Meat and protein plus many prepackaged items are cheaper than average at Costco, even when you're opting for brand name items over the in-house Kirkland brand. If you know you're going to use these products anyway or you just remember to freeze them before you use them , doing a monthly shop at Costco might just save you some of your hard-earned cash.

Of course, we can't forget about the membership costs — you have to have a Costco card to shop at the retailer. But the savings you'll accumulate throughout the calendar year should more than make up for that cost.

If you're lucky enough to live in the Northeast, you may just have a Market Basket near you. The regional grocery chain is a fan favorite for those who love to save money on their grocery bill because of its surprisingly low prices.

One of the main ways the company keeps its prices so low is by making sure it stays debt-free. While this may seem like a logical move, it's one that most companies — including most grocery chains — don't stand by.

Another way Market Basket offers such competitive prices is by offering pretty much the same goods at all of its locations. Because of this strategy, it can buy in bulk, ensuring a lower wholesale price.

It can then pass those savings on to its customers, who keep going back to the store to take advantage of those low prices. One of the main benefits of shopping at Market Basket is the fact that you can get a lot of your favorite name-brand products for significantly cheaper than you would find them at other grocery stores.

If you've never gone to a Market Basket before and you happen to live near one, you have to check it out — you may just be shocked at how low the prices are. Like Costco, Sam's Club is a membership grocery store with a focus on selling products in bulk.

When you're shopping this way, you may be spending more upfront, but generally, you're going to save money in the long run as long as you use what you buy. Of course, the membership cost of shopping at Sam's Club helps the company offer lower prices.

Although Sam's Club offers its membership prices for less than Costco does, you'll generally find lower prices on goods at Costco. But that doesn't mean you can't get a good deal at Sam's Club too.

Particularly if you're a frequent shopper, you can save significantly on your annual grocery spending by shopping at Sam's Club. In fact, you can even save more than you would by shopping at Walmart, which is the parent company of Sam's Club. If you're looking for a Costco alternative, Sam's Club is a solid way to go.

WinCo is another celebrated low-cost grocery store with locations that can be found in the West and Midwest, with prices that are sometimes below what even Costco can offer. But why is the chain so cheap? First of all, the chain buys a lot of its products directly from producers.

By not going through a wholesale middleman, WinCo can get those products for less money, and it then passes those savings on to its customers. But the store has another tactic under its belt: It doesn't accept credit cards. Oftentimes, processing credit cards can be expensive for a store, and by only accepting other forms of payment, WinCo doesn't have to pay that premium price.

The upside? You don't need a membership to shop at WinCo like you do at stores like Costco and Sam's Club. The downside is that you'll have to remember to bring a form of payment that's not a credit card. Ask any Texan what their favorite grocery stores are, and chances are that they'll mention H-E-B.

This chain has a cult following amongst citizens of the Lone Star State, and it's no wonder why. In addition to providing its customers with a wide array of top-notch products, the store also boasts relatively low prices compared to many other chains.

When it comes to produce, H-E-B can offer much lower costs than many stores because it prioritizes working with local producers. Since it's generally not shipping in produce from around the world, its transportation costs are significantly lower than those of many other grocery stores.

This in turn lowers the cost of fruits and vegetables for customers, who keep coming back because of the solid prices. This high rate of turnover makes the company money while helping its customers cut their grocery costs.

The only downside is the fact that you won't find H-E-B in the other 49 states, though there are over 60 locations in Mexico. This project is one of my biggest grocery shopping projects yet and I was honestly amazed at what I discovered in my search for the cheapest grocery store.

I am so excited to share all the details with you here today! Settle in. Get ready. There are a lot of details and prices and statistics coming at you! Let me tell you how I found the cheapest grocery store.

If you would rather watch a video to hear about this process and the results, here you go! Otherwise, keep reading below. Note: This is my fourth update in five years.

I did this price comparison in for the first time, and updated it in and then again in With the rapidly increasing inflation, I did a complete update in April to help us all save money on our groceries.

I looked at the stores that had the biggest reach. Walmart is national chain that boosts low prices. Is Walmart really the lowest? Aldi claims to beat Walmart but do they really? Meijer and Kroger are considered higher end grocery stores, but they have a large reach with great sales.

I left those stores out of this comparison because I wanted a true comparison. For the sake of this research, Walmart, Aldi, Meijer and Kroger were the four stores I chose to compare. I started by making a list of the most common grocery items any household would use.

Then, I added some more specific items that our family uses regularly. Finally, I asked the Joyfully Thriving Facebook page for their feedback and got a lot of great requests for items to add to the list.

I wanted a fair representation of various areas of the grocery store so I focused on 10 different shopping categories. The categories I used were:. I came up with a list of items in 10 categories that I compared at all 4 stores.

I made a huge spreadsheet with all the grocery items and then I began comparing prices at the stores. Next, I went through the store and wrote down prices for everything on my list.

I also used the store apps to check some prices. Some products were name-brand specific but many were simply for the cheapest generic version of whatever store brands that particular store carried available. I did not include fresh produce in this price comparison since it varies so much by season.

