The Best Grocery Store Chains To Buy A Thanksgiving Turkey, According To Customers

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It turns out the notion that Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey to be national bird of the United States, instead of the bald eagle, was not true. But, fast forward 200 years and one could argue the turkey is indeed the country's most revered fowl. Every year, on the third Thursday in November, we worship it in seasoning, bless it in brine, and ornament its presentation with any number of side offerings, accompanied by the hymn of suppressed burps and halftime analysis. 

But where are the best purveyors to procure these meleagris gallopavo domesticus? Many consumers around the U.S. may not know the turkey's Latinate scientific name, but they do know which grocery chains they prefer to purchase it at. And Thanksgiving being the time of sharing that it is, and people always being happy to tell you what to do, the recommendations for how to go about this are freely given. These are, according to customers, the go-to supermarket chains for your Thanksgiving turkey.

Costco customers are accustomed to choice, at any time of the year. But holiday consumers are their own voracious animal, especially during this time of year, where we eat a bunch of things. Come Thanksgiving, patrons of America's favorite warehouse offers, not one, but two kinds of precooked turkey –- and folks seem to love them both.

The classic Kirkland oven brown turkey breast is a go-to for many, not only for Turkey Day but for a random sandwich on a Wednesday afternoon in March. If you want to go big and smoky for Thanksgiving, the whole smoked version has become a recent favorite for people. Adding a bit of hickory flavor, as well as size (about 12 pounds each), it retails for around $5 per pound. According to consumers, whichever way you go, the birds are firm, meaty, and versatile, only requiring a bit of reheating before adding the centerpiece to your spread and putting relatives into gravy-induced food comas.

The German supermarket chain, Aldi, has become an absolute must for many Americans' holiday dinner prep, purveying a popular, robust $40 Thanksgiving meal package with all the staples, headlined by the 14-pound whole turkey. This deal of a meal can feed approximately 10 people at your Thanksgiving gathering, which works out to just $4 a person.

One Reddit user feels it's an "excellent" overall feast for the modest cost. Another customer claims they simply cook the turkey with salt, pepper, butter, and the included chicken broth, in a slow cooker –- the results being moist, flavorful, and delicious. If you're open to purchasing your turkey as a part of an entire Thanksgiving spread (equipped with a pumpkin pie for dessert) you might have no better option than this Aldi special. You may enjoy it so much you'll watch Bundesliga instead of the NFL.

The Trader Joe's crowd is a loyal one, often swearing off all other grocery stores (and sometimes other people who try to cut the epic lines). They will joyfully bypass five other supermarkets on the way to their beloved TJ's. No surprise then that it's one of the preferred chains to buy Thanksgiving turkeys — and for good reason.

Not only does Trader Joe's all natural turkey come from young hens who are well cared for — raised in the open air, vegetarian-fed, and antibiotic-free –- they are always fresh and never frozen. The thing that really puts it over the top for customers, however, is that it comes already brined, keeping the gobbler moist and brimming with flavor while also making for a wonderful gravy. It's the only Thanksgiving turkey for at least one devotee on Reddit, claiming it's far superior to any preparation they could've done themselves. Maybe the very best part of this high-quality turkey (besides the leg, which makes you feel like a Viking when eaten in hand, and that's just fun) is the fact that it's only $2.49 per pound.

Still a bellwether for an area's gentrification, rising housing costs, and priced-out natives, Whole Foods has nonetheless become firmly ensconced in the country's supermarket landscape –- not only opening in smaller, thriftier locales, but reaching out of downtowns and trendy neighborhoods into the suburbs. Accordingly, it's also become a provider of America's staple holiday meal.

Whole Foods not only offers its own brand of fresh, organic young turkey, free of preservatives, at a swallow-able $3.99 per pound, but an entirely prepared Thanksgiving dinner as well. Whereas the former is raw and therefore needs to be cooked (not to mention the supplied sides and fix-ins), the prepared meal is fully made –- only requiring it to be reheated according to the included instructions. The $100 baseline platter feeds a hungry quartet, but you can customize the order for eight or 12 guests. 

