Archive · August 2026
Restaurant food costs in August 2026.
1 month has been published since August 2026. This page stays on August 2026. Free to quote with a link.
Recomputed from current BLS data, not frozen: a Bureau revision moves the figure below. That is the published revision policy. The URL is permanent either way.
Index · August 2026
109.6
Base 2024-01 = 100
- vs Jul 2026
- +0.8%
- vs 3 months earlier
- −0.6%
- vs 12 months earlier
- −2.6%
- Since base (2024-01)
- +9.6%
2024-01 → 2026-08
The line stops at August 2026. Later months are on the live index.
What moved it
Attribution in index points across the 12 published months from Aug 2025 to Aug 2026. Contributions sum to the total move, so weight matters more than percentage.
| Commodity | Basket weight | Price in Aug 2026 | Change since Aug 2025 | Index points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eggs · grade A, dozen | 7% | $2.27 /dozen | −36.7% | -3.65 |
| Ground beef · 100%, lb | 20% | $6.92 /lb | +9.6% | +2.41 |
| Butter · grade AA, lb | 7% | $4.02 /lb | −16.7% | -1.21 |
| Bacon · sliced, lb | 7% | $6.61 /lb | −8.4% | -0.64 |
| Coffee · ground roast, lb | 6% | $9.30 /lb | +4.8% | +0.42 |
| Cheddar · natural, lb | 12% | $5.98 /lb | −2.3% | -0.29 |
| Tomatoes · field grown, lb | 9% | $1.98 /lb | +2.7% | +0.22 |
| Chicken breast · boneless, lb | 16% | $4.17 /lb | −0.9% | -0.15 |
| Flour · all-purpose, lb | 8% | $0.55 /lb | −1.6% | -0.13 |
| Milk · whole, gallon | 8% | $4.23 /gal | +1.4% | +0.12 |
US city averages, not wholesale quotes — see the series identifiers and weights.
What August 2026 cost a plate
Representative portions costed at August 2026's prices, and what they were twelve months earlier. Ingredient cost only — the rest of the plate and the labour behind it are yours.
| Dish | Costed on | August 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| House burger | 6 oz patty · ground beef | $2.60 | +$0.23 |
| Grilled chicken sandwich | 6 oz · chicken breast | $1.56 | −$0.01 |
| Cheeseburger (1 slice) | 1 oz · cheddar cheese | $0.37 | −$0.01 |
| Two-egg breakfast | 2 eggs · eggs | $0.38 | −$0.22 |
Citing August 2026
Marji Restaurant Food Cost Index, August 2026: 109.6 (2024-01 = 100). https://marji.co/food-cost-index/2026-08
Licence, weights and revision policy · full history (CSV) · chart images