Burger Index: Jackson Cost $1.55 More Than Chicago
On June 13, the Burger Index put North Jackson at $6.36 and North Center/Avondale Chicago at $4.81; buns, lettuce, and beef created most of the gap.
Burger Index put Jackson at the expensive end on June 13. CostInflation’s grocery basket for one double-patty burger came to $6.36 in North Jackson, Mississippi. In North Center/Avondale, Chicago, it was $4.81.
A $1.55 gap on one burger basket means Jackson was about 32% higher than Chicago. The middle of the Burger Cost by City history looked nothing like that: six cities sat between $4.89 and $5.02, a range of only 13 cents.
The ingredients explain why. Buns, lettuce, and beef accounted for almost nine-tenths of the Jackson-Chicago difference, while the smaller condiments and toppings barely moved the total.
Jackson broke away at the top
After the top three, the ranking compressed quickly.
| Rank | Market | Postal code | Burger basket | Listings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jackson, MS - North Jackson | 39206 | $6.36 | 661 |
| 2 | Clayton, MO | 63105 | $5.97 | 666 |
| 3 | East St. Louis, IL | 62201 | $5.96 | 660 |
| 4 | Jacksonville, FL - Westside | 32210 | $5.18 | 738 |
| 5 | New York, NY - Ridgewood/Glendale | 11385 | $5.02 | 743 |
| 6 | San Antonio, TX - West San Antonio | 78228 | $4.95 | 738 |
| 7 | Philadelphia, PA - South Philadelphia | 19145 | $4.94 | 726 |
| 8 | Houston, TX - Midtown | 77004 | $4.93 | 745 |
| 9 | San Jose, CA - Blossom Valley | 95123 | $4.92 | 739 |
| 10 | Seattle, WA - Rainier Valley | 98118 | $4.89 | 740 |
| 11 | Los Angeles, CA - Mid-City | 90019 | $4.84 | 739 |
| 12 | Chicago, IL - North Center/Avondale | 60618 | $4.81 | 739 |
Jackson sat 39 cents above Clayton, while Chicago was only 3 cents below Los Angeles. Between them, most cities were separated by nickels and dimes rather than by another Jackson-sized gap.
The June 13 burger basket drew on 8,634 grocery listings across the 12 market areas. The table’s shape is the point: one expensive city, two nearby high markets, and a tight middle.
Buns, lettuce, and beef carried the Jackson gap
Jackson did not get to the top because every ingredient was higher. Three ingredients did most of the work.
| Ingredient | Jackson | Chicago | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamburger buns | $1.52 | $0.96 | +$0.56 |
| Lettuce | $0.63 | $0.16 | +$0.47 |
| Beef patties | $2.89 | $2.55 | +$0.35 |
Together, those three ingredients explain about 89% of the Jackson-Chicago difference. The smaller condiments and toppings mattered less than the familiar burger core.
The ingredient pages let readers check the basket piece by piece: hamburger bun, lettuce, and beef patties.
The basket did not move all at once
The result does not say every Jackson grocery shelf was higher. It says this particular burger basket split sharply because a few ingredients were enough to pull one city away from the pack.
That is also why the component pages matter. The hamburger bun, lettuce, and beef patties lines show whether the basket is moving because of one ingredient or because the full shelf is shifting together.
Watch the ingredient lines next
If Jackson stays high, buns and lettuce are the first places to look. If the middle of the pack starts to separate, beef is the ingredient most likely to move the basket for everyone at once.
The latest city lines are on the Burger Cost by City history, and the CostInflation price tracker links the other public grocery and household-goods indices available on the site.