11 Most Seriously Overpriced Foods At Whole Foods

Whole Foods has become known for its high quality, sustainable, specialty selection –- and the controversial high price tag that often comes with that. One quality that makes Whole Foods unique is that it upholds its store offerings to a specific standard. The grocery chain prides itself on strict ingredient standards (including no artificial coloring), ethically sourced meats and seafood, and a curated selection of hard-to-find items. For all of these reasons, Whole Foods is sometimes worth the splurge.

However, not everything at Whole Foods is worth the mark-up. Even after considering its high standards and special selection, much of Whole Foods' offerings are comparable to other grocery stores and can be seriously overpriced. With its warmly lit aisles, health food section, and extensive produce section it can be easy to walk out with a much higher bill than you expected.

So, which Whole Foods items aren't worth it? We looked through the Whole Foods catalogue to get a sense of what foods are worth the splurge, and which ones are really just overpriced.

Store-made guacamole is never a cheap item. Covering the convenience of having to mash all of those avocados yourself, resulting in a fresh product that beats the premade guacamole in a taste test, most grocery stores give it a high price tag. Still, Whole Foods brings this to an outrageous level. This guacamole ranked second worst on Chowhound's ranking of store bought guacamole because of its egregious price. At $4.99 for an 8-ounce container, its guacamole is on average at least $1.50 more expensive than other store brands. Perhaps those Whole Foods avocados are extra special, but likely not an extra couple dollars better than other stores. Despite being delicious, this product is best purchased elsewhere.

Better yet, consider making your own! Individual avocados may seem expensive, but if you're craving larger quantities of guacamole, making it yourself is by far the more cost effective way. Consider adding some pickled jalapenos, or follow a celebrity recipe (Bobby Flay has a fun one) for a more affordable, and delicious option.

Sugar is a kitchen essential, and if you want the organic kind, Whole Foods is one of the only places you can purchase it. Just know that it will come with a high price tag. At $5.49 for a 32-ounce bag, this organic cane sugar is some of the most expensive on the market. Comparable grocers like Target that sells organic sugar at around $1.50 less than the Whole Foods retail price. Instead of going to Whole Foods, consider stocking up on your pantry essentials at a different, more affordable store.

When it comes to the "organic" label, you'll also want to know what you're buying. Organic cane sugar differs from non-organic by not only avoiding artificial additives, but also supporting sustainable farming. If you don't have a preference on the organic option, inorganic cane sugar is often the much more affordable option at Whole Foods and other outlets. Just make sure you're not grabbing the first bag of sugar you see off the shelf!

Fish sauce is another pantry essential perfect for much of your Asian-inspired cooking, or even to just add a kick of umami flavor to unexpected foods, like burgers. If you're looking for the best of the best, Red Boat fish sauce is considered top tier in the fish sauce world. Boosting umami flavor, simple ingredients, and high-quality production, Red Boat adheres to Whole Foods' retail standards and has the high price tag to prove it. Still, At $10.49 for an 8.45 fl oz bottle, Whole Foods sells this identical product at a significantly higher price than other comparable retailers, like Amazon, Frys, and Sprouts.

Because fish sauce is fermented and can be kept for a long time, you can also consider buying this product in bulk to lower the price tag even further. Whole Foods only offers a medium 8.45 oz bottle, but other retailers offer this in larger bottles or multiple packs for a deal.

Breakfast tacos, chicken wings, even cocktails -– if you put hot sauce on just about anything, it makes it better. Cholula, a beloved hot sauce and arguably a household name, is one of the very best on the market and earned a spot on the Whole Food shelves. A Mexican hot sauce derived from an old family recipe, Cholula is authentic and sustainably sourced from the peppers, all the way to its wooden cap. All of this history means that authentic Cholula is sold at a pretty price tag already. Still, Whole Foods manages to mark it up even more. At $8.99 for a 12-ounce bottle, Whole Foods Cholula is about $2.00 more than comparable retailers.

Like Red Boat 40N Fish Sauce, Cholula is available for purchase at most grocery stores at a less steep price tag. If you have the time to go somewhere else, take the opportunity to avoid Whole Foods' serious overpricing of this product.

If you're gluten free, a reliably delicious cake mix can be hard to find. Whole Foods is a safe place to turn to in these moments because of its large selection of specialty foods. If you find yourself wandering down the Whole Foods baking aisle, you may stumble across Simple Mills Vanilla Cupcake & Cake Mix. Simple Mills is known for its delicious, almond flour-based, gluten-free mixes. It also aligns with Whole Foods' values, as a company that sustainably sources its ingredients and strives to revolutionize food cycles through sustainable sourcing and regenerative agriculture.

Given its commitment to sourcing the very best ingredients, it's unsurprising that its mix comes with a high price tag. Still, Whole Foods sells this cake mix for $8.29 a box -– around $1.00 more than some comparable retailers like Sprouts and Amazon. Unless you're in a pinch, you're better off purchasing this specialty cake mix at another grocer.

