Kroger penny and cash rounding policy

What Kroger does with cash totals

In October 2025 Kroger said it was assessing the impact of the end of penny production and asked customers paying cash to “consider providing exact change.” It also said it would continue to accept pennies. Signs at many Kroger-family stores read: “If using cash for payment, please consider providing exact change.”

Kroger has not published a rounding method. Store-level reports are mixed: a Houston shopper found a “penny rounding” line on a Kroger receipt in October 2025, and the Durango Herald reported in February 2026 that rounding for cash payments had reached City Market, a Kroger banner in Colorado. Kroger did not confirm either. One Kroger banner, Harris Teeter, has a confirmed policy of rounding in the customer’s favor.

Does it vary by state?

Kroger and its banners (Ralphs, Fred Meyer, King Soopers, Fry’s, Smith’s, QFC, City Market and others) operate in many states with rounding laws. If a store does round, state rules apply: Arizona (when a seller is not using pennies) and Georgia require symmetric rounding of cash totals, and California will from July 1, 2027; Indiana lets a business choose any method; Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington allow optional nearest-nickel rounding. In Washington you may pay the exact, unrounded total if you have the coins, and Georgia’s law requires merchants to accept exact payment including pennies. In Connecticut, state consumer protection guidance says to round cash totals down only until the state’s rounding law takes effect on January 1, 2027.

Card vs cash

Card, debit, EBT/SNAP and digital wallet payments are always charged the exact amount. If you want to avoid any rounding question, pay electronically.

Tips for customers

• Bring exact change if you pay cash; Kroger still takes pennies.
• If you see a rounding line on your receipt, check which way it went. Rounding up every total is not allowed in states with a symmetric rule.
• SNAP/EBT purchases are never rounded; only a cash portion could be.
• At Harris Teeter, rounding always favors the customer.

What the company has said

• “we kindly ask customers to consider providing exact change” (Kroger statement to CBS News, on paying with cash)

Checked against the sources below as of October 31, 2026. Store policies change; if your store does something different, the sign at the register and your receipt are the best guide. Compare other chains on the store policies page, or check a total with the calculator.