Here's how grocery prices in the Philippines compare to Walmart Canada

Groceries are expensive nearly everywhere, so while in the Philippines in December, we decided to check out a local supermarket and compare prices to Walmart Canada.

Many Filipinos prefer to shop at “wet markets,” where items — including vegetables, fruit, meat, chicken, and seafood — can be bought much cheaper.

However, since they are hardly comparable to the typical Canadian shopping experience, we chose a different route.

We decided to head to Shopwise — a chain of supermarkets that stocks local products and imported items familiar to Canadian shoppers.

To compare, we decided to go with the prices available at Walmart Canada. While some items were surprisingly more expensive ($7/kg for russet potatoes in this economy?), you might be shocked that others were on par with what you’ll find in Canada.

But it’s important to note that while those prices might seem reasonable, they’re high for some Filipinos. In Canada, the federal minimum wage currently stands at $16.65 per hour, while the average monthly salary in the Philippines in 2022 was 18,423 pesos ($439.75), according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.

A Filipino tourist found food prices in Canada so shocking that she even created a TikTok video about it.

We used this website to calculate the product’s price per unit for some items to get a more accurate idea of the pricing.

Walk down a supermarket aisle in Manila and see how prices compare.

Bakery

White bread

Philippines: 85 pesos/600 g ($2.05)

Canada: $2.97/675 g

Eggs, chicken, and seafood

Eggs

Philippines: 135 pesos/dozen ($3.26)

Canada: $3.87/dozen

Chicken breast

Philippines: 253 pesos/kg ($6.10)

Canada: $15.10/kg

Salmon

Philippines: 1,218 pesos/kg ($29.37)

Canada: $35.98/kg

Produce

Bananas

Philippines: 90 pesos/kg ($2.17)

Canada: $3/kg

Fuji apple

Philippines: 110 pesos/piece ($2.65)

Canada: 79 cents/piece

Russet potatoes

Philippines: 300 pesos/kg ($7.23)

Canada: $1.75/kg

Dairy

Greek yogurt

Philippines: 67 pesos/125 g cup ($1.62)

Canada: $1.07/100 g cup

Cheese slices

Philippines: 255 pesos/12 slices ($6.15)

Canada: $5.78/14 slices

Canned goods

Black beans

Philippines: 99 pesos/425 ml can ($2.39)

Canada: $1.47/540 ml can

Tuna

Philippines: 48 pesos/180 g can ($1.16)

Canada: $4.97/180 g can

Pantry items

Jasmine rice

Philippines: 80.2 pesos/kg ($1.95)

Canada: $2.37/kg

Pasta

Philippines: 15.4 pesos/100 g (37 cents)

Canada: 31 cents/100 g

Peanut butter

Philippines: 54 pesos/100 g ($1.30)

Canada: 67 cents/100 g

Snacks

Pringles

Philippines: 118 pesos/110 g ($2.85)

Canada: $2.98/156 g

Maltesers

Philippines: 107 pesos/100 g ($2.58)

Canada: $3.28/100 g

Potato chips

Philippines: 105 pesos/100 g ($2.53)

Canada: $1.69/100 g

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