What to know
- 62 per cent of Canadian shoppers buy store brands to save money, according to a new survey.
- Many Toronto residents say there’s little difference in taste or quality between store and name brands.
- Some still have brand loyalties for specific products like ketchup, coffee, or paper towels.
- As inflation keeps grocery prices high, more shoppers are stretching their dollars with no-name picks.
Does having certain brands of groceries matter to you? Or are you willing to buy store-brand versions of certain products to save a few bucks?
After a recent survey reported that many Canadians buy grocery stores’ in-house products to cut grocery costs, Now Toronto asked Toronto residents for their opinions, and many are more than willing to shop generic if it means they can make their budget stretch a little farther.
With the national inflation rate staying above three per cent, Toronto residents are feeling the pinch at the grocery store. According to the Spring 2026 Canadian Shopper Sentiment Study, created by the Retail Council of Canada in partnership with Leger, 62 per cent of Canadian shoppers buy store brand items to save on groceries. Now Toronto asked locals if they opt for store brands, and if they notice any tangible difference compared to name brand items.
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‘A lot of times, it is just the logo’: Many Torontonians find grocery name brands can sometimes be overrated
Toronto resident Bridget K. thinks the brand-name items are often priced higher because of the logo they carry, not necessarily because they are higher quality.
“In terms of any box or canned items, I think it’s all the same,” she told Now Toronto. Here’s what items she’d buy brand-name versus generic.
- Chips: Name brand
- Ketchup: Name brand
- Peanut butter: Generic
- Paper towels: Generic
- Coffee: Name brand
- Ice cream: Generic
Toronto resident Alex N. agrees that people who stick to big brand names are often just paying for the logo — but there are exceptions.
“I feel like there are some name brands that definitely do have more quality, but ‘no name’ is definitely up to the standard for what you need for day-to-day grocery,” he told Now Toronto.
Alex refuses to buy paper towels that aren’t the Bounty name brand, but otherwise will choose a generic brand.
Here’s his list of brand versus generic purchases:
- Ketchup: Generic
- Peanut butter: Brand name
- Toilet paper: Brand name
- Ice cream: Generic
- Coffee: Generic
Toronto resident Miles P. believes the same.
“I don’t think there’s any [store brand] that’s too [much] worse. Maybe nicotine patches don’t stick as well, but in terms of food, I think it’s all coming from the same source, anyway,” he said.
Here are the things he says he has to purchase brand-name versus those that can be a generic brand.
- Ketchup: Brand name
- Cereal: Brand name
- Chips: Generic
- Peanut butter: Generic
- Toilet paper: Generic
- Ice cream: Brand name
- Coffee: President’s Choice (store brand)
