What's Worth Buying (And What Isn't) in the Dollar Store Food Aisle

Stores like Dollar Tree and Dollar General have started adding more healthy options to their food aisles in recent years. But since we know that not everything is a good deal at the dollar store, we did some digging to figure out exactly what’s worth buying in the dollar store food aisle based on the price.

We compared a list of popular grocery items that are already priced competitively across three discount stores: Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Walmart. The low-price winner for each food item on this list might surprise you.

A few teasers: Dollar General rarely came in first place, but they did tie with Walmart's price for olive oil and canned peas. And Dollar Tree had some surprising successes for well-priced dollar-store food in the pantry section. Use this list as a tool to map out your food shopping trips so you never overpay.

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Groceries Worth Buying at the Dollar Store

Canned Pineapple

Where to Buy It: Dollar Tree

What You'll Pay: $1.25

When you need to stock up on canned fruit, making a trip to Dollar Tree might be worth it. You can get a 20-ounce can of Libby's pineapple slices for just $1.25 at Dollar Tree. Dollar General sells the same size can for nearly twice as much — $2.25.

And Dollar Tree’s low price even beats Walmart for store-brand canned pineapple ($1.47 for a 20-ounce can). So you'll save $0.22 per can by stocking up at Dollar Tree.

Coconut Oil

Where to Buy It: Dollar Tree

What You'll Pay: $1.25

It's definitely worth stocking up on coconut oil at Dollar Tree as long as you don't need the organic variety for cooking.

Dollar Tree sells a 7.25-ounce jar of refined coconut oil for $1.25, which comes out to $0.17 per ounce. That's 29% cheaper than Walmart's ($0.24 per ounce) and 39% cheaper than coconut oil from Dollar General ($0.28 per ounce).

Brown Rice

Where to Buy It: Dollar Tree

What You'll Pay: $1.25

Brown rice is brown rice — and Dollar Tree sells a 32-ounce bag for $1.25, while Walmart has the same size bag for $1.64. So you'll save $0.39 per bag by going with Dollar Tree.

I recommend skipping Dollar General for brown rice entirely, as they sell a bag half the size for $1.

This is a good purchase to stock up on, since brown rice can last up to six months in your pantry.

Stuffed Green Olives

Where to Buy It: Dollar Tree

What You'll Pay: $1.25

Dollar Tree sells a 5-ounce jar of stuffed green olives for $1.25, which is like paying $0.25 an ounce. That's 31% cheaper than stuffed green olives at Dollar General and 8% cheaper than Walmart's.

Lentils

Where to Buy It: Dollar Tree

What You'll Pay: $1.25

One of my favorite hacks is buying bags of lentils at Dollar Tree. Dollar General doesn’t even carry these, and they’re 17% cheaper at Dollar Tree compared to Walmart if you look at the price per ounce ($0.12 per ounce at Walmart vs. $0.10 per ounce at Dollar Tree).

Canned Sweet Peas

Where to Buy It: Dollar General

What You'll Pay: $0.75

Dollar General sells a 15-ounce can of sweet peas for $0.75, which beats Walmart's price by just $0.01. But, hey, a savings is a savings.

Meanwhile, Dollar Tree’s price on the same size can is $1.25, so Dollar General is the winner here.

Related: Check out more of our findings for things you should never buy at Dollar Tree.

Olive Oil

Where to Buy It: Dollar General

What You'll Pay: $6.50, or $0.38 per ounce

Dollar General didn't always have a competitive price for extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), but as of April 2025, I'm finding that their per-ounce prices are the same as Walmart's.

At Dollar General, you'll pay $6.50 for a 17-ounce bottle ($0.38 per ounce), which is the same price per ounce as Walmart's 25.5-ounce bottle of EVOO.

I recommend skipping the olive oil at Dollar Tree, though, as it's a lower-quality blend of soybean oil and EVOO.

Canned Chicken

Where to Buy It: Dollar Tree

What You'll Pay: $1.25

Canned chicken is one of those pantry staples you don’t want to spend a ton of money on.

Dollar Tree prices their canned chicken at $1.25 for a 4.5-ounce can, which comes out to $0.28 per ounce. Surprisingly, that's the same price per ounce as Walmart has for their 2-pack of Swanson canned chicken.

