Have you ever thought about the price of yogurt? Especially compared to the price of milk? What are you paying for yogurt? Back in May of this year (2025), it was going for about $1.58 per 8oz on average across the United States.[1] That's over $25 per gallon.

What does the milk in that yogurt cost? In May 2025, a gallon of whole milk cost, on average, $4.49[2] just across the Columbia in Portland, OR. That makes a gallon of yogurt more than five times the price of a gallon of the milk used to produce it. Is yogurt really worth paying that kind of markup?

Yogurt is the second most advertised dairy product this week, after cheese.[3] Are you paying the manufacturers to spread the gospel of yogurt across the land?

Personally, I don't think it's worth it as long as I have some spare time.

Only you can decide if it makes sense for you, though. Maybe the convenience really is worth that markup. Maybe you don't have any time at all to spare, and not buying it would mean going without. That's usually the reason I find myself buying it.

I'm adamant that it is, in fact, worth the small hassle of making it at home. It can be a true art form, and it's not difficult to surpass the supermarket stuff in flavor and texture.

Call it a small rebellion: in a world of ultra-processed convenience, you heat a pot of milk, whisk in a spoonful of culture, and wake up to a jar of bright, clean yogurt that is unmistakably yours. Is it a little fussy? Occasionally, I'll admit. Is it worth it? Absolutely, there's not a doubt in my mind.

Why not just buy the good stuff?

Because even the good stuff is a fixed point on someone else’s curve. The result of someone else's decisions, made to appeal to a broad audience. Homemade is the polar opposite. Once you’ve dialed in your style, your perfect level of tang, your favorite thickness, store brands start to feel generic. Eventually you'll find a method or recipe that's better than anything you've bought from the supermarket, and then there’s no going back.

Frankly, it's not even as much of a hassle as the title implies. Active time can be under 30 minutes. The equipment is minimal. You need a pot, a thermometer, a warm spot. Maybe an incubator if you're really dedicated. If a batch goes slightly runny, you strain it and call it Greek. If it gets too tangy, you stop earlier next time. The “worst case” is almost always a different style of success.

Safe and Consistent

Yogurt is among the many examples of lacto-fermentation, a process whereby specific bacteria preserve milk, vegetables, or other food by their production of lactic acid.

In the case of yogurt, they acidify milk to a pH where spoilage microbes can't survive. In some cases they're already present on the substrate, as is the case with sauerkraut, and there's no need to even inoculate the ferment. With yogurt, you generally heat the milk to reduce microbial competition before inoculating (though the heat also denatures the whey proteins, which helps the yogurt gel). In either case, the lactic acid bacteria dominate early and easily. Just keep a clean pot, use a reliable thermometer, and you’ll get remarkably consistent results. If you can simmer tea and set a timer, you can make yogurt.

What's the Easiest Way?

Let's address the most difficult part of the whole setup first: maintaining the yogurt at temps between 105–112°F (40–44°C). If you're looking for the best results that you can replicate, you're going to want to know what temperatures you're fermenting at. At the very least you'll need a thermometer and a way to heat gently over long periods.

Choosing a Heating Device

There's probably a device in your kitchen you can use to keep the yogurt at the desired temperature. People have been known to use incandescent oven lights, instant pots, even rice cookers and sous-vide circulators. Whatever device you decide to use, I highly recommend you use a themometer to verify the temperature of the environment it produces.

There are also dedicated yogurt makers, purpose-built for the task. Just know that they are far from a requirement.

Recipe for Classic Thermophilic Yogurt

Thermophilic is heat-loving. These yogurts are incubated at between 105–112°F (40–44°C) and are known for their tanginess and gelled texture. What you'd expect from a supermarket yogurt here in the U.S.

Recipe Details

Yield: ~1 liter
Time: 20–30 min active, 4–12 hours incubation

Ingredients

1 L Whole milk
35 g Plain yogurt with live active cultures or a freeze-dried starter

Directions

I recommend using a thermometer to verify all temperatures.

1. Heat the Milk

Heat the milk to 180–185°F (82–85°C), holding for 10–20 minutes to help denature the whey proteins, which leads to better gel and less whey separation.

2. Cool the Milk to Temp

Cool the milk to 110°F (43–45°C). You can set the pot in a cool water bath and stir it to speed it along.

3. Inoculate

Use a whisk to stir in the 35 grams of live yogurt to introduce the culture to the warm milk. Mix gently but thoroughly. For your first batch you can use a yogurt from the supermarket, but you need to ensure it contains live cultures. This is usually indicated on the label. After that, you can use a bit of the latest batch to inoculate the next batch, but you may want to refresh with more of the supermarket yogurt after 5 to 10 generations if you notice any drift in flavor.

4. Incubate

Decide whether you'd rather incubate cup-set style, where you portion the yogurt into jars beforehand, or stirred style, where you incubate in the pot, then whisk smooth at the end.

In either case, incubate undisturbed at 105–112°F (40–44°C) until it sets and tastes right: 4–8 hours for mild and tender yogurt, 8–12+ hours for thicker and tangier. If you can measure acidity, pH 4.5 is a good target.

5. Chill

After incubation, when you've determined the yogurt is ready, you want to chill the yogurt as quickly as possible to slow down the metabolism of the culture and keep the acidification process from progressing much farther.

Refrigerate at least 4 hours to fully set.

6. Optional: Strain for Greek Yogurt

For Greek yogurt, you can use a strainer lined with cheesecloth over a deep bowl or stockpot to strain the yogurt.

Refrigerate at least 4 hours so the gel sets fully, then place the lined strainer over the bowl and pour or ladle the yogurt in. Fold the cloth edges over the top.

Put the whole setup in the fridge, uncovered or lightly tented, to the time/texture you want. The classic, spoon-firm Greek style should take 45–90 minutes to strain half a liter.

For thicker yogurt (or even a spreadable cheese) you can increase the time spent straining.

If you want perfectly even texture, strain a touch past your target consistency, then whisk some cold whey back into it to return to the target.

You can also save the whey, which has many uses.

References

  1. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Average Price: Yogurt (Cost per 8 Ounces/226.8 Grams) in U.S. City Average (APU0000FJ4101), retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; October 23, 2025.
  2. U.S.Department of Agriculture, Retail Prices for Conventional Whole Milk, Average of Three Outlets, Selected Cities, by Months, 2025, retreived from USDA; October 23, 2025.
  3. U.S.Department of Agriculture, Advertised Prices for Dairy Products at Major Retail Supermarket Outlets ending during the period of 10/17/2025 to 10/23/2025, retreived from USDA; October 23, 2025.