Rite Aid is one of the largest pharmacies in the United States. It has over 2,721 stores and employs over 10,000 pharmacists. Furthermore, the company is even on the Fortune 500 list for total revenue.
However, Rite Aid does have quite a few competitors. So, if you’re interested in which big pharmacies often compete with Rite Aid, keep reading to see what I discovered!
Which Companies Are Competing with Rite Aid In [currentyear]?
Most large pharmacies compete with Rite Aid to some extent in [currentyear]. The largest competitors are Walgreens, Walmart, and CVS. In fact, Walgreens once purchased many Rite Aid stores, effectively cutting Rite Aid in half. However, it also competes with many other pharmacies and grocery stores as well. Overall, Rite Aid is ranked number four out of all other pharmacies.
For information on Rite Aid’s top ten competitors, keep reading to learn everything I found out below!
1. Walgreens
Walgreens is the biggest pharmacy in the United States. The company has over 9,323 stores throughout the United States, with over 48,000 pharmacists.
Like most pharmacies, Walgreens specializes in prescriptions, health products, health information, and some photo services.
This chain originally started in 1901 in a Chicago suburb. Since then, it has gone through many different mergers and bought countless stores from others.
Today, Walgreens is Rite Aid’s biggest competitor for this reason.
However, Rite Aid has sold many stores to Walgreens. Once upon a time, Walgreens wanted to purchase the whole company, but regulations prevented the company from doing this.
2. CVS Health
Based on the number of stores, CVS Health is the biggest chain in the United States. However, it hires far fewer pharmacists than Walgreens, so it just depends on how you rank the stores.
This store chain was founded in 1963 by three partners. Like most stores, it grew out of a smaller store.
Originally, CVS simply sold health items. However, the company opened up pharmacies within its stores sometime later.
Currently, there are many different CVS stores within the USA.
3. Walmart
While Walmart is not only a pharmacy, it has opened many pharmacies in its store over the past few years or so.
In total, Walmart currently has almost 5,000 different pharmacies spread throughout its stores.
For reference, that’s about half the stores that the company has altogether.
Therefore, Walmart is a huge competitor to Rite Aid in many areas, and to make the company even more competitive, it has received quite a few pharma deals over the years.
Overall, Walmart’s huge reach has made it very competitive over the last few years or so.
4. Kroger
Just like Walmart, Kroger has opened quite a few pharmacies in its stores. In total, Kroger currently has 1,956 pharmacies as of 2019.
This company largely sells groceries and similar items. However, there are pharmacies present in certain Kroger locations.
Kroger does not have as many stores as Rite Aid currently. However, the two companies are still in competition with each other.
Originally, Kroger purchased its pharmacy when it acquired Hook’s Drug Stores in 1985.
However, Kroger sold its stand-alone pharmacies in 1994. With that said, it continues to operate pharmacies in-stores today.
5. Albertsons Inc.
With fewer pharmacies than Kroger, Albertsons is a regional chain that occasionally competes with Rite Aid.
For the most part, this company is a grocery store. However, it does have pharmacies in many of its locations.
This company has been merged with others and bought many different times over the years.
Originally, Albertsons was going to purchase Rite Aid. However, the sale was not approved by shareholders, and the deal was canceled.
6. AmerisourceBergen Corporation
This company is an American pharmacy wholesale company that merged with Bergen Brunswig, hence the strong, long name.
For the most part, this corporation handles drug distribution. However, it doesn’t actually own many pharmacies itself.
However, AmerisourceBergen does handle about 20% of all pharmaceuticals sold in the United States.
With that said, it does sponsor Good Neighbor Pharmacies, though these stores are technically independently owned and operated.
The company owns the name “Good Neighbor Pharmacy,” so all pharmacies with that name are affiliated with this corporation.
7. Publix Super Markets Inc.
Similar to other pharmacies on this list, Publix is a grocery store first and foremost.
However, it has opened pharmacies in many of its stores, allowing shoppers to pick up their medication while getting their groceries.
Publix is one of the few employee-owned grocery store chains in the United States.
For the most part, this store is only found in the southeastern portion of the United States – with most locations in Florida.
Currently, Publix has a variety of promotions, including free antibiotics with a prescription. Furthermore, a variety of other medications are offered for free as well, including Metformin.
8. McKesson Corp.
For the most part, this company focuses on distributing pharmaceuticals and providing other medical supplies.
Overall, it delivers about a third of all medications in North America.
On top of its large distribution service, McKesson also owns Health Mart, which is a network of about 4,000 pharmacies, though these are independently owned and operated.
While McKesson doesn’t run these stores itself, it does own the name.
9. Costco Wholesale Corp
Like many of the other grocery stores on this list, Costco Wholesale has pharmacies in many of its stores.
While not all Costco stores have pharmacies, there are enough for the company to be in competition with Rite Aid.
Furthermore, it also offers a variety of other services, like hearing aid centers and optometrists.
10. Cardinal Health Inc.
Cardinal Health is one of the smaller pharmacy chains out there. However, it is large enough to compete with Rite Aid in some areas.
For the most part, this company specializes in distributing pharmaceuticals and other medical products.
Furthermore, it also makes some medical products, such as gloves, surgical wear, and similar products.
In fact, this company provides equipment for nearly 75 percent of hospitals in the United States.
To know more, you can also read our posts on Rite Aid slogan & mission statement, what is Rite Aid, and does Rite Aid price match.
Conclusion
Rite Aid has a number of competitors in the pharmaceutical market, including Walmart, Kroger, and Costco. While Rite Aid has over 2,700 pharmacies in operation and employs over 10,000 pharmacies, the company still faces competition with other established and trusted pharmacies.
