They’re grocery bill-ions.
While New York is known for its extortionate grocery prices, it’s shockingly not the most expensive state in the U.S. That honor goes to the idyllic isle of Hawaii, where weekly supermarket bills tip the scales at a bankrupt-worthy $157 per week, according to a study by online tech and economy publication the Visual Capitalist.
The Empire State supermarket scene, on the other hand, placed 11th with an average weekly grocery bill costing an average of $121 per week — perhaps no surprise in a place where grocery prices have increased by 6.1% every year on average.
This number will likely only tick up — as New York City council members rammed through a pair of controversial grocery bills that will force delivery companies to pay drivers more, which critics said could cause supermarket costs to soar.
All told, New Yorkers likely felt the sting after stocking up on supplies ahead of last weekend’s snowpocalypse.
Visual Capitalist concocted the study to address extortionate food costs across the nation, where groceries such as ground beef increased 15% in price in 2025, while orange juice ticked up 21%.
Notably, the price of a carton of eggs hit a record-high of $8.15 in March amid bird-flu induced shortages, prompting enterprising grocers to sell “loosie”-style eggs — a few eggs in a plastic bag — for cash-strapped eggheads.
To compile the list, the shopping cart-ographers calculated the average weekly grocery cost for a median-income household in each state based on the Bureau of Labor Statistics price indexes for 2025.
Meanwhile, in Hawaii, residents spend $157 per week on groceries — 33% higher than the national average of $118.
This also marked a 9.6% increase from the prior year, meaning islanders had to fill their pantries by emptying their bank accounts.
Alaska trailed close behind at $152, with prices increasing 8.8% from last year.
On top of that, prices varied dramatically between developed spots and rural areas not accessible by road — a $6.79 bag of chips in Anchorage can cost $10.49 in Unalakleet, for example.
Following close behind was California, where the weekly grocery bill set citizens back $127 on average — a 3.4% increase from 2024.
Visual capitalist cited higher wages — coming off the Golden State’s minimum wage hike — rent, utilities, and distribution costs as contributors to the elevated price of stocking one’s larder.
Rounding out the top five spots were Washington (average grocery bill costing $126) and Vermont ($124).
Of course, not every state required its citizens to fork over an arm and a leg to stay supplied.
In general, stocking up in Southern states was cheaper, with Arkansas’ dwellers spending the least, at around 6% lower than the U.S. average.
The top ten most expensive states for groceries
- Hawaii ($157)
- Alaska ($152)
- California ($127)
- Washington ($126)
- Vermont ($124)
- Florida ($122)
- Oregon ($122)
- Maryland ($122)
- Montana ($122)
- Idaho ($122)
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