Lidl vs Kroger: Who is Cheaper for Groceries?
Hey, guess what? Price comparing groceries is an awesome way to save money! It’s like having a secret weapon to find the best deals and make savvy choices, so you can stretch your budget and keep more cash in your pocket.
Today we will do a side-by-side comparison of Lidl and Kroger to determine who has the cheapest prices for groceries. We will also see if it cheaper to go to just one store or if shopping both stores will save us more money!
Is Lidl cheaper than Kroger?
For this price comparison, I have made a meal plan for a family of 4 using “25 Cheap food that fills you up when you are broke!” as a guide. Our plan is to get groceries for a week that are healthy and cheap!
Here is our meal plan:
Breakfasts
- Egg & Bacon Breakfast Burritos with Orange Slices
- Muffins, Yogurt, & Diced Pears
- Banana Smoothies and Scrambled Eggs
- Banana Raisin Pancakes with Pancake Syrup and Diced Pears
Lunches
- Sloppy Joe & Cheese Taquitos with sour cream
- BLT wraps
- Leftovers from Dinners
Dinners
- Sloppy Joes with Carrot Salad and Homemade Potato Wedges
- Tuna Casserole with Green Peas
- Ground Beef Burrito Bowls with Rice, served with (lettuce, tomato, black beans, sour cream, & cheddar cheese)
- Smoke Sausage Foil Packs with carrots, potatoes, & onion
- Mississippi Chicken in the Crockpot served over white rice with Brussell Sprouts
- One Pot Chicken Parmesan Pasta with Garlic Bread & Green Beans
Snacks
- Orange Slices
- Popcorn
- Yogurt
- Diced Pears
Sweet Treat
- Easy Maple Cookies (uses pancake syrup)
For this price comparison, I am using prices available in Atlanta, Georgia. I will be selecting items for our meal plan that are the absolute cheapest.
This means mostly generic store brand options and the smallest size needed. This may not be the best value, but we are going for the cheapest option.
We are assuming that we already have kitchen basics like cooking oil, seasonings, salt/pepper, and baking powder at home. Everything else needed for the meal plan will need to be purchased.
For a more in depth break down on how I would make this meal plan work, check out “Healthy Grocery List Week #12.”
Produce Section
This is all the fresh vegetables and fruits we need for the week.
| Item | Lidl Price | Kroger Price |
| Bananas x8 | Organic $0.79 a lb (3.2lbs)= $2.52 | $0.23 each= $1.84 |
| Oranges | 3lb bag of Cara Cara Oranges= $6.99 | 3lb bag of Navel Oranges= $4.99 |
| Lettuce | 1 head Iceberg= $2.49 | 1 head Iceberg= $1.99 |
| Tomato x2 | 1 bunch Tomato on the Vine= $3.09 | Red Tomatoes $1.00 each= $2.00 |
| Onion x2 | White onions $0.69 each= $1.38 | Medium Yellow Onions $.50each= $1.00 |
| Potatoes | 5lb bag of Red Potatoes= $5.79 | 5lb bag of Russet Potatoes= $3.99 |
| Carrots | 1lb bag of baby carrots= $1.49 | 1lb bag of carrots= $0.99 |
| Total: (7 items) | $23.75 | $16.80 |
In the produce section, Kroger came out cheaper with a total of $16.80. This was $6.95 cheaper than Lidl’s total of $23.75.
Deli/Meats
This is all the meats that we will need from the deli and meat counter.
| Item | Lidl Price | Kroger Price |
| Bacon | Lidl 16oz pack= $5.29 | Kroger 12oz pack= $3.99 |
| Ground Beef | Lidl 93/7 1lb fresh= $6.89 | Kroger 73/27 1lb roll= $4.99 |
| Smoked Sausage (kielbasa, etc) | Holmes 12oz pack= $4.39 | Heritage Farm 9oz pack= $2.59 |
| Chicken Breasts (need 4-5) | Sanderson Farms $3.19 per lb (4.55lbs)= $14.51 | Hertiage Farm $2.99 a lb (4.72lbs)= $14.14 |
| Total: (4 items) | $31.08 | $25.71 |
In the meat section, Kroger came out cheaper with a total of $25.71. This was $5.37 cheaper than Lidl’s total of $31.08.
Dry Goods
This is all the dry goods and shelf stable items that we need for our meal plan.
