Let’s Go Winco Shopping
by Katy on June 4, 2025 · 53 comments
I’ve spent the past couple of days building a grocery list in anticipation of a Winco shopping trip. For those outside the Pacific Northwest, Winco is an employee owned no-frills grocery chain and is pretty much the cheapest game in town. (Plus their bulk food section is amazing!) This might not seem like much of a list, but I know I’ll add much more than what’s on here.
The standard advice on how to save money at the grocery store is to “make a list and stick to it!” But I’m here to say that this advice doesn’t make room for surprise bargains, like these sweet mini peppers for $1.98 apiece. I bought two.
Or these lil’ tomatoes for 98¢, I also grabbed two.
I also would’ve missed out on these 78¢ hotdogs had I stuck to my list. I’ve seen some Instagram reels where people stick a skewer into a hotdog and then cut it into a spiral and thought it would be fun to give that technique a try.
In the end I walked out with 24 grocery items instead of the seven on my original list.
Here it is all laid out at home. You’ll notice that I didn’t buy the panko crumbs from my list, as Winco’s version was 45¢ more than Dollar Tree.
The total cost for my big Winco trip was $51.23, which is kind of miraculous in these economic times. I always procrastinate going to Winco, as it’s kind of a schlep, but I’m always happy that I’ve gone as their prices, especially on fresh produce make it worth the effort.
Do you have a similar store in your part of the world?
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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{ 53 comments… read them below or add one }
We had Winco in So California and have one in Central
Oklahoma albeit not always on my beaten path.
I didn’t realize they went as far as Oklahoma.
When I come visit you this fall, I think we need to take a Winco field trip, just so I can step foot into one!
Just like I hit up an Aldi when I was in Nebraska!
https://thenonconsumeradvocate.com/five-frugal-things-636/
We have a Grocery Outlet (aka GrossOut) — they have great prices but you never know what you’re gonna find.
We have Grocery Outlet here, but I rarely go there.
I probably go to Grocery Outlet as often as I go to Winco. They often have products that meet my allergy needs including gluten free.
Ha! On my last trip to GO I found 3-1lb packages of Land o’ Lakes Unsalted Butter for the low, low price of $2.98. Yep, slightly under $1.00 per pound. I bought five packs for me and four for a friend. It was mighty tempting to grab it all, but I wanted others to get the same thrill and my freezer only has so much room…
I have two GO’s nearby, but the Winco stores in the region are sadly, not close, and not on the way to anywhere else I go regularly.
We have Surplus Outlet which is mostly knock-off brands; however, you occasionally find something worthwhile. It’s quite a distance away, but we stop when we go by.
We also have a local Mennonite-owned “farm market” about an hour away called Ard’s Farm Market. Some name brand stuff, mostly knock-off things. Again, watch dates. We got a 9 oz bottle of Kame Spicy Orange Dipping Sauce for 99 cents last year. Not dated, but took a chance. Really good on pork and chicken!
Orange marmalade, sriacha, and soy sauce makes a great dipping sauce. You can also mix orange marmalade, some BBQ sauce and soy sauce. Fast, easy orange chicken.
I also live in the Pacific Northwest and have a Winco nearby. When they make a special purchase they pass the savings on to their customers. Their specials really are special in that they will continue to sell at the “special” price until the stock is gone unlike regular grocers who have short windows for their sales and/or limit the amount of product we can buy. I also am a big fan of the bulk buy area, particularly for my herbs and spices. Being able to buy just what I need for a recipe insures that my spices are always fresh. It also enables me to try different spices without investing in a whole bottle.
I’m not in PNW and have been trying Winco. I’m impressed that they are open 24/7. I’ve learned to look for the green tags and that’s really all I buy when I’m there. Everything else I can buy cheaper somewhere else. I’ve been exploring Trader Joe’s too. They have a lot of gluten free options and already made recipes I’ve never eaten before like when am I ever going to make chicken mole. I also like their nuts.
No, but I can show you where to get $120/pound lobster salad!
