We Bought 27 Grocery Staples at Target: Here’s the Final Checkout Cost

Whether you call it Target or by its more formal name Targét, you’ve probably heard of its reputation for hypnotizing shoppers into a spending spree. You show up looking for toothpaste and all of a sudden your cart is overflowing with everything from fun snacks to new pajamas.To see how it stacks up on affordability when you actually stick to a list, I recently shopped there for 27 common grocery items. The pre-tax total was, for me, a pleasant surprise at $113.58.

Although the retailer is not classified as a grocery store, most do have groceries. In fact, Target is actively expanding its food offerings at stores across the country. You can find meat, dairy and produce — pretty much everything you’d need for a weekly grocery trip. The store I shopped at for this review in Winston-Salem, North Carolina was recently renovated as well. 

Target’s increase in store-brand products has seemingly made them a more affordable option, something many consumers need. The Penny Hoarder’s State of Debt survey found that 24% of respondents put groceries on a credit card in the last year because they couldn’t afford to pay for them any other way.  

If grocery prices are pinching your budget just as hard, here are the details on our Target shopping experience. 

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My Experience Shopping at Target

Target was out of chicken breast the day I shopped – Mackenzie Raetz, The Penny Hoarder

I’d call my Target shopping experience positive overall. I went in the middle of a weekday knowing the location is consistently packed on weekends. That made my trip much more relaxing. 

The layout and organization of the store made everything fairly easy to find. In fact, household items like paper towels and detergent were right next to the food, so I never had to venture beyond one corner of the store to get everything on my list. 

They were completely out of chicken breast, which is a common household grocery item. They were also pretty low on six-packs of paper towels and 5-pound bags of rice. 

I don’t shop at Target for groceries often. I’ve always seen it as a place to get pretty much any other household item, and I’ve typically thought of it as the more expensive choice. However, the amount of affordable store-brand items surprised me. 

Also, this Target leans heavily on self checkout. Even when it’s slammed, there are only a few employees at checkout lanes. So if you’re like me and prefer a regular checkout lane with a full cart, you may want to see how your location operates. 

Produce and Fresh Essentials 

The only item I couldn’t find on my list was chicken breast. It did, however, have similar items like frozen chicken breast or ground chicken. You also could get individual potatoes and avocados or a bag of them, which is a nice choice to have. That didn’t translate to everything. For example, you can buy one or two whole carrots at a store like Publix, but that wasn’t an option at this Target. 

I also technically was looking for a 5-pound bag of russet potatoes, and my options were either 5 pounds of gold potatoes or 3 pounds of russet. So somewhat of a trade off there. 

Importantly, none of the meat, dairy, produce, etc. stuck out to me as being any better or worse than a store like Walmart or Publix. Stepping outside of the context of this list, Target did not have the kind of milk that I’d personally buy or very many flavors of my favorite brand of ice cream compared to grocery-focused stores. But even though fresh items aren’t as abundant as its snacks, I could definitely make it work. 

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Pantry, Bakery and Frozen Staples 

Here’s where Target tends to shine, in my opinion. It’s also where you’re going to find more spending “traps.”

Target brand shelf-stable items like rice, pasta and peanut butter are cheaper than my local Publix. But there are also so many options for much more expensive nut butters. I’m talking $2.19 for a pound of plain creamy peanut butter vs. anywhere from $5-$10 for craft nut butters that, if I’m being honest, looked tasty. 

Target tends to have a lot of those tempting snacks — things like probiotic sodas and brownie batter flavored protein balls that cost more than $10 for a bag with 10 pieces. You can get a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, greek yogurt and a pound of carrots (a decent lunch for several days) for less than the cost of that one snack item. 

Generally, there aren’t as many variations with the fresh items, which is why things get dicier in the pantry and bakery sections. There’s an entire aisle for different kinds of baked items, but carrots are just regular and organic. 

Name-brand items are more expensive than the store-brand items just like any other store. But even a few name brands were cheaper at this Target compared to other stores near me. A pound of Barilla spaghetti cost 10 cents less at Target vs. Publix. And Nature’s Own bread was $3.79 at Target and $4.79 at Food Lion. 

Household and Cleaning 

These items tend to tip your total upward because 99% of the time, you save by buying more. A pack of two paper towels will cost less than six. However, what you’re paying per roll will likely be lower in higher quantities. And household items can sit around for a while without going bad. So it ends up being worth it for a lot of households. 

My Target didn’t have a store-brand laundry detergent smaller than 146 oz. That is a lot, but it was also a very good deal per ounce — around the same cost per ounce as Walmart. So, even though you’re paying more than $13 for your laundry detergent, if you have the space for it in your laundry room and your weekly spend, it’s worth it. 

