Hosting a gathering can mean a grocery basket for 10 people, seasonal decorations, or a much larger mix of food, drinks, apparel and entertainment. Recent U.S. estimates show how spending changes by occasion, from a $55.18 classic Thanksgiving dinner in 2025 to a projected $20.2 billion in Super Bowl-related spending in 2026.
Contents
- At a glance
- Winter holiday household budgets
- Thanksgiving at-home meal costs
- Fourth of July cookout grocery costs
- Halloween party spending
- Super Bowl party spending
- Easter and St. Patrick’s Day gatherings
At a glance
The figures below use different measures, so they should not be treated as a single standardized household budget. Farm Bureau basket surveys describe the cost of specified foods for 10 people, while National Retail Federation figures often cover total consumer spending across a celebration and include categories beyond food.
| Occasion and measure | Period | Reported amount |
|---|---|---|
| Classic Thanksgiving dinner for 10 | 2025 | $55.18 |
| Classic Fourth of July cookout for 10 | 2026 | $73.82 |
| U.S. Halloween spending | 2025 forecast | $13.1 billion |
| U.S. Super Bowl spending | 2026 forecast | $20.2 billion |
| U.S. Easter spending | 2025 forecast | $23.6 billion |
| St. Patrick’s Day spending | 2025 forecast | $7 billion |
The comparison is useful for scale, but it does not mean a typical household spends the national totals shown for Halloween, the Super Bowl, Easter or St. Patrick’s Day. Those are aggregate estimates, whereas the Thanksgiving and cookout figures are itemized meal baskets.
Winter holiday household budgets
The National Retail Federation’s 2025 holiday survey found that U.S. consumers planned to spend an average of $890.49 per person on winter-holiday gifts, food, decorations and other seasonal items. Of that amount, $262.56 was allocated to seasonal items such as food or candy, decorations and greeting cards. The period measured was the 2025 winter holiday season, not a single party or meal. National Retail Federation, “Consumers to Spend Second-Highest Amount on Record, According to NRF Holiday Survey”
Holiday participation was broad: 91% of U.S. adults planned to celebrate a winter holiday such as Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa in 2025. The NRF also forecast November–December 2025 holiday retail spending at between $1.01 trillion and $1.02 trillion, representing expected growth of 3.7% to 4.2% over 2024. Its comparison figure put U.S. holiday retail sales at $976.1 billion in November–December 2024.
Two planning signals point to price sensitivity and concentrated shopping. Eighty-five percent of 2025 holiday shoppers anticipated higher prices because of tariffs, while 63% planned to do most of their holiday shopping during Thanksgiving weekend. These figures describe shopper expectations and plans, rather than completed household expenditures.
For hosts, the $262.56 seasonal-items figure is the closest supplied measure of the part of a broader holiday budget that can overlap with entertaining. It includes food or candy and decorations, but also greeting cards, so it should not be read as a dedicated hosting allowance. The $890.49 average is broader still: gifts and other seasonal purchases are included.
Thanksgiving at-home meal costs
The American Farm Bureau Federation’s 2025 survey priced a classic Thanksgiving dinner for 10 at $55.18, or about $5.52 per person. The basket cost 5% less than in 2024. The same source reported that the classic dinner basket reached a record $64.05 for 10 people in 2022. American Farm Bureau Federation, “Cost of Thanksgiving Dinner Declines”
The turkey was a major line item, but it became less expensive in the survey. A 16-pound frozen turkey averaged $21.50, or $1.34 per pound, in 2025. The average 16-pound frozen-turkey price fell 16.3% from 2024 to 2025. Half of the ingredients in the survey declined in price from the prior year.
| 2025 Thanksgiving basket item | Quantity | Cost | Change from 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frozen turkey | 16 pounds | $21.50 | -16.3% |
| Stuffing mix | 14 ounces | $3.71 | -9.0% |
| Pie crusts | 2 frozen crusts | $3.37 | -0.8% |
| Whipping cream | 1/2 pint | $1.87 | +3.2% |
| Frozen peas | 1 pound | $2.03 | +17.2% |
| Dinner rolls | 12 rolls | $3.56 | -14.6% |
| Pumpkin-pie mix | 30 ounces | $4.16 | +0.1% |
| Whole milk | 1 gallon | $3.73 | +16.3% |
| Sweet potatoes | 3 pounds | $4.00 | +37.0% |
| Carrots-and-celery tray | 1 pound | $1.36 | +61.3% |
| Fresh cranberries | 12 ounces | $2.28 | -2.8% |
The item changes were uneven. Stuffing mix, dinner rolls and cranberries fell in price, while the carrots-and-celery tray rose 61.3%, sweet potatoes rose 37%, and whole milk rose 16.3%. A half-pint of whipping cream cost $1.87, up 3.2%, and pumpkin-pie mix cost $4.16, up 0.1%. Miscellaneous ingredients cost $3.61, down 4.7%.
