Do Different Walmarts Charge The Same Price For The Same Item?

Have you ever wondered whether different Walmart stores in the same area charge the same price for the same items? Perhaps you did, but never got around to doing the legwork to find out whether that’s actually the case. Fortunately, Rob Cockerham is here, and has a lot of free time. Evidently. He did the experiment that I’ve always wanted to do, driving around to three different Walmarts around Sacramento on the same day to compare the prices of identical items. The results? Don’t waste your time driving around to different Walmarts for groceries. Unless you live in Rancho Cordova and need to buy an awful lot of chicken breasts.

Apples, for example, cost $1.35 per pound at the Folsom store, but $1.47 at the other two. Nothing was cheapest at the store in South Sacramento. What’s interesting about this difference to someone not familiar with Sacramento is that prices are higher in the relatively poorer neighborhoods, and just a bit lower in the affluent suburb of Folsom. Is it more expensive to run a big-box store in a poor neighborhood, or is there just more competition in a wealthier neighborhood?

My Walmart is Cheaper than Your Walmart [Cockeyed.com]