I compared ounces to ounces. If a size was different than what was listed, I noted that on the price comparison, and chose the lowest price per ounce option as the cheapest price. I tried to stick to the same sizes as much as I was able.

For the sake of true comparison, I used everyday prices and did not factor sales into this list. I simply wanted to know who had the lower prices. Please know that prices vary in different parts of the country. These prices are Northern Indiana prices as of April Wherever you live, I still believe you can use these results to help you save money on your grocery bill.

After multiple store shopping trips and researching through various store apps, my list was finally done. Once I found the price totals, I went through and started comparing price to see which was the cheapest grocery store. First, I went through and highlighted the absolute lowest price for every item.

If there was a store that tied on the price, both those stores were highlighted. As I was comparing results, I realized that several stores were within pennies of each other.

If you were already shopping at one store, it makes sense to pick up other items that are still a good deal. Keeping that in mind, I went back through the lists and highlighted every price that was within 5 cents of the lowest price.

This gave them a mark for the second lowest price. There were a couple times when stores had the exact same price so multiple stores counted as the lowest price. There were also several times when multiple stores had the second lowest price, coming in close to the lowest.

I counted them all, which is why it might not appear to perfectly add up. If you are a number geek like I am, then it should all make sense! Finally, I tallied up the totals — both in numbers and percentages out of Here is what I found.

You can clearly see that Aldi has the most lowest prices and Kroger has the least. There are a few categories where all 4 stores have prices within a nickel, but only a few. Aldi had the lowest prices on two-thirds of the items on my master comparison list.

That is a lot! Years ago, Meijer used to be my go-to store to stock up at everything at a low price — but not anymore! I was truly surprised by how few of the lowest prices Meijer had.

Meijer really does not have the best deals on very many things at all. Aldi was the cheapest in almost a third of the categories. What I found interesting was that they had the lowest prices on over items but the second lowest on only Also, since Aldi does not carry everything, there were several items on the list that could not be compared at Aldi.

As for Walmart? Walmart is giving Aldi a run for their money. Many of the times when Aldi had the lowest price, Walmart was pennies behind. The advantage to Walmart is that they have everything that Aldi does not.

To some people, this is worth paying a couple more cents on items to not have to go to a different store. Kroger is definitely the most expensive if you shop without sales! This chart does not take sales into account so it is difficult to see that represented.

Kroger also has gas rewards and more digital coupons, both of which Aldi and Walmart do not. That definitely is worth considering when you are comparing prices.

If you are going by the everyday low prices at the store, the clear winner to the cheapest grocery store in is Aldi. Walmart is a runner up, with Meijer and Kroger trailing behind. Walmart is probably the cheapest grocery store available nationwide with overall low grocery prices.

I say probably, because Walmart does not have sales, so that is a factor because sale shopping can save you a lot of money on groceries. To find the cheapest grocery store near you, do your own quick price comparison at your local grocery stores.

Here is how you can do this project in less than an hour. Start by making a list of 20 to 25 items you buy on a regular basis.

Trust me. Pick the top 2 dozen items you use every week and start there. Then, make a list of the grocery stores nearest to you. So don't be afraid to open up that tube. Aquilino also suggests stocking up on tomato paste.

There are numerous ways to cook with tomato paste including topping fish and making barbeque sauce. While you can easily find canned tomato paste at most supermarkets, Aquilino prefers the kind available in a tube.

Use limited data to select advertising. Create profiles for personalised advertising. Use profiles to select personalised advertising. Create profiles to personalise content. Use profiles to select personalised content. Measure advertising performance. Measure content performance.

Lidl. Andriy Blokhin / Shutterstock Trader Joe's. Shutterstock Market Basket. QualityHD / Shutterstock

Video

Affordable grocery deals - WinCo Foods. Shutterstock Lidl. Andriy Blokhin / Shutterstock Trader Joe's. Shutterstock Market Basket. QualityHD / Shutterstock

Of course, you can always just buy less, but none of us want to have to cut back drastically on our grocery store purchases — especially if we were already pinched when it comes to food costs before prices started to skyrocket.

That's why it's so important to understand where to buy groceries that won't break the bank. We've rounded up some of the most popular national and regional grocery chains in the country to give you a better idea of where you should be shopping if you want to save your hard-earned cash.

These stores use a variety of techniques to ensure you're getting the best possible prices. Let's take a look at where you should be shopping for the best value buys. If you want to save money on your groceries, there's perhaps no better store to shop at than Aldi.

You'll find Aldi locations across the country and overseas, all of which guarantee competitive prices compared to the other grocery stores in your area.

So, how do they do it? There are a few ways the chain keeps its prices so low. First of all, Aldi doesn't carry many name-brand products.

Instead, the chain focuses on selling its own store-brand products. These items are often cheaper but many report that these goods are nearly identical to the name-brand versions of the same products, which makes it a no-brainer to shop here if you're trying to save money but don't want to sacrifice when it comes to taste.

Additionally, Aldi stores tend to be smaller than the average supermarket, which means the selection is more limited and the staff is streamlined. Since you have to bag your own groceries and take your own cart back to the store, you don't have to pay for those services through the price of your groceries.

