Grocery price$ in Delaware // up or down? (Dover, Camden: sales, 2014)

[countryswan]

Has anyone recently moved to Delaware and noticed the grocery store prices?

Would you say they cost more / or cost less than where you moved from?


(Farmers market prices are not really what I'm looking for
since those prices can vary from farm to farm.)

[Mary2014]

I have lived in DE for a little over 6 years and in an area where there are 4 grocery chains within 3 miles of where I live. I also have used Quicken software to track all my expenses including groceries for over 15 years .

When I first moved to DE in 2014 I was spending $200 a month at grocery stores for a single person household (that includes everything purchased at a grocery store including paper products). In 2019 it averaged $250 per month. Since January 2020 thru 9/15/2020 the average spent has been $285 per month - the increase primarily due to limiting my grocery shopping to just one store due to the pandemic - to avoid grocery shopping to once every 2 - 3 weeks. I would rather pay more than shop the sales by going to multiple stores.

I think it depends upon your location in DE and how many alternatives are available to you in your area that determines your average cost for groceries. Even before the pandemic I rarely would eat out due to food allergies - but, due to a fantastic choice of places to eat out in my area ( prior to pandemic) I know many people who spent a lot more just on dining out monthly than my entire monthly expenditure for groceries.

[countryswan]

OoOoOoo Mary!! You are doing something remarkable!!

What a good idea. I've never thought about watching grocery expenditures in this creative way.

Really, such a great idea.

If you recall, when you first moved to DE six years ago did you think the food was more
expensive or les than where you moved from?

[Mary2014]

Originally Posted by countryswan

OoOoOoo Mary!! You are doing something remarkable!!

What a good idea. I've never thought about watching grocery expenditures in this creative way.

Really, such a great idea.

If you recall, when you first moved to DE six years ago did you think the food was more
expensive or les than where you moved from?

I thought they were a tad more expensive, but, I was more concerned that particular brands that I could find in PA were not available in DE - even though I moved less than 115 miles from my previous home.

There are a few non perishable items I order on line to this day because none of the grocery stores carry the items.

There is also a BJ's that involves a 38 mile round trip to stock up on some items - so a friend and I make the trip to stock up on some things about 3 times a year.

[countryswan]

I don't live near a Whole Foods and I do the same..
I order grains on-line because even my main grocery store
big chain doesn't carry it all.

Is BJ's similar to Sam's?

[Mary2014]

Yes, Bj's is similar to a Sam's club.

[countryswan]

tanx :-)

[rdlr]

I'm a Delaware native and it's been my experience, that different chain stores have different prices. Safeway, Food Lion, Acme, and others are all more expensive that our Super WalMart store in Camden, DE. Absolutely, everything that we buy (all name brands) is much cheaper there than in other places. I've compared prices for years, and hands down, the Super WalMart is cheaper on canned goods, sodas, frozen pizza, packaged cheese, bread, coffee creamer....just everything! They also have a huge bakery and also a huge deli with fresh cut selections. Now, we don't buy any meats (don't eat much of that anyway) from any chain grocery store. Any particular meat product is purchased from our in-town butcher....fresh, for sure, and the best! For eye roasts - beef tenderloin, etc. they cut, trim and wrap them to order. I shop at WalMart once/week, and my bill is usually between $45-$55, for the 2 of us, and our pantry is stocked. The high end is because I buy washing machine liquid soap on occasion, which puts my bill up another $5 or so. We just can't beat those prices anywhere for top quality grocery items. The downfall is, some days the shelves are not as well stocked. But I know when the trucks come in, and when the shelves are freshly stocked, so that's not an issue for me. I also know when it's the busiest, so I work my trips around those days. So, bottom line, I'm a huge fan of our local Super WalMart for grocery shopping! Can't beat it!

[countryswan]

Any particular meat product is purchased from our in-town butcher....fresh


Is that in-town butcher in Camden too? Sounds like that area might be good to live near.

[nuts2uiam]

I moved here from Long Island and I find produce in the 4 stores that Mary was referencing Giant (Stop & Shop), Weis (Food Lion), Safeway & Acme to be a lot higher than on LI. In the past we have made a run to the Dover Produce Junction and that is quite reasonable. The local Farmers Markets, here at the beach are crazy. Fifers store in Dewey, is much fresher than the grocery stores and a little less, but not much. The further from the beach you are the cheaper stuff seems to be. We too get a lot from Walmart but our store is not a Super store so selection is limited.