I tried $20 Thanksgiving meal deals from Target and Amazon Fresh – one impressed me

Although the price of groceries is skyrocketing, we are happy to hear that there are still good deals on the table for the coming season. This year’s Thanksgiving lead-up has retailers like Amazon Fresh, Target, Walmart and Aldi vying for your holiday budget… with grocery sets for $20! To see how they stack up, we ordered two of the most popular, readily available options, from Amazon Fresh and Target. These sets should contain everything you need to host a festive dinner for far less than you could imagine, so keep scrolling to see what we found.

The best deal on Thanksgiving meal

Amazon fresh

This Thanksgiving grocery deal for six came with a 12-pound frozen turkey (serves six with leftovers), an assortment of canned vegetables, a can of cranberry sauce, box stuffing, mashed potatoes, and a packet of gravy mix for a total of just $16.11 plus delivery fee and tip . The “sides” that come with this package probably wouldn’t satisfy six people, but if you were planning on buying a few of these boxed and canned goods anyway, this is the best deal out there – win, win, turkey dinner!

Benefits

• The meal cost us less than $20!
• Comes with a Butterball turkey
• Some of the other ingredients are from Whole Foods’ house brand

Disadvantages

• Not all items are guaranteed
• We had to pay a delivery fee

$5 per person at Amazon Fresh

Goal

The Target Thanksgiving grocery deal initially lured me in with its promise to be priced “$5 lower than last year.” Don’t get me wrong, it’s a deal, but the turkey that arrived in my order was not a 10 pound frozen turkey that I expected. I live in New York City and it seems only frozen brisket was available so that’s what they sent me – which was disappointing for a drumstick loving family. It also didn’t include the crispy fried onions that I expected according to their promotional photo of the Green Bean Stew.

Benefits

• The goods are from name brands such as Stove Top, Heinz and Ocean Spray
• You can stack offers if you’re a Target Circle member for even more savings
• Comes with whole potatoes rather than mashed potatoes

Disadvantages

• Not everything in the kit is guaranteed
• The picture used in the ad is a bit misleading
• Offer not available in Hawaii or Alaska

$5 per person at Target

The verdict on the best Thanksgiving meal deal

We were pleasantly surprised to find that the best Thanksgiving grocery deal comes from Amazon Fresh (valid through Nov. 28), where you can order a 12- to 14-pound whole frozen turkey, canned cranberry sauce, refrigerated cookie dough, a pack of gravy mix, a box of stuffing mix, a box of instant mashed potatoes, a can of corn, and a can of green beans for an unbelievable price of $16.11 (plus a $9.95 delivery fee; if you pick up the order yourself, it’s free). If you have Amazon Prime, you can expect additional discounts. This bundle can serve four people generously, or up to six with a few minor additions. The turkey alone cost me only $5.88 (at $0.49 per pound), which is less than the cost of a PSL from Starbucks!

I was a little skeptical about cooking such an inexpensive turkey, so I placed an order with Amazon Fresh and had the Thanksgiving meal delivered to my apartment. Sure enough, it arrived complete with everything I mentioned above. What it didn’t include were fresh ingredients, which obviously keeps costs in check, but for me is a deal-breaker when it comes to this holiday meal. My family enjoys fresh mashed or roasted potatoes and green beans, and I prefer to cook the turkey with butter, fresh herbs and a quarter of an onion and lemon stuffed inside for flavor. No matter, I thawed the turkey and got started on Thanksgiving dinner, the abbreviated version. I stuffed it with a lemon and onion from my own pantry, seasoned it with salt and pepper, and massaged it with butter and thyme. Three hours later, I pulled an amazing bird out of the oven that no one would ever suspect cost less than six dollars. Even if you end up buying a few extra fresh ingredients, this is still the grocery deal of the year.

The Target Thanksgiving meal deal didn’t come in under $20 (for a meal that serves four people) as advertised. When I added the items to my cart, the only turkey available for delivery was a 5 to 9 pound frozen turkey breast (not a whole bird) and the total came to $26.33 before delivery fee. But unlike the Amazon fresh kit, it included a bag of potatoes, which I prefer over a box of instant mashed potatoes any day. I was intrigued to see a jar of gravy as opposed to a mix from a packet, and of course no one can resist a box of stove top stuffing mix.

Other Thanksgiving meal deals

Walmart

The Walmart deal (a holiday meal for less than $7 per person) offers many more items than the Target and Amazon Fresh deals, including fresh produce like russet and sweet potatoes and celery and onions, and they’re mostly reasonable. However, the turkey (a whole 12- to 16-pound frozen bird) costs about twice the price of the one from Amazon Fresh, and it’s not available everywhere.

$7 per person at Walmart

Aldi

This grocery package includes ingredients for the turkey, green bean casserole, stuffing, mashed potatoes and more. The turkey itself is a 16 to 22 pound frozen bird. The rest of the fixings are mostly boxed and canned food, with a few fresh items in the mix. It’s extremely economical if you’re on a tight budget and feeding a crowd.

$47 for 10 people at Aldi