The average price for alfalfa hay dropped only $1 per ton and settled at $159 in February, according to the USDA’s Agricultural Prices report. For four consecutive months ending with February, the average alfalfa hay price has hovered between $159 and $161 per ton, or the very definition of “stagnant.” The February 2026 price matched the price from one year ago.

The average price for grass hay in February rebounded by $8 to $139 per ton. This marked the second consecutive month of price improvement.

The price paid for Supreme and Premium alfalfa hay during February climbed by $3 per ton to $229 per ton, indicating that perhaps high-quality hay is getting harder to find as the price rose by $15 per ton the previous month.

No state posted a double-digit price improvement from January to February, which is a rarity.

Three states had double-digit hay price declines. Arizona, New Mexico, and Wyoming all had a $10 month-over-month price reduction.

The highest average February alfalfa hay price was reported in Pennsylvania at $275 per ton. It was followed by New York at $260, while Kentucky and New Mexico posted a $240 per ton average price.

North Dakota had the lowest average alfalfa price at $94 per ton. It was followed by South Dakota at $96 and Iowa at $98 per ton.

Keep in mind that USDA average prices account for all qualities and bale types of hay sold. Also, the final U.S. estimate is a volume-weighted average rather than a simple average of state values. Those states with the most volume sales will impact the final U.S. dollar value more than those states with fewer sales.

Supreme and Premium

The USDA also tracks the prices of Supreme and Premium quality alfalfa in the major dairy states and determines an average price from the five top milk-producing states (California, Idaho, New York, Texas, and Wisconsin). This data is used to determine feed prices in the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program.

For February, the average price of Supreme and Premium alfalfa hay rose by $3 per ton, posting at $229. The average high-quality alfalfa hay price was still $14 per ton lower than a year ago.

Other hay

The February average price of other hay was reported at $139 per ton, which was up $8 from the previous month but $8 lower than February 2025.

The highest February price for hay other than alfalfa was reported in Pennsylvania at $213 per ton. California, Oregon, and Washington followed at $200, while New Mexico posted a $195 per ton price.

North Dakota had the lowest reported other hay average price at $68 per ton. It was followed by Wisconsin at $76 per ton.