We shopped at Dollar General and Five Below to see which rapidly growing discount store offered a better experience, and the winner was clear (FIVE, DG)

Dollar stores have been growing like crazy over the past few years.

From 2010 to 2015, dollar-store sales grew from $30.4 billion to $45.3 billion in the United States. Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Family Dollar have all announced plans to open hundreds of stores this year.

Dollar General currently has around 15,000 locations. This year, it is on track toopen 900 stores at a rate of about three stores a day, with plans to open a further 975 stores in 2019. In the third quarter of 2018, Dollar General reported same-store sales were up 2.8%.

While not a traditional dollar store in that its products are priced up to $5, Five Below announced its own plans to grow earlier this year. Five Below reported comparable sales grew by 4.8% in the third quarter, and it opened 53 new stores, bringing its total count to 745. 

One of the stores that opened was a flagship location on New York's Fifth Avenue, one of the most expensive shopping destinations in the US.

We compared what it's like to shop at the two rapidly growing dollar stores and found that one offered a far better experience. Here's the verdict: