Stater Bros vs Walmart: Who is Cheaper for Groceries?
Grocery shopping is considered a variable expense because it can fluctuate and is not a fixed price every month. Most of us are continually trying to lower this cost to save money.
The best way to lower your grocery cost is to compare prices at your local stores. Today we will do a side-by-side comparison of Stater Bros and Walmart to determine which store is cheaper for groceries. We will also see if it is worth going to both places or to just go to one store.
Is Stater Brothers cheaper than Walmart?
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
- Spinach Egg Bites with Cottage Cheese & Bananas
- Cottage Cheese with Pineapple & Blueberries
- Egg & Cheese Biscuits with Apple Slices
- Mini Monkey Bread with Blueberries
- Scrambled Eggs, Pepperoni, and Apple Slices
Lunches
- Chicken Salad with Celery & Saltines
- Black Bean Hummus Quesadillas & Carrots with Ranch
- Leftover Dinners
Dinners
- Herb Chicken Leg Quarters with Sweet Potatoes & California Blend veggies
- Chicken and Rice Soup with Spinach Salad (tomatoes, cucumbers, cheese, & ranch dressing)
- Ground Beef and Black Bean Enchiladas with Cilantro Lime Rice & Canned Corn
- Ground Beef Chili with Red Kidney Beans (served with tortillas, sour cream, & cheese) and California Blend veggies
- BBQ pulled chicken sandwiches with coleslaw and baked beans
- Mini Pepperoni Pizzas with Spinach Salad
Snacks
- Apple Slices
- Celery & Carrots with Ranch Dressing
- Saltine Crackers
- Bananas & Blueberries
- Tortilla Chips
Sweet Treat
- Pineapple Upside Down Cake
For this price comparison, I am using prices available in Apple Valley, California. 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 #11 (Really Cheap, Easy, and Toddler Friendly) .”
Produce Section
This is all the fresh vegetables and fruits we need for the week.
| Item | Stater Bros Price | Walmart Price |
| Bananas x5 | $0.69 a lb (2.5lbs)=$1.72 | $0.24 each= $1.20 |
| Blueberries | 6oz container= $2.99 | 11oz container: $3.38 |
| Apples | 3lb bag of gala apples= $4.49 | 3lb bag of gala apples= $3.84 *on sale* |
| Carrots | 1lb bag= $0.99 | 1lb bag= $0.98 |
| Celery | 1 bunch= $1.99 | 1 bunch= $1.84 |
| Spinach | 10oz bag= $2.49 | 10oz bag= $1.98 |
| Sweet Potatoes (need 4) | $1.69 a lb (2lbs)= $3.38 | $1.30 a lb (2lbs)=$2.60 *on sale* |
| Tomato | On the vine $2.49 a lb =$1.25 *on sale* | Slicing Tomato= $0.91 |
| Cabbage (small) | $0.79 a lb (1.5lbs)= $1.18 | $0.82 a lb (1.5lbs)= $1.23 |
| Cucumber | $0.50 each | $0.68 each |
| Lime | $0.40 each | $0.44 each |
| Cilantro | 1 bunch= $0.50 | 1 bunch= $0.88 |
| Total: (12 items) | $21.88 | $19.96 |
In the produce section, Walmart came out cheaper with a total of $19.96. This was $1.92 cheaper than Stater Bros’ total of $21.88.
Deli/Meats
This is all the meats that we will need from the deli and meat counter.
| Item | Stater Bros Price | Walmart Price |
| Chicken Leg Quarters (need 5lbs) | *substitution* whole chicken $1.69 a lb (5lbs)= $8.45 | Val-Best 10lb bag frozen= $6.72 *on sale* |
| Ground Beef (need 1 pound) | 73/27 roll= $4.49 | 73/27 roll= $3.96 |
| Pepperoni Slices | Stater Bros 6oz bag= $2.99 | Armour 5oz bag= $2.14 |
| Total: (3 items) | $15.93 | $12.82 |
In the meat section, Walmart came out cheaper with a total of $12.82. This was $3.11 cheaper than Stater Bros total of $15.93.
It is worth noting that not only did Walmart come out cheaper, but we also got 10 pounds of chicken legs instead of the just the 5 pounds that we needed.
Stater Bros also did not have any leg quarters (this is when the drumstick and the thigh is still attached) so we went with a whole chicken so we could have the bones and the meat. This was cheaper than substituting with just thighs.
