.2%49.7¢ Nov53.1¢ Aug
201151.8¢up 8.6%47.7¢ Jan55.0¢ Sep
201047.7¢down 4.8%44.1¢ Dec49.6¢ Feb
200950.1¢down 1.1%45.8¢ Nov51.9¢ Jul
200850.7¢up 40.6%42.1¢ Jan54.4¢ Jul
200736.0¢up 9.6%34.6¢ Jan39.8¢ Dec
200632.9¢up 1.5%31.7¢ Nov34.1¢ Aug
200532.4¢up 7.1%29.8¢ Nov34.1¢ Aug
200430.3¢down 2.9%28.3¢ Apr32.4¢ Jul
200331.2¢up 0.1%28.5¢ Nov32.9¢ Aug
200231.1¢up 3.0%28.9¢ Oct32.5¢ Jun
200130.2¢up 4.2%27.6¢ Apr31.8¢ Aug
200029.0¢down 1.2%26.2¢ Nov30.6¢ Oct
199929.4¢down 2.0%26.7¢ Dec31.1¢ Aug
199830.0¢down 0.7%27.9¢ Dec31.0¢ Aug
199730.2¢up 5.0%27.9¢ Dec31.0¢ May
199628.8¢up 17.2%26.2¢ Jan31.4¢ Aug
199524.5¢up 6.2%23.6¢ Apr25.6¢ Sep
199423.1¢down 1.4%22.5¢ Nov23.8¢ Aug
199323.4¢down 3.5%22.2¢ Dec24.2¢ Jan
199224.3¢up 4.0%23.3¢ Dec25.6¢ Aug
199123.4¢down 6.5%21.8¢ Nov24.4¢ Jan
199025.0¢up 2.1%23.5¢ Nov26.0¢ Jul
198924.5¢up 14.2%22.8¢ Jan25.8¢ Aug
198821.4¢up 4.2%19.9¢ Feb23.3¢ Sep
198720.5¢down 1.4%19.8¢ Dec21.3¢ Jul
198620.8¢down 1.7%19.8¢ Dec21.5¢ Aug
198521.2¢down 0.7%20.2¢ Dec21.6¢ Jun
198421.3¢down 2.0%20.4¢ Dec21.9¢ Jul
198321.8¢down 2.6%21.1¢ Mar22.7¢ Aug
198222.4¢down 0.3%21.6¢ Nov23.2¢ Jul
198122.4¢up 6.8%21.7¢ Jan23.0¢ Aug
198021.0¢—20.3¢ Jan21.5¢ Aug

About this number

  • What this number is. The average price BLS records for “Flour, white, all purpose, per lb. (453.6 gm)” across U.S. cities, collected for the Consumer Price Index. It is an average across many stores and brands, not a price at any one store.
  • No price for October 2025. BLS did not publish one: data unavailable due to the 2025 lapse in appropriations.
  • 1 other month without a price between Apr 2020 and Apr 2020. BLS publishes an average only when it has enough price quotes; the yearly table skips thin years.
  • Today’s dollars. Prices are restated in Sep 2026 dollars by multiplying by CPI-U for Sep 2026 (336.94) and dividing by CPI-U for the month in question.

Sources

Download CSV559 rows: month, price, and price in Sep 2026 dollars

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