Sometimes, life calls for a little luxury. Perfect for salads and charcuterie boards alike, goat cheese is a unique and beloved member of the fancy, "little luxury" cheese community. A soft and smooth cheese, perfectly spreadable, and just the slightest bit tangy, goat cheese is one of the best cheese options on the shelf for many reasons. Because it is made out of goat milk instead of cow's milk, goat cheese can also be easier to digest for those with a lactose dietary restriction.

You can buy goat cheese at almost any grocery store and, spoiler alert, Whole Foods will not be offering you the best deal. At $9.49 for a 10-ounce log, this cheese is seriously overpriced. Consider getting it for $3.00 to $4.00 cheaper at another grocer like Target or Trader Joe's. Say, maybe it can be called luxury on a budget?

Whole Foods has a large selection of tomatoes, but the organic heirloom tomatoes may be the ones to catch your eye. Heirloom tomatoes have a unique shape with distinct ridges or bumps, and they often come in a color other than red. To be a true heirloom tomato, the tomato must be grown from seeds from an original plant and be open-pollinated. A labor of love, these tomatoes truly are special, and Whole Foods gives them the special treatment. Large, shiny, and gorgeously displayed, these tomatoes are a tempting purchase, but are also seriously overpriced.

At $5.99/lb, these tomatoes are about $2.00 more expensive than other comparable retailers. Consider doing your tomato shopping at another grocery store — or, consider buying an alternative, maybe slightly less beautiful but equally delicious tomato variety.

When choosing an avocado at the grocery store, it's normal to tend to gravitate toward the larger, individually packaged ones. Often closer to the perfect firmness and available for you to feel for yourself, the large Hass avocado is a great addition to your weekly shopping cart.

Beautiful as they may be, the reality of buying this avocado crashes down when you see the price. Avocados are a famously expensive produce, but the organic large Hass avocados really stretch the limit on what you'd consider paying for a single vegetable. At $3.29 per avocado, these avocados at Whole Foods are outrageously overpriced. Compared to other grocers, the Whole Foods large Hass avocados sell for an impressive markup of $1.00 and $2.50 more per avocado. Consider buying this delicious produce item somewhere else.

Chicken is a home cook staple and versatile protein option. As something you may be eating regularly, it is an ingredient that you want to be both good for your health and easy on your budget. Whole Foods' Organic Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs are one of these, but not necessarily the other. There are many reasons why buying your chicken organic is a good choice. Organic chicken is raised without antibiotics or growth hormones, fed certified organic feed, and generally free range –- all of which theoretically give you a happier, healthier bird. Whole Foods boasts many standards for all its poultry, including that it must have no antibiotics, be raised in accordance to animal welfare standards, and never have hormones.

Still, these Organic Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs push the limits on what one might be willing to pay for a simple ingredient for your weeknight dinners. At $10.49 per pound, the chicken thighs are $2.00-5.00 more expensive than a similar product at other grocery stores. It can be overwhelming to read through all of the labels on a chicken package, but if you have the time, shop around to find the best deal and quality of your product (it might not be at Whole Foods).

Medjool dates have become known as a kind of superfood. Studies have shown that eating dates regularly can stimulate the immune system, reduce inflammation, and improve hormone regulation. While slowly becoming mainstream, these fruits are not available in all grocery chains, and heading to Whole Foods to purchase them is a relatively safe bet. Whole Foods is riding that superfood train and carries these dates for all of your health and general delicious food needs.

If you're on a date kick though, be warned that Whole Foods will be an expensive place to get your fix. Selling at $8.99 per container, the Natural Delights Organic Pitted Medjool Dates are seriously overpriced and definitely fall subject to the Whole Foods stereotypical markup. While not available everywhere, they can be found at Frys, Amazon, and Target for a significantly reduced price of $2.00-4.00 less.

Berries are the world's natural candy. Sweet, bite-sized, and juicy when they pop in your mouth, they really are the perfect snack. Better yet, some like blackberries carry a multitude of health benefits and can be good for brain health, digestive health, and are anti-inflammatory. There is nothing not to love about these delicious fruits except for the steep price tag.

A carton of organic blackberries at Whole Foods is $7.99, which is a pretty penny to pay for a snack. This is $3.00 to $4.00 more expensive than other comparable grocers, such as Target, Frys, and Sprouts. While they may seem like the perfect little treat to grab, consider heading somewhere else for a more budget-friendly sweet treat.

With so many different brands and products to consider in the grocery store, it can feel impossible to figure out which products are appropriately priced. For this evaluation, we chose to define overpriced as marked-up when compared to similar or identical products at other stores.

To identify the most overpriced foods, we sorted through the Whole Foods catalog online, picking through manually to find the most outrageously priced items. After identifying prices that seemed unreasonable online, we then compared these products to similar products sold at other stores. If other stores sold a similar product but in a different size, we adjusted the price to make accurate comparisons. Once items had been identified and researched online, an additional layer of fact-checking occurred at a Whole Foods store to ensure accuracy. We decided to include items that were not necessarily the Whole Foods 360 brand because several of these products demonstrated a significant markup compared to other retailers.