20 Best Cheap Trader Joe’s Foods Under $5

The first thing any loyal Trader Joe’s shopper will tell you is how affordable it is to shop there. Followed by how yummy the frozen food tastes. Followed by how many great vegan products they have. Followed by…well, I think you get the idea. And they aren’t wrong! TJ’s grocery aisles are chock-full of products that deserve a spotlight for their affordability and deliciousness. We compiled a list of our favorite cheap Trader Joe’s meals, snacks, condiments, and more under $5 for you and your budget-shopping needs—and for any future historians looking for quantitative data on our current economic crisis. Enjoy!

Trader Joe’s Very Berry Granola

Best Breakfast

Trader Joe’s Very Berry Granola ($3.99)

If you’re looking for a cheap breakfast, this is a great, cheap Trader Joe’s staple to have in your pantry. It’s so, so, so good with yogurt. Studded with dried blueberries and dried strawberries, it’s texturally delightful—crunchy and chewy. It tastes natural and wholesome and yet you don’t have to venture to the farmer’s market to buy it. — Justine Sterling

Credit: Liv Averett

Rating:

8.5/10

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trader joe's salad kit

Best Salad Kit

Lemony Arugula Basil Salad Kit ($3.99)

I’m not sure the Sporked team has ever been more excited about a salad kit, to be honest. As our editor-in-chief Justine Sterling writes, “I have bought this Trader Joe’s salad kit again since first trying it in this taste test. Yes, using my own hard-earned cash. That’s as much of an endorsement as I can possibly give a product.” This zesty, peppery Lemony Arugula Basil Salad Kit includes carrots, crunchy almonds, shaved parmesan, and some secret magical ingredient that makes anyone who tries it fall immediately in love. True love, for only $3.99? Say less. — Ariana Losch

Read our full ranking of Trader Joe’s salad kits

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

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​​Trader Joe’s Cashel Blue Cheese Irish Potato Chips

Best Flavored Chips

Trader Joe’s Cashel Blue Cheese Irish Potato Chips ($2.99)

If you love a funky blue cheese, then you need to try these Trader Joe’s chips. They’re like if Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream took a dip into a pool of gorgonzola. The flavor is powerful. But it’s so good, you just keep coming back for more.  And that crunch? These may not be kettle cooked chips, but they’re crackly, crunchy, and sturdy. — Justine Sterling

Rating:

10/10

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Trader Joe’s French Onion Popcorn

Best Popcorn

Trader Joe’s French Onion Popcorn ($2.69)

This is the best Trader Joe’s popcorn and one of the best cheap Trader Joe’s items out there. It really follows through on its promise. It tastes like powdered French onion soup—cheese included. The kernels are totally coated in the delicious seasoning. Good luck not finishing an entire bag of this popcorn in one sitting. — Justine Sterling

Credit: Liv Averett

Rating:

10/10

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best plain potato chips

Best Classic Potato Chips

Trader Joe’s Ode to the Classic Potato Chip ($1.99)

Many chip brands have tried, dared, dreamed of unseating TJ’s Ode to the Classic Potato Chip, our best plain potato chip we tried in two separate taste tests. These potato chips just taste so earthy and fresh, which perfectly complements their saltiness and finger-licking greasiness. — Ariana Losch

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

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Trader Joe’s Smoked Trout in Canola Oil

Best Canned Fish

Trader Joe’s Smoked Trout in Canola Oil ($3.99)

You could splurge on some fancy canned fish straight from Portugal with frame-worth illustrated packaging. Or you could just say to hell with pretty packaging and grab a $4 tin of smoked trout from Trader Joe’s. The fish is savory and smoky and flaky. It’s good enough to eat on its own, straight from the tin, or you can mix it into a dip or toss it into a salad. — Justine Sterling

Read our full ranking of Trader Joe’s canned fish

Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon

Rating:

10/10

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trader joe's Olive Fougasse

Best Artisan Bread

Olive Fougasse ($3.49)

We’d be remiss not to mention the single best Trader Joe’s product we tried in 2023: the Olive Fougasse bread. My colleague Jordan Myrick called it “the best store bought bread” they’d ever had, comparing it to an oven-baked olive bread from a French bakery. This loaf has a chewy, soft inside, crispy exterior, and moist olives that infuse the loaf with flavor. This was a Sporked Award recipient, and the fact that you can find such high quality bread under $4 definitely makes this one of the best deals at Trader Joe’s to date. — Ariana Losch

Read our ranking of the best Trader Joe’s bread

Credit: Merc / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

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trader joe's Sourdough bread

Best Sandwich Bread

Sourdough Sandwich Bread ($3.49)

You might be looking for bread that’s a little more functional than the olive loaf that looks so pretty, a part of you doesn’t want to even touch it. Trader Joe’s Sourdough Bread was our runner-up for the best TJ’s bread, right behind the Olive Fougasse, and earned the Sporked seal of approval from self-proclaimed Bay Area sourdough snob herself, Justine. — Ariana Losch

Credit: Merc / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

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Trader Joe’s Enchilada Sauce

Best Sauce

Trader Joe’s Enchilada Sauce ($4.49)

Trader Joe’s recently rejiggered the recipe for their enchilada sauce, and the result is one of the best deals at Trader Joe’s. It’s bold and spicy and needs no tweaking. Use it to make enchiladas or use it as a dip or on a sloppy sandwich or as a simmering sauce for chicken or vegetables. This is some of the best sauce at Trader Joe’s and, at less than $5, it’s a steal. — Justine Sterling

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

9/10

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trader joe's Chicken Tikka Masala

Best Frozen Indian Meal

Chicken Tikka Masala ($4.49)

TJ’s has a wide range of frozen Indian food, more than most major grocery stores. They’ve really cornered the market on individual, microwavable Indian dishes, and we’re thankful for that, since these are some of the best cheap Trader Joe’s meals you can find. Their chicken tikka masala is nearly impossible to fault—it’s so creamy and fragrant, and the chicken cuts like butter. — Ariana Losch

Credit: Merc / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

9.5/10

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Best Frozen Chicken

Mandarin Orange Chicken ($4.99)

Winning our TJ’s vs. Panda Express Takeout taste test, the Mandarin Orange Chicken from TJ’s has some of the best quality chicken from the freezer aisle we’ve tried. It comes with multiple sauce packets (a nice touch, thank you, TJ’s), which makes it easy to mine a few dinners out of this—and all at a $4.99 price point. This might be the GOAT of cheap Trader Joe’s meals. — Ariana Losch

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

9/10

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trader joe's parmesan pastry pups review

Best Frozen App

Parmesan Pastry Pups ($4.99)

Of course, where would any of us be without TJ’s Parmesan Pastry Pups? The greasy, buttery, decadent parmesan taste of these are unmatched. Pro tip: Poke them with toothpicks to avoid wasting too many napkins on greasy fingers. These crowd-pleasers should be a staple at any party you’re throwing—just make sure you’ve got some vegan and vegetarian appetizer options, too. — Ariana Losch

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

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trader joe's mini vegetable samosas review

Best Frozen Veggie App

Mini Vegetable Samosas ($3.99)

Speaking of vegetarian appetizers, have you and these TJ’s veggie samosas cordially met yet? We’re just so happy these crispy, flaky, veggie-packed samosas exist. They might be a little bit smaller than the kind you can find at an Indian restaurant, but you also get a dozen of them for only $3.99. There’s not a ton of major grocery stores out there selling frozen samosas, so really, when it comes to cheap Trader Joe’s meals (or snacks), these are a steal.  — Ariana Losch

Read our full ranking of the best Trader Joe’s frozen appetizers

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

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Trader Joe’s Papas Rellenas

Best Frozen Lunch

Trader Joe’s Papas Rellenas ($4.99)