I almost didn’t notice the fact that there were two versions of Target-brand six-pack paper towels. I was surprised they cost $14.99, but that was the premium version. This location also had a Dealworthy version that was only $4.29. If you ever spot that label, it’s likely the cheapest version of that item you’ll find in the store. Target came out with its Dealworthy line in 2024 to provide ultra affordable prices on basics like trash bags and floss. That definitely makes Target more competitive when it comes to household items.  

What I Paid

The total for our standard list of staples came to $113.58 at a Winston-Salem, North Carolina store in early October 2026. It required few variations — no chicken in store so I had to find the price online. Also the bag of potatoes was gold rather than russet and the frozen mixed veggies came in 12-ounce packages rather than 16. 

If you think you’d spend less at Walmart for the same items, you’d be right. We did the same review for the country’s largest grocery store chain. 

Category	Item	Target Brand/Size	Qty	Price
Produce	Bananas	Loose, per lb	3 bananas	$0.87
Produce	Baby carrots	1 lb bag	1	$1.39
Produce	Russet Gold potatoes	5 lb bag	1	$6.79
Produce	Romaine lettuce	1 bag	1	$3.59
Produce	Avocados	Each	1	$1.19
Meat & Protein	Boneless chicken breast	Per lb	3 lbs	$11.97
Meat & Protein	80/20 ground beef	Per lb	2 lbs	$14.78
Meat & Protein	Large eggs	1 dozen, grade A	1	$1.69
Meat & Protein	Bacon	16 oz	1	$4.39
Dairy	Whole milk	1 gallon	1	$2.19
Dairy	Shredded cheddar cheese	8 oz	1	$1.99
Dairy	Butter	1 lb, 4 sticks	1	$3.19
Dairy	Greek yogurt	32 oz tub	1	$3.29
Pantry	White rice	5 lb bag	1	$3.59
Pantry	Pasta – spaghetti	16 oz box	1	$1.29
Pantry	Canned black beans	15 oz can	1	$0.99
Pantry	Peanut butter	16 oz jar	1	$2.19
Pantry	Cooking oil	48 oz bottle	1	$3.99
Pantry	Cereal – store brand Life	Family size box	1	$5.29
Frozen	Frozen mixed vegetables	12 oz bag	1	$0.99
Frozen	Frozen pizza – pepperoni	12-inch	1	$4.39
Bakery	Sandwich bread	20 oz loaf	1	$1.59
Beverages	Coffee (ground)	12 oz bag	1	$8.99
Beverages	Orange juice	52 oz	1	$3.69
Household	Paper towels	6 rolls	1	$4.29
Household	Dish soap	20 fl oz	1	$1.59
Household	Laundry detergent	146 fl oz	1	$13.39
TOTAL CART				$113.58

Tips for Saving at Target

I’d give the same advice for Target as any other store — make a list and stick to it. And if you prefer name brand for just a couple things like paper towels or peanut butter, know that it may not shoot your total up as high as you think. 

The best bargains I found were:

• Eggs at $1.69 a dozen. This was even cheaper than Walmart.
• Frozen mixed veggies at 99 cents. This was just as cheap as Walmart. 
• Laundry detergent at 9 cents per ounce. Although the larger size was the only option, I’m willing to buy this jumbo version of something shelf stable that I use a lot. 

And the overpriced items — meaning I can find them cheaper elsewhere where I am — were:

• Coffee at $8.99. 
• Frozen pizza at $4.39.
• Orange juice at $3.69. 

Here is how I’d save at Target if I decided to do my grocery shopping there from now on:

• Sign up for Target circle: There are multiple options for this. Target Circle™ is the free loyalty program for deals and bonuses. Target Circle™ Card is a store card that gets you a 5% discount when you sign up, two-day free shipping on certain items and an extra 30 days on returns. Target Circle 360™ is a paid membership program that gets you extra perks like monthly freebies, exclusive discounts and unlimited $35+ same-day delivery. I’d suggest starting with the free loyalty program and, if you become a die-hard Target fan, see if the extra perks of 360 would benefit you. Store credit cards usually aren’t worth it, especially if right now your focus is simply saving money. 
• Download the app: You can check prices ahead of time. It even shows the cost per ounce on the app, whether it’s in stock and which aisle you can find it in. 
• Shop the Dealworthy brand: There are hundreds of household items on this list. So even though there aren’t any food items under this umbrella, it’s nice to know you can find great deals on things like school supplies or toiletries while you’re shopping. 

Mackenzie Raetz is senior editor of freelance and a Certified Educator in Personal Finance.