Can You Really Save Big With Walmart’s Great Value Brand? We Tried 15 Items to Find Out!
We pinned the Walmart Great Value brand against name brand competitors – the taste results are in!
Tired of overpaying for those household brands? My family and I did a thorough test to see how some of Walmart’s Great Value Brand’s most popular foods stack up against name-brand competitors, and if they’re worth sacrificing your wallet or your tastebuds for 😉
Keep reading to see how your favorite Great Value brand foods fared (#9 shocked us!)
AND, spoiler alert! You’ll shave a nice $22.56 off your next Walmart bill if you stick to our Great Value winners!
1. Great Value Cheese Puffs vs. Cheetos Cheese Puffs
Winner: Great Value Cheese Puffs
Great Value Cheese Puffs 13.5oz bag $2.50
Cheetos Cheese Puffs 13.5oz bag $5.94
Total Great Value savings: $3.44!
Why we chose Great Value:
- larger size
- 5/5 family members could barely tell the difference OR chose GV after a blindfold taste test
- PLUS, several of Collin’s family members actually chose Great Value brand cheese puffs over classic Cheetos as well!
2. Great Value Potato Crisps vs. Pringles
Winner: Great Value Potato Crisps
Great Value Potato Crisps- Sour Cream & Onion $1.50 (reg. $1.72)
Pringles Sour Cream & Onion $2
Total Great Value savings: 50¢!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Same size, texture, and color
- 4/4 family members love the thin & crispy CRUNCH like a real Pringle!
DISCLAIMER: Although these GV crisps are a win for taste in my book, I was a little disappointed by how much space was left in the can upon first opening – even more so than the Pringles can?!
Could this make up for the 50¢ price difference since you’re getting more Pringles in the can? 🙃 You decide!
3. Great Value Honey Nut O’s vs. Honey Nut Cheerios
Winner: TIE!
Great Value Honey Nut O’s $1.87
General Mills Honey Nut Cheerios $3.68
Total Great Value savings: $1.81!
Throughout this taste test, if the two brands were almost identical in taste, we have been selecting Great Value as the winner, obviously, to save you the most 💰!
HOWEVER, in this case, while the Great Value Honey Nut Cheerios didn’t necessarily taste better or the same, they tasted yummy, just like regular Cheerios (ya know, the original toasted oat ones). So, in that case, we think it’s worth it to save OVER $2 on classic cereal kids know and love, that’s still pretty tasty! 🙌🏼
4. Great Value Frosted Flakes Cereal vs. Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes Cereal
Winner: Great Value Frosted Flakes
Great Value Frosted Flakes Cereal 13.5oz $1.93
Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes Cereal 13.5oz $5.99
Total Great Value savings: $4.06!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Better and sweeter according to 21-year-old brother and dad (who have had many-a bowls of Frosted Flakes😉)
- 3/3 kiddos picked GV over the real Frosted Flakes too! 🏆
5. Great Value Mac n’ Cheese vs. Kraft Macaroni & Cheese
Winner: Great Value Original Macaroni & Cheese
Great Value Original Macaroni & Cheese 58¢
Kraft Original Macaroni & Cheese $1 (reg. $1.24)
Total Great Value savings: 42¢!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Same size and shape noodies
- Generously cheesy
- and totally had my kids (and me) fooled!
This is a HUGE deal as you can buy two of the GV boxes for less than the price of just one Kraft box- stock up!
6. Great Value Cheese Frozen Pizza vs DiGiorno Cheese Frozen Pizza
Winner: Great Value Cheese Frozen Pizza
Great Value Rising Crust Frozen Cheese Pizza 28.1oz $4.97
DiGiorno Four Cheese Rising Crust Pizza 28.2oz $5.97
Total Great Value savings: $1!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Less brown/ burned than DiGiornio
- Melted cheesy heaven
- Passed my picky-pizza-loving-kiddos’ taste buds!
