Short plate primal
The composite value of the beef short plate primal: what the day’s negotiated sales of its cuts add up to, per hundredweight of the primal, from USDA’s daily boxed beef report. The latest Choice value, for Oct 29, 2026, is $2.19 per hundredweight.
- Choice
- $2.19 −$0.70
- Select
- $2.19 −$0.70
Is today’s price high or low? · On the low side
Higher than on 3 of the other 254 business days in the past year.
Lowest of the yearHighest of the year
A year earlier (Oct 29, 2025) it was $2.40 per hundredweight; today’s price is −9.1% against that. Over the past year’s 255 reports it averaged $2.68, from a low of $2.12 (Oct 23, 2026) to a high of $3.15 (May 11, 2026). In a usual year (2020–2025) it runs highest in June (+10.8% against its own year’s average) and lowest in November (−12.4%).
| Grade | Latest | Per cwt | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choice | Thu, Oct 29 | $2.19 | −$0.70 since Wed, Oct 28 |
| Select | Thu, Oct 29 | $2.19 | −$0.70 since Wed, Oct 28 |
Every week on record Jan 2, 2020 to Oct 29, 2026
- Choice
- Select
- Weekly average, dollars per hundredweight
Each point is the average of the week’s daily prices. Gaps are stretches of three weeks or more with no sales. On record since Jan 2, 2020: 1,740 days with a price.
Average Choice price by month $ per cwt
| Year | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 245 | 261 | 298 | 306 | 308 | 296 | 279 | 264 | 244 | 226 | · | · | 273 |
| 2025 | 218 | 216 | 221 | 230 | 243 | 275 | 302 | 272 | 250 | 231 | 248 | 238 | 245 |
| 2024 | 184 | 198 | 224 | 232 | 216 | 207 | 217 | 227 | 207 | 189 | 181 | 188 | 206 |
| 2023 | 175 | 187 | 214 | 248 | 266 | 265 | 242 | 220 | 203 | 181 | 169 | 167 | 212 |
| 2022 | 194 | 189 | 187 | 205 | 197 | 197 | 189 | 176 | 171 | 152 | 149 | 155 | 180 |
| 2021 | 124 | 137 | 145 | 188 | 215 | 243 | 242 | 250 | 232 | 186 | 183 | 183 | 194 |
| 2020 | 153 | 146 | 142 | 131 | 244 | 144 | 131 | 140 | 139 | 128 | 127 | 117 | 145 |
Each month is weighted by the pounds sold on each day (primal values are a plain average). A dot is a month with no sales on record.
Its usual year Each month against its own year’s average, the median over 2020–2025
- Jan−11.0%
- Feb−7.7%
- Mar−0.6%
- Apr+4.9%
- May+10.1%
- Jun+10.8%
- Jul+9.8%
- Aug+7.2%
- Sep−1.8%
- Oct−10.0%
- Nov−12.4%
- Dec−11.3%
Day by day The last 20 days it traded
| Day | Choice, per cwt | Select, per cwt |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 29, 2026 | $2.19 | $2.19 |
| Oct 28, 2026 | $2.19 | $2.19 |
| Oct 27, 2026 | $2.20 | $2.20 |
| Oct 26, 2026 | $2.16 | $2.16 |
| Oct 23, 2026 | $2.12 | $2.12 |
| Oct 22, 2026 | $2.24 | $2.24 |
| Oct 21, 2026 | $2.21 | $2.21 |
| Oct 20, 2026 | $2.22 | $2.22 |
| Oct 19, 2026 | $2.21 | $2.21 |
| Oct 16, 2026 | $2.17 | $2.17 |
| Oct 15, 2026 | $2.22 | $2.22 |
| Oct 14, 2026 | $2.25 | $2.25 |
| Oct 13, 2026 | $2.26 | $2.26 |
| Oct 12, 2026 | $2.31 | $2.31 |
| Oct 9, 2026 | $2.34 | $2.34 |
| Oct 8, 2026 | $2.36 | $2.36 |
| Oct 7, 2026 | $2.36 | $2.36 |
| Oct 6, 2026 | $2.40 | $2.40 |
| Oct 5, 2026 | $2.38 | $2.38 |
| Oct 2, 2026 | $2.37 | $2.37 |
Every day is in the CSV downloads, with the day’s low and high and the number of trades.
Cuts from the short plate today Dearest first, per pound
| Cut | Per lb | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Outside skirt, peeled | $14.27 | Price |
| Outside skirt | $8.39 | Price |
| Short plate short rib | $6.66 | Choice |
| Inside skirt | $6.37 | Price |
About these numbers
Prices are USDA’s, from the National Daily Boxed Beef Cutout and Boxed Beef Cuts, Negotiated Sales afternoon report (LM_XB403): the weighted average of the day’s negotiated sales of boxed beef, FOB the packing plant, for delivery within 0 to 21 days, in dollars per hundredweight (100 lb). Divide by 100 for the price per pound. These are wholesale prices for whole cuts in boxes, well below what the same cut costs at a store. USDA lists this item as “Primal Plate”. The latest report is for Oct 29, 2026; the next is due Fri, Oct 30, 2026.
The beef price board has every cut for today, the cutout, how the data is collected, and the whole history as CSV downloads. Source: USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, Livestock, Poultry and Grain Market News.