Price Chopper vs Shaw’s: Who is Cheaper for Groceries?
Comparing prices at the grocery store can save you a ton of money. It’s worth taking a few extra minutes to find the best deals and keep your hard-earned cash in your pocket!
Today we will be doing a side-by-side price comparison of Price Chopper and Shaw’s to determine who is cheaper for groceries. We will also see if it is better to just go to one store for our shopping, or if going to both stores will save us even more!
Is Price Chopper cheaper than Shaws?
For this test, I have prepared a meal plan for one week that consists of breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and dinners for a family of 4 (2 adults and 2 young kids). I am using the “25 Cheap food that fills you up when you are broke!” as my guide to pick not only healthy foods but also ones that should be fairly cheap.
Here is the meal plan for this grocery trip:
Breakfasts
- Peanut Butter Toast with Bananas x2
- Overnight Oats with Apples and Raisins x3
- Scrambled Eggs with Cheese on top and Toast x2
Lunches
- Tuna Salad Sandwiches x 2
- Veggie & Pepperoni Pasta Salad with Zesty Italian Dressing
- Salad Wraps with tomato, cucumber, and cheese
- Leftovers
Snacks
- Carrots
- Apples
- Popcorn
Dinners
- Baked Whole Chicken with rice and sautéed carrots
- Leftover Chicken in a Pasta with Alfredo Sauce, Broccoli, and side salad
- Ground Turkey Tacos with Corn and Refried Beans
- Leftover Taco Meat in a Mexican Baked Potato Bar with Side Salads
- Pork Loin with Mashed Potatoes and Corn
- Hawaiin Pizza with Leftover Pork, Pepperoni, and Pineapple (using a little Alfredo Sauce as the Base)
Sweet Treat
- Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
For this meal plan, I am going to shop at both stores and look for the best deals on price. We will be using prices in West Lebanon, New Hampshire for this store comparison.
Most items will be the generic store brand, and I will be aiming to get my groceries needed for the cheapest price available.
Even though my pantry is very well stocked, for this experiment I will shop as if I only have the bare basics at home like seasonings, salt, sugar, and cooking oil. For a full breakdown of this meal plan, and how I would make it work, check out “Healthy Grocery List for Family of 4 on a Budget #1.”
Produce
These are the fresh vegetables and fruits needed in the produce section for my meal plan this week.
| Items | Price Chopper Price | Shaw’s Price |
| 8 Bananas | $0.23 each= $1.84 | $0.28 each= $2.24 |
| Apples | 3lb bag of Fuji Apples= $5.39 | 4lb bag of McIntosh apples= $4.99 |
| Lettuce | 1 head Green Leaf= $2.69 | 1 head Iceberg= $1.67 *on sale* |
| Potatoes | 5lb bag of Russets= $2.99 *on sale* | 5lb bag of Russets= $3.49 *on sale* |
| Tomatoes x3 | Red on Vine $1.06 each= $3.18 | Red on Vine $1.15 each= $3.45 |
| Cucumber | $0.79 each | $0.99 each |
| Carrots | 16oz bag of baby carrots= $1.50 | 1lb bag organic= $1.99 |
| Totals: 7 Items | $18.38 | $18.82 |
In the produce section, Price Chopper came out cheaper with a total of $18.38. This was $0.44 cheaper than Shaw’s total of $18.82.
Deli/Meats
Here are the items I will need from the deli and meat section of the stores.
| Items | Price Chopper Price | Shaw’s Price |
| Pepperoni | Bridgford 5oz pack= $4.39 *on sale* | Signature Select 6oz pack= $3.99 |
| Whole Chicken | Market 32 $1.69 a lb (6.57lbs)= $11.10 | Perdue $1.29 a lb (6lbs)= $7.74 *on sale* |
| Ground Turkey | Market 32 1lb fresh= $4.39 | Perdue 1lb fresh= $4.49 *on sale* |
| Pork Loin | Market 32 $2.99 a lb (2.5lbs)= $7.48 | Hatfield 22oz pack= $5.99 *on sale* |
| Totals: 4 Items | $27.36 | $22.21 |
In the meat section, Shaw came out cheaper with a total of $22.21. This was $5.15 cheaper than Price Chopper’s total of $27.36.
