Safeway vs Food Lion: Who is Cheaper for Groceries?
Price comparing groceries at different stores is important because it helps save money and find the best value for your purchases, ensuring you make informed decisions and stretch your budget further.
Today we will do a side-by-side comparison of Safeway and Food Lion to determine who is cheaper for groceries. We will also see if it better to go to just one store or to shop both stores to save additional money on our grocery bill.
Is Food Lion cheaper than Safeway?
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 Woodbridge, Virginia. 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 | Safeway Price | Food Lion Price |
| Bananas x8 | $0.28 each= $2.24 | $0.43 a lb (3.2lbs)= $1.37 |
| Oranges | 4lb bag of Valencia Oranges= $3.49 *on sale* | 3lb bag of Clementines= $3.99 |
| Lettuce | 1 head Romaine= $1.49 *on sale* | 1 head Iceberg= $1.69 |
| Tomato x2 | On the Vine $1.15 each= $2.30 | On the Vine $1.99 a lb (0.70lb)= $1.39 |
| Onion x2 | Yellow Onions $.89 each= $1.78 | Yellow Onions $0.89 a lb (1lb)= $0.89 |
| Potatoes | 5lb bag of Russets= $5.99 | 5lb bag of Russets= $3.99 |
| Carrots | 1lb bag of baby carrots= $1.39 | 1lb bag of carrots= $0.79 |
| Total: (7 items) | $18.68 | $14.11 |
In the produce section, Food Lion came out cheaper with a total of $14.11. This was $4.57 cheaper than Safeway’s total of $18.68.
Deli/Meats
This is all the meats that we will need from the deli and meat counter.
| Item | Safeway Price | Food Lion Price |
| Bacon | Signature Farms 16oz pack= $4.99 *on sale* | Food Lion 16oz pack= $3.98 |
| Ground Beef | Signature Farms 80/20 1.35lb fresh ($4.49 a lb)= $6.06 | Food Lion 80/20 1lb fresh= $3.49 *on sale* |
| Smoked Sausage (kielbasa, etc) | Hillshire Farm 14oz pack= $3.50 *on sale* | Holmes 12oz pack= $3.00 *on sale* |
| Chicken Breasts (need 4-5) | Signature Farms $3.99 a lb (3lbs)= $11.97 | Food Lion $2.79 a lb (3lbs)= $8.37 |
| Total: (4 items) | $26.52 | $18.84 |
In the meat section, Food Lion came out cheaper with a total of $18.84. This was $7.68 cheaper than Safeway’s total of $26.52.
Dry Goods
This is all the dry goods and shelf stable items that we need for our meal plan.
| Item | Safeway Price | Food Lion Price |
| Flour Tortillas | Signature Select 10ct= $2.19 | Chi-Chi’s 10ct= $1.99 |
| Muffin Mix | Jiffy 7oz box blueberry= $1.19 | Food Lion Apple Cinnamon 7oz pack= $0.98 |
| Pancake Syrup | Pearl Milling 24oz bottle= $3.49 *on sale* | Food Lion 24oz bottle= $2.19 |
| Ketchup | Signature Select 20oz bottle= $1.99 | Cha Ching 23oz bottle= $1.19 |
| Brown Sugar | Signature Select 1lb bag= $1.99 | Food Lion 1lb bag= $1.99 |
| Worcestershire Sauce | Signature Select 10oz bottle= $2.99 | Food Lion 10oz bottle= $0.99 |
| Hamburger Buns (8ct) | Signature Select 8ct= $2.00 *on sale* | Cha-Ching 8ct= $1.39 |
| Raisins | Signature Select 12oz box= $2.49 | Food Lion 6z mini bags= $1.79 |
| Diced Pears (canned) | Signature Select 15oz can= $1.89 | Food Lion 15oz can= $1.48 |
| Mayonnaise | Signature Select 15oz jar= $2.99 | Food Lion 16oz jar= $2.49 |
| Egg Noodles | Signature Select 12oz bag= $1.99 | Food Lion 12oz bag= $1.58 |
| Tuna (canned) | Signature Select 5oz can= $1.39 | Starkist 5oz can= $1.00 *on sale* |
| Breadcrumbs | Signature Select 15oz container= $2.29 | Food Lion 15oz container= $1.19 |
| Taco Seasoning Pack | Signature Select 1oz pack= $0.99 | Food Lion 1.25oz pack= $0.89 |
| White Rice | Signature Select 2lb bag= $2.69 | Food Lion 1lb bag= $1.19 |
| Black Beans (canned) | Signature Select 15oz can= $1.29 | Food Lion 15oz can= $0.84 |
