Publix vs Winn-Dixie: Who is Cheaper for Groceries?
With soaring food prices lately, one of the best ways to save money on grocery shopping is to use price comparisons. This will help you shop stores with cheaper prices and help lower your spending.
For this week’s meal plan, we will be comparison shopping at Publix and Winn-Dixie to find out which store came out cheaper for groceries. Scroll to the end to see the winner!
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Is Publix more expensive than Winn Dixie?
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
- Bagels & Cream Cheese with Bananas
- Breakfast Casserole with sausage, hashbrowns, and cheddar cheese
- Hard Boiled Egg, Toast, and Orange Slices
- Scrambled Egg and Veggies (peppers, tomato, and mushrooms) Tortillas and Cinnamon Apples
Lunches
- Rice & Bean Burritos & Apple Slices
- Buffalo Chicken Dip (made with leftover chicken from leg quarters) with Carrots and Celery
- Leftover Pasta Bake & Salad
- Leftover Soup with Bread
- Homemade Hummus and Saltines
Dinners
- Fajita Chicken Breasts with Tortillas, Yellow Rice, & Refried Beans
- Pineapple Brown Sugar Pork Chops with Roasted Potatoes and Broccoli
- Cheesy Ground Turkey Potato Boats with Sauteed Cabbage
- Roasted Chicken Quarters with Mushroom Pasta and Green Beans
- Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Pasta Bake with Side Salad with Chickpeas & Tomato
- Ground Turkey & Vegetable Soup with Grilled Cheese
Snacks
- Carrots and Celery
- Orange Slices
- Hummus & Crackers
- Pineapple Chunks
- Apples
Sweet Treat
- Cinnamon Sugar Donut Holes
For this price comparison, I am using prices available in Tampa,Florida. 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 #10 (Kid-Friendly, Healthy, & on a Budget)“
Produce Section
This is all the fresh vegetables and fruits we need for the week.
| Item | Publix Price | Winn-Dixie Price |
| Bananas x5 | $0.34 each= $1.70 | $0.69 a lb= $1.60 |
| Onions x2 | Yellow onions $1.01 each= $2.02 | Sweet Onions $1.59 a lb= $1.59 |
| Oranges | Organic Cuties 2lb bag= $5.53 *on sale* | 2lb bag of juice oranges= $4.49 |
| Bell Peppers x2 | Green $1.62 each= $3.24 | 2 pack of yellow= $3.00 *on sale* |
| Mushrooms | 8oz whole Baby Bellas= $2.19 *on sale* | 8 oz whole white button= $2.49 |
| Apples | 2lb bag of McIntosh =$5.53 | 2lb bag of McIntosh =$5.49 |
| Carrots | 1lb bag= $1.43 | 1lb bag= $1.79 |
| Celery | 1 bunch= $2.53 | 1 bunch= $2.49 |
| Potatoes | 5lb bag of red potatoes= $5.53 | 5lb bag of Russets= $5.99 |
| Cabbage | $1.07 a lb (2.5lbs)= $2.67 | $0.89 a lb (2.5lbs) =$2.22 |
| Lettuce | 1 head Green Leaf= $2.53 | 1 head iceberg= $1.99 |
| Tomato | Regular= $1.11 | Vine Ripe $2.49 a lb (.5lb)= $1.24 |
| Total: (12 items) | $36.01 | $34.38 |
In the produce section, Winn-Dixie came out cheaper with a total of $34.38. This was $1.63 cheaper than Publix’s total of $36.01.
Deli/Meats
This is all the meats that we will need from the deli and meat counter.
| Item | Publix Price | Winn-Dixie Price |
| Breakfast Sausage | Publix 1lb sausage roll= $3.87 | Banquet 6.4oz links= $3.19 |
| Chicken Breasts (4-5 needed) | Tyson 2.5lbs Frozen Breasts bag= $10.29 | Winn-Dixie Boneless Cutlets 1.25lbs fresh= $8.11 *on sale* |
| Chicken Quarters (need 2-3) | Publix $1.75 a lb (5.2lbs)= $9.03 | Country Post 10lb bag frozen= $7.99 |
| Pork Chops (need 4) | Publix Loin Chops $6.29 a lb (1.3lbs)= $7.93 | Winn Dixie Center Cut Chops $5.99 a lb (1.25lb)= $7.48 *on sale* |
| Ground Turkey | Publix 1lb fresh= $6.29 | SEG 1lb fresh= $5.69 *on sale* |
| Total: (5 items) | $37.41 | $32.46 |
In the meat section, Winn-Dixie came out cheaper with a total of $32.46. This was $4.95 cheaper than Publix’s total of $37.41.
It is worth noting that not only was Winn-Dixie cheaper, but we also got 5 pounds more of leg quarters. We can freeze the amount we don’t use and have these on another week!