| Item | Lidl Price | Kroger Price |
| Flour Tortillas | Lidl 10ct= $2.59 | Kroger 10ct= $1.49 *on sale* |
| Muffin Mix | Jiffy 8.5oz box corn= $0.79 | Martha White 7oz pack blueberry= $1.19 |
| Pancake Syrup | Lidl 24oz bottle= $2.79 | Kroger 24oz bottle= $2.49 |
| Ketchup | Lidl 38oz bottle= $2.29 | Kroger 24oz bottle= $1.25 *on sale* |
| Brown Sugar | Lidl 2lb bag= $2.39 | Kroger 2lb bag= $2.19 |
| Worcestershire Sauce | Lidl 10oz bottle= $1.39 | Kroger 10oz bottle= $1.69 |
| Hamburger Buns (8ct) | Lidl 8ct= $1.59 | Kroger 8ct= $1.79 *on sale* |
| Raisins | Lidl 20oz container= $5.59 | Kroger 6oz mini boxes= $2.39 |
| Diced Pears (canned) | *substitution* Lidl 20oz can of pineapple= $1.69 | Kroger 14.5oz can= $1.59 |
| Mayonnaise | Lidl 30oz jar= $4.49 | Hellman’s 5.5oz bottle= $3.19 |
| Egg Noodles | Streit’s 12oz bag= $2.49 | Kroger 16oz bag= $2.29 |
| Tuna (canned) | Starkist 5oz can= $1.49 | Kroger 5oz can= $0.99 |
| Breadcrumbs | Lidl 15oz container= $1.49 | Colonna 13oz container= $1.99 *on sale* |
| Taco Seasoning Pack | Lidl 1oz pack= $0.59 | Kroger 1.25oz pack= $0.55 |
| White Rice | Lidl Boil in a Bag 4ct 17oz box= $2.59 | Kroger 2lb bag= $1.69 *on sale* |
| Black Beans (canned) | Lidl 15.5oz can= $0.99 | Kroger 15.5oz can= $0.79 |
| Au Jus Seasoning Pack | Lidl 0.87oz pack= $0.59 | Kroger 1oz pack= $0.50 |
| Ranch Seasoning Pack | Lidl 1oz pack= $0.69 | Kroger 1oz pack= $0.69 |
| Pepperoncini | Eridanous 15.5oz jar= $2.39 | Mt Olive 12oz jar= $2.19 |
| Tomato Sauce | Lidl 15oz can= $1.19 | Kroger 15oz can= $0.89 |
| Italian Seasoning | Lidl 1.34oz jar= $2.19 | Smart Way 0.60oz jar= $1.25 |
| Green Beans | Lidl 14.5oz can= $0.89 | Kroger 14.5oz can= $0.89 |
| Microwave Popcorn | Lidl 3ct box= $2.99 | Cousin Willie’s 3ct box= $1.99 |
| All Purpose Flour | Lidl 2lb bag= $1.59 | Kroger 5lb bag= $2.39 |
| Sugar | Lidl 4lb bag= $3.09 | Imperial 2lb bag= $2.19 |
| Baking Soda | Lidl 16oz box= $1.09 | Kroger 16oz box= $0.99 |
| Vanilla Extract | Pure 2oz bottle= $4.89 | Kroger imitation 2oz bottle= $1.99 |
| Total: (26 items) | $56.83 | $43.51 |
In the dry goods section, Kroger came out cheaper with a total of $43.51. This was $13.32 cheaper than Lidl’s total of $56.83.
Frozen Foods
These are the frozen items needed for this week’s meal plan.
| Item | Lidl Price | Kroger Price |
| Frozen Peas | PictSweet 10oz bag= $0.89 | Kroger 12oz bag= $1.25 |
| Frozen Brussell Sprouts | *Substitution* 1lb fresh= $2.89 | Kroger 12oz bag= $1.69 |
| Total: (2 items) | $3.78 | $2.94 |
In the frozen section, Kroger came out cheaper with a total of $2.94. This was $0.84 cheaper than Lidl’s total of $3.78.
Dairy Section
These are all the dairy items needed like milk and cheeses.
| Item | Lidl Price | Kroger Price |
| Vanilla Yogurt | Lidl 32oz container= $3.09 | Kroger 32oz container= $2.79 |
| 1/2 gallon of Milk | Organic half gallon= $3.75 | Kroger half gallon= $1.99 |
| Eggs | Simpson 18ct large white eggs= $2.59 | Kroger 12ct large white eggs= $1.49 |
| Cheddar Cheese (16oz) | Lidl 16oz block= $4.79 | Kroger 16oz shredded= $4.29 |
| Sour Cream | Lidl 16oz container= $2.49 | Kroger 8oz container= $1.25 |
| Butter | Lild 16oz sticks= $3.39 | Kroger 16oz sticks= $4.49 |
| Mozzarella Cheese (8oz) | Lidl 8oz block= $2.59 | Kroger 8ooz shredded= $2.49 |
| Total: (7 items) | $22.69 | $18.79 |
In the dairy section, Kroger came out cheaper with a total of $18.79. This was $3.90 cheaper than Lidl’s total of $22.69.
Is Kroger more expensive than Lidl?
Kroger came out cheaper in every section, but let’s look at the overall totals!
| Section | Lidl Price | Kroger Price |
| Produce | $23.75 | $16.80 |
| Deli/Meats | $31.08 | $25.71 |
| Dry Goods | $56.83 | $43.51 |
| Frozen Foods | $3.78 | $2.94 |
| Dairy | $22.69 | $18.79 |
| Overall Total: (46 items) | $138.13 | $107.75 |
Overall, Kroger was much cheaper than Lidl with a total of $107.75. This was $30.38 (about 22%) cheaper than Lidl’s total of $138.13.
If I could only choose one store to go grocery shopping at for the week, I would definitely pick Kroger. They consistently came in cheaper in every department.
If I had the time to go to both stores or do a curbside pickup order, I don’t think it would be worth it.
By only buying the cheapest items at each store, our total would have been $104.14. That is only an additional savings of $3.61 (about 3%) and I doubt that amount would be worth the gas and the time.
For more grocery store price comparisons, check out “Kroger vs Aldi” and “Lidl vs Harris Teeter.“
