How to Shop at Wegmans and Save Money: 11 Simple Tips

Wegmans is a regional grocery store chain with 103 locations. It has had the reputation of being one of America’s best grocery stores for a very long time. But while great, Wegmans isn’t cheap. So here’s how to shop at Wegmans and save money.

The best way to save money at Wegmans will be to buy their house brand items, use the Ibotta app to earn cashback from partner brands, and sign up for their Shopper’s Club to build points, and get digital coupons.

But these are not the only thrift hacks you can do at Wegmans.

Wegmans is not an overly expensive grocery store, but it’s not the low-priced leader either. Think of it as an excellent cross between Whole Foods and a Kroger.

I’ve decided to give you 11 must-know tips so you can get the most out of your money. I have over 20+ years as a manager in the grocery industry, so you can trust that I’ll give the best tips and hacks.

Read on to get the scoop!

What are the best things to buy at Wegmans?

The best things to buy at Wegmans include the Wegmans private label products, cheeses, organically-grown produce, and their ready-to-cook EZ Meals.

But let’s get into some details of each of those and what makes them special.

Store brand items

We all experience some type of skepticism when buying private label products from grocery stores.

This is because most people associate the lower cost of said brands with lower quality. That’s not the case for Wegmans. Customers and reviewers rave that the quality is sometimes way better than the more expensive brand names. It’s like the perfect pairing of quality and reasonable pricing.

Here’s the best part. Most of Wegmans’ store brand products are organic or have a “Food You Feel Good About” label.

This means that they are free from preservatives and artificial flavors and there’s no need to have to read every ingredient label.

Cheese

If you’re looking for gourmet cheese, then Wegmans is the place to find them.

They even have their own cheese ripening caves and even a section of the stores dedicated to brie cheeses. How cool is that!

At the 2019 American Cheese Society’s Judging and Competition, Wegmans Professor’s Brie was one of three cheeses named “Best of Show.” (source)

Produce

Wegmans operates its own organic farms but also partners with local farms to get fresh produce on their shelves.

In a 2017 Consumer Reports comparison of 62 grocery stores, Wegmans had the best produce in the US. Fresh, organic, and affordable produce in a wide variety at the stores.

EZ Meals

EZ Meals are Wegman’s ready to heat and eat convenience meals. These include some that are meat or seafood-based, some frozen ones, some cooked items from prepared foods.

They even have a whole line they call “Produce Step Savers” which are basically different veggies or fruits that are prepped and precut and ready to throw in the pan.

So now, let’s check out the . . .

11 Simple Tips to Save Money at Wegmans

1. Sign up for their Shopper’s Club

Why? There’s no reason not to. Whether you shop at Wegmans occasionally or you’re a Wegmaniac, you shouldn’t pass on joining the free loyalty program.

You’ll get points on every purchase and exclusive digital coupons. These coupons are based on items you frequently purchase and staple household items, not random things you might not find useful.

What’s even better is that you can always stack all your available coupons and add them to your order. You can also add WDollars to your card, which reduces the need to swipe your debit card.

CLICK HERE to sign up on the Wegmans site.

2. Get the Wegmans App

Wegmans has some of the largest stores in the industry and can be a pain to sort through.

The Wegmans app is like the perfect shopping partner. While it helps you navigate through the large store, it will also scan the items in your cart. You’ll also be able to organize your shopping list by aisle.

Not sure what to get for dinner? The Wegmans app has tons of recipes you could try out. You can find all the ingredients you need and scan them right away from your app!

Click HERE for the iOS app or HERE for Android.

3. Buy the Wegmans brand

Shopping for national brands at Wegmans can be expensive. The store brand is not only cheaper but also exceeds the quality for a store brand. You can’t go wrong with excellent quality and reasonable pricing.

We are all a little skeptical when purchasing house brands for the first time. Let’s face it, many times, the quality is very poor even though the prices are low.

However, like Wegmans, customers rave about the house brands at ShopRite.

Wholesome Pantry is an organic brand that is both affordable and of good quality. Their meat is also similar, if not better than Wegmans.

Check out my recent article on ShopRite versus Wegmans. I’ll help you to conclude which of the two is better for grocery shopping.

Just click that link to read the comparison on my site.

4. Let them shop for you

Navigating a grocery store as large as Wegmans can be both time consuming and distracting. There’s always something going on, and the aisles are so beautifully stocked that it’s hard not to do some compulsive shopping.

