If you’ve been paying the sting at the supermarket or your favorite breakfast joint, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Egg prices have been increasing for over a year, and restaurants like Waffle House were left with some uncomfortable decisions in order to stay open and affordable.
But now—good news! Waffle House just revealed it’s eliminating its additional 50-cent per egg surcharge, and that’s a definite indicator that egg prices are at last beginning to decrease.
Here’s what that means, why it’s important to you, and what’s next:
Why did waffle house introduce an egg surcharge
Waffle House introduced a 50-cent fee per egg back in February 2025. This was due to a bad egg shortage throughout the country, largely caused by the bird flu (aptly titled HPAI – Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza). Instead of jacking up prices on the entire menu, the diner chain imposed this small fee exclusively for eggs to keep meals affordable.
Waffle house loves eggs
Hard to swallow, but Waffle House uses over 272 million eggs annually—close to twice as many as waffles!
So even a small egg price increase hurt them, and that extra cost got transferred on to consumers.
But they’ve broken some “egg-cellent” news now:
“As of June 2, the egg surcharge is officially off the menu,” Waffle House stated.
Why did egg prices increase
Egg prices went as high as $6.22 per dozen in March 2025, which is way above average. This is so since the bird flu outbreak that began in 2022 continued to spread to 2025. Over 150 million chickens and other birds were killed to contain the spread, which left farms without enough chickens to achieve production of eggs. With less hens, there were fewer eggs, and that pushed prices up for all.
Are egg prices finally going down
Yes—luckily, egg prices are now finally starting to fall. The May Consumer Price Index reported that while egg prices are still at about 40% higher than last year, they’ve fallen from the record. This little drop is the key to how Waffle House was able to drop the surcharge, and it’s also welcome news for grocery shoppers.
What’s bringing down prices
The USDA has been working hand-in-hand with farmers to stop the bird flu spread. More than 900 safety inspections (so-called biosecurity assessments) have already taken place. Farmers are being encouraged to prepare for the fall, which can potentially experience a second wave of bird flu if farms don’t prepare.
Why this matters to ordinary people
If Waffle House, one of the country’s largest egg purchasers, can spare dropping the surcharge on eggs, then that means egg supplies are leveling out. You might start seeing lower-priced eggs at your local supermarket in the weeks or months to come. Although food prices remain higher than ever before, this is a small but promising step for families who want to save on food.
The next time you have a complete breakfast or purchase a package of eggs, smile a little—times are brightening up sunnier-side up.
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