9 Grocery Stores That Offer Price Matching
Stocking up on groceries can come with a hefty bill and some buyer's remorse if you find a better deal elsewhere. Fortunately, there are plenty of grocery stores that will match lower prices offered at other stores so that you can still keep things within budget. The trick is to provide the required documentation, such as receipts and store flyers showing lower prices.
Some places have specific policies that apply to store brand products only, while others have a more generous return refund or price matching policy that applies across the board. It's also important to pay attention to time limits, since many of the price matching requirements only apply if it's within a certain time frame of your original purchase. Find out if you need to present a store receipt, a competitors flyer, or other documentation to get your price matching. Sometimes, it is up to individual store managers, and policies can vary from store to store.
These are some of the top grocery stores to shop at, not just for deals, but to match lower prices so that you get the best possible bang for your buck.
Walmart
Walmart offers price matching in some cases, but the exact rules are different for online purchases versus in-store items. When you're shopping in the actual store, it's up to the individual store manager to decide.
If you see a better deal on Walmart.com, you can get the same price matched on the purchase at the store. You'll need to provide the exact advertisement in order to get the price adjustment. Walmart tries to include the best prices via the website, so you won't be able to get any price matching to lower those prices, even if you see it offered lower elsewhere.
One of the best things about price matching at Walmart is that there is a wide selection of products. You can find everything from groceries to houses to automotive and more. The downside is that the policies can vary by store, so it's best to inquire at your local Walmart before making a purchase if a failure to price-match would be a deal breaker. You can also order items at the Walmart website and have them shipped to your home or your local store.
Target
Another store that carries a wide variety of items is Target. There are a lot of special deals and sales, especially when you use the Target app. However, this requires a bit more legwork on your part to stay on top of current prices and specials. If you find something cheaper at Target.com than you paid in the store, you can get the price adjusted. The same policy applies to items purchased online that are offered for less at the store. However, if a specific Target store has an item discounted, you can't get that lower price — even on the same thing from other Target stores.
If you do spend the time browsing the app and find something offered at a lower price, just take the digital flyer to Target customer service counter to get that sale honored, even if you've purchased the item at a higher price previously. This also applies to Target Circle deals, if you are a Target Circle member. You'll have to show proof of membership to get the lower price.
Target will match lower prices from Amazon and Walmart as well. However, you can't combine those price matches with the Target Circle deals. In order to get the item price matched, it has to be in stock at the time of the price match and the exact same. You have up to 14 days after you've made a purchase to submit everything needed for a price match.
Costco
Head to Costco if you want to get good deals on bulk purchases. The warehouse store offers price adjustment, where the company refunds the difference if it ends up offering the same product for a lower price. This doesn't apply to online purchases at in-store prices, however.
To take advantage of Costco price adjustments, you need to be a frequent online Costco shopper to stay on top of what is offered and current pricing. There are a lot of deals that are listed as online-only, so it's easy to understand exactly what you're purchasing. In some cases, you can still pick the item up at your local Costco store.
Costco is known for bulk items, which means you may end up with a larger purchase than you really need. In that case, the price matching may not be worth it if you aren't going to use all of a particular product.
Sam's Club
Another warehouse-style store that offers price adjustments is Sam's Club. The policy is pretty strict, however, and to be approved for a price match, the item has to be comparable to what you've purchased. It's only available for online retailers and has to be in stock, in the same quantity, the exact same color and size, and within seven days of your original Sam's Club purchase.
One of the best things about Sam's Club's price matching policy is how easy it is to apply this to online purchases. If you know that the same item is offered by another online retailer for less, you can include that information in the special instructions section of checkout.
Sam's Club also has online-only deals that may go on sale, even if the in-store product is at full price. There are also certain items only available online and not carried in the warehouse. The best thing to do for both price matching and special sales is to check out what's offered online before heading into the Sam's Club store. That way, you know where the best price is.
Wegmans
Known for a killer cheese department and the fun trains running across the top of the store, Wegmans has a good variety of gourmet grocery items, ready-to-eat deli and bakery goods, premade dinners, and cooking staples.
While it won't price match other retailers, Wegmans will price match any lower prices on home and entertaining items that go down within 30 days of you purchasing the item at a higher price. If something goes on sale within that time frame, you can go back to Wegman's with your original receipt to get the difference.
The exception to this is seasonal items that go on sale at the end of the season. For example, plates, napkins, and serving dishes with summer themes often go on sale as the fall inventory hits the shelves. The same is true for holiday items, graduation products, and themed goods for other special occasions. Once these go on sale, you can't return to get the lower price. The store manager ultimately has the authority to offer price matching, if eligible.
Aldi
Considered one of the cheapest grocery stores out there, Aldi is a budget-conscious shopper's paradise. You can already get a ton of affordable items at Aldi, but take advantage of the store's price guarantees to get the best deals. If you buy an Aldi Finds item that later gets discounted, you can get the store to match the new price if it's within 14 days of your original purchase. You'll need to show your original receipt with the higher purchase price to an employee to get the price adjustment.
Take a walk through the sale aisles and the Aldi Finds aisle periodically to see if things have been discounted. Different price tags mean various things, but look for a red tag to indicate a price drop or clearance item. Unfortunately, it doesn't include any seasonal items or Aldi products that are available year-round.
Some Aldi stores are also cheaper than others due to customer demand and what's currently selling. This can mean different prices at different stores, especially if you're visiting another region. You have to take your receipt back to the original store where you purchased your item in order to get the price matching offer.
Publix
The Publix Promise policy says that if you scan any item and it's higher than the retail price, you'll get that item for free. This is a fantastic way to ensure that prices in the store match what they are supposed to be and that you aren't overcharged. If you see the items priced lower on the Publix flyer or on the shelf, you can get it compensated. This doesn't apply to alcohol and tobacco, however, due to legal requirements.
Publix does not price match other retailers, so you can't bring in another grocery store ad and try to make the argument to get your free goods. This Southern grocery store is mostly located in Florida, but has other locations in states around the region as well. It's known for fantastic customer service, as well as tasty take-home dishes and freshly baked goods. Even though there isn't a specific price matching policy, you can count on the employees to go above and beyond.
Hy-Vee
Hy-Vee is a regional grocery store mostly limited to the Midwest with one of the best rewards programs. However, not everyone may be familiar with this smaller chain, since Hy-Vee stores are only located in Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. Because these stores are locally owned, each manager has a lot of control over how they implement price matching.
The exact policy is set by the store, but at least some Hy-Vee stores price match other competitors. Because the focus at Hy-Vee is on local business, the store often limits price matching to other local stores. For example, at the Topeka, Kansas, store only deals offered at retailers within the city limits are eligible for price matching.
You may also be limited to just one price matching item per type — even if you're buying multiple products, you can only get price matching on one. You also have to bring in the physical flyer or a digital version that can be verified. Screenshots will not work, so keep track of your grocery store ads if you want to ask for price matching at Hy-Vee.
ShopRite
ShopRite is a regional chain in the Northeast that has around 280 stores located in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Delaware, and Maryland. Like some other chains, ShopRite has policies to make sure scanned prices aren't higher than the advertised price.
Known as the ScanRite guarantee, this policy says that the store will provide an item for free if it scans at a higher price than listed. This only applies that cost $10 or less. If the retail price is higher than $10, the ScanRite guarantee includes an extra $10 off in addition to re-scanning the item at the correct price. The policy does not include alcoholic purchases, tobacco items, and some other types of products as required by state laws.
Hopefully you can catch the price adjustment right away, but if you notice it when you get home, you have seven days to return to ShopRite to get the correct price matched.