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We compared prices of 12 food staples at grocery stores in Canada to find the cheapest basket

Loblaws isn't the most expensive. đź‘€

Lisa Belmonte | Narcity

A basket of groceries can be quite expensive at a lot of grocery stores in Canada these days.

So, Narcity checked the prices of a dozen staple food items at Loblaws, Walmart and Sobeys to compare the total basket costs.

That's because those retailers are nationwide chains. Also, the stores are some of the most expensive and the least expensive grocery retailers in the country, according to Canadian shoppers.

Narcity checked the regular prices of grocery staples like bread, potatoes, berries, coffee and other items because the sale prices change weekly.

Since these stores have different sizes for a lot of products, we also broke down the prices based on item size.

Now, let's get into the price breakdowns for these 12 grocery staples, along with comparisons of the total basket costs and the "price per" costs at each store.

Sliced bread

Loblaws: $2.50 for a 675-gram loaf of No Name sliced bread — $0.37 per 100 grams

Walmart: $2.48 for a 675-gram loaf of Great Value sliced bread — $0.36 per 100 grams

Sobeys: $2.89 for a 570-gram loaf of Compliments sliced bread — $0.50 per 100 grams

Butter

Loblaws: $7.99 for a 454-gram block of Lactancia butter — $1.75 per 100 grams

Walmart: $5.48 for a 454-gram block of Neilson butter — $1.20 per 100 grams

Sobeys: $8.99 for a 454-gram block of Gay Lea butter — $1.98 per 100 grams

Eggs

Loblaws: $6.98 for a carton of 18 eggs — $0.38 per egg

Walmart: $7.39 for a carton of 18 eggs — $0.41 per egg

Sobeys: $6.99 for a carton of 18 eggs — $0.38 per egg

Blueberries

Loblaws: $5 for a 340-gram pack of blueberries — $1.47 per 100 grams

Walmart: $4.44 for a 312-gram pack of blueberries — $1.42 per 100 grams

Sobeys: $6.99 for a 340-gram pack of blueberries — $2.05 per 100 grams

Mini cucumbers

Loblaws: $4.50 for a pack of six mini cucumbers — $0.75 per cucumber

Walmart: $1.94 for a pack of 10 mini cucumbers — $0.19 per cucumber

Sobeys: $3.49 for a pack of six mini cucumbers — $0.58 per cucumber

Potatoes

Loblaws: $5.50 for a 4.54-kilogram bag of Farmer's Market potatoes — $0.12 per 100 grams

Walmart: $4.97 for a 2.27-kilogram bag of Your Fresh Market potatoes — $0.21 per 100 grams

Sobeys: $6.99 for a 4.54-kilogram bag of Compliments potatoes — $0.15 per 100 grams

Sliced deli meat

Loblaws: $16.99 for a 400-gram pack of Maple Leaf Natural Selections sliced deli meat — $4.24 per 100 grams

Walmart: $13.97 for a 375-gram pack of Maple Leaf Natural Selections sliced deli meat — $3.72 per 100 grams

Sobeys: $15.99 for a 400-gram pack of Maple Leaf Natural Selections sliced deli meat — $3.99 per 100 grams

Olive oil

Loblaws: $10 for for a one-litre bottle of No Name extra virgin olive oil — $1 per 100 millilitres

Walmart: $10.97 for a one-litre bottle of Great Value extra virgin olive oil — $1.09 per 100 millilitres

Sobeys: $13.99 for a one-litre bottle of Compliments extra virgin olive oil — $1.39 per 100 millilitres

Rice

Loblaws: $20.99 for a 4.54-kilogram bag of Tilda basmati rice — $0.46 per 100 grams

Walmart: $18.97 for a 4.54-kilogram bag of Tilda basmati rice — $0.41 per 100 grams

Sobeys: $14.99 for a 1.81-kilogram bag of Tilda basmati rice — $0.82 per 100 grams

Coffee

Loblaws: $33.99 for an 875-gram canister of McCafe ground coffee — $3.88 per 100 grams

Walmart: $29.97 for an 875-gram canister of McCafe ground coffee — $3.42 per 100 grams

Sobeys: $34.99 for an 875-gram canister of McCafe ground coffee — $3.99 per 100 grams

Granola bars

Loblaws: $16.99 for a 960-gram box of Quaker Chewy chocolate chip granola bars — $1.76 per 100 grams

Walmart: $13.44 for a 960-gram box of Quaker Chewy chocolate chip granola bars — $1.40 per 100 grams

Sobeys: $16.99 for a 960-gram box of Quaker Chewy chocolate chip granola bars — $1.76 per 100 grams

Sparkling water

Loblaws: $8.29 for a 12-pack of 355-millilitre cans of Bubly sparkling water — $0.19 per 100 millilitres

Walmart: $6.98 for a 12-pack of 355-millilitre cans of Bubly sparkling water — $0.16 per 100 millilitres

Sobeys: $8.49 for a 12-pack of 355-millilitre cans of Bubly sparkling water — $0.19 per 100 millilitres

TOTALS

Now that we've compared prices for these products, let's get into the totals.

Here are the total basket costs before tax at each grocery store:

  • Loblaws: $139.72
  • Walmart: $121
  • Sobeys: $141.78

Sobeys is the most expensive store for this basket of staple grocery items, with a total cost that's $20.78 more than Walmart, which is the least expensive store.

You might expect Loblaws to be the priciest, but it's cheaper than Sobeys by just $2.06.

Here are the total "price per" costs for the basket of groceries at each retailer:

  • Loblaws: $16.37
  • Walmart: $13.99
  • Sobeys: $17.78

Even when the prices are broken down by the size of the products, Sobeys is still the most expensive store for these grocery items. But the difference between the three stores isn't too big.

Walmart is the cheapest of these Canada-wide chains for the total basket and the "price per" costs.

Canadians told Narcity that Sobeys and Loblaws are two of the most expensive grocery stores in Canada, and Walmart has some of the lowest prices. So, it seems like Canadian shoppers are right!