Price comparison finds Whole Foods and Acme as most expensive in Greater Philly

A December story on Philly.com reported the findings of a Consumers' Checkbook study that compared prices of 19 grocery stores in the region. The lowest prices? Walmart. The highest? Whole Foods.

"When Amazon purchased Whole Foods last year, many consumers were excited by the prospect of paying Amazon-like prices for Whole Foods-quality products," said Checkbook Executive Editor Kevin Brasler. "But we're not there quite yet."

Checkbook staff members checked prices on 154 common items, and they surveyed thousands of consumers to assess the quality of the products and services offered at the stores. Although Whole Foods scored poorly on price, it was one of the highest rated grocers.

Unfortunately for Acme, it was not only one of the highest-priced grocery chains, but it was also one of the lowest rated. Only Whole Foods was more expensive.

The highest rated store in the region was Wegmans, and their prices came in at three percent below average.

Bottom Dollar has lowest prices in Philly region, according to study

According to a story on CBS Philly, researchers from the Delaware Valley Consumers' Checkbook visited supermarkets across the Philadelphia region to see which retailer had the lowest prices. The shoppers compared prices on 151 items, including fresh produce, fresh meat, national brand prepared foods and dairy products.

And the winner is... Bottom Dollar. The discount grocer's basket sold for $78, compared to the same basket at Whole Foods, which cost $134.

Walmart and Wegmans (yes, Wegmans) came in second and third place, respectively. According to Checkbook Executive Director Kevin Brasler, Bottom Dollar, Walmart and Wegmans offered significant grocery savings on a daily basis, as compared to other supermarkets that attract customers with sales.

"Big chains like Acme, Pathmark, Giant and ShopRite really pull customers in with sale prices," said Brasler, who also pointed out that prices on other items can be high and even vary from store to store.

The researchers determined that Giant, Food Lion, ShopRite, Redner's, Target and Weis all have prices that are lower than average. Pathmark and Super Fresh, both owned by A&P, had prices that were higher than average, and Whole Foods and Acme had the highest prices.

Aldi was mentioned as having "steep savings" but a limited selection.