The Best And Worst Grocery Store Chains For Buying Milk

Most homes keep some type of milk in the fridge pretty continuously. Not only can it be used in countless recipes, but it's a tasty drink all by itself (many Americans even drink milk with dinner). While you can pick up several different types of milk at just about any grocery store, some places are definitely better for this shopping list item than others. From selection to price to quality to variety, let's face it, not all grocers are the same. If you want to discover which major grocery store chains sell the least expensive milk, which ones offer the best quality brands, and which ones have the best plant-based milk selection, look no further (I've got you covered).

To find out which grocery stores are the best and worst for buying milk, I compared the price, selection, and variety of plant-based milks sold at some of the most popular chains in the United States. I also factored in whether or not these grocers carry what people consider to be the best brands (Maple Hill Organic, Organic Valley, Horizon Organic, and a2), but I'll go more in-depth about my methodology at the end. For now, let's learn what the best and worst grocery store chains for buying milk are so you can plan your next milk run accordingly. Prices may vary based on location.

Albertsons is easily one of the absolute best grocery store chains for purchasing milk. Not only does it offer a fantastic variety and top-rate selections, but it has relatively low prices all around. In fact, aside from Aldi, it boasts the least expensive basic milk option. A gallon of Value Corner milk costs just $3.19. The dairy section is also stocked with Lucerne milk, which only costs about $3.49 per gallon, giving you two great value products to choose from.

Albertsons also carries four of the best milk brands: Maple Hill Organic, Organic Valley, Horizon Organic, and a2. So, if quality reigns supreme for you, and not simply finding the lowest cost, this grocery store chain makes a solid choice.

If traditional cow's milk isn't your top priority and you're looking for a great grocery store for plant-based milks, Albertsons excels in this area, as well. The website lists nine different varieties, including less common options like flax, cashew, and hemp milk. You'll also find the most popular types, like oat, almond, soy, coconut, rice, and macadamia at many locations. So, no matter whether you want the cheapest milk, the best quality milk, or an array of non-dairy options, Albertsons provides.

At first glance, you may think Aldi is an excellent place to buy milk. Especially once you learn that it sells the cheapest milk out of all the grocery store chains on this list — a gallon of Friendly Farms milk costs just $2.89! Sounds great, right? Well, unfortunately, that's where the perks end. Aldi does not sell any of the four most liked/best brands. You can find an organic option called Simply Nature, but other than that, it's Friendly Farms or nothing.

In addition to dairy milk, Aldi carries three different types of plant-based milk, and guess what? They are Friendly Farms products, too. The options include almond, oat, and coconut milk (which is great for making creamy milkshakes).

To further complicate things, there seems to be a somewhat contentious history surrounding Aldi's milk and how they treat dairy farmers — which apparently, isn't all too great. So ethically, it might not be the best choice. While it has been quite some time, there have been calls in the past to boycott Aldi in the U.K. and Australia due to the company's forced price cuts for milk. The ultra-reduced prices might be good for the consumer and, of course, the company but they threatened many farms with bankruptcy.

Kroger grocery stores are great for buying milk. They have a wide presence in the market, making them accessible to people all over the country, a good range of options, and some of the cheapest milk on the market. Plus, Kroger's brand expands well beyond grocery stores bearing that name (its massive buying power is probably one of the main reasons it can offer such low-cost milk). The family of companies includes 19 grocery store chains, and many of them feature the same milk-buying perks. So, if you live near King Soopers, Smith's, City Market, or another company under Kroger's umbrella, you can go ahead and consider it to be one of the best grocery stores to buy milk from as well.

Kroger's website lists its self-named brand of milk for just $3.29, which is pretty inexpensive. Actually, it's the third lowest price I found. The only places that have it beat are Aldi and Albertsons. In addition to Kroger's low-cost option, it also carries all four of the best quality milks (Maple Hill Organic, Organic Valley, Horizon Organic, and a2). The selection most likely varies from one location to the next, but all four brands are listed on the company site.

Finally, Kroger also provides you with six plant-based milk options: Almond, soy, oat, coconut, rice, and flax. This is likely to vary depending on the store, but a lack of options shouldn't be a problem.

Known for selling bulk groceries and a variety of home goods, Costco Wholesale is a great place to shop for many things. However, milk isn't one of them. When I searched the company's website, it was pretty sparse. I only found three non-dairy milks listed: almond, oat, and coconut. While these are some of the most popular plant-based options around, the selection is still fairly limited when compared to other top grocery store chains.

