Food is expensive. Full stop.
It’s one thing when flying to the Caribbean is expensive for our wallets, but completely another when we have to check every price tag on essential items such as food and medicine. We need these to survive, not to have fun.
Over the last couple of years, consumers in the United States have seen an increase in prices. We are still dealing with the consequences of Covid pandemic, which disrupted supply chains and contributed to higher food costs.
Then, President Trump’s increased tariff rates sparked concerns about rising inflation. Experts such as Goldman Sachs analysts predicted core goods inflation could reach 6.3% this year, while consumer prices may increase 3.7% by early 2026.
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Inflation rates haven’t reached those levels yet, and even consumer prices didn’t grow as much as economists had expected, but that doesn’t mean they won’t.
The consumer price index (CPI), a measure of economy-wide inflation, for all food increased only 0.2% from April 2025 to May 2024, and was 2.4% higher than in May 2024.
At the same time, though, eating at a restaurant became 3.8% more expensive in May 2025 than in 2024, and home-prepared meals also got pricer. Many supermarket chains and retail grocery giants have raised or plan to raise their prices due to higher import expenses.
So how can shoppers get the best deals?
Image source: Getty Images
New app: ‘one-stop shop for grocery savings’
In June, a new app launched to help consumers find the best grocery prices. Grocery Dealz aims to be “the Gas Buddy of the grocery industry,” said CEO Michael Waldroup.
In an interview with Good Morning Texas, police officer and entrepreneur Waldroup explained that he was inspired by the personal assistant app.
One feature of the app was comparing grocery prices, so he thought this would help people save time and stick to their budgets when shopping for food.
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“Nowadays grocery prices are extremely high, more than they ever have been,” said Waldroup. In his day-to-day job, he witnessed how important it is for people to “save those $5 so maybe they could have those $5 for Christmas for their kids.”
“We like to say our app is a one-stop shop for grocery savings,” Waldroup added.
Grocery Deals is not Waldroup’s first business. In his 20s, he developed a hot dog cart, then opened two barbecue restaurants and Big City Farms, which offer “beer burro service” featuring miniature donkeys that carry refreshments at events.
Now his fifth company is offering a free service, and this is how it works.
The app is simple and could help you save up to 20%
Grocery Dealz’s price data comes from a third party, allowing real-time price comparison.
In the app, shoppers can compare the grocer’s price and build a cart, after which the app will direct them to the selected grocer’s app or website. If a specific retailer doesn’t have a particular product, the app suggests a similar product.
“Our formulas do the magic behind the scenes,” Waldroup said. “It shows the user what the total balance is and the itemized breakdowns of every single retailer.”
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Waldroup believed that the app could serve grocers as well, as they could attract new customers and retain existing ones, writes Food Dive.
“We look at this as a marketplace. So if you’re not in the marketplace, you’re going to lose 100% of the time,” he said.
For the next major update, Waldroup is planning applying coupons and other discounts. Even without the update, in its initial form, the app could help shoppers save up to 20% just by informing them where their grocery list will cost them the least.
Initially, Grocery Dealz launched in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and it is set to expand to the rest of Texas and eventually across the country. It is currently only available on the iOS App Store.
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