I took an identical grocery list to Costco, Walmart and Target. The price difference for everyday items will shock you… but here’s why I don’t think the cheapest store is worth it

I’m turning 30 next year, and I’ve set myself a few rites of passage to check off the bucket list: see Lady Gaga in concert, travel to Puerto Rico, and get a Costco membership.

With prices climbing on everything from college tuition to gas to my increasingly painful Starbucks habit, I finally decided it was time to pursue my long-held Costco aspirations and spend the $65 on an annual membership.

That shiny new card did more than just get me through the warehouse doors – it opened the portal to a parallel universe where everything is dramatically cheaper, as long as you’re willing to buy it in industrial quantities.

My first trip was, admittedly, overwhelming. Adidas for $35? A two-pack of Vacation sunscreen for $21.99? Suddenly, I was mentally preparing for every possible scenario: Should I stock up on Electrolit for an upcoming music festival? Or finally commit to that luggage set in preparation for my long-awaited trip to Puerto Rico?

Surrounded by towering pallets of snacks, beauty products, and over-the-counter essentials, I started wondering just how much cheaper Costco really is compared with Target or Walmart.

So I decided to put it to the test. 

I took the same shopping list to Target, Walmart, and Costco to find out, once and for all, which retailer actually offers the best value.

I compared a mix of name-brand staples like M&M’s and Cheerios alongside store-brand equivalents from each retailer to see where your dollar stretches the furthest. Unsurprisingly, Costco came out ahead in nearly all categories.

Target and Walmart felt like familiar territory – I moved through both quickly, my initial hunch confirmed almost immediately: in most cases, Walmart edged out Target by a few cents.

Take something as simple as the ingredients for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. At Target, the total came to $11.77. At Walmart, it dropped to $10.55. Not a massive difference, but enough to add up over time.

There were a few exceptions. Some name-brand items were actually cheaper at Target – like a pack of mini Pepsi cans priced at $7.49, compared to $7.78 at Walmart. Still, neither could touch Costco, where buying the same quantity brought the cost down to just $6.33.

Because Costco sells most items in bulk, I compared prices by unit – cost per ounce rather than per package. Across the board, that’s where Costco really stood out. Staples like Cheerios, Bounty paper towels, Starbucks ground coffee, and French’s Yellow Mustard were consistently cheaper per ounce than at either Target or Walmart.

But cheaper doesn’t always mean more practical.

The tradeoff with Costco is scale. Everything is supersized, which is great in theory – less so when you are shopping for one. I don’t need two industrial-sized bottles of mustard. And committing to a year’s supply of Kraft Mac and Cheese before it expires? That feels more aspirational than realistic.

There is also the physical reality of it. I’m one person, with one car and limited storage. Maneuvering a fully loaded cart, fitting everything into my Honda Accord, and then finding space for it all at home adds a layer of hassle that the savings don’t entirely cancel out.

And then there’s the treasure hunt aspect. Costco doesn’t always carry the specific brands I rely on – like Aquaphor or Pop Secret popcorn – and when it does, finding them can feel like a full-on expedition.

While Costco may not stock every popular name brand, it makes up for it with a formidable in-house alternative: Kirkland Signature. In fact, all three retailers rely heavily on private-label products to compete with big-name brands – and to offer shoppers lower prices in the process.

Target alone has more than 45 exclusive lines, with Good & Gather leading the pack. Walmart’s flagship brand, Great Value, is even more expansive, with over 10,000 products – a number that’s set to grow following a recently announced redesign. Despite the updated packaging, Walmart has made it clear that the formula isn’t changing: ‘what’s inside’ will stay the same.

Costco’s Kirkland Signature, meanwhile, is a powerhouse. It accounts for more than 30 percent of the company’s total sales, underscoring just how much shoppers trust it as a substitute for name brands.

When I compared store-brand staples side by side, Walmart consistently came out on top. Great Value products were almost always slightly cheaper than Target’s Good & Gather equivalents. A 26-ounce container of salt, for example, costs $0.84 at Walmart – about five cents less than Target’s version.