I live in Maine it’s $60 a pound picked lobster meat
$120 is a joke even here. Prices tend to vary wildly depending on the lobster harvest. I think I paid $60 a pound last time I bought any*–I only ever bought it for my mom in the nursing home and she’s been dead for a year now. I dislike shellfish, but my mom and my son used to have a great time picking apart lobsters.
H-E-B used to be a great store, and then I moved out of state, and then when I returned it was not-so-great. They once called their stores the Inflation Fighters, but now, I think they are pretty high. Lots of selection but not lots of savings IMO.
There was once a salvage grocery called Frugal’s. Loved the name, loved the bargain hunt. Although some items were a bit strange. It’s since closed.
So has the darling little grocery store run by a local Christian mission. It was trying to solve the problem of having a food desert in the older neighborhood. It couldn’t compete with other stores, but it had really nice fresh produce grown in its greenhouse. It closed a couple of months ago.
Now all we have is Aldi, which is pretty good — but I often find our drugstore has foods, energy drinks, Blue Bell Ice Cream (best on the planet!), bottled water (a case of 24 bottles for $2.29 every day) and other stuff cheaper.
If I can’t find something at our place or Aldi, then Walmart is my go-to place. Even though I wish it wasn’t.
I’m so sorry to hear the mission grocery store closed. Food access is really close to my heart, but grocery stores have such slim margins that most models can’t survive without intensive subsidy.
We developed a model in one neighborhood that combines retail grocery with food insecurity resources like free produce, dry staples and frozen soups/meals from a nonprofit kitchen that uses rescued food. Many of the retail items are a little higher than the regular grocery, but taken together, people can feed their families reasonably without the cost and hassle of a bus trip to the supermarket.
Great price on eggs! Up here in the Seattle-ish area, a couple of weeks ago, Costco had them for about $3.49/doz. This leads me to wonder why Fred Meyer/Kroger is still charging $7.19/doz? Even some smaller independent stores aren’t charging that much, for regular cage free eggs.
San Marzono tomatoes are so good!
I’m surprised they’re allowed to sell them under that name. San Marzano is a protected origin food, meaning that only tomatoes grown in Italy are allowed to be called that. Well, Mexico isn’t bound by EU law, I guess.
San Marzano, the variety, can be grown anywhere and labeled with the variety name – however, they’re not DOP certified, which requires being grown in the correct region of Italy with prescribed methods and, if canned, processed in a particular way.
Am I reading that right – carrots are $6.18 a POUND? If so, wow, a 3 lb bag in my area is like $3.49.
It is the Paprika that is $6 per #. 🙂
So interesting that Winco receipts print the opposite of stores in my area – item name prints then the cost per pound/each.
Those little San Marzano tomatoes! I saw the EXACT same ones at my local Publix TODAY for $2.99 a bag — ON SALE — Insert eyeroll here! I strolled right past them!
I do the bulk of my shopping at Aldi, and then fill in with Publix loss leaders / BOGO items.
Here in SW Washington state, nothing beats Winco for low prices. There is a store only a mile from my house, so it’s convenient as well. I go to Winco about once a month and stock up on grocery basics. I buy detergents and a few cleaning supplies there too (the ones I can’t get at the dollar store). Winco is not the store for a fun shopping experience, but the low prices make it all worthwhile.
In Fairbanks, the second largest city in the state and located in the northern part of Alaska, we don’t have any discount type stores. Sometimes there are weird deals at Home Depot, for bottled water or Dawn or cleaning supplies like bleach; they are never advertised, you just have to happen to go there that day. I am not sure what stores they have in our largest city, Anchorage, located in the central part of the state.
I know very few people who don’t garden to help with getting fresh and cheaper food. Even on condo porches you see hanging baskets of tomatoes and herbs. And many folks do subsistence hunting and fishing. We are too old to do that anymore. I should say I am too old as I was the hunter in my youth; these days I can barely wrestle a package of Safeway burger into the car, never mind the hind end of a moose. But I have generous younger friends so we almost always have moose and salmon in the freezer.
I’m curious, what does moose taste like?
Julia, I’m guessing that it tastes like a somewhat stronger version of venison. But I too would like Lindsey to give her expert opinion.
