I’ve been keeping a price book for years to compare prices between stores. It’s actually my #1 strategy for saving money on groceries. When people hear that, they often want to know my secrets. And with meat prices at an all-time high, the question usually comes up: “What’s the cheapest grocery store to buy meat?”
I’ve already covered strategies for buying cheap meat in a previous article. There, I talked to a veteran butcher about discounts, markdowns, and other money-saving tips. Then, I have another article on sales to watch for at the grocery store to save even more money.
However, one of the best ways to save money on groceries is knowing where to shop.
Today, I’m going to bust open my price book (and those of dozens of other frugal friends) to talk about the best grocery stores specifically for meat bargains.
You may also be interested in: Cheapest Grocery Store for Fruits & Vegetables
Which grocery store has the cheapest meat?
As a general rule, stores like Aldi have the cheapest everyday meat prices, thanks to their simplified approach. Because of company choices like having fewer employees, reduced hours of operation, less product selection, and smaller stores, they can pass savings onto the consumer.
However, there are a few times Aldi won’t have the best price. Stores that favor a “loss leader” approach can sometimes beat Aldi prices, but only on short, weekly sales. Massive warehouse stores can also sometimes beat Aldi, but you need to buy in huge quantities to get the savings. Lastly, Walmart is Aldi’s biggest nationwide competitor in price, and can sometimes have slightly lower prices depending on local factors.
Meat prices change frequently and vary wildly by location– just look up how much a burger costs in Hawaii vs Kansas. Because of this, it would be impossible to guarantee which grocery store has the cheapest meat in any given neighborhood. Supply chain tangles have only compounded these problems.
I reached out to 40 other frugal friends from all across the country. They all keep price books and regularly compare meat prices in their area. By far, Aldi (and its similar West Coast competitor, Winco) were the preferred favorites. Here’s the breakdown on the survey results.
What type of grocery store has the best meat prices?
To really get the answer, you might have to do some digging yourself.
The first step, of course, is identifying your local options. Unless you live in a very densely populated area with a huge variety of stores, you’ll probably only have a handful of options. Luckily, most people will live within walking or driving distance of at least one of the following store types. All of these can have great prices on meats:
- Stores that take a “minimal” approach focus on streamlining everything. You’ll probably have to bag your own groceries, pull products out from large cases or bulk sections, or deal with a smaller product selection. They also do very little marketing. Aldi, Lidl, and Winco are types that follow many of these principles.
- Stores with a “loss leader” model have good prices on sale meat, but higher prices on non-sale meats. They offer huge sales in the hopes of making up their loss when you buy other products during that trip. Stores like Kroger, Albertson’s, and Publix follow this model.
- Stores that own much of their own supply chain (they’re in charge of production, distribution, and retail). Basically, Walmart.
- Bulk warehouse stores like Sam’s and Costco also have good everyday prices on meat if you’re willing to buy in large quantities.
How to find your cheapest local grocery stores for meat
First, you need to decide if you want to focus on finding a store with low, steady prices, or if you want to focus on buying on-sale meats.
Focusing on sales can lead to HUGE savings. Many stores that offer sales regularly slash 40-50% from their normal prices. You might see even crazier savings near big food holidays– think of grilling meats before Memorial Day or even free products like turkeys near Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, only buying what’s on sale means your meals are at the mercy of store whims. (Unless you keep overflow in a chest freezer like mine.)
If you want to follow sales, you’ll want to download the Flipp app. It’s free, there’s no in-app purchases, and it even has a built in grocery list-builder. (I’m not an affiliate for them either. They’re just that good.) Flipp lets you compare all the flyers and sales going on in your area every week so you know which stores have the best deals.
If you’d like to just shop at stores with predictably low prices, you’ll need to make a price book. Don’t worry! It’s not as hard as it sounds. I have a free, downloadable template all made for you if you’d like to get started (and subscribe to my newsletter for more tips on saving money at the grocery store).
Basically, you just pick two or three stores near you (focus on those that don’t bother with sales– see the chart below). Then, write down what each charges per pound for meats you commonly buy like chicken breasts, ground beef, pork chops, etc. You can often go to the store’s websites and compare prices from your couch.
Don’t judge based on just one week of comparing, though. Try spending 15-30 minutes every week for three or four weeks. That way, you’ll have a great baseline for comparing current prices near you that shows their norm, not just an odd week or a random shortage.
Grocery stores with the cheapest meat by region
Some grocery store chains are more regional, but still worth talking about. Even if you don’t have an Aldi store close to you, you likely have one of these other chains in your area.
| Region | Stores with typically low, everyday meat prices |
|---|---|
| Northeast | Market Basket, Aldi, Walmart, Sam’s Club, BJ’s |
| South | Aldi, Walmart, Sam’s, Costco |
| Midwest | Aldi, Walmart, Sam’s, Costco |
| Southwest | WinCo, Walmart, Sam’s, Costco |
| West | Lidl, WinCo, Grocery Outlet, Costco, Sam’s, Walmart |
Do “cheap” grocery stores have bad quality meat?
Some people feel uncomfortable buying meats at low-cost grocery stores because they’re afraid the meat is low-quality. I know I had this impression for years.
Quality is, of course, in the eye of the beholder. If you consider quality to be USDA certified Choice or Select products and meat that’s typically sourced local to each store, then you should be satisfied with Aldi products. The other stores on this list also carry USDA certified products, though their meat is typically sourced on a national or international scale.
If you want your meats to be certified organic, antibiotic-free, cage-free, grass fed, Prime, or other similar terms indicating higher quality, you’ll have a harder time with the selection at cheaper grocery stores. While there might be a small selection, these stores focus on supplying meat at a low price. The outlier here seems to be Costco, which has a robust meat department for high-quality products.
I hope this has been helpful in finding a grocery store with good meat prices near you! If you’d like to get more tips for grocery shopping on a budget, be sure to sign up for my weekly newsletter below.