Walmart’s Great Value Brand Beats Name Brand on These 12 Items (And Loses Badly on 3)

Last Friday at 6:12 p.m., I was standing in Walmart with one kid licking a cart handle (why) and another negotiating for a $9.98 Fortnite card like he was my accountant. I’d planned to grab “just a few things.” My receipt was 4 feet long and the self-checkout light was flashing at me like I’d committed a crime.

On the drive home, I did my usual shame-scroll through the receipt, circling anything that felt like a splurge. And there it was again: Great Value tucked next to a bunch of name brands like it belonged at the same party. Some of it absolutely does. Some of it should be escorted out.

Great Value Classic Roast Ground Coffee vs. Folgers Classic Roast

I’m not precious about coffee, but I am serious about it. I bought Great Value Classic Roast Ground Coffee on a Monday morning because Folgers was doing that thing where it’s suddenly expensive for no reason. At home, it brewed dark and smelled like actual coffee, not “break room.” My husband didn’t notice, which is my favorite kind of product review. The real win: it didn’t taste burnt when I reheated it at 2:47 p.m. after preschool pickup. Folgers has betrayed me there more than once.

Great Value Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese vs. Kraft Deluxe

My middle kid can detect a “different mac and cheese” like a bloodhound. I grabbed Great Value Deluxe because it was right there, and I’m weak at 8:30 p.m. It passed the visual test: same little sauce pouch energy, same glossy orange situation. He ate two bowls while watching “Bluey” and didn’t say a word, which is basically a Michelin star in my house. The sauce stayed creamy even after it sat on the counter during a minor sibling courtroom drama.

Great Value Steamable Broccoli Florets vs. Birds Eye

If I’m being honest, frozen broccoli is me trying to be a person who has it together. Great Value Steamable Broccoli Florets have fewer sad, woody stems than the Birds Eye bag I bought the week before. On Wednesday night, I microwaved the bag, dumped it into a bowl, and it was mostly actual florets. No weird freezer perfume either. I tossed it with butter and garlic salt and my oldest ate three pieces without theatrics. That’s not nothing.

Great Value Purified Drinking Water (40-pack) vs. Dasani

I buy bottled water for soccer Saturdays because the minivan cup holders are a lawless place. The Great Value 40-pack was $5.48 at my store, and Dasani was sitting there acting like it had a skincare routine. The Great Value bottles don’t have that weird, slightly plastic-y aftertaste that makes Dasani feel like a dare. Also, the caps twist off without me doing that mom move where you brace it against the steering wheel at a red light. Small luxury, big mood.

Great Value Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars vs. Quaker Chewy

I keep granola bars in my purse because my youngest turns into a tiny, angry accountant if snacks are late. Great Value Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars are the same soft, sweet, slightly crumbly vibe as Quaker Chewy, but they don’t leave that waxy coating on your teeth. My oldest calls them “the good school bars,” which is high praise from a kid who once reviewed my dinner as “fine, I guess.” They also don’t explode into dust the second they get bumped by a library book.

Great Value Original Sandwich Cookies vs. Oreo

These are dangerously good. I bought them for an after-school treat and accidentally ate three while packing lunches at 10:38 p.m. The cookie has that crisp snap, and the cream doesn’t taste like straight powdered sugar. My kids dunk them in milk and the cookie holds together long enough to avoid the tragic “cookie sludge” at the bottom of the cup. Are Oreos still the celebrity? Sure. But Great Value is the talented cousin who shows up and steals the scene.

Great Value Shredded Mozzarella vs. Kraft Natural Cheese

Shredded cheese is basically a household utility, like dish soap. I swapped to Great Value Shredded Mozzarella for pizza night and it melted evenly without turning into a weird, greasy puddle. The real test was my sheet-pan nachos on Thursday: it browned in little spots instead of becoming one sad rubber blanket. I did notice it’s a tiny bit more “dry” in the bag, so I shake it like I’m waking it up before sprinkling. Still, it performs where it counts.

