How much is a cheesesteak in Pennsylvania? $12.27 at the median
A full-size cheesesteak costs $12.27 at the median independent pizza or sub shop in Pennsylvania, based on the online menus of 340 shops in 104 towns that we read on November 7, 2026. Half of those shops charge between $10.99 and $13.99. Inside the city of Philadelphia the median is $13.25, while everywhere outside the Philadelphia area it is $11.99. The cheapest cheesesteak we found was $8 in Catawissa and the most expensive $21.99 in State College.
Prices by region
Median price of a full-size plain cheesesteak:
The Philadelphia area, which here includes the city and its suburbs in Bucks, Montgomery, Delaware and Chester counties, is the most expensive region at $12.95. The Harrisburg, Lancaster, York and Reading area is the least expensive at $11.46. We only rank regions with at least 10 shops. Around Pittsburgh just 6 shops listed a plain cheesesteak on Slice, at a $13.45 median, so it isn't ranked.
Is your cheesesteak priced high or low?
Own a shop? Put in what you charge for a full-size cheesesteak to see where it sits against the 340 Pennsylvania shops, and what you keep from it depending on how the order comes in.
The 30% figure is the top commission tier on the big delivery apps. The direct figure assumes a typical 2.9% + 30¢ card fee and no commission. If you'd rather not cut prices to compete, some shops lock in regulars with a monthly plan instead: here's how a pizza shop membership program works and what it makes.
Philadelphia against the rest of the state
| Where | Median | Shops |
|---|---|---|
| City of Philadelphia | $13.25 | 20 |
| Philadelphia area, city and suburbs | $12.95 | 133 |
| Rest of Pennsylvania | $11.99 | 207 |
| All of Pennsylvania | $12.27 | 340 |
Within the city, prices ran from $9.45 to $15.30 across 20 shops, a small sample for a city this size, so treat the city figure as a rough guide. For context, Jim's South Street charged $13.49 at the counter in July 2025, up from $11.49 in 2022 (CBS Philadelphia / AP).
Half or whole
Most shops sell one size. Of the 59 that sell a small and a full-size cheesesteak, the small cost $10.49 and the full size $12.99 at the median, and the typical shop charges $3 more for the full size. Few menus give the length of each size, so we can't say how much more steak the larger one holds.
A cheesesteak or a pizza?
At the 85 shops that sell both a plain cheesesteak and a 16-inch cheese pizza, the cheesesteak cost $12.00 and the pizza $16.40 at the median, so the sandwich runs about 73% of the price of a large pie. Only 3 of those 85 shops charge more for the cheesesteak than for the pizza. For the prices of the pizza itself, see what a large pizza costs in Pennsylvania.
Why cheesesteaks keep getting more expensive
Beef is the main cost in a cheesesteak. The Bureau of Labor Statistics put the average price of ground beef at $6.79 a pound in September 2026 (FRED / BLS). Cheesesteaks are usually made from ribeye or other steak cuts rather than ground beef, but those cuts have risen too: in mid-2025 the president of Jim's said his supplier was charging about $1 a pound more than a year earlier (CBS Philadelphia / AP).
How much should a shop charge for a cheesesteak?
Owners should price from their own cost per sandwich, meaning the meat, cheese, roll and labor, and use these figures for comparison. What the data shows:
- Half of Pennsylvania shops charge between $10.99 and $13.99 for a full-size cheesesteak. Under $10 puts you in the cheapest 12%; $15 or more puts you in the top 12%.
- At shops with two sizes, the full size typically costs $3 more than the small.
- What you keep depends on where the order comes in. On a $12.27 cheesesteak, a delivery app's 15% to 30% commission takes $1.84 to $3.68 (DoorDash fees).
To work out a price from your own food cost, use the menu price calculator.
How we got these numbers
On November 7, 2026 we read the public menus of independent pizza and sub shops listed on Slice, the online ordering service, by searching 80 Pennsylvania cities and towns (Slice). For each shop we took its plain beef cheesesteak (listed as a cheesesteak, cheese steak, Philly cheesesteak or steak and cheese, as a sandwich or sub). We skipped chicken cheesesteaks, specialty versions, cheesesteak hoagies with lettuce and tomato, pizzas, platters and party sizes, and left out chains. Where a shop sells more than one size, "full size" means the 10 to 14 inch option, or the one called large, whole or regular when no length is given. We also left out sizes that cost about double the small with no length given, since those are usually oversized sandwiches. That left 340 shops in 104 towns.
The data has two limits. These are online ordering prices, which can differ from what a shop charges at the counter. And it covers pizza and sub shops that take orders through Slice, not dedicated steak shops that don't use it.
FAQ
What is the average price of a cheesesteak in Pennsylvania? $12.27 at the median for a full-size plain cheesesteak at an independent pizza or sub shop (mean $12.59), November 2026.
How much is a cheesesteak in Philadelphia? $13.25 at the median inside the city, across 20 shops, and $12.95 across the city and its suburbs.
Where in Pennsylvania are cheesesteaks cheapest? In the Harrisburg, Lancaster, York and Reading area, at an $11.46 median.
Is a cheesesteak cheaper than a pizza? Usually. At the 85 shops that sell both, a cheesesteak cost about 73% of a 16-inch cheese pizza, and only 3 charged more for the cheesesteak.
Can I use this data? Yes. Please link to this page as the source.
The short version
A cheesesteak from an independent Pennsylvania pizza or sub shop costs about $12.27 in late 2026 and about $13.25 inside Philadelphia. Where shops sell a small, it typically runs $3 less.
Sources
- Slice: pizza and sub shops in Pennsylvania (menus read Nov 7, 2026)
- CBS Philadelphia / AP: Rising beef prices could push up the cost of a Philly cheesesteak (July 23, 2025)
- FRED / BLS: average price of ground beef, U.S. city average (September 2026)
Prices and fees were checked on November 7, 2026. They change, so check the source before you decide.