Although inflation has declined in recent years, a new study shows that Tennesseans still spend a large portion of their paychecks on groceries.

A study of Consumption compared U.S. Census Bureau data from 2022 to 2023 and found that Tennesseans spent about 2% more than the national average on their monthly income on groceries.

The cost of groceries is now becoming more of a part of my paycheck each month. It feels like the amount has gone up twice as much, said resident Scott Saunders.

According to data from the US Census Bureau, American households spent on average almost 6% more on groceries per year in 2023 compared to 2022.

But in Tennessee, grocery bills have gone up again.

The study shows that Tennesseans spent about 15% of their monthly income on groceries alone in 2023, which is higher than the national average of 13%.

When I look at the receipt at the end of the day, once we’ve gone shopping. But we tend to shop at multiple places per day. And so when you compare all of these stores, they seem to be just as high, Saunders said.

The study reports that almost all states saw an increase of 1% or less in the share of household income spent on groceries between 2022 and 2023.

However, food prices remain a major expense for Americans due to soaring inflation still driven by economic shocks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cost of living adjustments are not as common as increases in grocery prices. So I feel like most people probably feel that way these days, Saunders said.

In Tennessee, the average monthly grocery bill in 2023 was $1,175, with an average monthly income of $7,848.

Saunders says he usually shops every week and a half, and for two people, that’s about $120.

It depends if we’re doing dinners, lunches, breakfasts, all that sort of thing. Because even the cost of restaurant food is high, and so we try to account for that by buying more groceries, Saunders said.

Although the Consumer Affairs study did not include 2024 data, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that food prices in August 2024 were about 2% higher than a year earlier.