Here’s how you can avoid that and save some money. Submit your order on the website or the app a day before and choose the pickup option.

The delivery fee is $5.95, with no minimum order. A Wegmans employee will do the shopping for you and deliver your groceries to your car. Here’s the not so good news. Just as Wegmans isn’t as widespread as we would like, Pickup is available in only a few stores.

5. Eat first, shop later

One of the worst ways we overspend when grocery shopping is doing it when hungry.

A trip that should have lasted 15 minutes could go well into an hour of compulsive buying. But wait, there’s a solution. Whether you’re craving sushi, pizza, or the best sub sandwich ever, Wegmans has a restaurant and hot food bar at every location, and everything is reasonably priced.

And as with everything Wegmans, you can count on the ingredients used to be “food you feel good about.”

6. Shop on Saturdays and Sundays

Trying new products doesn’t have to cost you. Wegmans is open 24/7, and the weekend is the best time to make a trip.

Samples are always available on Saturdays, and new products are introduced all the time. Why buy an item you don’t need and probably won’t like when you can try new samples every week?

Sunday mornings are a great time to shop because Wegmans restocks the shelves on Saturday nights. You will find the freshest of everything and very low traffic.

This will give you more time to browse the store without being rushed.

7. Ask for help

Yes, this is actually a money-saving tip!

Need your fruits sliced or have questions about products? Wegmans has some of the friendliest employees, and they are always willing to assist. The employees know the store more than anyone else, so you can ask them for the best deals at Wegmans.

8. Buy their wine

If you’re a wine lover or simply need a bottle of wine now and then, Wegmans has a wide selection of wines. Aisles are organized with the top 20 wines that are in season and trending with shoppers. If you’re looking to get the most out of your money, try a few of the $6 wines.

There are also top-rated wines under $20. Download the Vivino app if you want ideas on which wines to purchase. With the app, you can take a picture of the labels, and the rating by other shoppers will be available to you.

9. Buy the $8 and $10 meals

Wegmans sells some of the best-prepared meals, and guess what, they’re customizable!

These meals include an entrée and two side dishes. They’re great for lunch or dinner when you won’t get to cook. Why cook when you can get Wegmans Italian Pasta Bowl with a free Caesar salad for $10 or their Chicken French with whipped potatoes.

10. Get the Ibotta app

Ibotta is a useful smartphone app that allows you to save money in 200+ stores, including Wegmans.

Whether the purchase is in-store or online, you can earn cashback. Simply upload your receipts with items you purchased from partnering brands.

Sometimes you may be required to scan the barcode of an item, but that is super simple. Redeem your first offer, and you will get $10 off and an additional $0.25 off just by uploading a receipt.

In addition to that, you’ll occasionally get “Any Brand” offers, which means staple grocery items will still be eligible for cashback even from the house brand.

The cash out threshold is $20, and your payments are made in cash and not gift cards.

Click HERE for the iOS app or HERE for Android.

11. Create a shopping list online 

If you tend to overspend, then creating a shopping list from home will help you estimate how much you’ll actually spend. It will save you from being too tempted by the vast selection that Wegmans has.

You’ll also be able to compare brands before you go to the store.

Shopping at Wegmans can be one of the best grocery shopping experiences you’ll ever have. Quality is exceptional, and the house brand is excellent and cheap.

But you might wonder if Wegmans is overall an expensive or cheap grocery store.

Here’s my recent article on how Wegmans prices compare to two of its biggest competitors. What really surprised me was how much cheaper they were on a few specific products compared to Whole Foods.

Just click that link to read it on my site.

Did I cover all you wanted to know about how to save money at Wegmans?

In this article, I covered what the best things were to buy at Wegmans.

The house brand is said to be just as good as national brands. Wegmans is also a paradise for cheesemongers. They have great prices on gourmet cheeses. Wegmans also has great produce at reasonable prices, especially the organic selection, which is usually more expensive.

I also covered 11 tips, tricks, and an app to help you save money when shopping at Wegmans.

These include buying the Wegmans brand and shopping on Saturdays and Sundays. Other ways to save money are the Shopper’s Club, Wegmans App, and creating a shopping list online.


Photo which requires attribution:

Wegmans by MonkeyMyshkin is licensed under CC2.0

Jeff Campbell

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