Gallon of milk. We stuck to one gallon of 1 percent milk using store brands with exception to Karns which carries Dairy Pure brand milk. Kraft American Cheese. We priced packages of Kraft American Cheese Singles. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

We priced one pound of store brand boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Utz chips. We priced 9. Baked beans. We priced Bush's Baked Beans, with exception to Aldi which carries a store brand. Hamburger buns. We priced eight-packs of store brand hamburger buns. Ground beef. We priced one pound of 80 percent lean ground beef.

Heinz Ketchup. We priced ounce bottles of Heinz ketchup, with exception to Aldi which carries a store brand. Turkey Hill Ice Cream. We priced Turkey Hill Ice Cream.

Orange Juice. We priced Minute Maid brand, with exception to Aldi and Wegmans which carry store brands. We priced ounce boxes of Cheerios. We priced Oscar Mayer Center Cut bacon, with exception to Aldi which carries a store brand.

And, the final tallies:. No surprise, Aldi came out as the cheapest in the survey. If you don't mind buying non-brand name foods, Aldi is the place to go for significant savings on your food bill. Giant came in second followed by Wegmans. Both Karns and Weis were on the higher end but it is because many of the items priced in the survey were on sale at the other stores during the time of the price check.

Prices were collected at the following stores:. Editor's note: Sticker prices on two items at the Karns store we visited did not accurately reflect corporate pricing during the research period.

Prices have been updated. In addition, the price of chicken at Wegmans was incorrectly recorded and has been updated. All rights reserved About Us. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local.

I sourced item prices in person from Trader Joe's and Aldi stores in the greater New York City area in early February I looked for equivalent products both in terms of quality and portion size, and I made a note if one store offered a larger size. The prices were not scaled accordingly, however, since I wanted the total to reflect what you might actually find on your grocery receipts.

That being said, if you have to choose between Aldi or Trader Joe's, it should really come down to which store is more convenient or closer to where you live. Despite having similar prices, there are some takeaways in terms of which store has better deals on specific items.

Also, depending on your shopping needs, you might find one store more consistently priced than the other. Trader Joe's and Aldi were fairly aligned with respect to most pantry and meat products, and the winner of the lowest price seesawed from item to item.

The big exception is that Trader Joe's seems untouchable when it comes to discount prices on coffee , oils and nuts. Who exactly is Joe trading with?

The devil? For dairy, I give Aldi the overall advantage, with equal or lower prices on nearly every item in that category. While Trader Joe's does have some favorable prices for "fancy" cheese , TJ's can't seem to make a better deal on everyday shreds and slices.

Aldi was also at an advantage for produce items that were priced individually, though its produce department is significantly smaller than TJ's. Plus, certain items such as beefsteak tomatoes and bell peppers were only available at Aldi's in two- or three-packs, bringing the overall cost of goods in that department up due to the larger size.

Turns out that there's more to the "trader" element of Trader Joe's than a catchy name. According to the Trader Joe's website , the grocer deals directly with manufacturers and growers instead of with brokers and distributors, which is the norm for most American grocery chains.

Cutting out that middle tier is part of the reason TJ's is able to offer products at such consistently low prices. But Trader Joe's isn't the only, nor the first, company to operate that way. Aldi, a grocery retailer based in Germany that slightly predates Trader Joe's, has stores across Europe and the US.

The chain works directly with producers, using over 50 different "brand" labels that are essentially Aldi store brands, such as Baker's Corner, Dakota's Pride and Kirkwood, among many others. Kirkwood sounds similar to bulk retailer Costco's proprietary Kirkland brand, but Aldi predates Costco by a couple of decades.

Keeping a limited number of Stock Keeping Units, or SKUs used for inventory management, is one way both companies are able to pass savings along to customers. Aldi also operates as more of a low-overhead retailer than Trader Joe's, with a feel similar to Costco or other discount bulk stores. There are few bells and whistles to Aldi's aisles, and the vibe is more perfunctory and spare, with items stacked on shelves in their shipping boxes, which results in less labor required to restock.

You won't find hand-drawn signs to indicate Aldi prices, nor will you find a plethora of helpful staff or free samples like you would at TJ's. Though this battle of the bargain retailers didn't turn up a clear winner between Trader Joe's and Aldi, if you live someplace where you can choose either store, the winner is you.

Prices will be for stores in either Raleigh or Cary. These prices are only valid at the specific Triangle area stores that were checked that week, and prices may vary from store to store even within the same chain in the same town.