These crispy, creamy, stuffed mashed potato balls are, essentially, like balls of shepherd’s pie—but a little bit spicy. And they are so satisfying. In fact, even thought they’re not strictly marketed as shepherd’s pie balls, they’re better than most of the frozen shepherd’s pie out there (we should know, we’ve tried them all, pretty much). The potatoes are perfectly seasoned without being too salty, the beef is beefy, and they’re not greasy at all. In the world of frozen bites, this is one of the best deals at Trader Joe’s. — Justine Sterling

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

8.5/10

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Trader Joe's Everything & the Elote Dip

Best Dip

Everything and the Elote Greek Style Yogurt Dip ($3.79)

Mexican street corn in a dip? If you’ve ever passed this over because you were confused about what that would taste like, we beg you to reconsider. This is, hands down, our favorite dip at Trader Joe’s. It blends the freshly grilled smokiness of elote with a tart yogurt base. The corn kernels mixed in are a little sweet and burst in your mouth. For only $3.79, a dip of this caliber is one of the best deals at Trader Joe’s. — Ariana Losch

Read our full ranking of the best Trader Joe’s dips 

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

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Trader Joe’s Burrata Filling

Best Cheese to Spread

Trader Joe’s Burrata Filling ($4.49)

Burrata filling (aka straciatella) is simply a mix of shredded mozzarella and cream. Sounds basic, but Trader Joe’s version is so well incorporated and so creamy that it transcends its minimal ingredients. It’s spreadable—no need to worry about it sliding off a toast. Slap it onto some bruschetta or use it to top grilled vegetables or upgrade a frozen pizza. And know that you’d be paying way more for this stuff if you bought it at a cheese store. — Justine Sterling

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

9.5/10

Sporks

Best Trader Joe's Cheese

Best Cheese

Creamy Toscano Cheese Soaked in Syrah ($4.99)

Artisan cheese for under $5? The Creamy Toscano Cheese Soaked in Syrah is one of our favorite TJ’s cheeses to date, and absolutely one of the best deals at Trader Joe’s. Every element in this flavorful cheese, from the tart, wine-soaked  to the crunchy cheese crystals, creates something harmonious, elegant, and addictive. This is a cheese block that’s delicious enough to slice up and eat on its own, no accouterments required. — Ariana Losch

Read our ranking of the best Trader Joe’s cheeses

Credit: Ryan Martin / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

Sporks

Trader Joe's Parmesan Cheese Alternative

Best Dairy-Free Cheese

Shredded Parmesan Cheese Alternative ($3.99)

Those in search of a yummy dairy-free parmesan cheese understand that the struggle is, indeed, very real. TJ’s shredded parmesan earned 10/10 sporks in our vegan shredded cheese taste-test. It’s nutty, salty, and finishes creamy. It’s also at least a dollar cheaper than the other vegan cheeses we tried and loved, so that’s a plus. — Ariana Losch

Credit: Merc / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

Sporks

Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Dipped French Butter Cookies

Best Cookies

Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Dipped French Butter Cookies ($2.99)

These chocolate cloaked butter cookies are a true feat of cookie engineering. They’re perfectly crumbly (but they hold together, thanks to the chocolate). The cookie is sweet but the chocolate is just bitter enough to balance it out. It’s really quite refined. It’s the perfect 4 p.m. pick-me-up. And you can get a whole box for less than $3. — Justine Sterling

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

9.5/10

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Trader Joe’s Everything but the Kitchen Sink Cookie Mix

Best Baking Mix

Trader Joe’s Everything but the Kitchen Sink Cookie Mix ($4.99)

Want to bake the best cookies but don’t want to do any of that pesky measuring? Grab this cheap baking mix from Trader Joe’s. You get pretzels, chocolate chunks, oats, walnuts, coconut flakes, and caramel bits—and, of course, flour, sugar, etc. All you need to add is a stick of butter and an egg. Stir, scoop, bake, and, ta-da!, you get crisp-chewy cookies that are salty and sweet and texturally invigorating. If you’re baking for a cookie swap or a bake sale, make sure to get a second box just for you. — Justine Sterling

Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe’s

Rating:

10/10

Sporks



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