10 Target Items That Are Just as Good as Name Brands

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Target has revolutionized the grocery run, selling such a variety of products like produce, pet toys and home decor all under one red roof. But it’s not just a time-saver – some Target products can save you cash against their name-brand competitors, without compromising on quality. Check out these items on your next Target trip.

Frozen Vegetables

The unsung hero of your freezer, frozen vegetables are great to have on hand when you need to sneak some veggies into your main dish. Plus they’re budget-friendly, making these Frozen Mixed Vegetables from Good & Gather an easy addition to the cart.

Good & Gather is the Target-owned brand centered around high-value food with high-quality ingredients, including over 2,000 products that are free from artificial flavors and sweeteners, synthetic colors and high-fructose corn syrup. So the Good & Gather Frozen Mixed Vegetables nutrition label stacks up to its name-brand competitors at a lower cost.

Target’s 12-ounce bag of mixed vegetables is also a little bigger than its direct competitors, which saves you more green. To see if packaged food products are a good value, divide the price of the item by the total ounces in the bag to find the cost per ounce.

Canned Tomatoes

In a Wirecutter & NYT Cooking review of the best canned tomatoes, Target’s Good & Gather Whole Peeled Tomatoes made the cut for their flavorful sauce. They were also the cheapest option for quality canned tomatoes on the list. Enough said.

Frozen Pizza

The Good & Gather Signature Wood-Fired Margherita Frozen Pizza is easily one of my favorites. Good & Gather’s line of frozen pizzas rival the name-brand prices and receive similar reviews in quality. They also have gluten-free options like cauliflower crust – which are cheaper, but slightly smaller, than their competitors’. 

Cotton Swabs

An everyday item like cotton swabs can still make a difference in your monthly grocery budget. So consider swapping the name-brand swabs for the Target Up & Up Regular Cotton Swabs.

While one dedicated reviewer points out that Target’s swabs could be fluffier, it’s hard to argue with the price. The price of an Up & Up 500-count pack of cotton swabs is about half as much as the name-brand alternative, and will still perform everyday functions like tidying your makeup or those pesky keyboard crevices.

Food Storage Bags

Still on the Up & Up, the Target brand’s Food Storage Bags can also bring that grocery bill down. Every variety of Up & Up’s food storage bags are priced significantly lower than their name-brand counterparts. 

If you’re still wary of storing spillable things like meat and sauce, you could grab a pack of the Up & Up bags and save on storing other items like travel-size liquids in your suitcase.

Medicine

It’s tempting to go with what you know when it comes to medicine, especially if there is a certain brand you trust. But Target’s Up & Up versions of common over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen and ibuprofen contain the same active ingredients as the name brands for a fraction of the cost.

Hand Soap

Target’s Smartly brand is stocked with household essentials, with most items costing less than $2. That makes this Smartly Liquid Hand Soap a no-brainer. However certain scents sell out quickly, so make sure to check the store’s inventory before adding it to your shopping list. 

Bath Salts

You do not have to wait until you can treat yourself to afford self-care. Compared to the name brand, Target’s Up & Up Bath Salts will not break your shopping budget. The ingredients are simple, and the salts receive mainly positive reviews online.

Diapers

Babies require about 200 diaper changes each month, according to the National Diaper Bank Network. So on top of other recurring expenses like formula and baby food, it’s hard to justify spending top-dollar on something you throw away about six times a day.

The good news: Target’s Up & Up Diapers can really cut down your diaper spending. What’s more, they hold up against name brands. In a Wirecutter review of 30 different diaper brands, Target’s Up & Up diapers were among the top performers.

For pricier Target brand items, take advantage of Target’s Price Match Guarantee. If you can find a cheaper price listed at Target.com, they will honor it at the register.

Dog Toys

Fur babies can get just as expensive as human babies if you’re not shopping smart. And while some name-brand dog toys are cute, the price tags are not. Target’s Boots & Barkley sells similar designs like these for a fraction of name-brand costs. 

Cutting costs on more disposable products can save you money to invest in more durable products like beds and leashes down the line. If your terrier tears a toy to shreds regardless of the brand, you might as well save some money on their next victim.

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