Photo by Tara Clark
Article courtesy of Restaurant Furniture Plus.
The U.S. grocery stores’ own brands that save you the most money!
- Products from four major U.S. grocery stores’ own-brand range were analyzed and totaled to identify the best overall value.
- The grocery store with the best-value own-brand basket is Kroger, with an overall basket total of $30.
- 15 popular everyday items from four major U.S. grocery stores’ own-brand ranges were compared to determine which has the lowest overall cost.
With the cost of groceries constantly fluctuating in an unpredictable economy, finding ways to save money is essential. Many supermarkets offer their own-brand alternatives of basic products at significantly lower prices than premium brands, but which ones provide the best value for your money?
Restaurant Furniture Plus conducted a study in which it analyzed 15 popular everyday items from each major U.S. grocery store’s own-brand range to determine which has the lowest overall cost. These items included whole milk, a dozen large eggs, butter, cheddar cheese, a wheat bread loaf, and ten others.
#1 Kroger
Kroger ranks first for value in own-brand products, with the lowest overall basket cost of $30.00, making it the cheapest supermarket in this comparison. It also offers the lowest prices on 10 of the 15 items analyzed, more than any other retailer, highlighting its consistent strength across both fresh and pantry staples.
Kroger particularly stood out in the pantry category, offering the lowest prices for key essentials such as canned diced tomatoes at $0.72 per 14.5 oz can, spaghetti at $0.96 per 16 oz pack, and granulated sugar at $2.56 per 4 lb bag. It also had the lowest price for a dozen large eggs at $1.29 and a 20-oz loaf of wheat bread at $1.40, reinforcing its competitiveness in everyday household essentials. Even in categories where it was not the cheapest, Kroger’s prices remained close to the lowest available, helping it maintain the most affordable overall basket.
Overall, Kroger consistently undercut its competitors across a wide range of essential goods, particularly pantry staples, resulting in the lowest total basket cost and the strongest overall value for money.
Overall basket totals
| Rank | Supermarket | Unit basket total | vs cheapest | Fresh subtotal | Pantry subtotal |
| 1 | Kroger | $30.00 | — | $13.92 | $16.08 |
| 2 | Walmart | $30.95 | +$0.95 | $13.75 | $17.20 |
| 3 | Aldi | $33.15 | +$3.15 | $14.48 | $18.67 |
| 4 | Albertsons | $35.58 | +$5.58 | $14.92 | $20.66 |
#2 Walmart
Walmart ranks second for value in own-brand products, with a total basket cost of $30.95, just $0.95 more than the cheapest supermarket. It also delivered the lowest prices on three of the 15 items analyzed, making it one of the strongest overall performers in the comparison.
Walmart performed particularly well in staple pantry and protein categories, offering the cheapest chicken breast at $1.95 per lb, white rice at $1.34 per 2 lb bag, and canned black beans at $0.85 per 15 oz can. It also remained highly competitive in baking essentials, with a 5 lb bag of all-purpose flour priced at $2.32, one of the lowest prices in the study. These competitive prices helped offset slightly higher costs for items such as eggs and butter.
#3 Aldi
Aldi ranks third for value in own-brand products, with a total basket cost of $33.15, $3.15 more than the cheapest option. It offered the lowest price on just two of the 15 products analyzed.
Aldi stood out in the dairy category, with a gallon of whole milk priced at $3.05, the cheapest among all four supermarkets. It also remained competitive on everyday staples, including the cheapest all-purpose flour at $2.15, a competitively priced 20 oz loaf of wheat bread at $1.65, and a dozen large eggs also priced at $1.65.
While Aldi’s prices remained competitive across both fresh and pantry staples, it generally sat in the middle of the pack, helping keep its overall basket affordable without matching the value offered by Kroger or Walmart.
#4 Albertsons
Albertsons ranks fourth for value in own-brand products, with a total basket cost of $35.58, $5.58 more than the cheapest supermarket, with no items priced the cheapest.
Albertsons was most competitive on a handful of staples, including a dozen large eggs at $1.59, a 20 oz loaf of wheat bread at $1.77, and a 15 oz can of black beans at $0.93. It also remained relatively close to the lowest prices on items such as a 1 lb pack of butter ($3.79) and a 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes ($1.00), although it did not offer the lowest price in either category.
