All-In Price Laws Expanded. Here's How to Find a Product's Real Cost

Since July 1, 2026, Connecticut has required the advertised price of most goods and services to include every mandatory fee. For shoppers there and in at least five other states, the first price you see should now be close to what you pay before tax and shipping. The running cost printed on an appliance's energy label hasn't caught up, though: it still rests on an electricity price based on 2022 data.

Connecticut joins California, Minnesota, Virginia, Massachusetts and Colorado, whose broad all-in pricing rules took effect between July 2024 and January 2026. The federal EnergyGuide label on a new refrigerator works out its yearly cost at 14 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh), while EIA data put the average US household rate at 18.31 cents in July 2026. At that average, the real running cost is about 31% higher than the label shows.

Key takeaways

• California (July 1, 2024), Minnesota (Jan. 1, 2025), Virginia (July 1, 2025), Massachusetts (Sept. 2, 2025), Colorado (Jan. 1, 2026) and Connecticut (July 1, 2026) require advertised prices to include mandatory fees. All six still let sellers leave out government taxes and add shipping later, each under its own conditions.
• There is no federal unit-pricing mandate. Both of NIST's lists of mandatory unit-pricing jurisdictions include the same nine states: Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Vermont.
• No federal "shrinkflation" labeling law has been enacted. The House bill introduced in September 2025 hasn't moved past committee referral, so the shelf unit price is still the main way to spot a smaller package.
• EnergyGuide labels for refrigerators, freezers, clothes washers, dishwashers and water heaters assume 14 cents/kWh. Multiplying the label's kWh figure by your own rate gives a better estimate of what you'll pay. The FTC is due to update the cost figures in 2027.

What it means for you

Grocery shoppers comparing sizes

The unit price tells you more than the shelf price, but only when both tags use the same unit. The worked example below shows how a package that shrinks at an unchanged price raises the unit price by 14%, and why a "2 for" deal on the smaller size can still lose to the larger one.

Appliance and electronics buyers

Read the kWh figure on the EnergyGuide label, not just the dollar figure. At high local rates, the gap between two models in running costs can be more than twice what the label shows. In the eight states where July 2026 rates were below 14 cents, it is slightly smaller. Either way, the rate you pay changes how quickly a more efficient model pays back a higher price.

Shoppers in states with price-disclosure laws

If you live in California, Minnesota, Virginia, Massachusetts, Colorado or Connecticut, a mandatory "service," "convenience" or "processing" fee should generally be included in the first price you see. The table below lists what each state still lets sellers add later and which businesses follow different rules.

Online shoppers

Websites that list a covered appliance, TV or light bulb with a detailed description and price must show the EnergyGuide or Lighting Facts label (or a link to it) near the price. Unit prices online are voluntary in most states, although NIST's 2025 guide recommends showing them right next to the price.

Total-price laws, state by state

An all-in pricing rule doesn't cap fees. It only changes where they appear: in the advertised price instead of at checkout. California's attorney general puts it simply on the state's hidden fees page: the price people see should be the price they pay. It adds that the law covers online and brick-and-mortar sellers alike. The table summarizes each state's rule as written. Other states may have narrower or industry-specific rules that aren't listed here.

One federal rule applies nationwide, but only in two markets. The FTC's fees rule, 16 CFR Part 464, has covered live-event tickets and short-term lodging since May 12, 2025. Crossed-out "was" prices are a separate question, addressed by the FTC's Guides Against Deceptive Pricing.

This section is general education, not legal advice. Each law has more conditions than a table can hold, and a seller's obligations depend on where the sale happens. If a mandatory fee shows up only at checkout in one of these states, your state attorney general's consumer office handles complaints.

Unit prices and shrinking packages

A unit price is the shelf price divided by the quantity, expressed per ounce, pound, fluid ounce, count or square foot. The Uniform Unit Pricing Regulation in NIST Handbook 130 (2026 edition) is the national model. It never makes unit pricing mandatory. It sets rules for stores that choose to post unit prices, and those rules are binding in states that have adopted it. States that require unit pricing do so under their own laws. Three of the model's rules are worth knowing:

• One unit per product. All sizes of a product must be priced in the same unit. If soft drinks come in 2-liter bottles and 12-ounce cans, the store must use one unit for both.
• Rounding. A unit price of a dollar or more is rounded to the nearest cent. Below a dollar, the store can show tenths of a cent or round to the whole cent, but it can't mix the two. At "$0.19/oz," two items can differ by almost a cent per ounce.
• Exemptions. No unit price is required for packages under 1 ounce or 1 fluid ounce, items priced 50 cents or less, a product sold in only one brand and one size, or variety and combination packs.