We have Aldi and Ollie’s Outlet, which is a closeout/overstock store. Aldi is great for markdowns of at least 50% — we have fond memories of last year when Reese’s cups were 39 cents — and Ollie’s has several aisles of shelf-stable food and pet food. I am very fond of the organic canned tomatoes, beans, pie filling, gluten-free trail mix, big bags of Sun- maid raisins for $1.99, Lipton tea and discounted ground coffee.
Ruby, Aldi and Ollie’s are almost my only options too, except for a little no-name grocery outlet where you have to check the best-by dates on even shelf-stable things pretty carefully, and where the fruits and veggies look like things I’d like to throw at certain politicians if they ever came to town. (All that said, however, the grocery outlet has started stocking day-old bakery products now that the Freihofer bakery outlet that used to be next door to it has closed.)
Here in New England, Market Basket is a family-owned chain that used to have the best prices. Lately, not so much. I have been finding that I can beat their prices on many items with sale prices from our Shaw’s.
Thanks for jogging the memory of taking my elderly Mom to shop at Shaw’s when I was visiting her. It has been many years but I can clearly see us doing that and chatting.
In Chicagoland, Aldi is the bargain store. We also have Food 4Less, but sometimes, on some things, their prices are higher than their sister store, Mariano’s, which is considered upscale. Many like Trader Joe’s, but it’s never won me over. I go to Walmart once a month for their English toasting bread and usually pick up a few other things. They have intriguing clearance shelves. A Chicago favorite is “The Jewel” which is in the Albertsons family. It’s not cheap, but they have good loss leaders, and that’s usually where I get produce.
I live in a suburb of Phoenix, and WE HAVE A WINCO about 2 miles from my house!! WOO hOO!! Once you shop there, how can you ever “go back??” The prices are incredible, and like yours, there are always pop up sales that I did not expect, in the produce department!
We eat a lot of brown rice, white jasmine rice, lentils, flax meal on steel cut oatmeal,split pea soup, etc so those BINS are my fave part of the store.
I like buying spices loose, in small amounts too.
Between Winco and Trader Joe favorites,I am happy with my shopping experience for the two of us. I am able to keep to a budget by meal planning two weeks ahead.
Locally, here our Kroger is called FRY’S and they CONSISTENTLY overcharge on sale items that are advertised..you have to watch your receipt like a hawk, things always ring up wrong and then you have to make time to go to customer service for refund, they cannot do it at the checkout! NO MORE.
I will stop in for just a few loss leaders at Fry’s if I HAVE to..
but WINCO is my store of choice!!
Those are amazing prices!!!!!Much better than I have seen at Aldi recently on several items!
A wee bit off topic: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/dollar-stores-are-seeing-higher-income-shoppers-rush-in-the-door-its-a-warning-sign-for-the-us-economy-161855738.html
“saw an increase in customers with household incomes of more than $100,000. ” Note that no one with that income EVER shopped their before.
Plenty of higher-income people shop at DT in my area – they’re everywhere, and have cleaning supplies that some seek out. I don’t go often, but the occasional stop for oxygen bleach, foil sheets (I know…), specialty foods, and a few other things is enough to stay stocked.
@Mati I have no doubt plenty of savvy people shop there, regardless of income. As of late, too many articles make you want to think that no one making $100K or more shop there. May as well as Wal-Mart to the list.
We have Aldi’s, TJ’s, Grocery Outlet, Ollie’s, Costco and Kroger. Not a huge Aldi fan overall, but they have some great affordable GF specialties affordable and frozen mussels for $2.99. TJ’s is a GF standby and has frozen prepared foods and meal components that are a great alternative to takeout. Grocery Outlet is so odd – incredible deals on a few things, high prices on many others, but bet I bought ten packages of good quality sushi nori at .99/package! Ollie’s is also pretty weird, with lots of low-grade housewares and odd food lots, and I only go when I’m right there – last time, organic canned tomatoes, raw honey, and tea, all 50-90% off.
I shop Kroger loss leaders, produce markdowns, and clearance, and do pretty well with those. I’ll only pay full price if there’s a special request or pantry/freezer stocks are running low. It’s true that they’re absolutely failing to keep the shelf prices aligned with sales, and nearly every time I need to ask for a correction.
