By Naveen Athrappully
People living in Mississippi, West Virginia, and Arkansas spend the largest share of their household income on groceries, according to a Feb. 13 report from personal finance company WalletHub.
Grocery prices have surged over the past few years, while people’s earnings have not grown at the same pace, resulting in “groceries becoming less affordable and taking up a much larger percentage of people’s incomes,” the company said in the report.
WalletHub analyzed 26 common grocery items from each of the 50 states, comparing their prices to the median household income. Mississippi was found to spend the most on groceries, with 2.64 percent of the median monthly household income set aside for this purpose.
West Virginia came in the second spot at 2.57 percent, followed by Arkansas at 2.49 percent. Kentucky and Louisiana rounded up the top five. Out of the 50 states, 26 had grocery costs at or above 2 percent of their incomes.
The state that spent the least income on groceries was New Jersey at 1.50 percent, followed by Maryland (1.54 percent), Massachusetts (1.54 percent), New Hampshire (1.6 percent), and Connecticut (1.62 percent).
“While grocery prices have gone up tremendously in recent years, the states in which people spend the greatest percentage of their income on groceries actually aren’t those with the highest prices,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said. “Instead, the median incomes in these states are quite low, so even with reasonable grocery prices, residents end up shelling out a higher percentage of their earnings than people in states with more expensive products.”
For instance, the annual median household income of Mississippi, which spent the highest share of its income on groceries, was $52,985. This was the lowest annual median household income in the United States.
Similarly, West Virginia, which had the second-highest spending on groceries, has the second-lowest median income. Arkansas has the third lowest income in the country.
Data from the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis shows that in the four years between January 2021 and January 2025, the average price of a dozen Grade A eggs has risen by more than 237 percent.
During this period, a pound of fresh whole chicken has risen nearly 30 percent, a pound of white pan bread is up over 24 percent, and a gallon of whole fortified fresh milk has increased by 16 percent.
A December survey from retail technology solutions company Swiftly found that even though inflation had slowed down, grocery shopping remained a financial burden for many Americans, with two-thirds struggling to afford these expenses.
“The ongoing fluctuations in inflation, along with other financial pressures like student loan repayments and rising interest rates, are pushing consumers deeper into debt,” CEO of Swiftly Henry Kim said. “Groceries represent a significant portion of consumer expenditure, following housing and transportation costs.”
Debt Burdens
The struggle against grocery costs comes as households are also being burdened by high levels of debt. A WalletHub analysis of data from the New York Fed found that the average U.S. household owed $149,997 by the end of 2024.
The NY Fed data showed total household debt at the end of Q4, 2024, to be at $18.04 trillion. All types of debts—mortgages, home equity lines of credit, student loans, auto loans, and credit card debts—registered an increase on an annual basis.
“While mortgage delinquency rates are similar to pre-pandemic levels, auto loan delinquency transition rates remain elevated,” Wilbert van der Klaauw, economic research adviser at the New York Fed, said. “High auto loan delinquency rates are broad-based across credit scores and income levels.”
A November survey by digital personal finance company Achieve found that 28 percent of respondents saw their debts rise over the previous three months. The number one reason cited for growing debt was that it would be difficult to make ends meet without taking additional loans.
General overspending or living beyond their means was the second top reason, followed by reduced income or job loss, expenses associated with raising children, and replacement or repair of major appliances.
“More than a quarter of Americans are seeing their amount of debt increase and a majority don’t have enough money to cover their spending month to month,” Achieve Co-CEO and Co-Founder Brad Stroh said. “The slippery slope of debt will increase for many households if they don’t take steps to realign their finances.”