7. Great Value Flaky Biscuits vs Pillsbury Grands! Flaky Layers Original Biscuits
Winner: Great Value Flaky Biscuits
Great Value Flaky Biscuits 8-Count $1.97
Pillsbury Grands! Flaky Layers Original Biscuits 8-Count $2.87
Total Great Value savings: up to $1.27!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Identical in size and thickness
- Perfectly golden
Need an easy weeknight dinner idea? We used these biscuits to make Lina’s super-easy 4-ingredient Mini Chicken Pot Pies! 😋
8. Great Value Cinnamon Rolls vs. Pillsbury Grands! Cinnamon Rolls
Winner: Great Value Original Cinnamon Rolls
Great Value Original Cinnamon Rolls w/ Icing 8-Count $2.24
Pillsbury Grands! Cinnamon Rolls w/ Icing 8-Count $2.97
Total Great Value savings: 73¢!
In my 29 years of life, I would have never imagined that anyone could outdo Pillsbury… but here we are.
My honest-to-goodness truth: Great Value Cinnamon Rolls are actually better.
Why we chose Great Value:
- More swirl-shaped than Pillsbury
- Icing comes in a squeezable pouch!
- Sweeter, more cinnamon taste
9. Great Value Donut Shop Ground Coffee vs. Dunkin’ Donuts Ground Coffee
Winner: Great Value Donut Shop Coffee
Great Value Donut Shop Ground Coffee 12oz $5.97
Dunkin’ Donuts Original Blend Ground Coffee 12oz $9.44
Total Great Value savings: $3.47!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Aromatic
- Richer in color
- Not too bold, “just right” taste
- Nearly half the cost?!
10. Great Value Frosted Brown Sugar Toaster Pastries vs. Kellogg’s Pop-Tarts Brown Sugar
Winner: Kellogg’s Pop-Tarts
Great Value Frosted Brown Sugar Toaster Pastries 6-Count $1.12 (19¢ per pastry)
Pop-Tarts Brown Sugar Cinnamon Toaster Pastries 8-Count $2.62 (43¢ per pastry)
Why we chose Kellogg’s:
- More icing
- Classic ‘sweet’ taste (GV was more artificial-tasting and just plain gross. 😝)
- No weird spotting on icing
11. Great Value Chocolate Pudding vs. Snack-Pack Chocolate Pudding
Winner: Great Value Chocolate Pudding
Great Value Chocolate Pudding Cups 4-Count $1.28
Snack Pack Chocolate Pudding 4-Pack $1.37
Total Great Value savings: 39¢!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Chocolate is chocolate! 🙌🏼
- Not a huge price difference, but if you’re making a cute classroom snack, hosting a party, etc., these small savings would definitely add up!
12. Great Value Classic Chippers vs. Chips Ahoy
Winner: Great Value Chippers
Great Value Classic Chippers 13oz $2.97
Nabisco Chips Ahoy! Original Chocolate Chip Cookies 13oz $3.46
Total Great Value savings: 49$!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Identical size
- Same chocolate chip count
- Equally crunchy and sweet
13. Great Value Twist & Shout Cookies vs. OREO Cookies
Winner: Nabisco OREOS Sandwich Cookies
Why we chose Nabisco:
- Can’t beat that classic OREO taste!
- Twist & Shout Sandwich Cookies just scream ‘school cafeteria food’
- NONE of my three kiddos, spouse, or I could even finish the entire cookie 😝
14. Great Value Creamy Peanut Butter vs Skippy Peanut Butter
Winner: Great Value Creamy Peanut Butter
Great Value Creamy Peanut Butter 18oz $2.18
Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter 16.3oz $2.98
Total Great Value savings: 80¢!
Why we chose Great Value:
- BIG peanut butter fans as we are, 0/6 family members could tell the difference 🙌🏼
- Unanimous verdict: GV creamy peanut butter was nearly identical in taste, texture, spreadability, and consistency!