Sure, the shopping experience at Aldi is a little different than what you may be used to at other grocery chains, but the low prices are totally worth it in our book. Trader Joe's is another one of those super-popular, more affordable grocery chains that customers tend to flock to on a regular basis.

If you like the feel of Aldi but are in the market for more specialty products, you may want to make your way to Trader Joe's. The store is similar to Aldi in that it doesn't offer many brand-name products, instead stocking its own unique offerings. Some of these products have become cult favorites amongst Trader Joe's shoppers , so you're not sacrificing much in terms of quality by shopping at this store.

Additionally, the chain keeps its operational costs low by building smaller stores that require fewer staff members to manage.

Since it doesn't offer coupons and run ads, you're not paying for all those extra incentives and advertisements. Rather, customers know that they're almost always getting a pretty decent deal when they decide to shop at Trader Joe's.

There are currently locations in 42 states plus Washington D. and if you live in an urban or suburban area, chances are you've got a Trader Joe's somewhere near you.

Walmart has long been known as a place where it's possible to snag cheap groceries. But why are the store's products so cheap compared to other, similar stores? There are a variety of factors that contribute to the cheaper-than-average prices.

Low operational costs are one such strategy, but so is lack of competition. Often, you'll find Walmarts in places where there aren't many other retailers to compete with. In smaller towns and more rural areas, Walmart may be one of the few places in town where it's possible to snag groceries.

Because the local population depends on the store, Walmart has a reliable customer base. This customer loyalty means that they don't have to charge quite as much for its food and other products.

However, some of the chain's affordability factor comes from the fact that it doesn't pay its employees very much. Human Rights Watch has outlined major issues with Walmart's labor practices , including encouraging employees to work off the clock and refusing to grant overtime.

Lidl is a grocery chain that was founded in Germany but can now be found in various towns and cities across the U. Like so many of the other chains on this list, this store keeps its prices low by limiting its name brand offerings and providing customers with store brands instead.

Additionally, it tends to stock products that people use on a regular basis — think pasta, canned tomato paste, and produce staples like cabbage and carrots — that often move in and out of the store pretty quickly. There aren't many products that are going to sit on the shelf for a long time, which means that the company isn't waiting around for a return on investment.

Plus, it takes less labor to run a Lidl than it would to operate a larger, more expansive grocery store. Fewer products means less need for a ton of workers, and the fact that the store displays its products in the boxes they're shipped in is just one of the ways the store cuts its labor costs.

For those with big families or just a lot of roommates , shopping at Costco seems like a no-brainer. The chain cuts down on costs by keeping its stores relatively simple — you'll notice the bare-bones design that's more about utility and function than it is about style and ambiance.

Meat and protein plus many prepackaged items are cheaper than average at Costco, even when you're opting for brand name items over the in-house Kirkland brand.

If you know you're going to use these products anyway or you just remember to freeze them before you use them , doing a monthly shop at Costco might just save you some of your hard-earned cash. Of course, we can't forget about the membership costs — you have to have a Costco card to shop at the retailer.

But the savings you'll accumulate throughout the calendar year should more than make up for that cost. If you're lucky enough to live in the Northeast, you may just have a Market Basket near you. The regional grocery chain is a fan favorite for those who love to save money on their grocery bill because of its surprisingly low prices.

One of the main ways the company keeps its prices so low is by making sure it stays debt-free. While this may seem like a logical move, it's one that most companies — including most grocery chains — don't stand by. Another way Market Basket offers such competitive prices is by offering pretty much the same goods at all of its locations.

Because of this strategy, it can buy in bulk, ensuring a lower wholesale price. It can then pass those savings on to its customers, who keep going back to the store to take advantage of those low prices.

One of the main benefits of shopping at Market Basket is the fact that you can get a lot of your favorite name-brand products for significantly cheaper than you would find them at other grocery stores. If you've never gone to a Market Basket before and you happen to live near one, you have to check it out — you may just be shocked at how low the prices are.

Like Costco, Sam's Club is a membership grocery store with a focus on selling products in bulk. When you're shopping this way, you may be spending more upfront, but generally, you're going to save money in the long run as long as you use what you buy. Of course, the membership cost of shopping at Sam's Club helps the company offer lower prices.

Sick of plain pasta again? Chef Chris Aquilino , director of culinary at Elior North America , likes to jazz up his meals with jarred items, including pesto, olives, jalapeños, artichokes, sardines, and anchovies.

They also stay fresh for a long time. According to Aquilino, herb purées, such as basil and cilantro, can even stay fresh for weeks at a time. So don't be afraid to open up that tube. Aquilino also suggests stocking up on tomato paste.

There are numerous ways to cook with tomato paste including topping fish and making barbeque sauce. While you can easily find canned tomato paste at most supermarkets, Aquilino prefers the kind available in a tube.

Use limited data to select advertising. Create profiles for personalised advertising. Use profiles to select personalised advertising. Create profiles to personalise content. Use profiles to select personalised content.

Measure advertising performance. Measure content performance. Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources.

Develop and improve services.