Dry Goods
This is the center area of most grocery stores, and I call this area dry goods. It is all items that are considered shelf stable and are typically stored in a cabinet or on a pantry shelf.
| Items | Price Chopper Price | Shaw’s Price |
| Sandwich Bread | PICS 20oz = $1.99 | Signature Select 16oz= $1.29 |
| Peanut Butter | PICS 16.3oz jar= $2.49 *on sale* | Signature Select 16oz jar= $2.99 |
| Quick Oats | PICS 18oz container= $3.79 | Malt-O-Meal 16oz container= $3.49 |
| Raisins | PICS 6oz mini boxes= $3.09 | O Organics 6oz mini boxes= $2.49 |
| Canned Tuna Fish (2 cans) | PICS 5oz can $1.39 each= $2.78 *on sale* | Chicken of Sea 5z can $1.00 each= $2.00 *on sale* |
| Pasta | PICS 16oz ziti= $1.79 | Signature Select spaghetti= $1.49 |
| Zesty Italian Dressing | PICS 16oz bottle= $2.79 | Wish Bone 8oz bottle= $2.49 |
| Flour Tortillas | PICS 8ct= $2.19 *on sale* | Signature Select 10ct= $1.99 |
| Microwave Popcorn | PICS 3ct box= $2.49 | Jolly Time 3ct box= $2.00 *on sale* |
| White Rice | PICS 14oz instant rice box= $2.19 *on sale* | Signature Select 2lb bag= $2.99 |
| Alfredo Sauce | Francesco Rinaldi 15oz jar= $2.19 *on sale* | Signature Select 16oz jar= $2.99 |
| Canned Corn | PICS 15.25oz can= $1.29 | Signature Select 15.25oz can= $1.20 |
| Refried Beans | Full Circle 16oz can= $1.99 *on sale* | Signature Select 16oz can= $1.19 *on sale* |
| Salsa | PICS 15.5oz jar= $2.59 | Signature Select 16oz jar= $2.29 *on sale* |
| Canned Pineapple | PICS 20oz can= $2.19 | Signature Select 20oz can= $2.19 |
| All Purpose Flour | PICS 5lb bag= $3.29 | Signature Select 2lb bag= $2.49 |
| Dry Active Yeast | Red Start 3 pack= $2.19 | Signature Select 3 pack= $1.49 |
| Brown Sugar | Domino 1lb box= $2.69 | Domino 1lb box= $2.49 |
| Totals: 18 items | $44.01 | $39.55 |
In the dry goods section, Shaw’s came out cheaper with a total of $39.55. This was $4.46 cheaper than Price Chopper’s total of $44.01.
Frozen Foods
This is the area in the store that typically has frozen meats, vegetables, fruits, and ice cream. We will mainly stick to the frozen veggie section.
| Items | Price Chopper Price | Shaw’s Price |
| Frozen Mixed Vegetables | PICS 10.8oz bag= $1.59 *on sale* | Birds Eye 10oz bag= $0.99 *on sale* |
| Frozen Broccoli | PICS 10.8oz bag= $2.19 | Signature Select 12oz bag= $1.79 |
| Totals: 2 items | $3.78 | $2.78 |
In the frozen foods section, Shaw’s came out cheaper with a total of $2.78. This was $1.00 cheaper than Price Chopper’s total of $3.78.
Dairy
This is the final section of the store and will cover all dairy needs like cheeses and milk.
| Item: | Price Chopper Price | Shaw’s Price |
| Eggs | PICS 12ct large white eggs= $1.89 | Lucerne 12ct large white eggs= $0.99 *on sale* |
| Milk (gallon) | PICS gallon= $2.69 | Lucerne gallon= $3.19 |
| Cheddar cheese 16oz | PICS 16oz shredded= $4.89 *on sale* | Lucerne 8oz shredded x2= $3.98 *on sale* |
| Mozzarella cheese 8oz | PICS 8oz shredded= $2.99 | Lucerne 8oz shredded= $1.99 *on sale* |
| Sour Cream | PICS 8oz container= $1.39 | Lucerne 8oz container= $1.19 *on sale* |
| Totals: 5 items | $13.85 | $11.34 |
In the dairy section, Shaw’s came out cheaper with a total of $11.34. This was $2.51 cheaper than Price Chopper’s total of $13.85.
Is Shaw’s more expensive than Price Chopper?
Shaw’s was cheaper in most sections, but let’s look at the overall totals!
| Section | Price Chopper Price | Shaw’s Price |
| Produce | $18.38 | $18.82 |
| Deli/Meats | $27.36 | $22.21 |
| Dry Goods | $44.01 | $39.55 |
| Frozen Foods | $3.78 | $2.78 |
| Dairy | $13.85 | $11.34 |
| Overall Total | $107.38 | $94.70 |
Overall, Shaw’s was cheaper than Price Chopper with a total of $94.70. This was $12.68 (about 12%) cheaper than Price Chopper’s total of $107.38.
Both stores were definitely close to $100 budget, but if I had to choose to shop at only one store, I would pick Shaw’s.
If I had the time to go to both stores or do curbside pickups, then there is definitely room to save even more money. By only buying what was cheaper at each store, my new total would have been $90.14.
That is an additional savings of $4.56 (about 5%) and I will let you decide if that is worth saving. I had hoped it would be more, but if our budget is $100, and we only spend $90.14, that is an extra $9.86 that we can use to stock up or put towards savings!
For more grocery store price comparisons, check out “Price Chopper vs Hannaford” and “Shaw’s vs Stop & Shop.“