Great Value Cinnamon Toast Crunch Copycat vs. Cinnamon Toast Crunch

My kids asked for Cinnamon Toast Crunch with the confidence of people who don’t pay for groceries. I grabbed the Great Value version and poured it into the real cereal container like a sneaky raccoon. Nobody noticed. The squares are slightly less puffy, which I actually prefer because they stay crunchy longer. By the time I sat down with my own bowl, the milk was doing that cinnamon-sugar swirl thing that makes you want to drink it like a milkshake. It scratched the exact itch.

Great Value Creamy Peanut Butter vs. Jif Creamy

After the Jif recall era, I got less brand-loyal about peanut butter. Great Value Creamy Peanut Butter is smooth enough that it doesn’t tear bread, and it doesn’t separate into an oily puddle that makes me feel like I’m doing chemistry. I made 12 PB&J sandwiches for a Saturday birthday party (don’t ask) and it spread fast without ripping my cheap sandwich bread into confetti. My youngest licked the knife and declared it “normal peanut butter,” which is the highest compliment he owns.

Great Value Chocolate Ice Cream vs. Hershey’s Chocolate

I bought Great Value Chocolate Ice Cream for family movie night and expected “fine.” What I got was genuinely chocolatey, not just sweet brown cold stuff. It scoops easier straight from the freezer, which matters when three kids are chanting “ICE CREAM” like it’s a ritual. We did bowls with rainbow sprinkles and the ice cream didn’t instantly turn icy and sad around the edges. Hershey’s is good, but Great Value didn’t taste like it was cutting corners, which surprised me.

Great Value Ultra Strong Paper Towels vs. Bounty

Bounty has saved my sanity more times than I can count, so I didn’t want to like the Great Value Ultra Strong Paper Towels. But they hold up. I used one sheet to wipe up a spilled cup of chocolate milk, then used the same sheet to scrub sticky fingerprints off the fridge handle. It didn’t disintegrate into paper lint confetti. My very unscientific test: I wrung it out and it stayed intact. For everyday messes, it’s close enough that I stopped sulking about it.

Great Value Long Grain Enriched Rice vs. Mahatma

Rice is one of those things I mess up when I’m rushing, so I need it forgiving. Great Value Long Grain Enriched Rice cooked up fluffy on a Tuesday night even though I was also helping with second-grade math that made me feel illiterate. It didn’t get gummy, and the grains stayed separate when I reheated leftovers for lunch. I made a quick “fried rice” situation with eggs and frozen peas, and it didn’t turn into a paste. For the price, it behaves like it’s trying to impress you.

Great Value American Cheese Singles vs. Kraft Singles (loses badly)

This one hurt because I wanted the savings. Great Value American Cheese Singles look the same, unwrap the same, and then… they don’t melt right. I put one on my kid’s grilled cheese on March 3rd and it got shiny but stayed weirdly stiff, like it was refusing to participate. The taste is also more salty in a sharp, fake way that lingered. My oldest took one bite and said, “Mom, this isn’t the good cheese,” in that tone that makes you feel like you’ve failed a basic parenting exam.

Great Value Classic Yellow Mustard vs. French’s Classic Yellow (loses badly)

I’m not a mustard snob, but French’s is doing something Great Value isn’t. The Great Value Classic Yellow Mustard tasted flatter, like someone described mustard to it once. We had hot dogs after a tee-ball game on April 19th, and the kids didn’t care, but I did. It also came out of the bottle watery at first, even after I shook it like a maraca. With French’s, you get that tangy punch immediately. With Great Value, I kept adding more and still felt disappointed.

Great Value Ranch Dressing vs. Hidden Valley Original Ranch (loses badly)

Ranch is basically a food group in my house. I bought Great Value Ranch Dressing thinking, “How different can it be?” Different enough that my kids staged a tiny protest. It’s sweeter and thinner, and it has this aftertaste that reminded me of cafeteria salad cups. On May 6th, I served it with pizza and carrot sticks, and my middle kid said, “It tastes like salad,” like that was an insult. Hidden Valley isn’t perfect, but it tastes like what everyone expects ranch to taste like.