Keep Factually independent
Whether you agree or disagree with our analysis, these conversations matter for democracy. We don't take money from political groups - even a $5 donation helps us keep it that way.
What were farmgate egg prices in the United States during 2025 by month?
Executive summary
Monthly U.S. farmgate/wholesale egg prices in early-to-mid 2025 were highly volatile: wholesale trucklot averages hit extreme highs in February–March (weekly peaks above $8 per dozen, and averages like $6.85–$5.87 reported in mid‑January–March) before falling back into the $2–$4 range by April and later months (monthly wholesale averages: Feb ~$8.20 peak weekly, Apr monthly average $3.74) [1] [2]. Retail and farm‑level forecasts projected large annual increases (USDA projections of roughly +41% to +45% for 2025 in some briefs), reflecting heavy supply shocks from HPAI losses of laying hens [3] [4] [2].
1. What the public data actually track: retail vs. wholesale vs. “farmgate”
Data labels matter. USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) and Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) publish multiple series: retail consumer prices (BLS/ERS retail carton prices), weekly/FOB wholesale trucklot prices (AMS weekly indices), and "farm price received" series (USDA/NASS) that reflect what producers get. Many news outlets and charts mix these measures; the sources above cite wholesale/FOB and retail numbers more often than a single monthly “farmgate” series [1] [5] [6]. Available sources do not present a single, consolidated month‑by‑month “farmgate” table for all of 2025 in the provided material (not found in current reporting).
2. The timeline: shock, peak, and partial recovery in early 2025
Reporting shows a sharp shock from ongoing highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Weekly wholesale prices spiked in late winter/early spring: USDA and media reported weekly highs as high as $8.17 per dozen in early March and national wholesale averages quoted in mid‑January and March near $5.87 and $6.85 in some snapshots [2] [7]. AMS/ERS charts then document a rapid decline by April — a monthly wholesale average of $3.74 and retail carton averages falling from March peaks to about $5.12 in April [1] [2]. These swings reflect both supply disruptions (millions of layer losses) and short‑term demand shifts (holiday demand around Easter/Passover) [8] [1].
3. Magnitude and drivers: bird flu, flock losses, and forecasts
Multiple sources connect the 2025 price run‑up to HPAI losses concentrated in egg‑laying hens, with dozens of millions of birds culled or lost in early 2025 alone; reporting cites over 30–35 million commercial layer losses in 2025 and cumulative large figures over 2022–2025 [8] [2] [4]. USDA outlooks and media coverage also reported big projected percentage increases for 2025: USDA forecast materials and secondary reporting mentioned projections in the 41% (USDA outlook reported in media) to 45.2% (farm‑level projection cited by AgWeb) range for egg price increases in 2025 [3] [4] [9]. Those projections were driven by reduced layer supply and high input costs [8] [3].
4. Month‑by‑month snapshots available in sources (select points)
- January 2025: USDA ERS reported a record monthly national average retail carton price of $4.95 per dozen for large Grade A eggs [8].
- Mid‑January to mid‑March 2025: weekly/short‑run wholesale indices rose sharply; FactCheck and USDA cited wholesale averages around $5.87 (Jan 2025 snapshot) and weekend/weekly spikes reaching $8.17 in early March [2] [7].
- February–March 2025: USDA/ERS/AMS weekly data show extreme volatility with weekly peaks (as noted above) and very wide intra‑month movement [1] [2].
- April 2025: USDA ERS chart and commentary note a much lower monthly wholesale average of $3.74 per dozen and retail monthly average declined to about $5.12 per dozen [1].
- Later 2025 (summer–fall): market reporting and price trackers show further moderation to lower wholesale levels (examples: AMS national indices and private trackers; specific monthly farm price series for Aug/Sep listed on ycharts and FRED indicate values in the ~$2.04–$3.49 retail/aggregate ranges later in 2025) — though these are not presented as a continuous farmgate series in the provided set [10] [11] [12] [6].
5. Data gaps, reporting differences, and how to interpret “by month”
No single source in the provided set furnishes a clean, official month‑by‑month “farmgate” price table for every month of 2025. The available reporting mixes retail CPI/carton prices, USDA wholesale/FOB trucklot indices, weekly AMS market news, and projections; each measures different points in the chain (retail, wholesale, producer) [1] [5] [6]. For precise month‑by‑month farmgate (price received by farmers) numbers, consult USDA/NASS monthly "Eggs: Price Received" or the USDA ERS monthly datasets directly; those specific monthly farm‑price tables are not in the provided results (not found in current reporting).
6. Takeaway and practical next steps
The record and volatile 2025 egg prices were driven by HPAI losses and seasonal demand, producing weekly wholesale peaks above $8 per dozen and rapid declines toward $3–$4 by April, with USDA and industry forecasts showing large annual price increases for 2025 [1] [7] [2]. If you need a precise, month‑by‑month farmgate table for 2025, request the USDA NASS monthly "Price Received" dataset or the USDA ERS monthly price tables; the sources supplied here provide snapshots and weekly/retail series but not a single consolidated farmgate monthly table (not found in current reporting).