5 Precautions Georgians Should Take When Shopping at Dollar General

Popping into Dollar General for a few things should be the easy part of your day.

A couple of quick checks, at the shelf and at the register, can help Georgians make sure it stays that way.

Here are the precautions worth taking before your next trip.

1. Expired Over-the-Counter Medicine

Dollar General stores were among the New York stores where investigators found over-the-counter drugs months past their expiration dates, the state’s attorney general said in 2019.

Dollar General agreed to pay New York $1.1 million.

At your Dollar General, check the expiration date on any medicine before you pay.

2. Shelf Tags Versus Register Prices

Pennsylvania’s attorney general accused Dollar General of charging higher prices at the register than its shelf tags advertised.

The inspections covered 2019 through 2023, and failures topped 40 percent at a company with more than 900 Pennsylvania locations.

The settlement came to $1.55 million in penalties and costs.

Colorado’s attorney general announced a $400,000 settlement in October 2025, after Dollar General failed 12 of the 18 inspections that office ran in 2024 and 2025.

Dollar General agreed to post a lowest-price notice at each Pennsylvania register.

Colorado’s settlement has Dollar General post signs in Colorado stores promising to honor the lowest price when prices disagree.

Those settlements cover Pennsylvania and Colorado stores.

At your store, compare each tag with your receipt before you leave.

3. Checking Fresh Produce

In July 2024, a New Orleans public radio station reported more than 5,400 Dollar General stores selling fruit and vegetables outside the frozen aisle.

In the station’s report, onions, apples, lemons, organic salad kits and more line a section with 16 feet of wall space.

Produce requires more attention than canned goods, and much of it needs to be thrown away when it spoils.

That puts the checking on you, so look over each apple, lemon or bag of salad kit before it goes in your cart.

4. Store-Brand Food Recalls

Dollar General recalled its Clover Valley instant coffee in August 2025 over the potential presence of glass.

The recall covered 8-ounce packages sold between July 9 and 21, 2025, in 48 states, Georgia among them.

Three lots were affected, L-5163, L-5164 and L-5165, with best-by dates of December 13 and 14, 2026.

Anyone with a package from one of those lots is encouraged to discard it and contact Dollar General for a full refund, tax included.

5. Recalls on Household Items

The Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled True Living sling loungers sold at Dollar General in August 2021 because the chairs could collapse unexpectedly.

Dollar General had sold about 155,000 of them nationwide from January through September 2019, at about $20.

The recall came nearly two years after the sales window closed.

If you still own one of the loungers, stop using it, cut the fabric so it can't be used and contact Dollar General for a refund.

Georgia's Date Rule

Georgia's Department of Agriculture calls it unlawful for a store such as Dollar General to sell a list of foods past the date on the label.

For dry, shelf-stable products such as potato chips or rice, the date is a guideline for freshness and quality.

Legal doesn't mean fresh.

Check dates before you buy, and tell a store manager if you find an expired product on a shelf.

Motor Oil on the Shelf

New York's attorney general said in 2019 that a number of Dollar General stores had obsolete Dollar General-branded motor oils on their shelves.

One of them, Dollar General's SAE-30, isn't suitable for most automobile engines built after 1930.

Two others, SAE 10W-40 and SAE 10W-30, aren't suitable for most engines built after 1988.

The bottles used the same or similar descriptors as other brands of motor oil that are suitable for modern engines, and they sat next to those brands on store shelves.

Dollar General discontinued the sale of obsolete motor oil during the investigation.

If you buy motor oil at Dollar General, match the grade on the bottle to your owner's manual.

The Walmart Price Gap

Dollar General's prices on a basic cart of 33 items ran higher than Walmart's in a Bank of America comparison, according to Supermarket News in April 2023.

That cart rang up at $187.50 at Walmart and $201.14 at Dollar General.

The difference comes to $13.64, or about 7 percent.

Before you plan a stock-up trip to Dollar General, price the big items on your list at a second store.

Where to Report a Problem

If you find an expired product at Dollar General, the Georgia Department of Agriculture lists its Retail Food Program at (404) 656-3627 for questions about its date rules.