Both Harris Teeter and Food Lion are amongst the most popular grocery stores in the country. Each sells the same types of items to similar customers. However, which one is better?
To figure this out, I compared the stores based on three major decision-making factors:
- Price
- Quality
- Variety
By the end of this article you should have a much better understanding of which store is better for you, Harris Teeter or Food Lion.
Which is Better: Harris Teeter or Food Lion? Food Lion is cheaper than Harris Teeter by a range of about 5% to 33% additionally, Food Lion has slightly better quality products. However, Harris Teeter offers more product variety than Food Lion, according to the FDA.
Is Harris Teeter Cheaper Than Food Lion?
The price of groceries is one of the biggest consideration factors when shoppers go to the store. In other words they want to make sure the store that they pick will give them the most amount of savings.
So, to figure out which store has the cheapest prices, I collected and averaged out a variety of prices for commonly purchased store brand items. By averaging out the prices, I was more easily able to compare goods from each store.
In terms of pricing, Food Lion is anywhere from 5% to 33% cheaper than Harris Teeter.
Below is a breakdown of the average price for most items in each of these categories.
| Category | Harris Teeter Avg Price | Food Lion Avg Price |
| Beverages | $0.89 | $0.69 |
| Baking Goods | $1.99 | $1.69 |
| Canned Goods | $0.69 | $0.62 |
| Dairy | $3.39 | $2.89 |
| Dry Goods | $0.99 | $0.94 |
| Frozen Foods | $1.69 | $1.99 |
| Personal Care | $1.99 | $1.99 |
| Cleaners | $4.50 | $3.38 |
To give you a better idea of how the price is compared to one another, I created a bar chart. Each category has two bars, one representing Harris Teeter and the other representing Food Lion.
The only category where Harris Teeter is the cheaper option is in the frozen section. For all other categories, Food Lion is the cheaper option. So, if you consider yourself a price conscious shopper, then Food Lion is likely the right store for you.
Product Quality: Harris Teeter vs Food Lion
Product quality is also a major consideration factor for most shoppers. Many customers want to make sure that the products in the stores are safe to purchase.
So to figure out which store has better quality products, I looked at data from the FDA‘s product recall database. This database shows how many recalls a store has had in recent years. So, the store that has less product recalls is likely the store with higher quality products.
According to the FDA, Harris Teeter has 14 product recalls whereas Food Lion has 12. This means that Food Lion has slightly higher quality products.
| Category | Harris Teeter Recalls | Food Lion Recalls |
| Animal & Veterinary | 0 | 0 |
| Biologics | 0 | 0 |
| Cosmetics | 0 | 0 |
| Dietary Supplements | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 0 | 0 |
| Food and Beverages | 14 | 12 |
| Medical Devices | 0 | 0 |
| Radiation Emitting Products | 0 | 0 |
| Tobacco | 0 | 0 |
As you can see from the table, the only product recalls that either store has had are in the food and beverage category. This is quite predictable as the main products that each store sells are our food and beverages.
So if you are someone who prioritizes product quality, then Food Lion is a slightly better option than Harris Teeter.
Product Variety: Harris Teeter vs Food Lion
Product variety, although not as big As price and product quality, is a consideration factor for most choppers. Many shoppers want to make sure that the store they are buying from has a variety of options to pick from.
Below is an estimated total of how many products each store has.
| Total Harris Teeter Products | Total Food Lion Products |
| 30,000 | 28,000 |
As you can see, Harris Teeter has 30,000 items, whereas Food Lion has 28,000. This means that Harris Teeter has, on average, 2000 more items in their stores than Food Lion.
So if you are someone who prioritizes product variety, then Harris Teeter is a better choice for you.
Which One Should You Shop At: Harris Teeter vs Food Lion?
When to shop at Harris Teeter: Harris Teeter offers more product variety than Food Lion, so if you enjoy having different options to pick from such as different brands, sizes, etc. then Harris Teeter is a better choice.
When to shop at Food Lion: not only does Food Lion offer better prices, but they also offer a slightly better product quality. If you prioritize either price or quality, then Food Lion is a much better option for you.