Memorial Day hit by sticker shock as inflation makes it more costly

• The stats from Virginia-based Datasembly show inflation’s effect on the holiday
• It seen tens of millions citizens travel with the intent of either grilling or roasting
• The cost of barbecues this year will run revelers around $30, the company found

Memorial Day barbecues will run Americans an average of 10 percent more than they did last year, startling statistics show.

The new numbers from Virginia-based Datasembly shows inflation‘s effect on the holiday, which commonly consists of cookouts outdoors. 

Like clockwork, tens of millions travel each year intent on grilling or roasting, with more than 22 million forecast to take part this time around.

Despite mainstays typically being cheap, the average cost of barbecues this year will run revelers around $30.18, the firm found – before pointing out some of the prime suspects.

It also released data points of individual items like burgers and buns, both of which are also up from last year – with some of the increases tapped at nearly 50 percent.

Here’s a complete look before you get cooking.

Burgers are up from $7.04 in 2023 to $8.07 in 2024, according to Datasembly, which tracks the cost of groceries across the US by week. 

That serves as a change of 14.63 percent in total cost – well over the country’s inflation rate of 3.36 percent. 

Hamburger buns, which go hand in hand with the above, will cost a slightly more forgiving additional two cents, from $3.04 to $3.06. 

Those who prefer hot dogs, meanwhile will be happy to know there was no change in the cost, despite it rising by three percent last year to an average of $3.44 per pack.

The delightful bread bouquets that house them, however, went up, by a similar rate as its burger counterpart – nearly one percent from the $3.06 they had cost last year.

The condiments that commonly grace both are up even more, with a 32-oz bottle of ketchup now costing $5.53 as opposed to $5.43, and mustard up to $2.61 from $2.53.

But it was another topping that scored the biggest increase – one that makes the others seem like small change.

That would be none other than Relish, which led the price hikes with a nearly 50 percent price increase – up from $3.14 to $4.67.

Other tried-and-true items showed more of the same, accounting for an overall price hike of 10.19 percent, Datassembly discerned.

Meat, a stalwart of memorial day, is driving most of the increases, a processing manager in Central Illinois told CIProud.com Friday, as millions of Americans are poised to descend on supermarkets to get their spread. 

‘We’re trying to give everybody a good opportunity to get something to eat, something to grill, and feed their family,’ Raber’s Packing Company Processing Manager Will Vaughn told the station.

‘We do a lot of meat bundles where we’re offering a discounted price if you buy more. Prices have definitely gone up, but we try to keep it less painful.’

The summer months are typically the busiest months for meat packing business, with Memorial Day being a focal point. 

Nearly 44 million Americans are predicted to travel for the holiday, with 52 percent planning to barbecue, Datassembly found.

The rate of inflation, meanwhile, continues to slow slightly, according to the Federal Reserve.