Amazon is using Thanksgiving to push deeper into grocery, rolling out a $25 holiday meal that bundles an eight-pound turkey with sides and dessert ingredients as budget-conscious shoppers look to keep holiday spending in check.
Amazon rolls out $25 Thanksgiving meal
The promotion matters because it turns a seasonal shopper need into a test of Amazon’s same-day grocery reach and price competitiveness against Walmart, Costco and traditional grocers heading into the busiest food-buying stretch of the year. With U.S. consumer sentiment still weak and inflation still running above pre-pandemic norms, value-led holiday offers can pull traffic, lift order frequency and sharpen the retailer’s position in grocery baskets that are still fiercely contested.
Sentiment Indicators
The meal includes frozen Butterball turkey, cranberry sauce, gravy mix, macaroni and cheese, stuffing, green bean casserole ingredients, potatoes, rolls, pie crusts and pumpkin puree. Amazon says the offer runs through Nov. 26 while supplies last, with same-day grocery delivery available in more than 2,300 U.S. cities and towns.
The company is also layering in broader markdowns, including frozen turkeys at 79 cents a pound from Nov. 1 through Nov. 26 and fresh turkeys at 99 cents a pound from Nov. 14 through Nov. 26. Thanksgiving staples are priced under $4, while charcuterie and party snacks are discounted 40% early in the month and premade sides are marked down 40% later on.
For investors, the key question is not whether the basket is cheap, but whether Amazon can use aggressive holiday pricing to drive grocery adoption without pressuring margins too much. Amazon’s retail business is highly seasonal and promotion-heavy, and its latest filing warned that demand can swing with pricing, product launches and broader economic conditions.
The move also highlights how grocery is becoming a more important lever across retail. Walmart’s stock has been firmer into the holiday period, while Costco remains a benchmark for value-oriented basket building; Amazon’s push suggests the company wants a bigger share of the Thanksgiving trip as consumers trade down and seek convenience.
Adalytica’s consumer spending sentiment reading remains in the “Greed” zone at 71, though it has softened sharply over the past week, while retail goods spending sentiment sits at 82 with “Extreme Greed” awareness, underscoring that holiday demand is still present but increasingly price-sensitive. Amazon shares ended Monday at $245.63, above both the 50-day moving average of $254.02 and the 200-day moving average of $243.44? No — the stock is trading just below the 50-day average and above the 200-day average, leaving room for any holiday sales data to influence sentiment.
The immediate catalyst is whether Amazon’s grocery promotions convert into higher delivery usage and bigger holiday baskets through late November. If they do, the campaign could reinforce Amazon’s value pitch in a category where convenience and price now matter as much as assortment.
| Entity | Gains | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon | ▲Grocery traffic, delivery orders | ▼Margin pressure |
| Budget shoppers | ▲Lower Thanksgiving costs | ▼Less menu flexibility |
| Walmart/Costco | ▲Category comparison traffic | ▼Competitive pricing pressure |
| Traditional grocers | ▲Limited if Amazon wins baskets | ▼Thanksgiving basket share |
