The Cheapest Grocery Store in America Right Now Isn’t Walmart, New Study Finds

Global Markets News ^ | 07/20/2026

[SeekAndFind]

For millions of Americans, the weekly grocery trip has become one of the biggest strains on the household budget. Even as overall inflation has cooled, food prices remain stubbornly high, forcing shoppers to compare prices more closely than ever before.

Now, a new study suggests one of the country’s largest supermarket chains may be offering the best value on everyday essentials.

Kroger topped a comparison of four major grocery retailers, beating Walmart, Aldi, and Albertsons on the total cost of a basket of common store-brand staples.

Kroger Comes Out on Top

The price comparison, conducted by Restaurant Furniture Plus and reported by Southern Living, examined the cost of 15 common store-brand grocery items across four major retailers.

The basket included everyday necessities such as:

• Milk

• Bread

• Eggs

• Chicken breast

• Spaghetti

• Canned beans

• Sugar

• Baking essentials

• Canned tomatoes

Kroger posted the lowest total basket price at $30.00, narrowly edging out Walmart.

Grocery Basket Comparison

Retailer	Total Basket Cost
Kroger	$30.00
Walmart	$30.95
Aldi	$33.15
Albertsons	$35.58

Kroger also recorded the lowest price on 10 of the 15 items analyzed, the highest total among the retailers included in the study.

Among the categories where Kroger stood out were pantry staples including spaghetti, canned diced tomatoes, sugar, and a dozen large eggs.

Walmart Remains Highly Competitive

Although Walmart finished second, it trailed Kroger by less than one dollar for the full basket.

That small difference suggests Walmart continues to be one of the strongest low-price competitors nationally, particularly for shoppers looking to complete an entire grocery trip in one location.

Meanwhile, Aldi remained especially competitive in dairy products, where its private-label offerings continued to provide strong value despite finishing third overall.

Albertsons recorded the highest total basket cost among the retailers compared.

Not Every Grocery Giant Was Included

Several popular grocery chains were absent from the comparison.

Costco was excluded because its warehouse-club model primarily sells products in bulk, making direct comparisons with traditional grocery stores difficult.

Trader Joe’s was also left out because it did not carry every item included in the survey.

Other regional retailers, including H-E-B and Piggly Wiggly, were not part of the analysis.

That means shoppers should view the results as a snapshot of four major national grocery competitors rather than a definitive ranking of every supermarket available.

Why Grocery Prices Still Matter

The timing of the study reflects an issue that continues to dominate household finances.

According to a new report from the Urban Institute, food prices have climbed approximately 32% over the past five years, leaving many families struggling to absorb higher grocery bills.

The report also found that more than one in four working-age Americans have relied on credit cards to help pay for groceries, underscoring how food inflation continues to pressure household budgets despite easing headline inflation.

Researchers noted that groceries remain one of the largest recurring expenses for most families, making even modest price differences meaningful over time.

What It Means for Investors

The findings reinforce how aggressively grocery retailers continue competing on price to attract cost-conscious consumers.

For Kroger, outperforming Walmart and Aldi in this comparison could help strengthen customer loyalty as shoppers increasingly prioritize value over brand preferences.

For investors, the report highlights that grocery chains capable of combining competitive pricing with operational efficiency may be better positioned to maintain customer traffic in an environment where consumers remain highly sensitive to everyday expenses.

As food costs remain elevated, pricing strategy is likely to remain one of the biggest competitive battlegrounds across the grocery industry.

The Bottom Line

Kroger narrowly claimed the lowest-priced grocery basket in a recent comparison of four major supermarket chains, finishing ahead of Walmart, Aldi, and Albertsons. While prices varied by category, the study highlights that shoppers willing to compare retailers can still find meaningful savings at the checkout line. With grocery costs still roughly one-third higher than five years ago, value remains one of the most important factors influencing where Americans choose to shop.

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TOPICS: Business/Economy; Society
KEYWORDS: affordability; food; grocery; kroger

[antceecee]

Watch the use by freshness dates on their items. Had a Kraft mac n cheese box making for my grand girls and it was expired for over a year….main problem was the cheese sauce packet was hard as a rock! Just added more butter and made it work!😁

[Bullish]

Nothing could ever make Kraft mac and cheese work for me. Absolutely nothing!

People actually eat that stuff?

[fella]

Thanks to Jesus I live in Texas and have a HEB within 15 minutes (8 if the lights are all green).