There were even a few cases where Walmart and Target undercut Costco. Sugar is one example: both Great Value and Good & Gather come in at roughly $0.05 per ounce, compared to about $0.07 per ounce for Kirkland. That said, Costco’s version is organic, which helps explain the higher price – and may still make it the better value depending on what you prioritize.

But Good & Gather, Great Value and Kirkland aren’t always interchangeable. Retail analyst Neil Saunders of GlobalData told the Daily Mail these products have ‘differences in quality, ingredients, taste and a bunch of other things that account for price.’

Even looking at the exact same products at Target and Walmart isn’t a truly fair comparison. Something as simple as a banana, which costs $0.29 at a Target in Orlando, rings up as $0.39 cents at the same retailer’s Los Angeles location.

‘US retail pricing varies wildly by region so the same item at Walmart doesn’t always cost the same as an item at another Walmart,’ consumer expert Bryan Gildenberg told the Daily Mail.

This practice, typically called ‘zone pricing,’ targets neighborhoods with higher disposable income, charging premium prices where demand is less price-sensitive. It’s a strategy used by both Target and Walmart – as well as McDonald’s, Starbucks and most big chains. 

Just as retailers strategically nudge some prices upward, they’re just as deliberate about cutting others. Walmart, in particular, leans hard into the psychology of savings-  promoting steep discounts and branding them with terms like ‘Rollback’ and ‘Everyday Low Prices.’ 

The effect is subtle but powerful – it creates the sense that you’re saving money simply by shopping there, whether or not every item in your cart is actually the lowest-priced option. 

‘Target and Walmart are different retailers with different strategies and economic models,’ Gildenberg said. ‘Walmart’s model works better on selling more at a lower price.’ 

Co-founder Sam Walton referred to Walmart’s pricing strategy as ‘fast nickels vs slow dimes.’ For this retailer, that means choosing to quickly sell products at lower prices (fast nickels) as opposed to waiting longer for maximum profit (slow dimes).

On my grocery list, three items – the Starbucks ground coffee, Pop Secret Popcorn, and the Lay’s chips – were already discounted without having to activate a sale in an app or using a manufacturer’s coupon. 

Gildenberg also said Walmart’s ‘efficient operations’ drive profits, like adding high-tech changes to stores. That includes replacing paper price tags with electronic displays that can be updated instantly – making it far easier to change prices quickly and at scale.

Around 2,300 US locations are already using the digital shelf labels, with plans to expand the system chain-wide within the next year. Walmart affirms that prices are still set by humans despite the updated digital system. 

For Costco, keeping prices even lower than Walmart has been a huge pillar of their business model. To keep costs down, Gildenberg said the company’s annual fee allows it to sell products ‘at very low margins that basically cover their operating cost.’ 

‘Walmart’s Sam’s Club division runs a variation on that model but here Costco is the more efficient operator and can usually afford to sell at a lower price and make money,’ he added.

Costco also makes a portion of their profits from membership fees, $65 per year for a standard membership and $130 per year for the more premium version, which includes two percent cash back. And despite Target’s discounts, inviting lighting, cult following and (sometimes) lower prices, Walmart continues to draw in more budget-conscious shoppers. 

Target’s stock price has fallen more than 50 percent over the past five years, while Walmart’s total value has surged above $1 trillion. 

In late 2025, Walmart saw foot traffic improve by 2.3 percent year over year, while Target saw a nearly matching decline of 2 percent. Walmart also recently announced more than 650 scheduled remodels and 20 new storefront openings slated for 2026 and early 2027.

Neil Saunders said many Americans remain under pressure from higher prices, including recent gas hikes. ‘This has made a lot of people look to value chains like Walmart to help them make their dollars go further,’ he added.

For my everyday shopping, even if Costco offers the ‘lowest’ prices, it’s just not worth it for me to lug around 30 mini cans of Pepsi when I can instead sling a ten-pack under my arm. I’m sure it makes sense for a big family, but I think just because of the bulkiness, I have to stick with Target and Walmart.

But if I need cheap Adidas or luggage, I know where to go. 

All nonperishables not immediately eaten were donated to a local food pantry.