There is no federal mandate. NIST's guide to US retail pricing laws (updated July 2024) and its unit-pricing project page both name Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Vermont as states with mandatory unit pricing. The two pages disagree on the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. Several other states have voluntary rules. NIST's 2025 edition of its retailer best-practice guide, SP 1181 (updated May 20, 2026), adds guidance for electronic shelf labels and e-commerce sites.

Illustrative example: two sizes, then a shrink

unit price = shelf price ÷ net quantity (both sizes in the same unit)

  shelf price   = the price on the tag, before tax
  net quantity  = the weight, volume or count printed on the package

Before the shrink, the large jar is about 6% cheaper per ounce. At the small jar's unit price, 40 ounces would cost about $7.98, or $0.49 more than one large jar. That is a small gap.

When the small jar drops from 24 to 21 ounces at the same $4.79, its unit price rises 14.3%, the same as raising the 24-ounce price to about $5.47. The shelf price never moved. Even on the "2 for $9" deal, the shrunk jar costs $0.214 per ounce, still more than the large jar's regular $0.187.

The lesson isn't that bigger is always cheaper. Stores sometimes charge more per ounce for the larger size, and only the unit price reveals that. If one tag reads per pound and another per ounce, divide the per-pound price by 16 before comparing. For example, $3.19/lb is $0.199/oz.

Where shrinkflation rules stand

A federal report from GAO (July 2025) found that downsizing added less than a tenth of a percentage point to the 34.5% rise in overall consumer prices from 2019 to 2024. In the most affected categories, though, it added 1.6 points for cereal and 3.0 points for household paper products. The Deceptive Downsizing Prohibition Act of 2025 (H.R. 5226) would bar manufacturers from selling a downsized product in the same or similar packaging unless the front panel clearly states the old and new size. It was introduced on Sept. 9, 2025, and its only recorded action is referral to the House Energy and Commerce Committee. In Connecticut, a 2025 bill (HB 6856) dropped its downsizing-notice requirement in committee and stalled on the House calendar in March 2025. We found no enacted US shrinkflation label requirement as of October 2026.

EnergyGuide costs at your rate

The FTC's Energy Labeling Rule, 16 CFR Part 305, sets the cost assumptions printed on each label. They are national averages, and most are now several years old:

The newest change in the rule's text is a television-labeling amendment that took effect May 2, 2024. A February 2024 proposal would add labels for air cleaners, clothes dryers, miscellaneous refrigeration products and portable electric spas, but it has not been finalized. The current regulation requires the FTC to publish new cost figures and comparison ranges in 2027. Products already labeled won't have to be relabeled.

The national average is a starting point. The EIA's Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A, puts the US residential average at 18.31 cents/kWh for July 2026, up from 17.45 cents a year earlier. The range across states runs from 12.72 cents in Louisiana to 33.61 cents in California and 48.00 cents in Hawaii. Eight states were below 14 cents that month, and there the label slightly overstates the cost. Monthly figures move with the seasons, so your own bill is the better guide.

Illustrative example: two refrigerators

your yearly cost = label kWh per year × your price per kWh
  or, if only the dollar figure is visible:
your yearly cost = label yearly cost × (your rate ÷ label rate)

Model A's label shows 550 kWh a year ($77 at 14 cents). Model B shows 450 kWh ($63) and costs $100 more to buy.

At the US average, both refrigerators cost about 31% more to run than their labels say, and Model B takes 5.5 years to earn back its higher price instead of 7.1. At Massachusetts rates the payback falls to 3.3 years, while at Louisiana's July rate, below the label's 14 cents, it stretches to 7.9 years. The ranking of the two models never changes; the size of the gap does, and that decides whether the efficient model is worth paying extra for.