| Au Jus Seasoning Pack | Signature Select 1oz pack= $0.99 | Pioneer 1oz pack= $1.19 |
| Ranch Seasoning Pack | Signature Select 4 -1oz packs= $1.99 | Food Lion 1oz pack= $0.50 |
| Pepperoncini | Mt Olive 12oz jar= $3.00 *on sale* | Food Lion 16oz jar= $2.29 |
| Tomato Sauce | Signature Select 15oz can= $1.19 | Food Lion 15oz can= $0.90 |
| Italian Seasoning | Signature Select 0.75oz jar= $2.99 | Food Lion 0.75oz jar= $1.79 |
| Green Beans | Signature Select 14.5oz can= $1.19 | Food Lion 14.5oz can= $1.25 |
| Microwave Popcorn | Signature Select 3ct box= $2.19 | Nature’s Promise 3ct box= $2.39 |
| All Purpose Flour | Signature Select 2lb bag= $1.99 | Food Lion 2lb bag= $1.79 |
| Sugar | Signature Select 4lb bag= $4.49 | Food Lion 2lb bag= $2.29 |
| Baking Soda | Signature Select 16oz bx= $1.29 | Food Lion 16oz box= $0.98 |
| Vanilla Extract | Value Corner Imitation 8oz bottle= $1.49 | Food Lion imitation 8oz bottle= $1.78 |
| Total: (26 items) | $56.65 | $40.32 |
In the dry goods section, Food Lion came out cheaper with a total of $40.32. This was $16.33 cheaper than Safeway’s total of $56.65.
Frozen Foods
These are the frozen items needed for this week’s meal plan.
| Item | Safeway Price | Food Lion Price |
| Frozen Peas | Green Giant 8oz box= $1.00 *on sale* | Bird’s Eye 0oz bag= $1.25 *on sale* |
| Frozen Brussell Sprouts | Signature Select 12oz bag= $2.49 | Food Lion 16oz bag= $2.39 |
| Total: (2 items) | $3.49 | $3.64 |
In the frozen section, Safeway came out cheaper with a total of $3.49. This was $0.15 cheaper than Food Lion’s total of $3.64.
Dairy Section
These are all the dairy items needed like milk and cheeses.
| Item | Safeway Price | Food Lion Price |
| Vanilla Yogurt | Lucerne 32oz container= $3.39 | Food Lion 32oz container= $2.49 |
| 1/2 gallon of Milk | Lucerne half gallon= $2.29 | Food lion half gallon= $2.19 |
| Eggs | Lucerne Farms 12ct large white eggs= $2.49 | Food Lion 12ct large white eggs= $1.69 |
| Cheddar Cheese (16oz) | Sargento 8oz shredded $2.50 each= $5.00 *on sale* | Food Lion 16oz shredded= $3.69 |
| Sour Cream | Lucerne 8oz container= $1.49 | Food Lion 8oz container= $1.29 |
| Butter | Lucerne 16oz sticks= $3.49 *on sale* | Food Lion 16oz sticks= $3.99 |
| Mozzarella Cheese (8oz) | Sargento 8oz bag shredded= $2.50 *on sale* | Food Lion 8oz bag shredded= $2.29 |
| Total: (7 items) | $20.65 | $17.63 |
In the dairy section, Food Lion came out cheaper with a total of $17.63. This was $3.02 cheaper than Safeway’s total of $20.65.
Is Safeway cheaper than Food Lion?
Food Lion came in cheaper in almost all sections, but let’s look at the overall totals.
| Section | Safeway Price | Food Lion Price |
| Produce | $18.68 | $14.11 |
| Deli/Meats | $26.52 | $18.84 |
| Dry Goods | $56.65 | $40.32 |
| Frozen Foods | $3.49 | $3.64 |
| Dairy | $20.65 | $17.63 |
| Overall Total: (46 items) | $125.99 | $94.54 |
Overall, Food Lion was cheaper than Safeway with a total of $94.54. This was $31.45 (about 25%) cheaper than Safeway’s total of $125.99.
So, this one was pretty much a slam dunk. If I can only stop by one store, I am going to pick Food Lion. I feel like if we used the weekly sales flyer to make our meal plan, we could have easily saved more too.
If I had the time to go to both stores or do a curbside pickup, and only bought what was cheaper at each store, our total would have been $92.77. That is only an additional savings of $1.77 (about 2%), so it is probably not worth the time.
For more grocery store price comparisons, check out “Food Lion vs Piggly Wiggly” and “Safeway vs Walmart.“