Interestingly enough, Costco's website doesn't list any low-cost milks, but they must have at least one option, right? In addition, only one of the top four milk brands is on the company's site, Horizon Organic, but it didn't come in the typical half-gallon size. Instead, it comes in a package with 18 8-ounce bottles. In my experience, the products Costco stocks tend to change quite a bit. So the milk it has on the shelves could change without notice. What this means is that you may be able to buy other products than the ones discussed, but you can't really count on it.

Another reason I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to buy milk at Costco is that you have to be a member to shop there. There are a couple of exceptions, like ordering online, but they aren't hassle-free. If you are already a card-carrying member, that's great, but I certainly wouldn't run out and sign up with the hopes of using it to buy milk.

Next up on the list of best grocery store chains to buy milk is Safeway. Admittedly, it doesn't quite measure up to Albertsons or Kroger in the price or selection department, but it's still a much better option than the places deemed the worst. Safeway's lowest-cost milk is Value Corner, and it's listed for $3.49 per gallon. It also sells Lucerne, another inexpensive option, for $3.99. Albertsons sells both of these brands, as well, but the cost is slightly higher at Safeway. Even so, it still falls into the lower end of the price range compared to other grocery stores.

As far as plant-based milks, Safeway only lists three options on its website, but this is just for one location. Similar to other chains, consistency across the board is not expected, so don't be surprised if you find more than almond, cashew, and coconut milk at the store nearest you. Safeway is an excellent place for top-quality cow's milk as well. You should be able to buy three out of four of the best brands on the shelves, including a2, Horizon Organic, and Organic Valley.

Trader Joe's has somewhat of a cult following. It's an outstanding grocery store for buying all kinds of low-cost foods, but unfortunately, milk doesn't fall into this category. The selection it offers is quite limited overall. The only dairy milk on the company's website is Trader Joe's Organic. It comes in both whole and low-fat options (and chocolate-flavored), but that's it. Plus, it is far from the cheapest milk available. A half-gallon costs a whopping $4.99; yikes. Considering you can buy a full gallon at many stores for significantly less, Trader Joe's should be avoided if your priority is finding the least expensive place to buy milk.

As you probably figured out by now, Trader Joe's doesn't sell any of the top four premium-quality milk brands. However, it does stock four non-dairy milk options, including the three most common; oat, soy, and almond. It also offers a blended almond, cashew, and macadamia milk, which is deliciously unique. Still, this is not enough of a selection to knock Trader Joe's into the category of best grocery store chains for purchasing milk.

Walmart is known for slashing prices and keeping costs low all around, so it's no surprise it's one of the best grocery store chains for buying milk. Thanks to offering Great Value milk for just $3.44 a gallon, it easily rivals its competitors if a low price tag is your main priority. In addition, you can find a Walmart in just about every corner of the United States, so you are likely to have one fairly close by.

In addition to inexpensive milk, Walmart carries both Organic Valley and Horizon Organic milks. So you have a couple of great products to choose from if super high-quality milk is more your style. Or, if a broad selection of plant-based milks is what you are after, they've got that, too. With seven different types listed on the website, including almond, cashew, oat, soy, coconut, rice, and flax milk, you certainly won't be at a loss for options.

At Walmart, you can also combine all kinds of home and goods shopping with your trip to buy milk. If you have other household items, tools, or even clothes to pick up, doing it all in one place could help you save time. After all, there's no need to make a separate trip just for milk (if you can avoid it).

Super Target is another one of those chains that makes shopping for all different kinds of things incredibly simple, not just groceries. I mean, it has it all. Thanks to the company's three in-store brands, low-cost food products are abundant, too. Still, going out of your way to buy milk there is not recommended. Sure, it offers Good & Gather milk for just $3.49 per gallon, but it lacks in other areas where the best grocery store chains excel.

Unfortunately, Super Target only lists two of the four best milk brands on its site. So, while you'll see Horizon Organic and a2 in some locations, you're unlikely to find Maple Hill Organics or Organic Valley milk. In addition, Target has a somewhat limited selection of non-dairy milks, at least compared to its top competitors. Many of the best chains stock seven or more plant-based milks but Target only has five. The options include barley, oat, almond, soy, and coconut. These are popular non-dairy choices, but the selection is still relatively slim.

At H-E-B Fresh Foods, you find a great selection of plant-based milks, quality products, and low prices, all things you'd expect from one of the best grocery store chains for purchasing milk. It only carries two of the top four quality milk brands, a2 and Horizon Organic. However, at just $4.45 per half gallon, it has the cheapest a2 milk on this list.