Use the per-kWh charges on your bill (supply plus delivery), not your total bill divided by kWh. Fixed monthly customer charges don't change with how much an appliance uses, so including them overstates the cost of each extra kWh. On the refrigerator label, compare models only against labels whose numbers are printed in yellow, which the rule says are based on the same test procedure.

Light bulbs and TVs

Because Lighting Facts uses 11 cents, a bulb labeled $1.20 a year uses about 10.9 kWh at 3 hours a day. That's roughly a 10-watt bulb, and it costs about $2.00 a year at 18.31 cents. Television labels use 16 cents, so at the US average the real cost runs about 14% above the label, before accounting for how many hours you actually watch.

Frequently asked questions

Do online grocery listings have to show a unit price?

Not under federal law. NIST's 2025 guide says unit pricing is voluntary unless a state requires it. It recommends that e-commerce sites show the unit price prominently, close to the selling price, with units applied consistently within each product category. Whether a given site must do so depends on state law and how that state applies its rule to online sales.

Why do some shelf tags for the same product use different units?

Under the model regulation, every size of a product in a store should be priced in the same unit, but not every state has adopted it. NIST's guide shows real-world examples of mixed units within a category, such as per square foot next to per 100 square feet. Convert one tag before comparing: divide a per-100-square-foot price by 100, or a per-pound price by 16 to get ounces.

Is it illegal to shrink a package without changing its price?

Generally no. GAO notes that the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act don't expressly prohibit downsizing, though the net quantity on the label must be accurate. Food rules do restrict nonfunctional slack-fill, meaning empty space with no protective or practical purpose, in packages where you can't fully see the contents.

Which unit price applies when an item has a regular price, a club price and a coupon price?

NIST's best-practice guide recommends a unit price for each price, shown with equal prominence next to it. That includes multi-buy offers such as "buy 2 for $2" and electronic shelf labels showing more than one price tier. If only the regular unit price is shown, work out the sale unit price yourself before comparing it with another size.

When will the 14-cent EnergyGuide figure change?

Under 16 CFR 305.12, the FTC must publish revised cost figures and comparison ranges in 2027. New labeling must follow them within 90 days of publication. Products already labeled don't need new labels, so older figures may stay on store floors for some time after the change.

A real-cost check before you pay

1. Groceries and household goods: compare unit prices in the same unit, recheck the unit price on any "deal," and check the net quantity on products you buy regularly, since a smaller package at the same price doesn't change the shelf tag.
2. Appliances: write down the label's kWh (or therms), multiply by the per-kWh charges on your bill, then multiply the yearly difference between models by the years you expect to keep the appliance.
3. Bulbs and TVs: divide the label cost by its assumed rate (11 or 16 cents) and multiply by your rate. Adjust for your actual hours of use.
4. Any purchase: add up the advertised price, any fee not already included, shipping and tax. In the states in the table above, a mandatory fee that appears only at checkout is worth reporting to the state attorney general.

Sources

• California Civil Code §1770
• California Attorney General: hidden fees (SB 478)
• Minnesota Statutes §325D.44
• Minnesota Session Laws 2024, chapter 111
• Code of Virginia, Title 59.1, Chapter 58
• 940 CMR 38.03, definitions
• 940 CMR 38.04, price and fee disclosure
• 940 CMR 38.09, effective date
• Colorado General Assembly: HB25-1090
• Connecticut Public Act 25-44
• Connecticut General Assembly: HB 6856 (2025) status
• FTC: Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees FAQ
• NIST Handbook 130 (2026), Uniform Unit Pricing Regulation
• NIST: A Guide to US Retail Pricing Laws and Regulations
• NIST: Uniform Unit Pricing, Tools for Consumers to Fight Shrinkflation
• NIST SP 1181, Unit Pricing Guide (2025 ed.)
• GAO-25-107451, Trends and Policy Options Related to Shrinking Product Sizes
• H.R. 5226, Deceptive Downsizing Prohibition Act of 2025
• 16 CFR Part 233, Guides Against Deceptive Pricing
• 16 CFR Part 305, Energy Labeling Rule
• Federal Register: Energy Labeling Rule proposal, Feb. 2, 2024
• EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A