How Much Does it Cost to Make Bread?
Have you ever wondered how much it costs to make a loaf of bread in your bread machine? Check out my 2024 analysis that includes grocery store prices.
Last Updated January 25, 2024 – Originally Published June 4, 2017
We all know that the bread coming out of your bread machine is better than the bread you buy at the store. However, have you ever wondered how much it costs to make a loaf of bread in your bread machine?
I know I’ve wondered about the cost of bread made with my bread machine versus the cost of bread at the store. So I’ve analyzed the cost of making my bread with my bread machine. In fact, I’ve done this several times over the years. The most recent was in January of 2024.
Admittedly, this isn’t a perfect analysis. We haven’t allowed for the cost of electricity to run the machine or the bread machine itself.
Also, the ingredient prices won’t be the same for everyone. For example, we frequently use Costco and I shop the weekly grocery store sales. However, the analysis should give you some idea about the cost of bread for making at your house.
Thanks to The Man of the House (TMOTH) for his help with this article. He does the number crunching for the analysis.
Recipe Used to Calculate Cost
The recipe I use most frequently is for a two-pound loaf of sour milk bread. So this is the recipe I use in the analysis.
By the way, this is an excellent bread machine recipe. The bread turns out perfectly every time, and it’s quick to put together because it doesn’t have a lot of ingredients.
Shopping for Bread Ingredients
Bread Flour – We buy bread flour in bulk at CHEF’STORE or Costco Business Center.
Wondering how we store all that flour? Check out this article for dealing with buying, and storing, bulk flour.
Storing a lot of flour is SO much easier with Gamma Lids!
Salt – We buy our salt at Costco. But here’s the thing. We bought a Costco-sized amount of salt in 2017 and we’re still using it.
Per the experts at Morton Salt, “While salt itself has no expiration date, salt products that contain iodine or seasonings that contain other ingredients such as spices, colors and flavors can deteriorate over time.”
Our salt is iodized, but isn’t clumping. It smells fine and tastes fine so we’re still using it.
Sugar – We usually buy sugar at Costco. However, our local Super1Foods had a fantastic sale on sugar last year. We still haven’t gone through all the sugar from that sale.
Olive Oil – I use olive oil in this recipe and I get it at Costco.
Yeast – I buy active dry yeast at Costco.
By the way, are you confused about the different types of yeast? You are not alone! I’ve got a great article on different types of yeast that will help a lot.
Milk – Our milk sometimes comes from Costco, but frequently we get it at the grocery store.
2024 Cost of Making Bread in a Bread Machine
My January 2024 analysis confirms what I’m hearing about inflation. Our cost of making a loaf of bread rose to $1.06 per loaf from only $0.77 in 2021. That’s a 30% increase! That’s even using salt from 2017 and sugar from a fantastic sale!
- 1.5 cups of milk is 30.8¢ – up 33% from 2021
- 4 cups of bread flour is 59.1¢ – up 65% from 2021
- 1.25 teaspoons of salt is .4¢ – the same as 2021
- 4 tablespoons of sugar is 2.7¢ – down 58% from 2021
- 1.5 tablespoons of olive oil is 10.0¢ – up 12% from 2021
- 1.75 teaspoons of active dry yeast is 2.5¢ – the same as 2021
2024 Cost of Bread at the Grocery Store
Earlier this month I went to my neighborhood Safeway to check on bread prices.
Sara Lee Artesano Bread was $4.99 a loaf. The 2021 regular price was $3.69. That’s a 35% increase.
Franz Old Fashioned Buttermilk Bread was $2.99 a loaf on sale, with a regular price of $5.99. The sale price was a great deal, but still more than the cost of homemade bread.
The 2021 price for Franz Old Fashioned Buttermilk Bread was $5.19 per loaf. So the normal 2024 price is 15% more than the 2021 price.
Oroweat Country Buttermilk Bread was $3.49 on sale with a regular price of $5.99 per loaf. Again, the sale price was wonderful, but still way more than the cost of homemade bread.
The 2021 regular price of Oroweat Country Buttermilk Bread was $5.09 per loaf. The 2024 regular price is 18% more than the 2021 price.