[Does so]

“Publix...expensive enough that Aldi and Winn-Dixie got more of our business when we lived there.”
.
I drive three extra miles to shop for Winn-Dixie’s lower prices. (I watch where the Mexicans shop).

Publix is employee-owned, so each employee will go the extra mile to find that requested item; however, nobody goes to Publix anymore—it’s too crowded.

[22for22]

No mention of Food Lion? My choice (and there is a Walmart and Kroger directly across the street) Maybe just habit because Food Lion was there long before them.

[mdmathis6]

Publix has the Phlogman’s mustard. You get pure mustard when you squeeze it not a tablespoon of mixed water and mustard on your hotdog like you get from French’s or other brands. That is how they cheat...by adding extra water.

[mdmathis6]

I think Food Lion is cheapest but you have to watch the condition of their produce. Their brand of milk tends to spoil exactly on expiration whereas the Kroger in our area’s milk seems to give a week’s leeway...also is fairly cheap...2.35 for a gallon of 2 percent.

That said some of the Food Lion’s in our area have upgraded and have a walk in cold room for their leafy greans and cukes so it has become much better in some Food Lion stores. On wednsdays you get a lot of manager special mark downs on meats if you get there early in the mornings.

[blitz128]

Don’t know who is behind it but here there are ads on Tv promoting boycott of Kroger over prices

We shop them all aldis, Kroger, giant eagle, Walmart gfs depending on where we are and what we want

[Duke C.]

I get 5% cashback with a Walmart+ membership, so it’s not even close with the others.

[MayflowerMadam]

I call bull💩on that. We shop both places frequently. Kroger is nearby and Walmart is farther. For immediate necessities we’ll grab things at Kroger; for primary shopping it’s Walmart. The price difference is huge, and Walmart is cheaper. Also, the produce at Walmart is much better.

[MayflowerMadam]

“My experience is Kroger is cheaper for items on sale. “

When I know I have to go to Kroger, I create my list online and print it out, sorted by aisle number.

I stick to the week’s specials with a loyalty card, and the online coupons to “clip” online. Also, we get a few paper coupons in the mail and they’re items we typically buy there. Sometimes there’s a coupon for free eggs.

For everything else, it’s Walmart.

[jonsie]

Here in North Carolina l have found Food Lion has very competitive pricing compared to Walmart.

[bert]

Anyone who thought that Walmart groceries were “cheap” was misinformed.

Walmart customers are the very middle of American consumers. These customers are discerning lot that does prefers quality to absolute low price.

The Walmart Great Value brands are actually very good, pretty high quality and in many cases better than the competition. They are in point of fact, Great Value simply because they are high quality at a somewhat lower price.

[9422WMR]

Reduce taxes on diesel and transportation costs drop. No guarantee that the giant grocery stores drop their prices accordingly.

[surrey]

My grandson just moved to Austin from So. California. He was blown away by HEB.

[Flaming Conservative]

Homeland gobbled up Albertsons about 5 years ago.

[LouAvul]

Locally, my wife swears by Aldis. We don’t have Kroger. Lotsa Walmarts, Sam’s club and Costco.

[Dr. Sivana]

There was a Steven King short story about a kid in Redondo Beach, CA, (possibly “Apt Pupil”) where the kid was eating ring dings, and I said “unpossible.”

I am in Phoenix. You are tight about Funny Bones (though they seem to have cut back on the peanut butter filling). Drake's was the first one to figure out how to coat the BOTTOMS of the cakes. Think about it. How do you do it on an assembly line? Hostess Ding Dongs/Big Wheels/King Dons came later, and are inferior. Ditto Ho-Ho's versus Yodels.

I have found a couple of specialty restaurants (NYC Italian, Philly cheesesteak) catering to transplants that special order some Drake's products. The local Walmart has been carrying the special Sunny Doodle-Devil Dog out of the blue.

[Doctor Congo]

I have compared the prices of a Krogers and a Walmart that are about a mile apart.
Walmart is way cheaper.
My favorite ice cream was twice as expensive at Krogers.

[Dr. Sivana]

I’m spoiled because I get all my proteins from Stater Bros.

If Aldi meat is "Second Rate" then Walmart (which the author was comparing it to) is third rate. Walmart carries those tubes of hamburger meat that taste like it has been through two or three pressings to extract the flavor for sale to a soup company or something.

This article isn't for you (Bullish). It is about buying inexpensive food for people who don't or want to spend the money and will settle for less than premium for that reason.