Pantry
Potato chips, per 16 oz
The price of potato chips
Sixteen ounces of potato chips cost $1.98 in January 1980 and $6.67 in September 2026.
In Sep 2026 dollars it cost $8.58 in January 1980, so it is 22% cheaper now after inflation. The record is $6.97, in September 2025; the low was $1.98, in January 1980.
The Jan 1980 price in Sep 2026 dollars: what it cost then, in today’s money.
- In one year
- down 4.3%From $6.97 in Sep 2025
- In ten years
- up 50.2%From $4.44 in Sep 2016
- Record high
- $6.97September 2025
- Record low
- $1.98January 1980
Potato chips, per 16 oz, every month since Jan 1980
Price at the timeIn Sep 2026 dollarsSolid 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 APU0000718311 (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.
| Month | Price then | In today’s $ | Now vs then | After inflation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 1980 | $1.98 | $8.58 | up 236.6% | down 22.3% |
| Jan 1990 | $2.87 | $7.58 | up 132.7% | down 12.0% |
| Jan 2000 | $3.39 | $6.76 | up 96.9% | down 1.3% |
| Jan 2010 | $4.65 | $7.23 | up 43.4% | down 7.8% |
| Jan 2020 | $4.49 | $5.87 | up 48.4% | up 13.6% |
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.
| Year | Average | vs year before | Lowest month | Highest month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20269 of 12 months | $6.68 | down 0.4% | $6.56 Jul | $6.83 Feb |
| 202511 of 12 months | $6.71 | up 3.9% | $6.46 Feb | $6.97 Sep |
| 2024 | $6.45 | up 0.1% | $6.25 Aug | $6.63 May |
| 2023 | $6.45 | up 10.6% | $6.17 Feb | $6.68 Oct |
| 2022 | $5.83 | up 14.8% | $5.26 Jan | $6.40 Oct |
| 2021 | $5.08 | up 3.1% | $4.93 May | $5.27 Oct |
| 2020 | $4.92 | up 9.7% | $4.49 Jan | $5.10 Jul |
| 2019 | $4.49 | up 0.9% | $4.38 Jul | $4.69 Nov |
| 2018 | $4.45 | up 0.8% | $4.34 Feb | $4.59 Nov |
| 2017 | $4.41 | down 1.2% | $4.33 Feb | $4.52 Nov |
Every year back to 1980
| Year | Average | vs year before | Lowest month | Highest month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | $4.46 | up 1.2% | $4.35 Dec | $4.62 Mar |
| 2015 | $4.41 | up 0.9% | $4.26 Jan | $4.50 Sep |
| 2014 | $4.37 | down 6.3% | $4.25 Nov | $4.54 Mar |
| 2013 | $4.66 | down 6.4% | $4.51 Jun | $4.97 Mar |
| 2012 | $4.99 | up 0.4% | $4.71 Dec | $5.26 Jun |
| 2011 | $4.97 | up 7.0% | $4.72 Feb | $5.18 Aug |
| 2010 | $4.64 | up 1.6% | $4.46 Apr | $4.77 Oct |
| 2009 | $4.57 | up 13.6% | $4.44 May | $4.68 Apr |
| 2008 | $4.02 | up 13.9% | $3.53 Jan | $4.48 Dec |
| 2007 | $3.53 | up 1.9% | $3.36 Jan | $3.67 Nov |
| 2006 | $3.47 | up 2.9% | $3.37 Jun | $3.60 May |
| 2005 | $3.37 | down 1.0% | $3.22 Mar | $3.52 Jun |
| 2004 | $3.40 | down 2.7% | $3.24 Sep | $3.58 Feb |
| 2003 | $3.50 | up 4.3% | $3.37 Jul | $3.58 Dec |
| 2002 | $3.36 | down 2.0% | $3.16 May | $3.50 Sep |
| 2001 | $3.43 | up 2.0% | $3.31 Apr | $3.59 Oct |
| 2000 | $3.36 | up 3.2% | $3.28 Nov | $3.45 Feb |
| 1999 | $3.26 | up 3.0% | $3.21 May | $3.33 Dec |
| 1998 | $3.16 | up 0.9% | $3.11 Mar | $3.22 Oct |
| 1997 | $3.13 | up 2.5% | $3.06 May | $3.18 Apr |
| 1996 | $3.06 | up 1.7% | $2.96 Feb | $3.15 Oct |
| 1995 | $3.00 | up 1.1% | $2.95 May | $3.08 Jan |
| 1994 | $2.97 | up 3.1% | $2.87 Jan | $3.02 Nov |
| 1993 | $2.88 | down 0.6% | $2.83 Jun | $2.97 Aug |
| 1992 | $2.90 | down 2.2% | $2.84 Nov | $2.97 Aug |
| 1991 | $2.96 | up 0.2% | $2.90 Sep | $3.06 Jun |
| 1990 | $2.96 | up 3.4% | $2.87 Jan | $3.03 Oct |
| 1989 | $2.86 | up 9.2% | $2.71 Jan | $2.95 Apr |
| 1988 | $2.62 | down 4.8% | $2.57 Jun | $2.70 Dec |
| 1987 | $2.75 | up 2.8% | $2.67 Oct | $2.81 Mar |
| 1986 | $2.68 | up 2.7% | $2.61 Feb | $2.75 Oct |
| 1985 | $2.61 | up 1.5% | $2.56 Sep | $2.63 Dec |
| 1984 | $2.57 | up 2.5% | $2.49 Jan | $2.63 Oct |
| 1983 | $2.50 | up 4.4% | $2.44 Jan | $2.54 Sep |
| 1982 | $2.40 | up 5.2% | $2.38 Jan | $2.43 Oct |
| 1981 | $2.28 | up 11.7% | $2.19 Feb | $2.38 Nov |
| 1980 | $2.04 | — | $1.98 Jan | $2.18 Dec |
About this number
- What this number is. The average price BLS records for “Potato chips, per 16 oz.” 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.
- 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
- BLS series APU0000718311: Potato chips, per 16 oz.U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. city average, monthly
- Average price data: what it is and how it is collectedU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Average price data filesdownload.bls.gov, files updated Oct 14, 2026
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