Again, the 2024 cost of making a loaf of sour milk bread with my bread machine was just $1.06 per loaf!
2021 Cost of Making Bread in a Bread Machine
In February 2021 we got a big surprise. Our cost of making a loaf of bread fell to only 77 cents per loaf! This is down from 83 cents per loaf in 2020.
The difference was mostly because I bought one ingredient at Costco instead of the grocery store.
We usually buy milk at the local grocery store. However, when we ran this analysis, we’d just gone to Costco and bought milk there. Milk is one of the most expensive ingredients in the recipe, so it made an enormous difference.
The lesson here is that it really pays to buy in bulk when you can!
Buying Bread at the Grocery Store – 2021
I went to my local IGA and got these prices at the start of March 2021.
Franz Old Fashioned Buttermilk bread was $5.19 per loaf. That’s the same as it was in February 2020.
In 2017, the price was $2.49 on sale.
Sara Lee Artesano Bread was on sale for $2.59 per loaf. The regular price was $3.69 per loaf.
In February 2020, a 20-ounce loaf of Sara Lee Artesano Bread was on sale for $2.79. The regular price was $3.69.
In 2017, the price was $3.29.
Oroweat Country Buttermilk Bread was $5.09 per loaf. That’s the same as it was in February 2020.
I don’t have a 2017 price from my local grocery. However, in 2017 Amazon Fresh was charging $3.99 for it.
Again, the 2021 cost of making a loaf of sour milk bread with my bread machine was just 77 cents!
2020 Cost of Making Bread in a Bread Machine
Our cost for making bread in the bread machine was only 83 cents per loaf in 2020!
The big story here is how much bread prices at the grocery store jumped from 2017 to 2020.
Buying Bread at the Grocery Store 2020 vs. 2017
Franz Old Fashioned Buttermilk bread – In February 2020 a 24-ounce loaf cost $5.19. (In 2017, the price was $2.49 on sale. )
Sara Lee Artesano Bread – In February 2020, a 20-ounce loaf was on sale for $2.79. The regular price was $3.69. (In 2017, the price was $3.29.)
Oroweat Country Buttermilk Bread – In February 2020 a 24-ounce loaf cost $5.09. (I don’t have a 2017 price from my local grocery. However, in 2017 Amazon Fresh was charging $3.99 for it.)
Again, the 2020 cost of making a loaf of sour milk bread with my bread machine was 83 cents!
2017 Cost of Making Bread in a Bread Machine
Let’s get right to it! Here are the numbers for making a loaf of bread at home from 2017.
Yes, you’re reading it correctly. In 2017, it cost us just 85 cents to make a loaf of bread.
2017 – A Different Spin on the Same Recipe
Kim, a loyal reader of this blog, saw my cost analysis and kindly sent me her costs for the same bread recipe. (You can see her original comment below.) Kim uses soy milk and Himalayan salt in her bread. She doesn’t buy her groceries in bulk. Here’s what it costs her to make a loaf of bread.
2017 How Does this Compare to the Grocery Store?
So how do these costs compare with the cost of bread purchased at the grocery store or Amazon Fresh?
- 6/13/2017 – a 24 ounce loaf of Franz Old Fashioned Buttermilk bread cost $2.49 on sale at IGA. Amazon Fresh sold it for $3.09.
- 6/13/2017 – a 20 ounce loaf of Sara Lee Artesano Bread cost $3.49 at IGA. Amazon Fresh sold it for $3.29.
- 6/14/2017 – a 24 ounce loaf of Oroweat Country Buttermilk Bread on Amazon Fresh cost $3.99.
Both my bread and Kim’s bread were less expensive than bread purchased at the grocery store or at Amazon.
Kim showed an important benefit of having a bread machine. A bread machine gives people the freedom to have bread exactly the way they want it.
Cost of Homemade Bread
Key Points:
- In 2024 it cost me $1.06 to make a two-pound loaf of sour milk bread. This is much less expensive than comparable loaves of bread from the grocery store.
- The cost per loaf of bread from the bread machine is 30% more than the 2021 cost of $0.77.
- It pays to buy bread ingredients in bulk