The classic basket is not the only way to host. Adding boneless ham, Russet potatoes and frozen green beans raised the 2025 10-person basket from $55.18 to $77.09. That expanded figure demonstrates why the menu matters when comparing meal budgets: the event size stays at 10, but the included foods change.
Fourth of July cookout grocery costs
In the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 2026 survey, a classic U.S. Fourth of July cookout for 10 people cost $73.82, or about $7.38 per person. The basket cost $2.90 more than in 2025, an increase of 4%. American Farm Bureau Federation, “Fourth of July Cookout Costs Reflect Inflation”
After CPI adjustment, the 2026 cookout basket cost $22.03 in 1982–84 dollars. Its inflation-adjusted per-person cost was $2.20, compared with $2.21 in 2025. The inflation-adjusted basket remained below its $23.84 peak, recorded in 2022. These are CPI-adjusted comparisons, not current checkout prices.
Several cookout categories rose from 2025 to 2026. Two pounds of ground beef cost $14.06, up 5.5%; one pound of cheese cost $3.60, up 1.7%; a package of hamburger buns cost $2.53, up 7.7%; two pounds of chicken breasts cost $8.06, up 3.5%; and three pounds of pork chops cost $14.79, up 4.7%.
Fruit, drinks and desserts also moved in different directions. Two pints of strawberries cost $5.27, up 12.4%, and ingredients for 2.5 quarts of lemonade cost $4.54, up 3.9%. Thirty-two ounces of pork and beans cost $3.06, up 13.8%; chocolate-chip cookies cost $4.25, up 6.3%; and a half-gallon of ice cream cost $5.99, up 5.3%.
Not every item increased. Two and a half pounds of potato salad cost $2.91, down 17.8%, and a 16-ounce bag of potato chips cost $4.76, down 0.8%. Four eggs used in the potato-salad basket cost $0.71, down from $1.34 in 2025.
Halloween party spending
The National Retail Federation expected U.S. Halloween spending to reach a record $13.1 billion in 2025. That forecast was up from $11.6 billion in 2024 and exceeded the prior record of $12.2 billion set in 2023. National Retail Federation, “NRF Consumer Survey Finds Halloween Spending to Reach Record $13.1 Billion”
Seventy-three percent of consumers planned to celebrate Halloween in 2025, and 32% planned to throw or attend a Halloween party. The party figure is especially relevant to household hosts, although it includes people attending as well as people organizing events.
The forecast also shows how Halloween spending extends beyond food. Candy spending was expected to reach $3.9 billion. Seventy-one percent of Halloween consumers planned to purchase costumes, with expected costume spending of $4.3 billion. Seventy-eight percent planned to purchase decorations, with expected decoration spending of $4.2 billion. These categories help explain why a Halloween gathering can involve substantial spending even when the meal itself is not separately measured.
Super Bowl party spending
The National Retail Federation projected that a record 121.1 million people in the United States would throw or attend a Super Bowl party in 2026. Total U.S. spending on Super Bowl food, drinks, apparel, decorations and other purchases was expected to reach a record $20.2 billion. National Retail Federation, “Super Bowl”
Expected 2026 Super Bowl spending equaled $94.77 per person across the surveyed U.S. adult population. That denominator is different from the 121.1 million people planning to throw or attend a party, so the two figures should not be divided together to estimate a host’s budget.
The occasion also includes people who watch elsewhere. Another 18.2 million people planned to watch the 2026 Super Bowl at a bar or restaurant rather than at a party. The national total therefore covers a wide mix of household and commercial settings, as well as food, drinks, apparel, decorations and other purchases.
Easter and St. Patrick’s Day gatherings
The National Retail Federation expected U.S. Easter spending to reach $23.6 billion in 2025. Fifty-one percent of Easter celebrants planned to purchase decorations, up from 41% in 2019, while decoration spending rose from $1.0 billion to $1.7 billion over that span. Consumers planned to budget $12 more per person for Easter in 2025 than in 2024. National Retail Federation, “4 trends behind Easter 2025 spending”
Those figures frame Easter as a gathering occasion with a growing decoration component, but the supplied spending estimate is aggregate and is not limited to meals hosted at home. The 2019 comparison also measures change over time in decoration participation and spending rather than the cost of one Easter event.
St. Patrick’s Day had a different scale and measure. Sixty-one percent of consumers planned to celebrate in 2025, with average spending of $44 per person and total spending of $7 billion on festive food, beverages, clothing and more. National Retail Federation, “Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with small retailers”
Together, the Easter and St. Patrick’s Day figures show why a hosting comparison needs both participation and scope. Easter’s $23.6 billion is a national forecast with a specific decoration trend, while St. Patrick’s Day combines a 61% celebration rate, a $44 average per person and a $7 billion total across festive purchases. Neither figure is a standalone grocery estimate for a household party.