Dry Goods
This is all the dry goods and shelf stable items that we need for our meal plan.
| Item | Stater Bros Price | Walmart Price |
| Canned Pineapple | Stater Bros 20oz can= $1.99 | Great Value 20oz can= $1.28 |
| Brown Sugar | C & H 1lb box= $2.29 | Great Value 2lb bag= $1.84 |
| Yellow Cake Mix | Pillsbury 15.25oz box= $1.99 | Great Value 15.5oz box= $0.98 |
| Tortillas | Romero’s 11oz pack= $1.29 | Romero’s 11oz pack= $1.24 |
| Black Beans (can) | Stater Bros 15oz can= $1.19 | Great Value 15oz can= $0.78 |
| Ranch Dressing | Stater Bros 16oz bottle= $2.39 | Great Value 16oz bottle= $1.97 |
| Hamburger Buns | Stater bros 8ct= $1.69 | Great Value 8ct= $1.38 |
| Baked Beans | Van Camps 15oz can= $1.79 | Great Value 15oz can= $1.12 |
| Tomato Sauce | Stater Bros 15oz can= $0.99 | Great Value 15oz can= $0.88 |
| Diced Tomatoes (can) | Stater Bros 14.5oz can= $1.09 | Great Value 14.5oz can= $0.88 |
| Chili Powder | Spice Classics 2.87oz jar= $1.29 | Great Value 3oz jar= $1.12 |
| Corn (can) | Stater Bros 15oz can= $0.89 | Great Value 15oz can= $0.50 *on sale* |
| White Rice | Stater Bros 1lb bag= $0.99 | Great Value 1lb bag= $0.88 |
| Taco Seasoning | Food Club 1.25oz pack= $0.59 | Great Value 1oz pack= $0.48 |
| Kidney Beans (can) | Stater Bros 15oz can= $0.99 | Great Value 15oz can= $0.78 |
| Tortilla Chips | Calidad 11oz bag= $1.99 | Great Value 13oz bag= $1.98 |
| Cornbread Mix | Krusteaz 15oz box= $2.99 | Jiffy 8.5oz box= $0.60 |
| Garlic Herb Seasoning Blend | Dash 2.5oz jar= $4.49 | Kinder’s 3.5oz jar= $2.98 |
| Barbeque Sauce | Stater Bros 18oz bottle= $1.49 | Great Value 18oz bottle= $1.56 |
| Total: (18 items) | $32.41 | $23.23 |
In the dry goods section, Walmart came out cheaper with a total of $23.23. This was $9.18 cheaper than Stater Bros total of $32.41.
Frozen Foods
These are the frozen items needed for this week’s meal plan.
| Item | Stater Bros Price | Walmart Price |
| California Blend Veggies | Stater Bros 16oz bag= $1.69 | Great Value 12oz bag= $0.98 |
| Garlic Bread | Stater Bros 10oz box= $2.49 | Great Value 11.25oz box= $2.24 |
| Total: (2 items) | $4.18 | $3.22 |
In the frozen section, Walmart came out cheaper with a total of $3.22. This was $0.96 cheaper than Stater Bros total of $4.18.
Dairy Section
These are all the dairy items needed like milk and cheeses.
| Item | Stater Bros Price | Walmart Price |
| Eggs | Stater Bros 12ct white large= $4.99 | Eggland’s Best 12ct white large =$4.23 |
| Cottage Cheese | Stater Bros 16oz container= $2.59 | Great Value 16oz container= $1.98 |
| Milk (1/2 gallon) | Stater Bros half gallon= 2.49 | Great Value half gallon= $1.88 |
| Biscuits (can) | Grands 8ct= $3.29 | Great Value 8ct= $1.78 |
| Butter | Stater Bros 16oz= $4.99 | Great Value 16oz= $3.98 |
| Cheddar Cheese | Stater Bros 16oz block= $4.99 | Great Value 16oz block= $3.68 |
| Mozzarella Cheese | Stater Bros 16oz block= $4.99 | Great Value 16oz block= $3.68 |
| Total: (7 items) | $28.33 | $21.21 |
In the dairy section, Walmart came out cheaper with a total of $21.21. This was $7.12 cheaper than Stater Bros total of $28.33.
Is Walmart more expensive than Stater Bros Market?
Walmart was cheaper in every section, but let’s look at the overall totals.
| Section | Stater Bros Price | Walmart Price |
| Produce | $21.88 | $19.96 |
| Deli/Meats | $15.93 | $12.82 |
| Dry Goods | $32.41 | $23.23 |
| Frozen Foods | $4.18 | $3.22 |
| Dairy | $28.33 | $21.21 |
| Overall Total: (42 items) | $102.73 | $80.44 |
Overall, Walmart was cheaper than Stater Bros with a total of $80.44. This was $22.29 (about 22%) cheaper than Stater Bros total of $102.73.
I always love it when the total comes out about $100, so I am happy with these totals. If I had to choose one store to go to, I would definitely go to Walmart.
I went through the list and separated out what was cheaper at each store, and even if we went to both stores out total would have been $79.33. That is only an additional savings of $1.11 so I don’t think going to both places would have been worth it.
I would probably only buy weekly sale items and loss leaders as Stater Bros and then do the rest of my shopping at Walmart for the week.
Now we definitely could have saved more money by looking at the sales flyer, seeing if there were any digital coupons at Stater Bros, and by only shopping sales or in season items.
For more grocery store price comparisons, check out “Safeway vs Walmart” and “Albertsons vs Stater Bros.”