To verify the price at your store, head to the website or the app. ALDI prices were found by shopping online selecting pick-up at the Wake Forest Road location in Raleigh. Food Lion prices were found on the Food Lion website at the store on Jones Franklin Road in Raleigh.

Many of the prices are for the Food Lion brand or the "cha-ching" brand. Harris Teeter prices were found on the Harris Teeter website for the Raleigh store at North Hills. Lowes Foods prices were found on the Lowes Foods website in their online shopping portal for the Brier Creek location in Raleigh using the Pick-Up option.

Walmart prices were found on the Walmart website for the Raleigh store at New Bern Ave. for pick-up. Wegmans prices were found on the Wegmans website for the Raleigh store at Wake Towne Drive for in-store shopping. The prices in the tracker usually reflect store-brand items.

The only time a non-store brand product was selected was when a store brand item was not available or a name brand item was a better price than the store brand.

In that case, we selected the least expensive item. To get the best price each week at the stores you shop, make sure you scan your reward card or use your phone number linked to your reward card at checkout.

Keep in mind that some grocery stores have fuel rewards programs that allow you to save money on gas at their stations when you buy groceries, which can help you decrease overall living expenses even more. Quick Digest of Today's Top News.

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A different privacy policy and terms of service will apply. Go to Series Main Page. With grocery bills up nearly 6. Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index, any savings can help, even if it means going somewhere new. AARP Membership.

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The variety on store shelves, the quality of the food , handling and labor costs, competition and the demographic of the shopper all play into the prices a particular retailer charges.

Stores that cater to lower-income shoppers tend to keep prices lower, while supermarkets that have a lot of variety may have higher prices as a result.

There are discount stores where you can get big bargains on select items, traditional grocery stores that amp up the savings by offering generics and loyalty programs, and one-stop shops where you can get everything from bread to batteries in one place.

Proximity to the store and the type of food you purchase will play a role in how much you save. But all things being equal, in some categories, location is everything when it comes to getting a deal. The totals are based on non-sale prices and do not include coupons, loyalty discounts or taxes.

Here are our results. Walmart has been a part of American culture since , when the first store opened in Rogers, Arkansas. Today there are 4, stores across the U. Walmart is known for its low prices, and that is true of its groceries. Across most categories, Walmart came in first or second when it comes to price.

The ability to buy everything under one roof on the cheap appeals to many consumers, including Robert and Sherri Evans. The 74- and year-old retirees say they shop at Walmart for the convenience and to save. Privacy Policy. But by and large, they are drawn to Walmart because of the pricing and selection.

The key to saving is to know your prices and be willing to compare, the couple say. Shopping Tip : Know your prices and be willing to comparison shop.

Hailing from Germany but now headquartered in the U. It also focuses on keeping costs down so that it can pass on the savings to its customers. Coupons for Local Stores. Save on clothing, gifts, beauty and other everyday shopping needs.

Popular with Aldi shoppers is its weekly Aldi Finds. Every Wednesday the retailer puts out new discounted food items, small kitchen appliances, seasonal decor, outdoor furniture, gardening tools, apparel and other items.

It's a big draw for Victor Sukhai, who started shopping at Aldi on the recommendation of his brother. Sukhai comes for those Aldi finds and to purchase peanuts and other food items he knows he can get for cheap.

The key to really saving at Aldi, as Sukhai sees it: Get there early. But they were sold out. Shopping Tip: The early bird gets all the deals. The grocer has been around for more than years, hawking everything from produce to specialty cheeses.

After all, as a regional chain it offers a huge selection of both name-brand and generic items. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. She racks up reward points that she applies to her bill.

She has spent over two decades writing and covering news for several national publications including The Wall Street Journal , Forbes , Investopedia and HerMoney.

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We priced packages of Kraft American Cheese Singles. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts. We priced one pound of store brand boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Utz chips. We priced 9. Baked beans. We priced Bush's Baked Beans, with exception to Aldi which carries a store brand.

Hamburger buns. We priced eight-packs of store brand hamburger buns. Ground beef. We priced one pound of 80 percent lean ground beef. Heinz Ketchup. We priced ounce bottles of Heinz ketchup, with exception to Aldi which carries a store brand.

Turkey Hill Ice Cream. We priced Turkey Hill Ice Cream. Orange Juice. We priced Minute Maid brand, with exception to Aldi and Wegmans which carry store brands. We priced ounce boxes of Cheerios. We priced Oscar Mayer Center Cut bacon, with exception to Aldi which carries a store brand.

And, the final tallies:. No surprise, Aldi came out as the cheapest in the survey. If you don't mind buying non-brand name foods, Aldi is the place to go for significant savings on your food bill.