Price of a pound of white rice by year, 1980–2025
A pound of white rice cost $0.512 on average in 1980 and $1.05 in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Its sharpest one-year jump came in 2008, when the average rose 34% from 2007. The price rose 105% over those years while prices in general rose 291%, so, measured in 2025 dollars, it cost 48% less in 2025 than in 1980.
- Average in 1980
- $0.512
- Average in 2025
- $1.05
- Highest year, 2025
- $1.05
- Biggest one-year rise, 2008
- +34%
- Against inflation
- Trailed it by 48%
Every year
The table lists all 43 years with data, from 1980 to 2025. Select a year to see what everything else cost that year.
| Year | Average price | In 2025 dollars | Change from year before |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | $0.512 | $2.00 | — |
| 1981 | $0.563 | $1.99 | +10% |
| 1982 | $0.505 | $1.68 | −10% |
| 1983 | $0.473 | $1.53 | −6% |
| 1984 | $0.478 | $1.48 | +1% |
| 1985 | $0.47 | $1.41 | −2% |
| 1986 | $0.446 | $1.31 | −5% |
| 1987 | $0.401 | $1.14 | −10% |
| 1988 | $0.484 | $1.32 | +21% |
| 1989 | $0.498 | $1.29 | +3% |
| 1990 | $0.496 | $1.22 | 0% |
| 1991 | $0.503 | $1.19 | +1% |
| 1992 | $0.528 | $1.21 | +5% |
| 1993 | $0.512 | $1.14 | −3% |
| 1994 | $0.547 | $1.19 | +7% |
| 1995 | $0.525 | $1.11 | −4% |
| 1996 | $0.546 | $1.12 | +4% |
| 1997 | $0.565 | $1.13 | +3% |
| 1998 | $0.542 | $1.07 | −4% |
| 1999 | $0.537 | $1.04 | −1% |
| 2003 | $0.452 | $0.791 | — |
| 2004 | $0.536 | $0.914 | +19% |
| 2005 | $0.554 | $0.913 | +3% |
| 2006 | $0.549 | $0.877 | −1% |
| 2007 | $0.549 | $0.852 | 0% |
| 2008 | $0.733 | $1.10 | +34% |
| 2009 | $0.766 | $1.15 | +5% |
| 2010 | $0.741 | $1.09 | −3% |
| 2011 | $0.741 | $1.06 | 0% |
| 2012 | $0.697 | $0.977 | −6% |
| 2013 | $0.724 | $1.00 | +4% |
| 2014 | $0.734 | $0.998 | +1% |
| 2015 | $0.685 | $0.93 | −7% |
| 2016 | $0.716 | $0.96 | +5% |
| 2017 | $0.721 | $0.947 | +1% |
| 2018 | $0.694 | $0.89 | −4% |
| 2019 | $0.765 | $0.963 | +10% |
| 2020 | $0.759 | $0.944 | −1% |
| 2021 | $0.794 | $0.943 | +5% |
| 2022 | $0.913 | $1.00 | +15% |
| 2023 | $0.985 | $1.04 | +8% |
| 2024 | $1.03 | $1.06 | +5% |
| 2025 | $1.05 | $1.05 | +2% |
Decade by decade
In the 1980s, a pound of white rice averaged $0.483, from a low of $0.401 in 1987 to a high of $0.563 in 1981. Across the 1990s the yearly average ran from $0.496 in 1990 to $0.565 in 1997, for a decade average of $0.53. The 2000s averaged $0.591: the most expensive year was 2009 at $0.766 and the cheapest 2003 at $0.452. In the 2010s, a pound of white rice averaged $0.722, from a low of $0.685 in 2015 to a high of $0.765 in 2019. Across the 2020s the yearly average ran from $0.759 in 2020 to $1.05 in 2025, for a decade average of $0.922.
Every five years in this record: 1980 $0.512, 1985 $0.47, 1990 $0.496, 1995 $0.525, 2005 $0.554, 2010 $0.741, 2015 $0.685, 2020 $0.759 and 2025 $1.05. From 2021 to 2025, the most recent years of data, the average rose 32%, from $0.794 to $1.05.
Against inflation
In 2025 dollars, the 1980 average of $0.512 is worth $2.00. The actual 2025 average was $1.05. So after adjusting for inflation, a pound of white rice cost 48% less in 2025 than in 1980, even though the price on the shelf went up.
Highs, lows and big moves
The highest yearly average in this record is $1.05 in 2025, and the lowest is $0.401 in 1987. The biggest one-year increase was 34%, from $0.549 in 2007 to $0.733 in 2008. The biggest one-year decrease was 10%, from $0.563 in 1981 to $0.505 in 1982.
Of the 6 items in bread, grains and baking tracked here, 0 rose faster than inflation over their full records. The Bureau published fewer than nine months of prices for 2000–2002, so those years are left out of the table and the chart.
Average prices are U.S. city averages from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (series APU0000701312), averaged over each calendar year. A year is included only when the Bureau published at least nine months of prices for it. Values in 2025 dollars use the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) annual average. See how Sticker Shock builds its data. Figures may contain errors and are not financial advice.