The Honest Reason Store-Bought Rotisserie Chickens Are Cheaper Than Raw Ones

Walk into any grocery store or wholesaler and you'll find hot, ready-to-go, perfectly cooked rotisserie chickens kept warm under glowing heat lamps. They've become a staple for many shoppers and busy families trying to cut back their grocery spending. With their surprisingly low price and appeal as a quick, protein-packed meal that requires no prep work, they're often too hard to pass up.  

Depending on the store, you can find a rotisserie chicken for as little as $5 and they are almost always cheaper than raw chicken. Their low price tag often leaves many shoppers scratching their heads, or questioning whether it's even real meat. Conventional wisdom and countless frugal food blogs suggest that buying pre-made is more expensive than buying whole and raw ingredients. But, according to a report from PBS, the answer to this deli dilemma has more to do with psychology, marketing strategy, and food waste than with the chicken itself.

Historically, wholesalers, including Costco, use rotisserie chickens as loss leader items, a product sold at a loss to attract customers. The goal is to lure shoppers through its doors with the low prices. As they navigate to the back of the store, where rotisserie chickens are usually placed, they're likely to grab items not on their shopping list.

Costco is the king of loss leader products, having sold its famous rotisserie chickens for $4.99 since it first launched the price in 2000. Despite rising food prices and persistent year-to-year inflation, the retailer has kept its prices stable to the delight of customers.

The pricing has paid off big time, with Costco reportedly selling over 137 million rotisserie chickens in 2023, solidifying the chicken's role as a driver to in-store foot traffic. Along with its rotisserie chickens, the company has built a cult-like following and an army of repeat customers for its other loss leader products, like gasoline and hot dogs. What's more, grocery retailers also use rotisserie chickens to reduce food waste.

According to PBS, while not as obvious as clever pricing tactics, rotisserie chickens can also help grocery stores avoid food waste, a major issue among grocery retailers. ReFED, a national nonprofit developing evidence-based solutions to reduce food waste, estimates that stores generated 4.45 million tons of food surplus in 2023, with meat and seafood products being one of the biggest contributors to the issue. Other big contributors include produce and dairy products. 

To do their part, rather than throwing out whole chickens that are about to expire, grocery stores coat them in a mix of seasonings and cook them before they go bad. By repurposing the chicken, they also take less of a monetary hit than tossing them in the bin after their expiration dates. In fact, it is quite a common practice among grocers to repurpose food close to expiring by turning it into convenience items like salad bars, hot food and, of course, rotisserie chickens.