The Most Trusted Grocery Store in 2026

Grocery stores are a lot like sports teams — people tend to develop a deep sense of loyalty for their favorite one. Some shoppers return to the same supermarket because of the convenient location, some because of affordability, and some because the store sells higher-quality products than others.

The grocery store with the most loyal fanbase was recently revealed in the 2026 Most Trusted Awards. The study, conducted by Newsweek and the research firm BrandSpark, surveyed 35,215 American shoppers to identify their most-trusted brands, including grocery stores, in various categories and geographical regions. Here’s a look at the findings.

The Methodology

Before discussing the most-trusted grocery store, let’s look at the survey’s methodology. BrandSpark surveyed respondents across 27 categories related to grocery stores. Among those categories, people were asked for their favorite grocery store when it came to factors such as low prices, promotions, organic foods, and brand-name products, to name a few. The survey also ranked different types of grocery stores based on size and region.

The Best of the Best

The supermarket that took home the most victories in the grocery sphere is Walmart, which was ranked No. 1 in 13 of the 27 categories. To make matters more impressive, Walmart finished as the runner-up in 10 of the 14 other categories. (The remaining four categories ranked small-format grocery stores, so Walmart wasn’t eligible.)

Here’s a look at the 13 categories where Walmart topped the list.

• Conventional Supermarket (non-discount) (South)
• Discount Supermarket (West) (a tie with the company Grocery Outlet)
• Grocery Store for Customer Service
• Grocery Store for Low Prices/Affordability (South)
• Grocery Store for Low Prices/Affordability (West)
• Grocery Store for Store Brand/Private Label Products
• Supermarket for Quick & Easy Shopping
• Supermarket for Sales & Promotions
• Superstore/Hypermarket (Midwest)
• Superstore/Hypermarket (Northeast)
• Superstore/Hypermarket (South)
• Superstore/Hypermarket (West)
• Grocery Pickup & Delivery

According to the survey consumers, Walmart has a trusted reputation across a wide variety of categories. It also dominates the superstore sphere and excels when it comes to low prices and good customer service. Part of what makes Walmart so popular is its huge national footprint: 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of a Walmart or a Sam’s Club, a wholesale store owned by Walmart, so many people in the U.S. probably shop there often.

The Other Most-Trusted Stores

The European grocery chain Aldi put up a strong showing with eight wins, especially with regard to categories related to discounts and affordability. Here are the categories Aldi won:

• Discount Supermarket (Midwest)
• Discount Supermarket (Northeast)
• Discount Supermarket (South)
• Grocery Store for Low Prices/Affordability (Midwest)
• Grocery Store for Low Prices/Affordability (Northeast)
• Small-Format Grocery Store (Midwest)
• Small-Format Grocery Store (Northeast)
Small-Format Grocery Store (South)

Only one other grocery store earned multiple accolades: Kroger, which ranked as the most-trusted grocery store in the following categories:

• Conventional Supermarket (non-discount) (Midwest)
• Grocery Loyalty Program

Four other grocery store brands won the most-trusted title in one individual category each:

• ShopRite – Conventional Supermarket (non-discount) (Northeast)
• Safeway – Conventional Supermarket (non-discount) (West)
• Whole Foods Market – Grocery Store for Natural/Organic Foods
• Trader Joe’s – Small-Format Grocery Store (West)

Based on the findings, Walmart has clearly earned itself the top spot among consumers looking to shop at a trusted grocery store — its  expansive reach and impeccable reputation with consumers is hard to compete with.

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