H-E-B Fresh Foods has two exceptionally low-priced dairy milk options. The company's self-named brand will run you about $3.69 a gallon, which isn't bad all things considered. Even so, it also sells a cheaper option, Hill Country Fare, for the low price of $3.38 per gallon. Compared to other grocery store chains I researched, this is the fourth lowest price for milk, and it's not far off from the ones that beat it.

An excellent selection of non-dairy milks is also available at H-E-B Fresh Foods. The company's website lists seven, to be exact. Whether you like the classics, like oat, almond, soy, and coconut, or something more unique like flax, rice, or walnut, H-E-B Fresh Foods won't let you down.

When you think of Amazon, the first thing that comes to mind is probably that it is an online retailer. However, the company's Fresh department also has brick-and-mortar storefronts. Whether you opt to shop in an actual Amazon Fresh store or simply use the online platform, don't expect it to be the greatest for purchasing milk.

Simply ordering milk from the comfort of your home (or anywhere for that matter) and having it delivered to your front door with a few clicks on your phone is beyond convenient. Still, you have to wait for your purchase to arrive, and how long that takes depends on how much of a delivery surcharge you are willing to pay. If you need milk right away, you are out of luck.

Aside from the wait (if you don't have access to a store), the lowest price option you're going to find for milk with Amazon Fresh is 365 (the Whole Foods Market brand) for $3.99. Compared to other grocery store chains, that isn't very good. Amazon Fresh does offer all four of the best quality milks though, and many of them are priced pretty low. Still, pair this with the delivery fee, and you're back to square one. You can also purchase seven types of non-dairy milk, which isn't bad, but that's not enough to make it qualify as one of the best chains for buying milk.

The final grocery store chain on this list to earn a best-of accolade for buying milk is Sprouts Farmers Market. If you are looking for the absolute cheapest gallon of milk, it may not be your best option, but for everything else, it makes an outstanding choice. If you prioritize quality, you'll get it at Sprouts, and not for a bad price. Organic Valley will run you just $3.99 per half gallon, and Horizon Organic is priced at $5.79 per half gallon.

Impressively, Sprouts Farmers Market also stocks 10 different kinds of plant-based milk. The only grocery store chain to carry nearly as many options is Albertsons (it has nine). As you can probably guess, you'll find long-standing favorites like soy, almond, oat, and coconut milks on the shelves. Sprouts also enhances its selection with less common options like macadamia, cashew, walnut, rice, hemp, and flax milks. Regardless of your preference, chances are good you can grab it at Sprouts.

The only place Sprouts Farmers Market falls behind is with its lowest-priced option, Shamrock, which costs $4.19 per gallon. This is significantly higher than many other grocery store chains, but, as noted, Sprouts makes up for this with low-cost premium options and a wide variety of products overall.

Have you ever heard someone refer to Whole Foods Market as Whole Paycheck? If so, it's probably not very surprising that it doesn't qualify as one of the best places to buy milk. If low prices are your main concern it simply doesn't make the cut. Somewhat surprisingly, Whole Foods Market is a great place to buy beer, though.

At Whole Foods, you are likely to find the best quality milk brands, but they are not priced very low. In addition, the cheapest option is 365 (the store's brand) for $3.99 per gallon. Compared to other grocery store chains, this is one of the highest price tags around.

Whole Foods also has seven non-dairy milks listed on its website. The selection includes pistachio, almond, oat, soy, cashew, coconut, and rice. All are great varieties, and pistachio is kind of rare, but, again, you'll have to pay premium prices for them. For some, the broad selection could be enough to make Whole Foods a good place for buying milk, but it's definitely not great for your wallet.

To determine what the best and worst grocery stores for buying milk are, I began by compiling a list of the most popular chains in the United States. Once I knew which companies to include, I considered what factors contribute to the best milk. Is it price or quality? What about selection? The answer is all three. With this in mind, I compared and contrasted each grocery store chain based on the cost of its lowest-price milk and whether or not it carries what are generally accepted to be the four best-quality milks available on the market. Of course, what the "best" brands of milk are is largely based on opinion, but I combed through Reddit posts, food blogs, and nutritionist recommendations to come up with the big four referenced throughout this article: Maple Hill Organic, Organic Valley, Horizon Organic, and a2.

Of course, the term milk includes much more than the standard stuff sourced from cows. As a result, I also factored the number of plant-based milk options each grocery store chain on my list offers into whether or not a place qualifies as either one of the best or worst chains for buying milk. After taking all of my criteria into account, I was able to create the list you found above. Now that you know all the best and worst grocery store chains for purchasing, just make sure you don't store your milk in the door of your fridge, and you should be good to go.