Which Bellingham grocery store is most affordable? We checked December prices

Staff at The Bellingham Herald recently visited Bellingham grocery stores as part of our monthly grocery prices survey. Each month we compare prices of staple items at local grocery, including the prices of milk, bread, cereal, eggs and chicken breasts. Here were local grocery prices on Dec. 2:

Gallon of milk

• A gallon of Fred Meyer’s 1% milk is $3.39, up from $3.29 last month.
• ​A gallon of Safeway’s Value Corner 1% milk is $3.39, down from $3.49 last month.
• A gallon of Walmart’s Great Value 1% milk is $3.52, down from $3.56 last month.
• A gallon of Haggen’s Value Corner 1% milk is $3.49, down from $3.69 last month.
• A gallon of WinCo Foods’ 1% milk is $3.19, down from $3.29 last month.
• A gallon of Whole Foods Market’s 365 2% milk is $4.29, the same price as last month.
• A gallon of Trader Joe’s 1% milk is $3.99, the same price as last month.
• A gallon of Edaleen Dairy 1% milk at the Community Food Co-op is $4.49, the same price as last month.
• A gallon of 1% milk at Grocery Outlet is $3.26, up from $3.22 last month.

Dozen eggs

The price for a dozen eggs varies depending on egg size, grade and color.

• Fred Meyer has a dozen Kroger Grade AA large eggs for $2.39, down from $2.49 last month.
• Safeway’s dozen Lucerne Farms large eggs are $2.19, down from $2.49 last month.
• Walmart’s dozen Great Value large white eggs are $1.97, the same price as last month.
• Haggen’s dozen grade AA large eggs are $3.29, the same price as last month.
• WinCo Foods’ dozen extra large eggs are $1.97, down from $2.28 last month.
• Whole Foods Market’s large brown grade A eggs are $3.99, the same price as last month.
• Trader Joe’s dozen cage-free, grade A large white eggs are $2.99, up from $2.88 last month.
• The Community Food Co-op’s dozen large white cage-free eggs from Wilcox Family Farms are $4.99, the same price as last month.
• Grocery Outlet’s dozen extra-large grade AA eggs are $5.29, up from $1.99 last month.

Sandwich bread

Sandwich bread prices vary by weight and type of wheat.

• Fred Meyer has a 20-ounce loaf of Kroger Enriched white bread for $1.79, the same price as last month. That’s 8 cents an ounce.
• Safeway’s 16-ounce Value Corner white bread loaf is $1.29, the same price as last month. That’s 8 cents an ounce.
• Walmart’s 20-ounce loaf of white sandwich bread is $1.42, the same price as last month. That’s 7 cents an ounce.
• Haggen’s Western Farms 20-ounce white bread loaf is $1.99, the same price as last month. That’s 9 cents an ounce.
• WinCo Foods’ white 20-ounce sandwich bread loaf is $1.39, the same price as last month. That’s 6 cents an ounce.
• Whole Foods Market’s classic white 22-ounce loaf is $2.89, up from $2.59 last month. That’s 11 cents an ounce.
• Trader Joe’s white 22-ounce sliced bread loaf is $1.99, the same price as last month. That’s 9 cents an ounce.
• The Community Food Co-op’s 22.5-ounce Franz sliced white bread loaf is $4.99, the same price as last month. That’s 22 cents an ounce.
• Grocery Outlet’s Western Farms 20-ounce white bread loaf is $1.49, the same price as last month. That’s 7 cents an ounce.

Cheerios cereal

• Fred Meyer’s 8.9-ounce box of Cheerios is $4.29, the same price as last month. That’s 48 cents an ounce.
• Safeway’s 8.9-ounce box of Cheerios is $4.29, the same price as last month. That’s 48 cents an ounce.
• Walmart’s 8.9-ounce box of Cheerios is $3.47, down from $3.68 last month. That’s 39 cents an ounce.
• Haggen’s 8.9-ounce box of Cheerios is $6.99, the same price as last month. That’s 78 cents an ounce.
• WinCo Foods’ 18-ounce box of Cheerios is $4.28, up from $3.98 last month. That’s 24 cents an ounce.
• Whole Foods Market’s 8.9-ounce box of Cheerios is $5.49, up from $5.19 last month. That’s 62 cents an ounce.
• Trader Joe’s 12-ounce box of Joe’s O’s Cereal is $1.99, the same price as last month. That’s 16 cents an ounce.
• The Community Food Co-op’s only had 18-ounce boxes of Cheerios for $9.99, or 55 cents an ounce, the same price as last month.
• Grocery Outlet only had 18-ounce boxes of Cheerios for $4.99, the same price as last month. That’s 27 cents per ounce.

Chicken breasts

• At Fred Meyer, a 3-pound bag of frozen boneless skinless chicken breast is $10.00, or $3.33 per pound, the same price as last month.
• At Safeway, a 2.5-pound bag of frozen boneless skinless chicken breast is $13.99, or $5.59 per pound, the same price as last month.
• At Walmart, a 3-pound bag of frozen Great Value Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast is $9.94, or $3.31 per pound, the same price as last month.
• At Haggen, a 2.5-pound bag of frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts is $13.99, or $5.59 per pound, the same price as last month.
• At WinCo Foods, a 3-pound bag of frozen boneless chicken breast is $6.98, or $2.33 per pound, up from $1.99 per pound last month.
• At Whole Foods Market, refrigerated boneless, skinless chicken breast is $5.99 per pound, the same price as last month.
• At Trader Joe’s, refrigerated organic and free-range boneless, skinless chicken breasts are $4.99 per pound, the same price as last month.
• At Community Food Co-op, refrigerated free-range boneless, skinless chicken breasts are $6.99 per pound, the same price as last month.
• At Grocery Outlet, refrigerated boneless, skinless chicken breasts are $2.69 per pound, the same price as last month.

The most affordable groceries in Bellingham

If you add the total cost of these five items from each store, WinCo Foods had the most affordable grocery prices with a total of $13.16, up from $12.93 last month.

Walmart came in second at $13.69. Fred Meyer was third, ringing up at $15.19, followed by Trader Joe’s at $15.95, Safeway at $16.75, Grocery Outlet at $17.72, Haggen at $21.35, Whole Foods Market at $22.65, and Community Food Co-op at $31.45.

Compared to our totals last month, three store prices decreased in total price, two remained the same, and four increased. Grocery prices dropped across the stores in April, May, June, July, September and October.

Shopping at the most affordable store instead of the most expensive store this month could save you $18.29 on these five staple grocery items this month.

Alyse Smith

The Bellingham Herald

Alyse Smith is a reporter at The Bellingham Herald covering retail, restaurants, jobs and business. If you like stories like this, please consider supporting our work with a subscription to our newspaper.