- Fewer calories, less saturated fat, and lower sodium per serving! 🏆
15. Great Value Hazelnut Spread vs Nutella Spread
Winner: Great Value Hazelnut Spread
Great Value Hazelnut Spread 13oz $2.87
Nutella Hazelnut Spread 13oz $4.97
Total Great Value savings: $2.10!
Why we chose Great Value:
- The taste is SO spot-on, your taste buds won’t know the difference!
- Smooth texture and not-too-sweet hazelnutty flavor
16. Great Value Apple Juice vs. Tree Top Apple Juice
Winner: Great Value Apple Juice
Great Value Apple Juice 64oz. $2.18
Tree Top Apple Juice 64oz. $3.28
Total Great Value savings: $1.10!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Same golden color
- Delicious taste
17. Great Value Garlic Knots vs New York Bakery Garlic Knots
Winner: Great Value Garlic Knots
Great Value Garlic Knots 6-Count $2.78
New York Bakery Garlic Knots 6-Count $3.76
Total Great Value savings: 98¢!
Why we chose Great Value:
- Identical in size
- Same garlic-buttery goodness
Did any of these Great Value brand picks surprise you? How about that $22.56 in savings?! 🔥😱 We’d love to know what Great Value food items you love too!
One of my favorite posts! I love so many great value items. Had the great value turkey gravy this past thanksgiving and everyone loved it!! Total hit and under $1!
I’ll respectfully disagree on the Nutella decision lol GV is good, but not exactly the same at least in my area.
These posts are so helpful and I have found some Great Value products through them that I regularly purchase every time I shop:
Great Value Homestyle Waffles, 24 count for $4.14: we enjoy the taste better than Eggo and can’t beat the price!
Great Value Thin Crust Four Cheese pizza: our fave frozen pizza for us pizza snobs LOL
Great Value Original Wavy Potato chips, 7.7oz in the red bag for $1.50: Beat all the name brands for us
I’d like to mention that I also purchase the Equate brand for most of our over the counter meds, creams etc!
I’ve tried many Great Value items through these posts! Three more that I get every shopping trip are: Great Value Homestyle waffles, 24 count for $4.14–we enjoy the taste better than Eggo and can’t beat the price. Great Value Thin Crust Four Cheese frozen pizza–our favorite frozen pizza and we are pizza snobs LOL and Great Value Wavy Original potato chips, 7.75 oz for $1.50–better than the name brands. Also, we purchase the Equate brands for over the counter meds, creams etc which are very cost effective. Thanks for posting this list–I’m going to try the Great Value pringles next time!!
Some more Great Value wins:
Cool Ranch Doritos VS Glacier ranch Tortilla Chips.. Give it a shot!
Planters Honey roasted peanuts Vs. great value honey roasted peanuts
I really liked this post!
Happy to hear you enjoyed this post, Holly! 🤗 Thanks for dropping a few of your GV swaps too!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I agree. I only buy store brand when I have coupons and name brand is cheaper than store brand.
Funny story
My mother stopped buying Oreos when we were little because we all ate the cream and threw away the cookie. We still do that so we don’t buy them as adults either.
So my family went camping with another family friends of my parents. We were on a jeep ride and I was in the friends jeep eating oreo cream and putting the cookies back in the bag (I was a kid). The next time my parents and I went to their house. The mom brought out the left over cookies for me (yuck). As an adult I like the whole thing, but never again did I put the evidence back. Get rid of that thing!
So funny. I used to steal spoonfuls of peanut butter off and on growing up but never ate it on a sandwich. One time my mom got mad guess she had a bad day and made me finish the jar. Haven’t eaten peanut butter since.
Sorry, Nutella is the win for me. I can tell the difference. I agree that many generic products are just as good if not better than name brands. However, many Equate body washes, lotions, and powders irritate my skin.
I find that most of Great Value products are pretty good. I will compare Nutella to GV and see if I agree.
I’ve been pleased with most of the Great Value items too! Hope you love their Nutella option!