To help families reduce their food expenses, researchers from Coupons4real.com analyzed the prices of 225,317 food items from 173 supermarkets in 49 major cities across the United States. These products cover 253 categories, including meat and seafood, dairy and eggs, beverages, baked goods, frozen foods, and produce.
The researchers collected food price data from five popular chain stores in the 49 most populous cities in the U.S. via instacart.com. They compared the prices of 118 private label products from Aldi, Costco, Kroger, Target, and Walmart.
“Our research provides a very practical way for budget-conscious families and individuals to cut food costs by spreading their shopping list across different stores,” a spokesperson from Coupons4real.com said. “Knowing which brands are usually the cheapest and where they are cheapest can greatly reduce a family’s monthly food budget.”
Compared to Aldi, Costco, Target, and Kroger, Walmart’s private label food products have lower average prices.
For example:
– Walmart’s Mozzarella cheese is priced at 23 cents per ounce, while the average price for other private label products is 38 cents per ounce.
– Walmart’s chicken is priced at 17 cents per ounce, compared to the national average of 28 cents per ounce.
– Walmart’s thin crust pizza is priced at 18 cents per ounce, while the average price is 31 cents per ounce.
In terms of affordability, Aldi ranks second and Costco ranks third.
The top ten categories with the most varieties of food products include whole milk (1,727 varieties), cheese blends (1,019 varieties), cheddar cheese (924 varieties), mixed vegetables (912 varieties), ground beef and hamburger (765 varieties), mozzarella cheese (721 varieties), shrimp (695 varieties), fruit blends (679 varieties), chicken (667 varieties), and lactose-free milk (643 varieties).
To purchase the cheapest whole milk, shopping at Aldi is recommended, as the price is only half of the median price.
Buying cheese blends at Walmart is the most cost-effective, priced at 24 cents per ounce, compared to the average price of 38 cents per ounce.
Aldi’s most affordable and popular private label product is cheddar cheese, priced at 21 cents per ounce, which is half the price of other stores at 43 cents per ounce.
Aldi’s Happy Farms brand is the cheapest among 24 evaluated brands, with prices of Happy Farms products only 2.54% of the price range from 0% to 100% compared to other private label brands. The next cheapest brand, Season’s Choice, also belongs to Aldi, with price tags within the lowest 7%.
Walmart breaks Aldi’s streak of six consecutive victories with its Great Value label, ranking as the third most affordable series of private label products. Among the evaluated supermarkets, items with this label have an average price of one-tenth of the price of private label grocery items.
Interestingly, out of all 24 analyzed supermarket brands, Target’s Good & Gather Organic is the most expensive food series. Although Kroger has the most expensive private label products, its Simple Truth and Private Selection series rank second and third, respectively.