Absolutely don’t buy your canned chicken at Dollar General, where you’ll pay $4.35 for a 12.5-ounce can ($0.35 per ounce).

Skip Buying These Food Items at the Dollar Store

Instant Oatmeal

Where to Shop Instead: Walmart

What You'll Pay: $3.66, or $0.18 per packet

Believe it or not, Dollar General has the worst price for instant oatmeal packets. Their price is $1.85 for six packets, which comes out to $0.31 per packet.

Compare that to Walmart, where they sell a 20-pack of oatmeal for just $3.66, or just $0.18 per packet. That’s 42% cheaper than the Dollar General price.

Honey Nut Cheerios

Where to Shop Instead: Walmart

What You'll Pay: $4.93, or $0.26 per ounce

Honey Nut Cheerios are a bad buy at Dollar Tree, where they cost $1.25 for a 3.5-ounce pouch ($0.36 per ounce). Dollar General's price is much better for the family-size box ($0.27 per ounce), but Walmart is still the clear winner.

Walmart's family-size boxes of Honey Nut Cheerios are $4.93 for 18.8 ounces, or $0.26 per ounce. That's 28% cheaper than Dollar Tree and 4% cheaper than Dollar General.

Dry Pinto Beans

Where to Shop Instead: Walmart

What You'll Pay: $1

You can pick up a 16-ounce bag of dry pinto beans at Dollar Tree or Dollar General for $1.25.

But check out the cost for the same size bag of dry pinto beans at Walmart: just $1. That’s 20% cheaper than Dollar Tree and Dollar General.

The same goes for canned pinto beans — skip buying them at the dollar stores because they're cheaper at Walmart.

Rotel Tomatoes

Where to Shop Instead: Walmart

What You'll Pay: $1.22

Walmart beats Dollar Tree’s price on a can of Rotel diced tomatoes with green chilis by $0.03, coming in at $1.22 per 10-ounce can.

Dollar General prices the same 10-ounce can for $1.50, so no savings there.

Protein Granola Bars

Where to Shop Instead: Walmart

What You'll Pay: $3.97

Dollar General and Walmart both sell a 5-pack of Nature Valley Protein Bars, but they're 17% cheaper at Walmart.

The 5-pack box is $3.97 at Walmart versus $4.75 at Dollar General, so you'll save $0.78 per box by going with Walmart.

And they don't even sell name-brand granola bars at my Dollar Tree location.

Black Olives

Where to Shop Instead: Walmart

What You'll Pay: $1.97

At Dollar General, you'll pay $2.25 for a 6-ounce can of pitted black olives. But Walmart sells the same-size can for $1.97, so you'll save $0.28 per can by going with Walmart instead.

As for Dollar Tree, they no longer carry canned black olives in my area, so no savings there.

Canned Tuna

Where to Shop Instead: Walmart

What You'll Pay: $1.14 for name brand or $0.88 for store brand

Dollar stores can’t compete with Walmart’s rock-bottom tuna prices — just $1.14 per 5-ounce can of StarKist or as low as $0.88 per can for the store brand.

A 5-ounce can of StarKist tuna costs $1.20 at Dollar General and $1.25 at Dollar Tree. So you'll save $0.06 - $0.11 per can when you skip the dollar stores and shop for name-brand tuna cans at Walmart instead.

Peanut Butter

Where to Shop Instead: Walmart

What You'll Pay: $3.98, or $0.10 per ounce

Dollar General has the most expensive price on store-brand peanut butter, coming in at $2.25 for a 16-ounce jar (that’s $0.14 per ounce).

Not far behind based on price per ounce, you’ll pay $1.25 for a 10-ounce jar of peanut butter from Dollar Tree (or $0.13 per ounce).

But coming in at the cheapest option, Walmart sells a large 40-ounce jar of peanut butter for $3.98, averaging just $0.10 per ounce. Even their smaller 16-ounce jar is a better value than the dollar stores.

Related Reading:

• Latest Walmart Coupons and Deals

• Tariff-Proof Your Pantry With These Smart Buys

• Dollar Tree vs. Dollar General: How They Compare