Maybe it’s regional! I thought the produce and meat was just OK. I like HMart meat a lot better and the little produce stores around my city are a lot cheaper/fresher. But I know stores are very different in different areas.
3 Likes
That makes a lot of sense. I’ve always thought their fresh selection was much better than, say, King Soopers/Kroger or Walmart, but those are my main local alternatives. It’s not as great now that I’m getting pickup and people pack my bananas in the middle of the bag under heavy things 
Edit - I always ask for paper bags in my pickup notes, and they always try so hard to get them for me. Once they were out and the packer gave me boxes 
2 Likes
Yeah, here the produce is better and cheaper and on sale, you can get better prices on meat. I get antibiotic-free boneless skinless chicken for $2.99 a pound. Sometimes it’s that cheap or cheaper at the supermarket, but not for antibiotic-free and I do care about that detail.
3 Likes
Oh for it’s for SURE better than Kroger or Walmart.
3 Likes
I have found sprouts to be cheaper if I am just buying produce and sometimes meat if it is on sale. Anything that comes in a package is much cheaper at the regular grocery store or costco. In olden-days when I had oodles of time for grocery shopping I would go every week to sprouts and safeway/king soopers to buy the cheapest things at the cheapest stores. Now if my list looks produce-heavy I go to sprouts and if it is packaged-heavy I go to safeway or king soopers.
ETA - Sprouts also has dairy-free/soy-free pastries which make me SO HAPPY when I get to go to sprouts. And they are $3.99 for 18 strudel. They make me very happy.
8 Likes
I will say, though, I spent like $4 on whole wheat farfalle at Sprouts because that’s the store I go to personally (the Boy does the King Soopers) and, while extravagant, it’s not outlandish as a per-meal thing and it has been a delightful treat on my kale and salmon caesar salads. But yeah, if I always bought spaghetti at Sprouts I would go broke for sure. Some of the store-brand packaged items are competitive, like salsa and tahini.
3 Likes
Fwiw, if you’re in the US I believe all chicken is now required to be antibiotic free - just not every brand advertises it as such.
4 Likes
That’s an awesome policy!
1 Like
that is a much better reason than mine, which is I do it because it is less work for me, and if the person who gets it for free wants to spend the time/effort finding top dollar for it, they deserve the money.
Also, this is a money saving mindset for me, because I want to feel a little bit the pain of having spent money on a thing I’m not keeping to the end of its life. It makes me more intentional about things I’m uncertain about, rather than thinking I can always return/resell. (I also don’t like returning most things now that I know that many end up in landfill and not put ‘back on the shelves’.)
6 Likes
Alright you all are confirming my theory that Sprouts is better in Colorado than it is other places: I’m seeing my Colorado friends more excited about it than non-Colorado friends. Sprouts in the Bay Area: fine! Sprouts in CO: your best bet for produce, and skews cheaper than Safeway or King Soopers, depending on what you’re getting.
5 Likes
My sentiments about Sprouts exactly! (ETA for @bernadette, I’m in LA) There are definitely a lot of expensive things for sale (fancy seaweed supplements and ??? whatever) , and they don’t have a lot of choices for packaged goods, although if you need to grab a can of beans or soy sauce or plain pasta you won’t need a second mortgage but not a place to stock up. The produce is more expensive than a discount store or some small ethnic markets (lots of variability, I’ve lived/shopped in places where this is great) but reliably high quality and way cheaper than a traditional supermarket. The meat I trust more than the international markets/stores I have found in the area, and IMO its acceptably priced if not super cheap.
2 Likes
We have none of these stores here so I’m just following along, fascinated.
6 Likes
You have weird stores, your Publix and WinnDixies and Save A Lots 
4 Likes
Publix is my jam and my mom has one of the new fancy Winn Dixie stores by her. That thing has an amazing deli and prepared food section,plus really nice cheeses.
3 Likes
I think Sprouts is definitely better in Colorado. It was my go-to store when I lived in COS, and was consistently cheaper for almost everything than the other stores. King Soopers was decently cheap as well, but Sprouts consistently had everything I needed in one stop. Now I live in AZ and the Sprouts are OK, but there are way better discount grocery stores around so I find myself rarely shopping there. When I DO go, my bill is always at least $75 which is wild because I don’t even spend that much when I shop at Natural Grocers, which I tend to consider to be the most expensive place ever.
5 Likes
Sprouts is also better for produce where my folks live in AZ. Other than farm stands and stuff. But compared to other grocery stores, it’s routinely superior for us. I’m astounded by how BAD a lot of the produce is down there compared to the PNW, when it’s right by Cali and Mexico.
3 Likes
More expensive than Whole Foods
.
1 Like
I always felt Sprouts is what WF before Amazon wished it was, but half the price. Post-Amazon WF is cheaper but more corporate and “watered down”…
5 Likes
I think that’s a great reason! Especially this:
It’s so easy to give things away these days. When I left my last city I gifted my two very expensive window air condition units to two different households who really needed them. It was so fun just showing up like, “hey, you said your place was too hot…want this?” haha! They were thrilled. I also gave my kitchen island to our old upstairs neighbors who were so sweet and always watched our kitty when we were away. It’s nice to know it’s in a good home because I spent so much time with that thing it became like part of me! Husband just found a free home for his old guitars (kids music program) and I found one for my old cameras. It’s great! I love how the internet makes this stuff easier.
9 Likes
I only give things away because - and this is surely woo! - I feel like the universe/God will give me stuff when I need it, but I have to be a giver before I’m a receiver.
I loved King Soopers before Kroger bought them.
I have not found anyplace that I’m happy about meat buying here - the selection is poor and the prices seem high everywhere! - but I was spoiled by my neighborhood IGA in Ohio.
3 Likes