Key Takeaways
- The cost of Thanksgiving dinner for six to eight people is around $53 at one major grocery store—$8 less than the nearest competitor.
- Walmart is the cheapest for 10 out of 19 Thanksgiving ingredients, but Target is the cheapest for cinnamon and sweet potatoes.
- Walmart, Target, and Fred Meyer are among nine leading grocery stores where a turkey costs under $12.
Are you busy counting down the hours to Turkey Time? Anyone going to a Thanksgiving feast this year is definitely excited to indulge. If you’re hosting, though, you could probably use a few more days between now and the big day—especially if you haven’t started shopping yet. Facing pre-Thanksgiving grocery store crowds can feel like walking into a zoo, but one thing that doesn’t have to take a hit this year is your wallet.
Savvy shoppers may have already compiled spreadsheets comparing the cost of various Thanksgiving staples across grocery stores, but if that’s not the way you roll, there’s no shame in that (we’re with you). Or, maybe you just planned to rely on Aldi to fill your holiday cart. But if you’re still trying to figure out where to get the best bang for your buck this holiday season, you’re in the right place. NetCredit just published a report comparing prices on popular Thanksgiving staples (turkey included) across various retailers, and depending on what’s on your shopping list, there may be one clear store to hit up.
The Cheapest Grocery Store To Buy a Turkey
If you don’t already have a bird in your freezer, don’t fret, and don’t think you’ll have to shell out the big bucks to get one on short notice. Even though the turkey population is at a 40-year low, retailers are still offering affordable turkeys in the hopes of drawing shoppers into the store. Is it working? Tell us whether these prices send you fishing for your car keys, and then we’ll decide.
Walmart has the lowest turkey prices this season, with a 12-pound turkey selling for an average of $11.12. Other 12-pound turkeys that come in at the sub-$12 mark can be found at retailers like H-E-B, ACME, City Market, Fred Meyer, Harris Teeter, King Soopers, Smith’s, and Target. This price is staggeringly low when compared to the rates at some of the most expensive chains. Ralphs, Jewel-Osco, and Vons average at least $23 for their 12-pound turkeys.
The Cheapest Spot To Shop for Sides
Turkey is a relatively easy Thanksgiving staple to price out. After all, the main cost is the bird itself. If you’re also buying ingredients for countless side dishes, that may be where the bulk of your budget goes–still, you don’t have to suffer financial strain.
The long and short of it is, you’re most likely to find the best prices on side dish ingredients at Walmart (or H-E-B, if you’re a lucky Texan). Baking staples (like butter and eggs), canned goods (pumpkin, cranberry sauce, cream of mushroom soup, green beans), and pantry staples (potatoes, boxed stuffing, fried onions) can be found at a steal when shopping at Walmart. In fact, buying all of the above would cost you just under $20 at the chain.
However, if sweet potato casserole is on your list of dishes to make (and, honestly, it should be), you might want to make a trip to your local Target. Both cinnamon and sweet potatoes are cheaper at Target than at other grocery stores, and if you have the time for a quick extra shopping trip, your wallet will probably thank you.
The Cheapest Overall One-Stop Shop for Thanksgiving Groceries
Don’t want to go to multiple stores this year? We don’t blame you. Personally, the idea of confronting a single throng of Thanksgiving shoppers is enough to have us shaking in our boots. Doing it twice, or even three times? No, thank you. If you want to get all your Thanksgiving needs met in one place, there’s one clear contender that deserves your patronage.
If you guessed Walmart would be the ideal one-stop shop for this holiday season, you’re right. Say you want all the typical fare, like sweet potato casserole, pumpkin pie, turkey, green bean casserole, and a few other miscellaneous sides—you’d spend an average of $52.74 at Walmart, over $35 less than at the most expensive spot (Vons), and a whopping $8 less than its runner-up, H-E-B.
Moreover, if you want to score a super easy deal, you could just opt for Walmart’s $40 Thanksgiving meal, which the store claims will serve 10 people. At $4 a plate, it sounds like a steal, but don’t dive into this pool headfirst. It includes fewer items than it has in previous years, and many of the ingredients are canned and boxed goods that you may already have in your pantry (like green beans, pumpkin, and gravy mix). If the Thanksgiving shelf of your pantry is growing spiderwebs, though, it might be worth the buy.