The prepped meal is perfect for people with company. One of the caveats from otherwise pleased customers: the size of the turkey could be more substantial — with often little remaining for leftovers. Granted, more than a few diners feel that it's delicious and worth it nonetheless.

One of the country's top retailers, and a consumer behemoth with over 2,000 locations across 16 states reaching either coast, Kroger is a fixture shopping visit for many during Thanksgiving. Offering a quality bird at a very affordable price, the key is getting there and securing yours before they're all gone. But if you can beat out the masses (or bribe a Kroger employee), you're in for a holiday banquet that doesn't blowtorch a hole in your wallet.

Consumers have loved the Kroger whole frozen turkey so much they've sworn off other brands for good. They even buy them for Christmas and, if they want to pay extra, pick them up curbside — which avoids all the annoyance of human contact. You can get a 10 to 14-pound young turkey for a staggeringly cheap 49 cents per pound (although they only limit one per customer, which doesn't seem to stem the tide of people vacuuming it out of stock). One commenter, who considers the Kroger product ideal for Thanksgiving and would recommend it to anybody, suggests brining the turkey beforehand to get the most out of it and avoid drying out the meat. Unless you like your turkey dry — then ignore those instructions. And these instructions. Oh, and apologize to your guests beforehand.

As much a part of Florida as wacky alligator stories, and Boomer transplants, Publix is treating its loyal Southeastern U.S. base with an inexpensive turkey for Thanksgiving — as low a price as you'll find anywhere in the country, in fact. As expected from the Sunshine State chain, which is used to pleasing its customers with meat-based deliverables.

Its whole young turkey has, at the time of writing, been price-slashed down to 49 cents per pound. Consumers who have been buying these turkeys for decades swear by the quality. And for some, it's their one and only. Like Whole Foods, Publix also offers a completely prepared Thanksgiving meal for those who, well, just don't feel like doing all that. 

The great thing: it's much cheaper than Whole Foods, feeding eight for only $70. According to a Redditor, the cooked turkey is very good, highly recommended, and makes Thanksgiving prep easy. Just warm up the turkey (with the sides) before serving, and you'll get a solid bird that will leave no one complaining. A reminder as well: If you're just going with the ole whole turkey instead, pick that up in Publix's deli section (just be aware it is uncooked).

Being number two isn't always so bad. Would you want to be the first turtle to hatch on the beach with all those hungry seagulls? Or the first one to make that clunky, disturbing analogy? No, you wouldn't. Sometimes embracing second is the way to go, and Sam's Club has done that with great success.

Emulating Costco in many ways, Sam's Club continues that approach when it comes to Thanksgiving turkeys. And although numero-uno Costco has double the memberships on the books, muy segundo Sam's Club is no slouch when it comes time for a certain November holiday (and may even do a number of other, non-Thanksgiving things better than its big rival). Like Costco, Sam's Club offers a whole smoked turkey that one customer on Reddit described as, not just tasty, but "fire." Another Reddit user an "amazing experience." Whoa. Is it a turkey or a Billy Joel concert? And, as long as you follow directions, you'll have it ready in less than three hours. Sam's Club can also help you accompany that yummy poultry with a number of sides for under $10 each, making it the first choice for many people come turkey-getting time.

Texas' H-E-B supermarket chain (which also has locations throughout Mexico) often has great buys for the Thanksgiving holiday, not least its popular whole turkey. Named after the initials of founder Howard Edward Butt, customers would probably still be flocking to the store for Thanksgiving had the company simply been called Butt's. That's how good the turkey is.

The San Antonio-based, family-owned grocer's slow-cooked, easy-to-prepare fresh turkey has been praised by one Redditor: "I got one last year and it was amazing. We kept it in the fridge till cook time and it was fine." Coming already brined and potentially as large as 24 pounds, it needs little more than a bit of seasoning and fresh veggies joining it in a pan, to deliver Thanksgiving goodness at the table. And at $2.29 per pound (at the time of writing) it's a competitive price for an exceptional eat.

