According to the U.S. Farm Bureau, the average cost of Thanksgiving dinner is $6.45 per person this year. These annual prices are always high – I assume they use brand name food items.
Lidl is advertising dinner for 10 at $4.45 per person this year. This is not the first time I’ve seen the USFB show a surprisingly high price. I wonder if they are using name brands instead of house brands/generics in their figures.
I can make Thanksgiving dinner for $2.85 per person in Metro Atlanta this year (1/2 the USFB cost). In fact, that price might get lower as we get closer to Thanksgiving (Lidl lowers many prices the week before, and Kroger offered Turkey last year at 25¢/lb. if you bought $35 worth of groceries).
Do you really need three desserts (cranberries, sweet potato casserole and pie)? I’d cut the sweet potatoes and drop this costs per person to $2.35 (if you’re struggling and need to cut costs).
BTW, I bought my veggies, stuffing and potatoes at Lidl, using the Lidl App for the first time and got $5 off my order. They broke it down by item (for example, I only paid 42¢ per can of green beans, etc.) So, for me, in metro Atlanta in 2024, I could provide a nice Thanksgiving meal for about $2.25 per person!
Here are my numbers:
