Both Wegmans and Whole Foods are considered some of the higher-end grocery stores in the industry. You may be wondering which one is better to shop at. In this article, I compared these two stores based on 3 different shopping factors.
These shopping factors are:
- Price
- Quality
- Variety
By the end of this article, you should have a good idea as to which store is better for you.
Which is Better: Wegmans or Whole Foods? Wegmans is consistently cheaper than Whole Foods over many different shopping categories. However, Whole Foods does offer better quality products and more organic and health-conscious options.
Is Wegmans More Expensive Than Whole Foods?
The price of products is a big decision factor for most customers when deciding between which store to shop at. If you consider yourself one of those customers, then the price of Wegmans and the price of Whole Foods products is very important. Between these two stores, which one is the cheapest?
| Category | Wegmans Brand | Whole Foods Brand |
| Beverages | ✓ | |
| Baking Goods | ✓ | |
| Canned Goods | ✓ | |
| Dairy | ✓ | |
| Dry Goods | ✓ | |
| Frozen Foods | ✓ | |
| Personal Care | ✓ | |
| Cleaners | ✓ | |
For store brand items, Wegmans is cheaper than Whole Foods in a majority of shopping categories.
More specifically, Wegmans is the cheapest option in the beverages, canned goods, dairy, dry goods, frozen foods, personal care, and cleaners categories.
The only shopping category where Whole Foods is cheaper, is in the baked goods section.
In fact, Wegmans is anywhere from 7% to 83% cheaper than Whole Foods in 7 out of the 8 total shopping categories.
If you are someone I consider yourself a price conscious shopper, and then Wegmans is the better choice for you to shop at.
Product Quality: Wegmans vs Whole Foods
The quality of products at a supermarket or grocery store is also a big decision making factor. Some customers prefer to shop at the store that offers higher quality products. Between Wegmans and Whole Foods, which one has better quality products?
To figure this out, I took a look at the FDA’s product recall website. This allows anyone to see how many recalls a certain store has had in recent years. The store with more recalls, typically has lower quality products.
| Category | Wegmans Recalls | Whole Foods Recalls |
| Animal & Veterinary | 0 | 0 |
| Biologics | 0 | 0 |
| Cosmetics | 0 | 0 |
| Dietary Supplements | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 0 | 0 |
| Food and Beverages | 23 | 2 |
| Medical Devices | 0 | 0 |
| Radiation Emitting Products | 0 | 0 |
| Tobacco | 0 | 0 |
According to the FDA’s website, Wegmans has a total of 23 product recalls and Whole Foods has two product recalls. So, the clear winner is Whole Foods as they have significantly less product recalls.
Wegmans: 23 Total Recalls
Whole Foods: 2 Total Recalls
Something to note is that Whole Foods seems to have the lowest product recalls out of almost any grocery store that I’ve looked at. This is a sure sign that Whole Foods has higher quality products.
So, if you happen to be one of those customers who prefer product quality, then shopping at Whole Foods is the right choice for you.
Product Variety: Wegmans vs Whole Foods
While product variety may not be as prominent of a decision making factor, there are customers who like stores based on the amount of products they offer. In other words, they like the store that gives them more options to choose from.
| Total Wegmans Products | Total Whole Foods Products |
| 50,000 – 70,000 products | 30,000 products |
It seems that Wegmans sells 20,000 to 30,000 more products than Whole Foods does. So, clearly, if you are someone who likes to have more options at your disposal when shopping, then Wegmans is the right choice for you.
What Does Each Store Sell?
Depending on what products you like to buy, each store has something a bit different to offer. Wegmans sells a mix of big brand and private brand items. They also have a fairly big focus on organic products.
Whole Foods on the other hand feature is less big brand names, and more items from their private brand. They also have a much heavier focus on organic and healthy foods.
The main difference here is that Whole Foods is much better suited for someone who is more health conscious. They offer more natural, non-GMO, organic, etc. options.
Which One Should You Shop At: Wegmans vs Whole Foods?
When to shop at Wegmans: despite having more product recalls, Wegmans does offer much cheaper prices than Whole Foods. They also do offer a decent amount of organic options as well as big brand names in their stores. If these are all things you prefer in a grocery store, then Wegmans is right for you.
When to shop at Whole Foods: at a more expensive price point, Whole Foods has significantly more organic and health focused options. They do not offer as many big brand names. They also have much higher quality of products. So if you don’t mind paying a few extra dollars for these benefits, then Whole Foods is right for you.