First, I did a little research on the web to see what people were saying about where to find cheap groceries in Toronto. Know for its affordable produce, Chinatown's Kai Wei Supermarket was often mentioned in online searches and on TikTok. So were the city's more mainstream low-cost grocery retailers most of us know and frequent.
I then hit Kai Wei Supermarket, FreshCo, No Frills, Food Basics, Real Canadian Superstore, and Walmart, and purchased the same grocery items. Here is how much it cost me at each of those grocery stores:
#1: Kai Wei Supermarket
I started at Asian supermarket Kai Wei, which is located in Chinatown (253 Spadina Ave.) and renown for its cheap groceries. I began here because I thought they would have the most limited selection of comparable grocery go-tos. While Kai Wei offers most produce staples, meat, and specialty items, they don’t, however, sell things like cheeses, a wide selection of mainstream cereals and snacks, or a variety of baked goods.
Here is what I bought at Kai Wei, and the other groceries stores:
3 limes
1 yellow onion
1 bag of green grapes
1 pint of blueberries
1 pint of grape tomatoes
1 package of whole white mushrooms
1 large crown of broccoli
12 large white eggs
1 package of spaghetti pasta
1 jar of Classico pasta sauce
1 large chicken breast (or two servings worth)
The bill here was an easy-to-swallow $37.41, not including bags.
#2: Food Basics
With multiple locations throughout the city, Food Basics is Toronto's second cheapest grocery retailer. I hit the location at 238 Wellesley St. E. Despite having the most items on sale (as highlighted in pink on the spreadsheet below), however, the final price tag was pretty comparable at Food Basics to Walmart and FreshCo.
The bill was a total of $40.44, not including bags.
#3: Walmart Supercentre
Affordable big box giant Walmart Supercentre was the third cheapest retailer. If you live in downtown Toronto, however, you may have to travel quite a ways to find a Walmart Supercentre. The closest to the downtown core is at Dufferin Mall (900 Dufferin St.), which meant a journey across town and back for me.
The was a total of $40.69, not including bags.
#4: FreshCo
FreshCo was the fourth cheapest grocery retailer, with a tab comparable to that of its competitors, Food Basics and Walmart. Conveniently, however, Canadian grocery chain has a handful of downtown locations, including one at 325 Parliament St, where I shopped.
The bill was a total of $41.76, not including bags.
#5: No Frills
No Frills takes the fifth spot in Toronto's cheap grocery store showdown. The final tab at No Frills (75 The Esplanade) was notably higher than the four cheapest stores. The same groceries cost $11.41 more at No Frills than Kai Wei. With locations throughout the city, however, some may argue the convenience factor is worth the extra cost.
The bill was a total of $49.57, not including bags.
#6: Real Canadian Superstore
Real Canadian Superstore (825 Don Mills Rd.) took the biggest toll on the wallet, something that came as a bit of a surprise. Then again, it was my first time shopping there. Shopping at Kai Wei, the cheapest retailer, will save you $15.23(!) compared to shopping at Real Canadian Superstore.
The bill here was a pricey $52.64, not including bags.
From Aisle to Analysis: The Process
From Toronto's west end to North York, I tried to find comparable product sizes and brands at each of the other stores. For the most part, this worked. There were just a couple of small exceptions. For example, No Frills was out of blueberries during my visit, so I purchased one dry pint of blackberries instead, which were the same size. The spaghetti pasta purchased also differed between Primo and Italpasta brands.
For the chicken, the goal was to find the smallest package of chicken breast(s) at each store. This was roughly two adult-sized servings. While I initially purchased one notably large chicken breast at Kai Wei, all of the other retailers sold them in packages of two or more, or in packages of small filets.
When it came time to cost-compare the items, there were a few things to keep in mind. Namely, things like quantity and price per unit. As I learned when I compared 88 Dollarama items to those at other low-cost retailers, size variations of name brand products may vary slightly between stores. For example, while Classico pasta sauce was available at all retailers, it came in a slightly larger size at Kai Wei.
Furthermore, while the chicken breasts were roughly the same size, I was sure to convert the price of each item by cost per 100 grams for the most accurate price comparison. For staple items, like eggs, I purchased the cheapest brand offered in each store. I documented the items, prices, and conversions at each store in a spreadsheet and was sure to keep the receipts.
In order to be as specific as possible, most items were broken down into the cost per 100 grams or millilitres. Six of the 11 items were cheapest at Kai Wei.
Here’s the breakdown of the cheapest retailer for specific grocery items:
3 limes: Kai Wei ($1.00)
1 yellow onion: Kai Wei ($2.08)
1 bag of green grapes: Food Basics ($4.63)
1 package of blueberries: Kai Wei ($1.99)
1 package of grape tomatoes: Kai Wei ($2.99)
1 package of whole white mushrooms: Kai Wei ($3.12)
1 large crown of broccoli: Food Basics ($0.88)
12 large white eggs: Freshco, Walmart, Food Basics, Real Canadian Superstore ($3.93)
1 package of spaghetti pasta: Walmart ($0.97)
1 jar of Classico pasta sauce: No Frills ($3.27)
Chicken breast: Kai Wei ($7.69)
So, if you’re in the market for cheap groceries and live in Toronto, Kei Wei is your best bet. The only downside to Kai Wei is they don’t have a huge selection of things like cheeses or pasta sauce (or gluten-free pasta, for that matter). But, for fruits and veggies, it’s your cheapest option. For a more extensive grocery shop, second place spot Food Basics may be your best bet.
No, that's some (cheap) food for thought.
