When you’re strolling the aisles of H-E-B, Aldi, or Publix, have you ever wondered if the store’s in-house brand is a good deal? Now, budget-conscious shoppers (a.k.a. most of us) have an answer. Restaurant Furniture Plus conducted a study to finally get to the bottom of that burning question.
To make its determination, the group went virtual shopping, according to the results shared online. They went to four national grocery store chains with in-house brands and bought a basketful of 15 essential items, including a gallon of milk, bread, a dozen eggs, and chicken breast, as well as pantry items such as spaghetti, canned beans, and baking goods. They exclusively bought items from the store brand to determine which chain offers the best bargains.
Kroger topped the list with an overall basket total of $30, and the lowest prices on 10 of the 15 items analyzed, which was more than any other retailer. According to the survey, Kroger offered the best bargains in the pantry category, offering the lowest prices for key essentials such as canned diced tomatoes, spaghetti, and sugar, and had the lowest price for a dozen large eggs.
Walmart came in second with a basket totaling $30.95. Aldi was third with a total basket cost of $33.15, with a special note that their store-brand dairy products were a particularly good deal. Fourth place was Albertsons with a total basket cost of $35.58.
One important thing to note about this survey is that neither Costco nor Trader Joe’s were included. The survey excluded Trader Joe’s because it doesn’t stock a few of the items the group used to make their ranking.
Costco was left out of the survey, because it is traditionally a bulk store and it’s difficult to buy one box of Cornflakes or one small can of diced tomatoes, which makes comparisons difficult. Additionally, regional favorites like H-E-B and Piggly Wiggly were not included, but if you’re choosing between Kroger, Walmart, Aldi, and Albertson’s, now you know where you’re getting a good deal.
Read the original article on Southern Living