What to Buy at Whole Foods if You Want Bang for Your Buck

Earlier this week, I spent a lot of time in my local Whole Foods standing in the nut aisle with my jaw on the floor. My goal was to find what to buy at Whole Foods for under $5, and here I was watching my hopes and dreams be crushed. I was like college admissions all over again. But if you’re on the hunt for Whole Foods bargains and don’t want to find yourself looking in all the wrong places, you’re in the right place. I’ve done the dirty work and found a bunch of Whole Foods products that can make your money go a long, long way. So next time you’re stuck in Whole Foods with five bucks in your pocket or you’re simply trying to avoid dropping your whole paycheck at Whole Foods, give one of these products a try.

Disclaimer: These products were purchased in Southern California. Prices may vary by region.

 Siggi’s Probiotic Drinkable Nonfat Yogurt ($4.79)

If you’re looking for Whole Foods bargains, be forewarned that it is effectively impossible to find anything in the dairy aisle at a reasonable price. But after seeing a probiotic coconut water a few rows down selling for $26.99 (for 15 ounces!), this Siggi’s probiotic yogurt was a no-brainer. Siggi’s had three flavors in my Whole Foods: plain, raspberry, and vanilla, all with seven billion probiotics per serving! That’s a lot of bang—or at least a lot of probiotics—for your buck.

Read our ranking of the best probiotic yogurt

365 Organic Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Chewy Granola Bars ($3.99)

It’s no big shocker here that 365, Whole Foods’ house brand, made it onto our list of what to buy at Whole Foods for less than five bucks. It’s never a bad idea to go with a store brand’s recreation of a classic, especially in this case. It’s impossible to mess up peanut butter and chocolate. Not only is this granola bar cheaper than its counterparts, it comes with two more bars per box (eight total).

Read our ranking of the best granola bars

Pork & Maple Breakfast Sausage ($3.99)

This sausage was, by far, my favorite Whole Foods find of the day. The meat aisle gave me nut aisle flashbacks and I was sure I wouldn’t find a single product at a reasonable price. And then these beautiful, fully cooked breakfast sausages came along and changed my life forever. You get ten (or so) frozen sausage links per box and can pick from four flavors: classic pork, pork and maple, savory chicken, and chicken and maple. But for my money, you can’t do better than that classic pork-maple flavor profile.

Read our ranking of the best breakfast sausage

Birch Benders Complete Protein Pancake & Waffle Mix ($4.13)

My brother is a gym bro and makes his own protein pancakes. They’re monstrous and frankly a little bit gross (anything with added protein powder can be a little gross). But hey, it’s cheaper than buying protein pancake mix … or is it? This deal is obnoxiously good for protein pancakes. And Birch Benders is a brand the Sporked crew loves—they top the list of the best pancake mixes. We even like their keto-friendly mix, so I have high hopes for this high protein version.

Read our ranking of the best pancake mix

Goodles Cheddy Mac ($2.78)

I discovered Goodles a few years ago and immediately pitched a review to Sporked. Being the geniuses that they are, they’d already tasted and loved them. Considering this is a high protein, better-for-you mac and cheese option, it’s shocking that it tastes so good—and at $2.78 a box, it’s worth adding to your list of what to buy at Whole Foods. In addition to Cheddy Mac, my store had eight other flavors, including a vegan and gluten-free option. And the best part? They’re even cheaper and healthier than Annie’s “grass-fed” line, which is about the fanciest the mac market has gotten.

Read our ranking of the best boxed mac and cheese

365 Sea Salt Potato Chips ($2.79)

If you need something to bring to a get together, a bag of chips is always a good bet. In my store, 365 carried five other classic flavors for the same price, as well as three kettle cooked flavors for just a dollar more. And these are hefty 10 ounce bags. If, like me, you can’t visualize that, it’s a little bigger than a human head. If you’re willing to spend around three more bucks, you can get a bag that’s three times the size of a human head. Isn’t that fun?

Read our ranking of the best plain potato chips

Boom Chicka Pop Sweet & Salty Kettle Corn ($3.99)

Speaking of heads, this bag of sweet popcorn is around two heads tall and has seven generous servings. Boom Chicka Pop is addictive, you can count the ingredients on one hand, and it even comes in a sea salt variety for the same reasonable price. So if you need a healthy Whole Foods snack that won’t break the bank, BOOM! Here you go.

Shivers All Natural Lemon Flavored Ice Cubes ($2.79)

Now this final pick is water. Flavored, frozen water. Look, it’s not that Whole Foods ran out of items under five bucks—it was getting rather close, admittedly—but I thought this product was rather cool. Now I, for one, don’t have the patience to cut lemon slices for water, and then preserve the other lemon half for later, and then wash the cutting board and knife. So this is a really cool alternative for a really good price!