The Fresh Market offers gourmet-level fare at everyday-shopper prices — something North Carolinians have known for a long time. When it comes to Thanksgiving, you can go with The Fresh Market's individual turkeys or its fully prepared turkey-centric spread. The fresh whole turkey runs about $3 a pound (at 16 to 20 pounds in weight) during holiday time. 

But the real winner, for many a customer, is the turkey in the store's premade Thanksgiving meal package. Not only is it easy to prepare but the 10 to 12-pound bird is — after about two hours in the oven — perfectly moist, delectable, and generously sized, making the entire dinner well worth the roughly $100 price tag — and the turkey well worth serving out to loved ones.

There's nothing little about Lidl's Thanksgiving turkey deal — except the price. Going for as low as 25 cents per pound (limited to two per sale but with no minimum purchase required), customers have done the easy math and are rushing out to get a potentially 16 pound bird for around $4. On top of that, Lidl sells a Thanksgiving bundle package that's less expensive than similar offerings from either Walmart or Aldi. 

For an absurd $36 you can get a young whole turkey, frozen, with everything you need for classic sides and even desserts. All told, it's a meal that can feed up to 10 people. Times are rough for a lot of folks out there, and the onus of supplying holiday meals can take a damaging toll on the bank account. If you're near one of the Lidl locations up and down the East Coast, it might be prudent to build your Thanksgiving experience there — turning a burden into the beautiful, bountiful memories holidays are supposed to be.

Another supermarket franchise that's a home run with Thanksgiving customers, for both its frozen whole turkey and prepared holiday meal, Hy-Vee has become a consecutive-year turkey choice for many. Owned by its employees and with most of its stores located in the Midwest and South, Hy-Vee has frozen whole turkeys that range from $1.39 per pound to $2.48 per pound (at the time of writing). 

Having recently been voted the best grocery chain in America, its shoppers are effusive in their praise of, not only the shop itself, but its Thanksgiving deals. They'll shout from the figurative rooftops (and after enough hot toddies, perhaps literal ones) that its Thanksgiving turkey — especially in the meal package — is nothing short of delicious and will prompt a chef's kiss from everyone at the dining table. It's also possible to gather an entire Thanksgiving meal you cook yourself for between $30 and $40. It's not a bundle like some of the other locations, but using the Hy-Vee's Aisles Online remote service can save you scurrying up and down the store to get everything you need.

There must be something to these employee-owned supermarket chains. Aside from, you know, the profound values of solidarity and democracy. WinCo, a Boise-based grocer known for its bulk retail, carries that spirit of collectivity over to its Thanksgiving offerings. When you spend $125 you get a free whole turkey –- a choice of either the Honeysuckle White, Northern Pride, or Jennie-O brand. Note that the single $125 purchase cannot include alcohol, gift cards, stamps, bus passes, or money transfers, so there are some restrictions. 

With that said, you can populate your entire Thanksgiving meal or just do the weekly grocery shopping and parlay that into the gratis bird. Unable or unwilling to meet the previously outlined purchase threshold? You can still buy a turkey standalone for around 80 cents per pound. WinCo's locations are primarily out west, reaching no further east than Texas. So those in a majority chunk of the Central time zone and the entire Eastern time zone have no practical access to this warehouse-style chain that doesn't require a membership. Some advice: get a few Mountain time zone friends. But make sure to scream loud — they're probably on a mountain.

We scoured the labyrinths of Reddit and Facebook, along with reviews on the likes of YouTube and TikTok as well as a personal blog or two, to see which grocery chains people were patronizing for the turkeys (either frozen, fresh, or as part of larger prepared meals). The subject being, firstly, food and, secondly, a traditional American holiday, social media opinions were many, varied, occasionally measured, and often shamelessly unsolicited. 

We then cross-checked these internet-blasted points of view with information directly from the grocers, when necessary, to get a clear picture of customers' preferred supermarket chains for their annual giving of thanks. That, of course, means absolute zilch to those just going out to eat for Thanksgiving.