The Best Grocery Retailers for Middle-Class Retirees To Save Money in 2025

Every dollar counts during retirement, especially when it comes to grocery shopping. Over the last few years, skyrocketing inflation and soaring costs on grocery staples, like eggs, has pushed shoppers to make necessary pivots to save money on groceries.

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One wildly popular pivot has been switching to shop at more affordable stores. For retirees that are retiring next year or have already retired and want to find more places to save money on groceries, GOBankingRates did the legwork to find the best grocery stores for a middle-class retirement budget.

The supermarkets, and warehouse club, on this list are so popular with shoppers that many now do all of their shopping exclusively at these stores.

In alphabetical order, middle-class retirees can save money shopping at these four grocery retailers .

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Aldi

If any one grocery store could be declared the “winner” for fighting inflation, it’s Aldi. The supermarket chain prides itself on maintaining efficient operations that allow customers to save money without sacrificing great value.

In July 2024, a general Aldi spokesperson told GOBankingRates that customers can save up to 40% on their weekly grocery bills by shopping at Aldi.

How does Aldi create savings that get passed along to customers? Some of their key actions include stocking stores with 90% Aldi-exclusive brands that are inexpensively priced and maintaining a smaller selection in stores so shoppers are able to buy what they want and need.

And with 2,415 locations across the United States, chances are most middle-class retirees have an Aldi within a reasonable distance from their homes.

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Lidl

If you haven’t tried shopping at supermarket chain Lidl yet, consider this your sign to give it a try in 2025.

Predominantly based on the East Coast, Lidl differs from Aldi in that it mixes in more name-brands with its own line of in-house brands. Several stores also have bakeries available to shop.

Like Aldi, Lidl is inexpensive to shop at if you’re on a middle-class budget. In November 2023, The Philadelphia Inquirer conducted an in-depth study at some of the city’s cheapest grocery stores. Lidl was one store cited as being the cheapest option. When compared to two dozen regional grocery stores, the prices at Lidl were 33% cheaper.

Sam’s Club

This statement may be controversial, but it’s backed up with some data. If you’re going to shop at a warehouse club next year, it’s a better investment to get a Sam’s Club membership instead of Costco.

One of the biggest reasons why has to do with membership costs. In 2024, Costco announced they were increasing membership fees for the first time in seven years. A Gold Star membership at Costco now costs $65 annually.

By comparison, a Club Membership at Sam’s Club is only $50 annually. The Sam’s Club membership also includes perks like fuel savings, free curbside pickup and Scan & Go shopping in addition to low members-only prices. Aside from saving $15 on membership fees, Sam’s Club offers a wide selection of name-brand items to shop that regularly receive Instant Savings discounts.

There are nearly 600 Sam’s Club locations across the United States, so middle-class retirees should be able to easily find a club near them.

And if you’re worried that switching to Sam’s Club means missing out on the famously low Costco rotisserie chicken price, there’s good news for you. Sam’s Club carries a Member’s Mark rotisserie chicken — and it costs $4.98.

Trader Joe’s

Trader Joe’s earns a mention not just because they offer a wide selection of affordable grocery items that can’t be found anywhere else to their customers. They also don’t use a cost-plus pricing model.

This is unusual behavior since most grocery stores have normalized using a set markup for items sold. In an episode of Inside Trader Joe’s podcast , the explanation for why this model isn’t used is because the grocery chain wants to have compelling prices.

Occasionally, prices at Trader Joe’s will go up if costs change. However, raising retail prices was described as a “last-resort” scenario in the podcast.

When costs go down, the retail prices are lowered for Trader Joe’s customers immediately. This not only sets their stores apart but is a major win-win for shoppers to save money getting the groceries they want.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com : The Best Grocery Retailers for Middle-Class Retirees To Save Money in 2025