The 3 Cheapest Places To Buy Groceries In NYC, According To Reddit

You might grab a 2-pound bag of onions at $2 without batting an eyelid, and a 5-pound bag of Russet Potatoes for under $3 might even feel like a steal. But the thing with grocery shopping is that these small amounts add up over days, weeks and months. Food prices in America went up by 23.6% between 2020 to 2024. According to USDA estimates, the moderate monthly grocery budget for a family of four is around $1350 a month, which takes the average household's annual spending on food supplies to over $16000. Given these numbers, even a 10-15% reduction in spending can result in significant savings. Seeking out good deals makes complete sense, and according to Reddit, the three cheapest places to buy groceries in NYC are Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and Costco.

While Key Foods, Lidl, and Amazon Fresh all find some love on a thread about the easy-on-the-pocket shopping options in New York City, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and Costco were clearly the three stores with the most mentions. "Trader Joe's absolutely the cheapest anywhere near me," one user posted, while another had a theory as to why shopping at the big national chains like TJ's and Whole Foods made sense. "They set prices regionally/nationally, I think. So you don't pay a New York premium," they posted.

Buying in bulk is one of many ways to save money at the grocery store. Which is why the recommendations for Costco come with some additional tips, since shopping in bulk for groceries can be challenging. "I never thought it would make sense for just the two of us," one Costco fan posted, adding that they save a lot by planning ahead and freezing things. "The quality is better than most NYC grocery stores too." Another shopper concurred. "Costco remains top of the pile ONLY IF you have room for storage, which a lot of New Yorkers do not. Their butchery is by far the cheapest place for USDA prime beef. As long as you can freeze several pounds of beef." In case you are thinking of making a Costco run, here's a list of 14 foods you should think twice before buying in bulk. 

There's one slightly different point of view on the thread — that one-stop shopping is the wrong strategy if you're looking to stretch your grocery dollar in New York. "Whole foods for weekly fruit and veg. Target for weekly dairy and snacks. Key for monthly meat stock up during sales. TJ for monthly frozen stock up," wrote one shopper, who clearly has more time on their hands than most New Yorkers. 

Another suggests a technique they call "comparison shopping". This means keeping two things handy: First, a shopping list (you can also save money by checking what's in the fridge before making the list), and second, the standard price for each item on your list. This is a great way to spot a good deal, a great deal and a bad deal when you're walking down the supermarket aisle.