We went shopping at Macy's and JCPenney to see which was a better department store, and the winner was clear

Business Insider/Jessica Tyler

Both department stores were surprisingly busy.

• Macy's and JCPenney are two of the biggest department stores in the United States.
• A number of factors, including the rise of e-commerce, declining foot traffic to malls, and a higher demand for off-price products, have caused department stores to suffer in recent years.
• Macy's reported on Wednesday that comparable sales were up 0.5% in the most recent quarter, marking the third consecutive quarter of sales growth for the brand.
• JCPenney reported quarterly sales growth of 0.2% for the first quarter in May. It reports second-quarter earnings on Thursday.
• We visited both stores, and the difference between them was drastic.

Macy's and JCPenney are two of the most well-known department stores in the United States, and each has been around for over 100 years.

But department stores are no longer in their heyday. The rise of e-commerce, declining foot traffic to malls, and a higher demand for off-price products are just some of the factors that have caused department stores to suffer in recent years. Several department-store chains, including both Macy's and JCPenney, have recently closed locations across the country as they struggle to adapt to shoppers' changing habits.

Macy's, however, has appeared to be on the upswing. It reported on Wednesday that comparable sales were up 0.5% in the most recent quarter, marking the third consecutive quarter of sales growth for the brand. When we visited the store, it was packed with shoppers looking for clothes, electronics, food, furniture, and more.

JCPenney reported quarterly sales growth of 0.2% for the first quarter in May. It reports second-quarter earnings on Thursday. Business Insider's Mary Hanbury reported that part of why JCPenney has been unprofitable for 15 of the last 17 quarters is because it is struggling to reach its core customer.

We visited both stores' locations in Manhattan's Herald Square, and it couldn't be more clear why Macy's is seeing some success while JCPenney has struggled: