Hello! As coffee roasters, we recommend people avoid buying coffee at grocery stores. Grocery store coffee tends to be older, cheaper coffee which fits the store's price points, but it tends to sit on the shelf too long. We also recommend avoiding k-cup coffee in grocery stores. Not only is it older coffee, but nearly half the price is for the pods and the packaging - not the coffee. A better strategy is buying whole bean coffee fresh from local roasters who put a roast date on the package. Whole bean coffee is best 3-14 days after the roast date, but will still be fairly fresh up to 30 days if the coffee comes in foil-lined, valved bags. Buy in larger amounts and freeze what you don't need right away. Whole bean coffee stays quite fresh in the freezer for several months - you'll lose some delicate aromatics on the nose, but you'll get all the flavor on your palate. For k-cups, you get more for your money buying whole bean coffee fresh and filling reusable pods. You'll get nearly twice the amount of coffee for your money and cut down on waste. We recommend 12.5g of coffee for 8 oz water. (Pro tip for k-cup users - before brewing your coffee, first "fire a blank" - fill your brewer with water but don't insert a coffee pod. Press "Brew" on your brewer, allowing the hot water to purge old coffee and heat up the brewer. Then insert your pod and brew your coffee. You'll raise the brewing temperature 3deg-4deg F., improving extraction and flavor. Hope this helps and let me know if you have further questions.
My name is Carolyn Truett and I'm the recipe developer, food photographer, and founder of Caramel and Cashews. I live in my kitchen! I avoid buying food storage containers at the grocery store. The selection is limited, and most of what they carry is cheap plastic. They rarely carry specialty containers, like glass, stackable modular sets, leak-proof bento boxes, or larger variety packs. It's easier to compare the quality online and you can check the star ratings too!
From a retail and operations perspective, grocery stores excel at everyday essentials, but they're often not the optimal place to purchase certain non-food items. I mostly avoid cookware, office supplies and greeting cards; often you pay a convenience premium at this place that can be exceeded by the shorter online price anyway — and perhaps better goods from a specialty retailer. Cleaning tools, such as mops and brooms, are also of lower quality at supermarkets, so they wear out more quickly and wind up costing you money. Pet food can be hit or miss, as grocery-store formulas usually have smaller bags and fewer ingredients than those sold by pet retailers. On the other side, it makes sense to stock up on things you use all the time — foil, trash bags, dish soap — because supermarkets rotate them through promotions so often. But for anything that needs to last, such as cookware or small home goods, I'd rather buy from stores focused on those categories. When you consider how much your home environment impacts sleep and well-being, it also seems reasonable to invest in quality items that touch your everyday life; maybe that's a long-lasting pan you use to cook every morning, or bedding that actually enhances your rest. Supermarkets are convenient, but for long-term comfort, it's worth to think a little bit more about where you shop.
Grocery stores are convenient, but many of the non-food items in those aisles carry some of the highest markups in retail. When we analyze pricing across thousands of categories at WhatAreTheBest.com, cleaning supplies, pet food, batteries, and basic kitchen tools consistently show 20 to 40 percent higher prices at supermarkets compared to big-box or specialty retailers. Part of the reason is simple merchandising logic. Grocers use these items to boost basket size, not to compete on price. Greeting cards, single-use office supplies, and small hardware items are also poor value because grocers carry limited assortments and rely on premium brands rather than lower-cost generics. A small detail that surprises most shoppers is how drastically pet food varies. Many grocery stores only stock smaller bag sizes with higher per-ounce costs, while larger formats at dedicated retailers are much cheaper. The best strategy is to treat the grocery store as a place for perishables and quick restocks, not for household staples. Items that have predictable consumption patterns, like cleaning wipes, foil, trash bags, coffee pods, and pet food, are almost always cheaper when purchased in bulk or through retailers that specialize in those categories. Albert Richer, Founder, WhatAreTheBest.com.
Being a frugal shopper, I no longer rely on grocery stores when I stock up on pet food, personal hygiene items, and cleaning supplies. In my experience, local pet stores near me offered a broader and healthier selection of dry and wet food, with the upside of coupons and loyalty programs lowering costs. I also shifted to buying my shampoo, soap, and toilet paper in Costco ever since I got my membership and can conveniently buy things in bulk. I do the same thing with generic cleaning products I can't DIY, like disinfectants and oven cleaners. Lastly, I would find myself impulse buying office supplies I pass by when I grocery shop, so I actually know that their quality doesn't justify the high prices. Instead, I've been going to my local stationery store for a cheaper and more convenient shopping. They also offer customization services like engraving, which I'm personally a fan of, especially in my work notebooks!
We've dealt with a number of major grocery store chains here at our firm. Sometimes it's slip and fall accidents because they didn't have the proper staffing in place, or it can be dangerous non-grocery items they've stocked. This time of year, companies are racing to meet holiday demand, sometimes under economic pressure from tariffs, rising labor costs, or supply chain issues. When speed wins out over safety, that's when people get hurt. Flammable decorations, untested electrical gadgets, mislabeled children's product. The risks to shoppers are real. I'd be glad to offer a legal perspective if you're looking for one. I was named to the Visionary Consumer Attorneys list by the LA Times this year. Available today or tomorrow if that's helpful.
As the head of an e-commerce company, I've figured out the hard way which grocery-store items are secretly overpriced or underwhelming. Skip batteries, printer paper and standard over-the-counter meds — Several month ago, I bought a 4-pack of AA batteries at my local Kroger for $7.99; the exact same Energizers were going for $3.49 at Target two miles down the road. Same with ibuprofen: the store-brand on the grocery aisle was $6.49 for 100 tablets; CVS's version was selling for $3.99. Greeting cards. It's a trap — $6.99 for a flimsy birthday card when even Papyrus, or better yet Amazon, has something far nicer for half that and it arrives in two days with Prime. The one thing I refuse to buy at the supermarket now is cleaning supplies other than basics like dish soap. A bottle of Mrs. Meyer's surface cleaner costs $5.99 in the grocery aisle but just $4.29 at Target or Walmart, and the selection is limited. I have a list I keep in my phone: if it isn't perishable or something I forgot for tonight's dinner, I sit on it and purchase it where the margins aren't padded 30-40 %. The only exception I make is trash bags - my local store's house brand actually beats Amazon pricing and holds up better than the name brands.