In today's ­first round match-up of The Motley Fool Better-Buy Tournament, Microsoft squares off against Whole Foods in a battle to determine which stock is the better buy now. The 64-company tournament pits two Motley Fool analysts against each other as they make the case for their stocks, with the winner determined by you, the readers.

Motley Fool tech and telecom analyst Andrew Tonner makes the case for Microsoft (MSFT -1.96%) to advance to the next round because, after years of dragging its feet in mobile, Microsoft finally could be poised to make key inroads into this key tech space. And, thanks to its robust financial foundation, Microsoft still has plenty of flexibility to allow its new management team to pursue new opportunities. This could have significant payoffs for those who still believe that Microsoft's best days are ahead of it.

Motley Fool Consumer Goods editor Mark Reeth believes that Whole Foods (WFM) has a lot of growth ahead of it. Although the company has been top dog in the natural food revolution for years, the healthy-eating trend is only getting stronger in the United States. That's why, despite the fact that the company has approximately 370 stores in total, it sees room for a total of 1,200, and will continue opening stores to hit that goal. When it does open new stores, they turn a profit quickly, with same-store sales at locations open for less than two years hitting 20% this last quarter. 

Watch these analysts square off in the video below, and then vote for a winner. Then check out the other companies in the Motley Fool Better-Buy Bracket. 

This year's winning stock?
There's a huge difference between a good stock and a stock that can make you rich. The Motley Fool's chief investment officer has selected his No. 1 stock for 2014, and it's one of those stocks that could make you rich. You can find out which stock it is in the special free report, "The Motley Fool's Top Stock for 2014." Just click here to access the report and find out the name of this under-the-radar company.

Cast your vote in the poll below the video!