The Unexpected Grocery Store That Ranks Among The Top Of America's Favorites

We all have reasons for frequenting our favorite grocery stores. Shoppers love going to Aldi for its award-winning cheese, stopping in to sample pretty much anything at Whole Foods, or frequenting Trader Joe's for foods you can buy for under 5 bucks. So when market research firm YouGov released a Q1 2025 list of America's most popular grocery stores, it might be a little startling to find 7-Eleven ranked as the second most popular at 63%, and polled first at 99% in name recognition.

An excellent spot to score late night snacks, 7-Eleven is the world's first convenience store, and got its start almost a century ago in Dallas, Texas. With more than 85,000 locations in 19 different countries, 7-Eleven is now a worldwide brand, a fact which explains its number one spot in YouGov's list when it comes to fame. But 7-Eleven is also a respectable resource for healthful options like ripe bananas or a cup of washed and trimmed strawberries, or ready-made meals such as a Chicken Caesar Salad or 6-inch Italian Sub. While you can't buy a pound of ground beef at 7-Eleven, you can find protein-rich alternatives and other grocery staples through Instacart, including vegetable oil, canned tuna, condiments like mayo, mustard and salt, dried spaghetti, and even a pound of butter.

Small neighborhood markets and convenience stores like 7-Eleven are actually a boon to communities with limited access to affordable and nutritious foods. According to a study by the USDA's Economic Research Service, there are more than 6,500 food desert tracts in the United States. For over 2 million people in our country, grocery stores like Aldi or Walmart are located miles away from their home, and without a car or reliable public transportation, finding nutritious groceries can be a daylong journey.

While the offerings at 7-Eleven are a far stretch from Trader Joe's or Whole Foods, prepared foods and shelf-stable ingredients like rice, canned beans, and soups are a lot healthier, and more affordable, than ordering fast food every night. There are even programs like Brightside who partner with small corner stores, bodegas, and convenience stores to help provide fresh fruit and vegetables to needful communities. Hopefully corner stores like 7-Eleven can further expand healthful offerings and remain "always open."