Dry Goods
This is all the dry goods and shelf stable items that we need for our meal plan.
| Item | Publix Price | Winn-Dixie Price |
| Bagels | Publix Bakery 4ct= $2.21 *on sale* | Lender’s 6ct= $3.49 |
| Baking Mix | Publix 32oz box= $3.17 | Hungry Jack 28oz box= $2.50 *on sale* |
| Sandwich Bread | Publix 20oz white bread= $2.95 | SE Grocers 20oz white bread= $2.79 |
| Cinnamon | Badia 2oz jar= $2.65 | SE Grocers 2.37oz jar= $1.50 *on sale* |
| White Sugar | Publix 2lb bag= $2.19 | SE Grocers 2lb bag= $2.09 |
| Tortillas | Mission Street 12ct= $2.75 | SE Grocers 10ct= $2.79 |
| Yellow Rice | Vigo 5oz bag= $0.83 | SE Grocers 5oz bag= $0.79 |
| Refried Beans | Rosarita 16oz can= $1.97 | SE Grocers 16oz can= $1.59 |
| Hot Sauce | Louisiana 6oz bottle= $1.27 | Louisiana 6oz bottle= $0.99 *on sale* |
| Ranch Dressing | Wish Bone 8oz bottle= $2.53 | Kraft 8oz bottle= $1.99 *on sale* |
| Canned Chickpeas | Publix 15.5oz can= $1.19 | Iberia 15oz can= $1.29 *on sale* |
| Saltine Crackers | Publix 16oz box= $2.85 | Lil Dutch 8oz box= $1.25 |
| Canned Pineapple | Publix 20oz can= $2.21 | SE Grocers 20oz can= $1.50 *on sale* |
| Brown Sugar | Publix 1lb bag= $1.65 | Dixie Crystal 1lb box= $1.49 |
| Dry Pasta (Penne) | Publix 16oz box = $1.77 | Mueller’s 16oz box= $1.25 *on sale* |
| Canned Green Beans | Publix 14.5oz can= $1.31 | SE Grocers 14.5 oz can= $0.83 *on sale* |
| Total: (16 items) | $33.50 | $28.13 |
In the dry goods section, Winn-Dixie came out cheaper with a total of $28.13. This was $5.37 cheaper than Publix’s total of $33.50.
Frozen Foods
These are the frozen items needed for this week’s meal plan.
| Item | Publix Price | Winn-Dixie Price |
| Frozen Hash Browns | Reser’s 20oz bag= $3.65 | SE Grocers 2oz bag= $4.29 |
| Frozen Broccoli | Publix 10oz box= $1.53 | Essentials 12oz bag= $1.50 *on sale* |
| Total: (2 items) | $5.18 | $5.79 |
In the frozen section, Publix came out cheaper with a total of $5.18. This was $0.61 cheaper than Winn-Dixie’s total of $5.79.
Dairy Section
These are all the dairy items needed like milk and cheeses.
| Item | Publix Price | Winn-Dixie Price |
| Cream Cheese (two 8oz blocks) | Publix $3.09 each= $6.18 | SE Grocers 2pack= $4.69 *on sale* |
| Cheddar Cheese (16oz) | Publix 16oz shredded= $6.63 | Kraft 8oz shredded $3.00each= $6.00 *on sale* |
| Eggs | Publix 12ct large white= $4.41 | Crystal Spring 12ct large white= $4.89 |
| Milk | Publix gallon= $5.49 | Pure Value gallon= $4.99 |
| Sliced Cheese | Publix 10ct slices= $2.77 *on sale* | SE Grocers 12ct slices= $2.49 *on sale* |
| Total: (5 items) | $25.48 | $23.06 |
In the dairy section, Winn-Dixie came out cheaper with a total of $23.06. This was $2.42 cheaper than Publix’s total of $25.48.
Is Winn Dixie cheaper than Publix?
Winn-Dixie was cheaper in most of the sections, but let’s look at overall totals.
| Section | Publix Price | Winn-Dixie Price |
| Produce | $36.01 | $34.38 |
| Deli/Meats | $37.41 | $32.46 |
| Dry Goods | $33.50 | $28.13 |
| Frozen Foods | $5.18 | $5.79 |
| Dairy | $25.48 | $23.06 |
| Overall Total: (40 items) | $137.58 | $123.82 |
Overall, Winn-Dixie was cheaper than Publix with a total of $123.82. This was $13.76 (about 10%) cheaper than Publix’s total of $137.58.
I usually want my total spending to be closer to $100 each week, so we were a little higher than I would like. If I had to choose one store, I would pick Winn-Dixie for my weekly groceries. I did not see a huge enough benefit to shop both stores weekly, unless Publix had a really good sale going on.
Publix has partnered with Instacart for online shopping and delivery. You can save money with free delivery and cashback if you sign up for a 30-day free trial. Publix also offers digital coupons and deals on their website for more savings.
Winn Dixie also offers digital coupons and occasionally runs deals for free delivery on pick-up orders. You can also check out their rewards program that offers cashback at the register for collecting points.
For more grocery store price comparisons, check out “Sprouts vs Publix” and “Winn-Dixie vs Walmart.“
