H-E-B tops another best supermarket list

H-E-B has topped yet another “best grocery store” list, finishing first in Food & Wine’s “The 10 Best Supermarkets in America: 2020.” Earlier this year, the retailer ranked highest on a list from the American Customer Satisfaction Index and topped dunnhumby’s Retailer Preference Index.

However, different from those two lists and Food & Wine's past lists, the foodie magazine's 2020 ranking factored in strong consideration for how America’s grocery stores have been handling the coronavirus pandemic. It goes without saying, the pandemic has completely changed how Americans shop and how grocers serve them so the list does look quite a bit different compared to last year's ranking. 

For one, H-E-B didn’t make the cut, although Central Market finished second. This year, Wegmans placed second, after finishing tops last year. Wegmans also finished in the top spots in this year’s American Customer Satisfaction Index and dunnhumby’s Retailer Preference Index, cementing the grocer as a powerhouse on the East Coast.

Another slight change from last year’s list, the discount chains with high-quality store brands: Lidl, Trader Joe’s and Aldi all finished high last year, placing third, fourth and seventh, respectively. The listing last year also touted store brands as a major driver of why retailer’s placed the way they did, whereas this year that got upended slightly by the pandemic. In the 2020 ranking, Aldi fell out of the top 10, Lidl dropped to sixth and Trader Joe’s ninth. However, Winco Foods, Costco and Publix are chains with incredibly strong private brands and found their way in.

Here’s how the stores ranked and click here to read the full story.

1.H-E-B

2. Wegmans

3. Hy-Vee

4. New Seasons

5. Market Basket

6. Lidl

7. Winco Foods

8. Trader Joe’s

9. Publix

10. Costco