Publix is expanding in central KY. Are they cheaper than Kroger? We checked
Florida-based Publix grocery stores made their way about a year ago to Kentucky, a state long dominated by Kroger. Now, locations are popping up all over the Bluegrass.
Some Publix locations, open and under construction, are close to existing Kroger stores, increasing options when it comes to food shopping.
Between April 2025 and April 2026, a study by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said food prices have increased in Fayette County by 3.8%, according to previous Herald-Leader reporting. Looking back even further, since 2020, food prices have increased approximately 27%.
Not long after Publix announced a new store is heading to central Kentucky, I compared the prices of common grocery store items at both grocery stores so you don’t have to guess which grocer has the better price.
Publix vs. Kroger: Quick takeaways
There were a few price differentials worth noting. Brand name dairy products at Publix were cheaper than those at Kroger, but only by a slight margin.
The biggest price disparity was in produce. Publix produce was generally more expensive than Kroger produce across the board. You can find the prices in a chart below.
One of the main findings outside of pricing, was that Publix has far more house brands than Kroger. When comparing the two grocers, it seemed only fair to compare both brand names and house brands, and more often than not, Publix had their own version of a product.
Below you can find a table listing the items I compared at both Publix and Kroger stores. By toggling the category name at the top, you can sort the data in a number of ways.
Check out the outcome of my shopping.
How I did this
Where I shopped: I shopped at the Publix Supermarket at The Fountains at Palomar and the Kroger at Millpond Center, both in Southeast Lexington. The grocery stores are about an eight-minute drive from one another down Man o’ War Boulevard.
When I shopped: I documented all prices at Publix and Kroger on Monday, June 15 and Tuesday, June 16, 2026. Prices were documented by taking photographs of the items, quantity and non-sale price.
Where I did not shop: While there are many Krogers in Lexington and the surrounding area, there were only two Publix locations open at the time of my research. A number of Publix Supermarkets are in the construction stage that have yet to open. The second open Publix Supermarket is located at Citation Point in North Lexington off of Georgetown Road, however, there is no standard Kroger grocery within a 10-minute drive. While a Kroger Marketplace is nearby, for consistency, I opted to not shop there as Kroger Marketplace locations are different from a standard Kroger.
What I shopped for: My goal was to search for items that would typically be found on grocery lists ranging from a large family household to a single young adult fresh out of college. I shopped for fruits, vegetables, pasta, snacks and dairy products, to name a few.
What I did not shop for: I did not shop for weekly discounts, BOGOs or any type of price markdowns. I avoided all sale prices and shopped only for the original price posted by the respective store to ensure comparisons were even.