Rice Prices Price History
1970–2025 · BLS / USDA
The average retail price of long-grain white rice in the United States, tracked annually from 1970 through 2025. Rice is the world's most important food crop, feeding more than half the planet every day, but Americans have long taken its cheapness for granted. That complacency got a rude awakening in 2008, when a global rice crisis sent prices soaring and Costco and Sam's Club briefly rationed bags at the checkout. The price has never fully retreated since, and recent supply disruptions have pushed it past a dollar per pound for the first time.
Price in 1970
$0.18
Price in 2025
$1.05
Total Change
+483.3%
Years Tracked
55
Rice Prices Over Time
Compare to inflation: The chart above shows nominal (not inflation-adjusted) prices. Use the toggle to switch to inflation-adjusted values when available, or try the inflation calculator to convert any amount between years.
Key Insights
- The 2008 global rice crisis was a wake-up call — prices jumped from $0.62 to $0.86 per pound in a single year as export bans from India and Vietnam triggered panic buying across the developing world.
- Rice was absurdly cheap through the 1990s, barely moving from its 1970 price of $0.18 per pound to $0.48 by 2000 in nominal terms, and actually getting cheaper in inflation-adjusted dollars year after year.
- At $1.05 per pound in 2025, rice has finally crossed the dollar threshold, driven by drought in key Asian growing regions and higher fertilizer costs that have squeezed rice farmers globally.
- Despite being one of the most calorie-dense foods per dollar spent, rice consumption in the U.S. has actually been flat for two decades — Americans eat about 27 pounds per person annually, compared to over 150 pounds in many Asian countries.
Year-by-Year Data
| Year | Price (USD per pound) | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | $0.18 | — |
| 1975 | $0.28 | +55.6% |
| 1980 | $0.35 | +25.0% |
| 1981 | $0.39 | +11.4% |
| 1982 | $0.38 | -2.6% |
| 1983 | $0.37 | -2.6% |
| 1984 | $0.37 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | $0.34 | -8.1% |
| 1986 | $0.34 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | $0.35 | +2.9% |
| 1988 | $0.37 | +5.7% |
| 1989 | $0.39 | +5.4% |
| 1990 | $0.39 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | $0.41 | +5.1% |
| 1992 | $0.41 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | $0.42 | +2.4% |
| 1994 | $0.43 | +2.4% |
| 1995 | $0.43 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | $0.47 | +9.3% |
| 1997 | $0.47 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | $0.49 | +4.3% |
| 1999 | $0.48 | -2.0% |
| 2000 | $0.48 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | $0.49 | +2.1% |
| 2002 | $0.48 | -2.0% |
| 2003 | $0.50 | +4.2% |
| 2004 | $0.55 | +10.0% |
| 2005 | $0.53 | -3.6% |
| 2006 | $0.54 | +1.9% |
| 2007 | $0.62 | +14.8% |
| 2008 | $0.86 | +38.7% |
| 2009 | $0.80 | -7.0% |
| 2010 | $0.74 | -7.5% |
| 2011 | $0.81 | +9.5% |
| 2012 | $0.77 | -4.9% |
| 2013 | $0.73 | -5.2% |
| 2014 | $0.72 | -1.4% |
| 2015 | $0.69 | -4.2% |
| 2016 | $0.68 | -1.4% |
| 2017 | $0.71 | +4.4% |
| 2018 | $0.72 | +1.4% |
| 2019 | $0.73 | +1.4% |
| 2020 | $0.75 | +2.7% |
| 2021 | $0.79 | +5.3% |
| 2022 | $0.92 | +16.5% |
| 2023 | $0.98 | +6.5% |
| 2024 | $1.02 | +4.1% |
| 2025 | $1.05 | +2.9% |
Sources & Methodology
BLS average retail price for long-grain white rice, per pound, from CPI survey data. USDA Economic Research Service historical tables used for supplemental verification.
Primary source: BLS / USDA
For a full explanation of how we collect and adjust data, see our methodology page.