The Great Turkey Price Check
The bird is the biggest single line on the Thanksgiving grocery bill, so we checked five stores the way a shopper actually buys one — price per pound, what a real bird costs, the dates that matter, and the fine print hiding under each headline. One store is giving the turkey away free.
Share on X ↗| Store | The bird | Price | A 16-lb bird | Dates to know | The fine print |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aldi | Farmer's Choice whole turkey, 16 lb | In the basket | Full meal for 10: under $39 | Meal prices Oct 14 – Nov 25 · Turkeys in stores Nov 4 | No coupons, no membership, no minimum purchase — the under-$39 covers the bird AND the classic sides plus pie fixings. |
| Target | Good & Gather frozen turkey | 79¢ / lb | $12.64 | From November · Meal prices Nov 8 – 29 | Cheapest bird by the pound. Priced per pound, so a bigger bird costs more — Target's $30 meal-for-six math leans on this rate for a bird up to 10 lb. |
| Walmart | Butterball frozen turkey, 10–16 lb | 97¢ / lb | $15.52 | Basket in stores & online now – Dec 24 | The $35 basket total assumes a bird of about 13.5 lb. Store-brand Shady Brook Farms birds were spotted at 84¢/lb earlier this month — worth a look in your store. |
| Wegmans | Shady Brook Farms frozen turkey, 13 lb | In the basket | Full meal for 8: under $40 | Meal prices Nov 8 – 28 · Turkey price ends Nov 22 | The bird's special price quits a week before the rest of the basket — buy the turkey first, then take your time on the sides. |
| BJ's Wholesale | Butterball, fresh or frozen | FREE | $0 with a qualifying shop | Qualify Oct 31 – Nov 9 · Coupon lands Nov 14 · Claim by Nov 25 | Members only: spend $150+ in ONE transaction and the turkey coupon (worth up to $25) lands in your account Nov 14. Excludes organic; while supplies last. |
🏆 The verdicts
💲 Cheapest bird by the pound — Target
At 79¢ a pound, a 16 lb turkey is $12.64 — that's $2.88 less than the same bird at Walmart's 97¢, and the gap grows with every pound. No membership, no basket required.
🎁 The only free bird — BJ's
If a $150 stock-up trip was already on your list, BJ's turns it into a free Butterball (up to $25). But the qualifying window is the shortest of the season: Sat Oct 31 through Mon Nov 9 — miss it and the free bird flies away.
🧺 Best whole-dinner math — Aldi & Walmart
Buying the whole dinner anyway? Aldi feeds 10 for under $39 and Walmart feeds 10 for $35, bird included. Our Target vs Wegmans meal showdown is waiting in Holiday HQ's Food Watch.
⏰ The deadline to circle — Wegmans, Nov 22
Wegmans' turkey price ends Sun Nov 22, four days before Thanksgiving. Buy the bird early, park it in the freezer, and shop the sides at your leisure through Nov 28.
🧊 Don't forget the thaw
A frozen turkey needs about a day in the fridge for every 4–5 pounds. Work backwards from Thu Nov 26:
Mon, Nov 23
Sun, Nov 22
Sat, Nov 21
Fri, Nov 20
🦃 This turkey check has wrapped up
Thanksgiving 2026 is in the books, and so are these prices — they were checked on Thu, Oct 29, 2026, and the deals above have ended. The next holiday feature is already cooking.
See what's on at Holiday HQ →