What is shrinkflation?
By ShrinkRadar · Updated 2026-10-15 · Figures from our live case library
Shrinkflation is a price rise hidden in the package: less product for the same money, or more money.
A box of cereal goes from 18 oz to 15.4 oz. The shelf price stays at $4.99. Nothing on the front of the box says it changed, and the box itself may be the same height. But you now pay 16.9% more per ounce. That is shrinkflation.
The one number that tells the truth is the net quantity on the label (“Net Wt.”, “Inhalt”, sheet or pod count). If it went down and the price did not, the price per unit went up.
Shrinkflation, inflation and skimpflation
- Inflation: the sticker price goes up. You see it.
- Shrinkflation: the sticker price stays, the pack gets smaller. You have to read the label to see it.
- Skimpflation: price and size stay, quality drops (cheaper ingredients, fewer features). It is the hardest to measure, and we do not track it.
Official inflation figures generally do count shrinkflation, because statistics agencies measure price per unit. A single shopper buying the same box every week usually does not notice it.
How common is it?
Our library holds 687 documented cases from 13 countries. The median cut is 12.9%. The largest is Schwyzer Kräuterli Sanddorn-Orange: 200 g → 75 g (−62.5%). Where the source also recorded the shelf price before and after (391 cases), 391 got more expensive per unit. The worst offenders page ranks them.
How ShrinkRadar documents it
- Daily checks. We record the net quantity and the most recent price of 340 everyday products every day from Open Food Facts, Open Products Facts and Open Prices. Any drop is logged as a finding on the homepage.
- Sourced cases. Historical before/after cuts come from consumer agencies (e.g. Verbraucherzentrale Hamburg, Consumentenbond, Which?, CHOICE), the Mouse Print* archive, and news investigations. Each case links the source and quotes what it says. If we cannot verify a case, we leave it out.
- No estimates. Missing data is shown as missing.
Browse by brand or category, or run your own numbers in the shrinkflation calculator. Next: how to spot shrinkflation in the store.
FAQ
What is shrinkflation?
Shrinkflation is when a product’s package gets smaller (less weight, volume or count) while its price stays the same or goes up. You pay the same or more for less, so the price per unit rises.
Is shrinkflation illegal?
Usually not, as long as the label states the correct net quantity. Some countries go further: France has required supermarkets to flag shrunken packs since July 2024, and consumer agencies in Germany, the UK and Australia publish lists of cases.
How much does shrinkflation raise prices?
Cutting a pack by a fraction x at the same price raises the unit price by x ÷ (1 − x). The median cut across our 687 documented cases is 12.9%, which is a 14.9% hidden rise per unit if the price did not change.
What is the difference between shrinkflation and skimpflation?
Shrinkflation gives you less of the same product. Skimpflation gives you the same amount of a cheaper product, such as a recipe with cheaper ingredients, or a thinner service. Both raise the real price without a higher sticker price.