Overall, Albertsons consistently sat toward the higher end of the pricing range across both fresh and pantry staples, contributing to the highest overall basket cost in the comparison.
Price breakdown by item
| Item | Priced as | Kroger | Walmart | Aldi | Albertsons |
| Whole milk | 1 gallon | $3.84 | $3.84 | $3.05 | $3.49 |
| Large eggs | 1 dozen | $1.29 | $1.47 | $1.65 | $1.59 |
| Butter | 1 lb (16 oz) | $3.04 | $3.06 | $3.19 | $3.79 |
| Cheddar cheese block | 8 oz block | $1.76 | $1.79 | $1.95 | $1.79 |
| Chicken breast | 1 lb | $2.59 | $1.95 | $2.99 | $2.49 |
| Wheat bread loaf | 20 oz loaf | $1.40 | $1.64 | $1.65 | $1.77 |
| Canned diced tomatoes | 14.5 oz can | $0.72 | $0.96 | $0.99 | $1.00 |
| All-purpose flour | 5 lb bag | $2.40 | $2.32 | $2.15 | $3.00 |
| Granulated sugar | 4 lb bag | $2.56 | $3.20 | $3.19 | $4.00 |
| White rice | 2 lb bag | $1.60 | $1.34 | $1.97 | $2.12 |
| Spaghetti | 16 oz pack | $0.96 | $0.97 | $1.04 | $1.00 |
| Peanut butter | 16 oz jar | $1.60 | $1.68 | $1.84 | $1.87 |
| Canned black beans | 15 oz can | $0.90 | $0.85 | $1.09 | $0.93 |
| Vegetable oil | 48 fl oz bottle | $3.36 | $3.60 | $3.95 | $3.75 |
| Corn flakes cereal | 18 oz box | $1.98 | $2.28 | $2.45 | $2.99 |
| BASKET TOTAL | (15 common items) | $30.00 | $30.95 | $33.15 | $35.58 |
A spokesperson from Restaurant Furniture Plus commented on the findings:
“A difference of $5.58 between the cheapest and most expensive baskets may not sound significant on a single shopping trip, but for households buying these everyday essentials each week, that adds up to almost $290 over the course of a year. Small savings on staple products can make a noticeable difference to grocery budgets over time.
“What the data highlights is how dramatically prices diverge in the pantry staples category compared to fresh items. Across dairy and proteins, all four stores are within a very narrow price range, but on items like sugar, flour and rice, the gaps widen considerably. Interestingly, Walmart’s fresh subtotal ($13.75) undercuts Kroger’s ($13.92), even though Kroger offers the cheapest overall basket.
“Kroger appears to be leading on private-label value right now, but Walmart’s basket total trails by less than a dollar, showing just how competitive supermarkets have become when it comes to offering affordable own-brand alternatives.”
Sources:
The websites of Walmart, Kroger, Albertsons, and Aldi.
Methodology:
The total cost of a 15-item basket of own-brand staples was compared across four major U.S. grocery chains.
The websites of each supermarket were used to determine prices.
The supermarkets included in the comparison were:
- Walmart (Great Value)
- Kroger (Kroger brand)
- Albertsons (Signature Select and related own brands)
- Aldi US (exclusive private labels)
Complete list of products
Fresh items
- Whole milk
- Large eggs
- Butter
- Cheddar cheese block
- Chicken breast
- Wheat bread loaf
Pantry items
- Canned diced tomatoes
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated sugar
- White rice
- Spaghetti
- Peanut butter
- Canned black beans
- Vegetable oil
- Corn flakes cereal
For each item, the cheapest own-brand product meeting a standard specification was selected. Organic, premium, flavoured and single-serve varieties were excluded to ensure like-for-like comparisons.
To prevent differences in pack sizes from influencing the results, each product’s size was identical from each grocery store.
Reference quantities included one gallon of whole milk, a dozen large eggs, one pound of butter, five pounds of flour and other commonly available pack sizes.
Each product’s price was then totaled to identify which supermarket offers the best value for money with its own-brand products.
Trader Joe’s does not stock two of the commodity staples online included in the basket, and therefore has been omitted from the ranking.
Although Costco does have its own-brand products, it was removed from the ranking due to being a bulk-buying store.
Prices represent standard online prices collected at a single point in time and are intended as a like-for-like snapshot rather than a regional or time-averaged comparison.