Millions of customers shop at Walmart every day, but not everything on its shelves is worth your hard-earned money. This may be especially true for store-specific brands.
See also: 10 Walmart-branded groceries cheaper at Aldi
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These items are typically priced attractively when compared to name brand items, but the level of quality may be disappointing. For example, it may not be as durable, perform poorly, or not taste very good. In other words, you end up wasting your money.
From kitchen appliances to snack foods, here are nine Walmart-branded products you shouldn’t buy.
kitchen appliances
You might want to save $15 to $30 or more on a kitchen appliance, but that’s not going to happen if it stops working within a year.
“Unless you plan on using your kitchen appliances literally only a few times, avoid Walmart brands,” says David Bakke of DollarSanity. “That quality isn’t there. I bought a microwave a few months ago and it didn’t even last a month. Costco’s kitchen appliances have worked better and the prices are competitive.”
glasses and tableware
If you’re looking for glasses and tableware for the long term, Walmart branded items may not be your best choice.
“Basically all you have to do is look at a set of plates and glasses and realize that the quality isn’t that great,” Bakke says. “This kind of item is usually something you want to keep for years, so it’s better to go a different route and pay a little more for added durability.”
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grain
Saving a dollar or so every time you buy cereal may seem like a smart move, but not when boxes sit in the pantry because no one eats them.
“While there are great-value versions of classic cereals like Applejack and Cocoa Puffs, the taste doesn’t come close,” Bakke says. “If you’re like me, it’s not worth saving a few pennies when you can’t taste something you’ve known and loved since childhood.”
Treat beauty products equally
Your Tampa Bestie’s Jasmine Charbonier recommends avoiding the following Equate beauty products based on her personal experience. She said Walmart-brand makeup remover pads caused irritation and stinging on her skin. She also tried shampoos and conditioners from big box stores, which she said left her hair dry and frizzy. When it comes to Walmart Her brand Skin Her Cream, Charbonnier found it to have an overly chemical smell and feel, making it unpleasant to use.
Mainstay furniture
Charbonnier said Wal-Mart’s Mainstays furniture products aren’t worth the money. She said the dining chairs she purchased became wobbly and loose over time, and the coffee table became prone to scratches and dents. Additionally, she said the dresser drawers she purchased didn’t slide smoothly and got stuck, making it frustrating to use.
Great frozen pizza
Before you grab a bargain frozen pizza on your next Walmart shopping trip, learn from Charbonnier’s experience. She said the sauce was watery and tasteless, and the cheese tasted rubbery and artificial. If that wasn’t enough, I also mentioned that the dough was soggy in the middle and not crispy. In her opinion, DiGiorno or Red Baron offer better taste and value.
great value snack food
Charbonnier said some Great Value snack foods still have a lot to improve. She said the pretzels she tried were often small and crumbly, and the potato chips were greasy and had a “different flavor.” She also said that while Great Value Cheese Crackers are meant to be like the name brand Cheez-It crackers, the Walmart version has a waxy texture and doesn’t taste like real cheese. .
great value frozen broccoli
“You might think frozen vegetables are hard to mess up, but Great Value does a great job of doing that,” says Travel Compositions founder Tabatha Byler. “When that broccoli is cooked, it becomes so mushy that it’s almost unrecognizable as broccoli.”
She adds, “I understand that freezing broccoli compromises the integrity of the vegetable. However, most brands flash-freeze, which leaves a slightly crunchy texture when cooked. Not a great deal. No. They come out looking like they’ve been boiled into oblivion and then frozen. Vegetables don’t have structure anymore.”
great value dill pickles
“Another product I will never buy again is Great Value dill pickles,” Beiler said.
“I’m not too picky about pickle brands. As long as I get vinegar, salt, or dilly, I’m a happy camper. Heck, even after I run out of spears, I still drink pickle juice straight from the bottle. But , I couldn’t finish a single jar of Great Value pickles. It had some sort of metallic taste and strange aftertaste that was hard to pinpoint. It made me want to gag and I had to spit it out. I did. From now on, I will continue to use the safe Vlasic.”
GOBankingRates Details
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 9 Walmart Brand Products to Avoid Buying