The New $0.99 Trader Joe’s Find I’m Stocking Up on Every Time I Go

Mac and cheese is always there for me when I don’t know what to cook for dinner. No, not the homemade kind that requires a béchamel sauce and a breadcrumb topping (although, don’t get me wrong, that’s also truly delightful). I’m talking about the kind that comes in a box with bright orange powdered cheese.

Boxed mac and cheese is a lazy weekend lunch, a quick dinner when I don’t feel like putting in the effort to cook vegetables, or even an easy side that I know will be a crowd-pleaser no matter what. Having boxes of mac and cheese stocked in the pantry is a requirement in my home. So you can only imagine my intrigue when I found out that Trader Joe’s is now selling a new boxed Cheddar Mac & Cheese for only 99 cents.

What’s the Deal with Trader Joe’s Cheddar Mac & Cheese?

That’s right—Trader Joe’s recently released 99-cent boxes of Cheddar Mac & Cheese, officially entering the instant mac and cheese market with a price that honestly feels too good to be true.

Sure, there are a lot of different instant mac brands out there to choose from. But for such an affordable cost? The price tag almost feels like a mistake, something I did double-check with the cashier after snagging a box at my local Trader Joe’s this past week.

Don’t worry, dear reader; the cashier confirmed that it was really that affordable and told me to enjoy my lunch. So I did exactly what he said and went immediately home to make some mac and cheese.

What I Thought of Trader Joe’s Cheddar Mac & Cheese

So how does this mac and cheese live up to the rest? I prepared it per the box’s instructions, which is similar to other instant mac brands, using milk, butter, and the provided packet of powdered cheese. Everything came together quickly, and in less than 15 minutes, I had a steaming bowl of mac and cheese ready to dive into.

Although this Cheddar Mac & Cheese was just as easy to make as any other brand, I do admit that I was a little bummed out by the powdered cheese. Not that it tasted bad—it tasted great—but I wanted more of it.

Almost double the amount provided would make more sense for the amount of pasta in the box. But for 99 cents? The price is worth it for what you get, especially considering how many boxes you can stock up on at once. And it’s cheaper compared to Kraft, which averages between $1.30 and $1.50 a box, depending on where you shop.