Egg prices are soaring. The Kansas City stores with the best deals may surprise you

High grocery prices are straining household budgets in Kansas City and around the country, and nowhere is the impact more evident than in the price of eggs. You may even have noticed signs up in your local grocery store about high egg prices or limits on how many cartons customers can buy.

If you’ve been struggling to afford this kitchen staple, look no further: The Star checked with more than 45 grocery stores around the metro to find where eggs are the most affordable.

Why are eggs so expensive right now?

The high price of eggs is due to a variety of factors, from economic inflation to outbreaks of avian flu (also called bird flu) at factory farms around the country. According to a recent USDA report, the demand for eggs is also higher than normal for this time of year.

“Consumer demand for shell eggs continues to slowly retreat from its holiday levels but remains relatively high compared to the post-holiday period in recent year(s),” the Jan. 13 report reads.

What do eggs cost around Kansas City?

Here’s the big takeaway: Specialty chains that you might normally associate with high prices are currently offering some of the most affordable eggs in the metro.

At each store we reached out to, we got the price of the cheapest dozen of eggs available — whether that was the store brand or a name brand, white or brown, medium or large. At chains with multiple locations, we then took the average of several of their locations’ lowest prices to get the average on the graph below.

Here’s a breakdown of the average price of a dozen eggs at some grocery chains around KC:

The graph above shows that, at $3.29 per dozen, Sprouts Farmers Market has the lowest average price in the city among grocery chains. This is based on three Sprouts locations. Trader Joe’s, in a close second place, is at $3.49 per dozen based on two locations.

We found the average price of the cheapest dozen eggs at six other chains. These averages were gathered from five Walmart locations, two Save A Lot locations, three Whole Foods locations, three Hy-Vee locations, six Sunfresh locations, two ALDI locations, one Target location and three Price Chopper locations.

We also found a huge range of prices at independent grocery stores in Kansas City. They ranged from $2.99 per dozen at Hong Kong Supermarket to $6.99 per dozen at Happy Foods. Both stores are on the east side of the city.

Where can I find the cheapest eggs in the metro?

The cheapest dozen in the Kansas City area was at the Walmart Supercenter near Arrowhead Stadium at just $2.18. Check out the map below to compare the prices of eggs in your area.

Click on each chicken symbol to see the lowest available price for a dozen eggs as well as the name of the store and its address. The symbols are color-coded by their price range.

Although we called more than 40 stores in the metro area, a few didn’t answer their phones. These include two Target locations, three Walmart locations and two independent grocery stores: Chinatown Market in the River Market and Community Groceries in the Crossroads.

While we did contact Kansas City’s Costco location, they aren’t included in this piece since they don’t sell eggs by the single dozen.

Other egg sources

Rising costs may be driving you to consider a few egg-layers of your own — but one Kansas City resident says backyard chickens aren’t as affordable a solution as they’re “cracked up” to be.

“We do not save any money by having chickens,” said Alan Coffelt, who keeps chickens in his backyard in south Kansas City. “We spend far more money to maintain the girls than any benefit from getting eggs.”

Coffelt added that his chickens currently aren’t helping to alleviate the shortage: their egg production plummets in the winter months, when less exposure to sunlight causes them to lay fewer. Backyard chickens are also sensitive to extreme weather.

“Last summer was so hot that they stopped laying. We did not get many eggs last year,” Coffelt told The Star. “As a backyard chicken owner, it is not cost effective.”

Do you have more questions about the cost of living in Kansas City? Ask the Service Journalism team at kcq@kcstar.com.