We have only one big grocery store and one small one within 10 miles in my area and believe me the big store knows they have no competition and their prices show it. Aldis, Trader Joe’s and others such as that are over 2 hours away, so no big savings that way, However, we have a huge garden, a market that sells locally grown food and I work at a bakery that lets us take home whatever we need free. So we make it up that way.
We have a Grocery Outlet nearby that has proven reliable for bargains on certain items we buy almost every week but otherwise rely on a close by Trader Joe’s. Two years after moving here we really need to check out the local farmer’s markets more often and try the fish market not too far away. If we were willing to drive a bit further there is an independent market our son and DIL rave about for prices and choices. Occasionally we do have to buy a few things at Safeway or CVS if our regular stores don’t have them.
I forgot to add that I do occasionally walk to the expensive corner neighborhood market to get the best fresh bakery bread or veggies between regular shopping runs. We also get some treats like Bonne Maman jam or gelato bars. It all balances out for the 2 of us so far.
No one has mentioned Save-a-Lot. Their generics, (J Higgs and Ginger Somebody), are fine, and husband likes their meat prices, as much as that is possible these days. Produce is average. We generally go to the more traditional mid-range chain instead.
This is timely. I just received an email from Consumer Reports with the following info:
“Kroger is feeling the consumer pressure after tens of thousands of you signed Consumer Reports’ petition in the wake of our investigation that found the grocery chain’s chronic understaffing led to shoppers being overcharged for sale items – and that shoppers’ data is being sold to more than 50 other companies!
A day after we reported that outdated sale price tags left some shoppers being overcharged 18 percent on certain items, Kroger announced it is hiring 15,000 employees across the country to “enhance the customer experience.” And several Kroger employees told CR that store managers have directed them to systematically correct all erroneous price tags on store shelves.
While this is good news, Kroger has yet to commit to ending their sale of shoppers’ data and ensuring all loyalty program members have access to the same discounts.
If you haven’t yet, sign our petition* to Kroger to Make the Price Right. You should be able to shop for groceries without your data being sold or used to decide which discounts you have access to.”
* Here’s the petition:
https://action.consumerreports.org/nb-20250521-mtpr-kroger2?utm_campaign=update_20250605_mtpr_kroger&utm_medium=email&utm_source=cr
Wow!
Understaffed stores are the worst in my opinion– frustrating to shop at, destroying their reputation, not making a profit, eventually closing anyway. Teaches workers bad habits, doesn’t support the local economy.
WinCo also in California, Arizona and Nevada! (Perhaps included in the sun-umbrella definition of PNW?)
My little SoCal town has an IGA that has some amazing deals and a GroceryOutlet. Also a Vons/Albertsons that I shop at on very rare occasions. Aldi, Trader Joe’s, WinCo in my area are great just not as convenient…
WinCo also in Texas and Idaho
Love that!!!
…and Utah, Montana, and Oklahoma!
All the way to Oklahoma?! Yes!
Wish we had a Winco here in Cincinnati. I rotate shopping based on where I am going to be – Aldi, Kroger (try to stay away but they do have good sales and the only place close that has my Fage yogurt), Trader Joe’s. We do have a lovely little store, Country Fresh. It’s very small but they have good deals on produce and wine! Found a discount/dented grocery store north of Dayton. It’s about an hour away from me but they do have good deals, so if I’m in that direction I check it out.
We have Costco, Walmart, Sam’s, Schnucks, Aldi, Save-A-Lot, IGA, Woodmans (employee owned), Meijer, Target plus some ethnic stores. Near by small towns have a Sullivans, Felkers, Country Market, Supervalu (we used to have Eagle), Piggly Wiggly not too far of a drive. A Mennonite bulk store plus a scratch and dent (which I’ve never been to). Plus a ton of farmers markets during the season AND butcher shops which also sell some grocery items other than meat/heat-and-eat. Paying a few cents more for an item is usually cheaper than driving to the store with the *best* price in town. Time is our most expensive resource and you cannot make more time (nor more land).