Average Price Data, AP (APU0000720111) · Malt beverages, all types, all sizes, any origin, per 16 oz. (473.2 ml), U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted

What does a pint of beer cost in the US?

The average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store was $1.899 in the month ended .

Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted, each month

July 1995 to October 2026Not seasonally adjusted, as published

Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted, each month (July 1995 to October 2026), recessions shaded
Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted, each month (October 2016 to October 2026), recessions shaded
Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted, each month (October 2024 to October 2026)

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to , to , to .

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .

Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours)

July 1995 to October 2026Ours, from the published values

Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (July 1995 to October 2026), recessions shaded
Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (October 2016 to October 2026), recessions shaded
Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (October 2024 to October 2026)

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to , to , to .

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .

Each point is one month of the series as the source publishes it, or a change worked out from those values (ours). The US recessions are shaded. Pointing at the chart shows the month and the value.

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The newest month beside the one before it and the nearest ones a year, five and ten years earlier. Every month since July 1995 is in the table under "The numbers behind the chart".

Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average: the newest month beside earlier ones
MeasureLatestThe month beforeA year earlierFive years earlierTen years earlier
Month
Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average$1.899$1.875$1.834$1.551$1.355
Change over a yearn/a+2.2%+2.2%+4.0%+1.1%

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Observed .

Right now

The average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store was $1.899 in October 2026, the highest since our record begins in July 1995.

See every month since 1995

ChangeOurs

The average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store at the start of each period, and the change since then (ours)
PeriodThenChange
One month$1.875 in +1.3%
Three months$1.878 in +1.1%
Twelve monthsNo value for
Five years$1.551 in +22.4%
Ten years$1.355 in +40.1%

In historyOurs

The average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store of $1.899 in was higher than in 374 of the 374 other months since , the same in 0 and lower in 0.

Highest since : $1.899 in . Lowest since : $0.803 in .

AverageOurs

Average since : $1.2506 (ours, a plain mean of the 375 months).

Understanding the average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store

Where it stands today

The average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store was $1.899 in October 2026.

What does the average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store measure?

This is the average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store in the United States: a series of the average price data of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), for the U.S. city average and not seasonally adjusted. BLS publishes it each month, with the Consumer Price Index, in dollars to three decimals.

Read more

BLS names the item "Malt beverages, all types, all sizes, any origin, per 16 oz. (473.2 ml)" and the series APU0000720111.

What 500metrics adds: the change over one month, three months, a year and five years, the highest and lowest price since the series begins, how the change over a year ranks among the items in its group on the average prices page, and every month of the series in a table by year.

The numbers behind the chart

What was the average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store in each month?One row for each year since 1995, newest first

Each row is a year and each column a month. A dash is a month with no price: before the series began, after its newest month, or a month BLS published no price for (the limits name those). The highest and lowest prices of the whole series are in bold.

Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted, by month and year, newest year first (US dollars per sixteen ounces; the highest and lowest prices in bold)
YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
20261.8391.8501.8521.8561.8771.8821.8781.8791.8751.899 (highest price)––
20251.8131.8191.8211.8271.8341.8141.8231.8381.834–1.8611.835
20241.7621.7721.7671.7761.7751.7721.7781.7921.7951.7451.8111.812
20231.7391.7411.7451.7461.7541.7381.7311.7341.7421.7541.7451.749
20221.5801.6181.6261.6191.6301.6601.6691.6811.6551.6911.7191.736
20211.4941.4981.4981.4901.5061.5321.5401.5341.5491.5511.5701.566
20201.4391.4471.4721.5021.4941.4841.4871.4821.4851.4921.5091.506
20191.4501.4511.4431.4391.4421.4331.4371.4291.4401.4371.4181.422
20181.4121.4141.4181.4191.4041.4011.3901.3871.4001.4251.4461.444
20171.3631.3551.3621.3721.3881.3821.3821.3841.3981.4181.4211.421
Show 22 more rows
Average price of sixteen ounces (a pint) of malt beverages, such as beer and ale, bought in a store, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted, by month and year, newest year first (US dollars per sixteen ounces; the highest and lowest prices in bold) (continued)
YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
20161.3561.3531.3631.3651.3511.3501.3471.3461.3471.3551.3541.358
20151.2951.2871.3181.3151.3201.3071.3061.3051.3091.3401.3451.347
20141.2541.3331.2471.3311.2391.3421.1911.3451.1891.3361.2351.349
20131.2591.3151.2661.3171.2631.3011.2371.2911.2361.3101.2391.331
20121.2071.3001.2131.2871.2061.2811.1951.2881.2041.2951.2521.305
20111.1831.2821.1871.2961.1731.3161.1821.3121.1931.3341.1921.287
20101.2311.2651.2181.2491.2151.2621.1821.2611.1741.2701.1821.282
20091.1891.2021.1941.1941.1891.1981.1971.2091.1781.2351.2321.255
20081.1571.1191.1691.1241.1621.1511.1771.1501.1891.1711.1831.186
20071.1341.0991.1581.1101.1441.1111.1331.1031.1391.1111.1411.096
20061.1061.0981.1261.1121.1191.0941.1541.0831.1551.0941.1191.080
20051.0741.0831.0961.0861.0861.0881.0771.0831.0811.0921.1021.086
20041.0231.0761.0421.0931.0451.0801.0421.0801.0681.0811.0781.078
20030.9821.0140.9951.0230.9911.0230.9941.0240.9991.0321.0191.063
20020.9870.9820.9850.9971.0030.9980.9880.9960.9831.0040.9741.005
20010.9590.9190.9620.9200.9700.9480.9570.9540.9610.9610.9800.974
20000.9240.8810.9420.8880.9350.8930.9460.9000.9420.8980.9570.912
19990.8900.8520.8860.8550.8950.8540.8990.8510.9020.8580.9210.873
19980.8870.8390.8850.8380.8880.8330.8820.8310.8840.8370.8840.845
19970.8540.8420.8540.8470.8530.8410.8470.8370.8450.8310.8390.838
19960.8230.8310.8420.8330.8410.8300.8380.8340.8470.8350.8440.833
1995––––––0.8040.8200.803 (lowest price)0.8180.8070.815

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What do these figures leave out, and how are they cited?Limits, dates and how to cite

What this number cannot tell you

  • The price is an average of the retail prices that BLS collects from a sample of sellers, for the U.S. city average. It is not a price index. BLS measures the change of prices with the Consumer Price Index, and the change over a year on this page, worked out from the averages, can differ from the change of the index.
  • BLS did not collect prices for October 2025 because of the lapse in appropriations, so the page has no price for that month and the chart shows a gap.
  • The changes, the ranks and the highest and lowest prices are ours, worked out from the values BLS publishes. A change is in percent.
  • BLS.gov cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from BLS.gov.

Observed . Checked .

How to cite this

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Average Price Data, Malt beverages, all types, all sizes, any origin, per 16 oz. (473.2 ml), U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted, through October 2026. Compiled by 500metrics, "What does a pint of beer cost in the US?", https://500metrics.com/average-prices/beer.

Recession dates from the National Bureau of Economic Research.

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