Pet food prices dropped by 0.1% in April 2025 compared to March, marking the 13th month out of the last 14 with year-over-year price declines, according to the latest Petflation report from John Gibbons at PetBusinessProfessor.com.
While the overall U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.3% from March and pet-related categories such as veterinary services, supplies and other services posted increases, pet food was the only segment to see a decline. Year-over-year, pet food prices were down 0.6% from April 2024.
"Petflation rose from 1.3% to 1.9%, but pet food continues to trend downward," said Gibbons. "The YOY Pet Food CPI has now deflated in 13 of the last 14 months."
Compared to 2019, pet food prices are still up 23.1%, with the vast majority of that increase — 94.4% — occurring during the 2021 to 2025 period. The deflationary shift began after prices peaked in May 2023, with some months of recovery followed by consistent drops.
"Pet food inflation began in June 2021 after a full year of price deflation," Gibbons noted. "Since then, we’ve seen a dramatic surge through 2023 before prices started correcting."
Year-to-date pet food prices down slightly
Year-to-date, pet food prices are down 0.5% — unchanged from March but significantly different from earlier trends such as a 2.2% rise in 2023 and a steep 14.8% increase in 2022.
Despite the current relief in pet food pricing, other pet categories continue to drive overall petflation. In April, supplies were up 1.2%, services rose 1.3%, and veterinary prices climbed 0.2%.
Gibbons’ monthly reports offer pet food professionals a detailed view of inflation trends across pet care segments and their implications for consumer spending. With food being a necessity in pet care budgets, these price movements are a key indicator of shifting market dynamics.
