Lauren Cobello » Budgeting » Budget Tips and Tricks » Aldi vs Walmart – Which Store is Less Expensive?
Aldi vs Walmart – Which Store is Less Expensive? I love both stores honestly. My kids are at the point of their life where they prefer name-brand food for chips and snacks, so I usually go both places. In this blog post, I attempt to break down some of the most popular weekly grocery items at both stores. I wasn’t able to find direct comparisons to all but got pretty close.
I talk a lot about Aldi on this website – if you’ve been here a while you know I have ALDI meal plans based on Aldi ingredients. In fact, if you want a free meal plan, you can grab that below.
I have so many tips on how to save money shopping at Aldi, in fact, here are 13 secrets you don’t know about Aldi? Some of my readers have asked about Walmart, especially if they don’t have an Aldi in their area. This gave me the idea to write this post about which store is cheaper, Aldi or Walmart?
I took a few hours to walk around both stores and based my results on a few different criteria. I compared brand-name items, store-brand items, and items used with coupons.
Here are the in-store pictures that show the deals in detail:
Honestly, the bananas at Walmart looked fresher and had fewer bumps and bruises than the Aldi ones. At a $0.03 difference, I would probably go with the ones at Walmart. In my experience with ALDI bananas, they are either super green or perfectly ripe. I never find the in between.
Aldi – $0.44 per lb.
Walmart – $0.47 per lb. √
Yogurt was a tricky one to compare because there are so many different varieties For this article, I focused on large containers (32 oz.) and ones targeted more towards children. The larger containers were a $0.50 difference, so Aldi won on that one, but there are coupons out for Yoplait Yogurt often, so the Yoplait could be cheaper than Aldi brand if you use coupons.
Aldi – $1.99 32 oz. Light & Fit √
Walmart – 32 oz. Dannon Yogurt – $2.49
I was surprised to see that Walmart beat Aldi on the price comparison for kids yogurt. The base price on kids yogurt was cheaper, but when paired with a coupon you will save almost $1.00! Moo Tubes does have 8 included and the Yoplait only has 4, but there were also GoGurts for the same price ($1.88) which probably would be more comparable to the Moo Tubes.
Aldi – Moo Tubes $1.99
Walmart – Yoplait kids$1.88 + coupons! √
The Aldi diapers wipes were only $0.99 for a 72 ct. The Pampers brand and Huggies brand Wipes, also 72 ct., were $1.97 at Walmart. There are always coupons out for $0.50 off Huggies or Pampers Wipes making them only $1.47 after a coupon. I’ve used the Aldi brand with some of my kids, so I can attest the quality is AMAZING and so cost-effective.
Aldi – $0.99 √
Walmart – name brand wipes $1.97 (or $1.47 after coupon)
I’m a brand-name diaper snob, but I also love saving money. So I have tried the Aldi diapers which are $4.99 for a 36 ct. package. Walmart diapers were cheaper at $3.97. Name brand diapers like Huggies and Pampers were $8.97. If you shop for diapers often, you know there are often Diaper coupons for both Pampers and Huggies so you could get them for as low as $6.97. Want free diapers, check out my post on ways to earn free diapers.
Aldi – $4.99
Walmart – $3.97 for store brand √ – as low as $6.97 for name brand diapers.
I wanted to look at trash bags at the price per bag when determining which store was cheaper for trash bags. There were Ruffie brand trash bags (30 ct) for only $1.62. Plus there are frequent coupons for these which brings the cost down to around $1.12. This makes it only $0.03 per bag!
Aldi – $4.99 for 80 Kitchen Trash Bags = $0.06 per bag
Walmart – $6.97 for 50 Kitchen Trash Bags = $0.14 per bag – OR Ruffles bags which = $0.05 per bag without a coupon. √
I honestly believed Aldi would have the better price with green peppers, but when I actually did my comparison on which store is cheaper. . . I was WRONG!
Aldi – 3 pack $1.99 ($0.66 each)
Walmart – $0.53 each √
I’m a firm believer that you should never pay more than $1.00 for toothpaste. These are essentially all the same, but with the name brands, you are paying for the advertisement and marketing. A lot of people assume a name brand product at Aldi is a great deal, but that is not the case. Almost 100% of the time the item is the same price or more expensive, like this Crest toothpaste I found.
Aldi – Crest 6.4 oz. toothpaste $2.89
Walmart – Crest 6.4 oz. toothpaste $2.98 + you can use a coupon with it so it would be cheaper. There is also a Colgate 6.4 oz. bottle for only $1.25 so this is cheaper without a coupon! We always see coupons for Colgate toothpaste, so this should not cost you more than $0.50 if you have one. √
The peanut butter at Aldi was cheaper than at Walmart, but when paired with a coupon it is very possible to get it for less money at Walmart. I also found it interesting that the Skippy name brand peanut butter was cheaper than the Walmart brand.
Aldi – $2.29 √
Walmart – Store brand $2.56 and Name Brand Skippy $2.50
The 4-packs of razors were only slightly different at Walmart and Aldi, BUT you could get one of the ‘expensive’ Gillette Fusion Razors for only a little bit more. I would probably go for the Gillette Razor because it will give you a better shave AND will last longer.
Aldi – 4 pack of razors $2.99
Walmart – 4 Pack of Wilkinson razors $3.49
I thought Aldi brand paper towels would be cheaper, but it turns out I was wrong about this too. My stock-up price on paper towels is $0.50. Only one of the deals I found fell within my stock up price. This means that getting paper towels at Aldi and Walmart is NOT the cheapest way! You can get much less expensive paper towels at the drug stores or your grocery stores on sale.
The one price that I would buy in a pinch was the 6 pack of Decorator towels from Walmart, a 6 pack for $3.26 = $0.54 per roll.
Aldi – 6 pack for $5.99
Walmart – 6 pack for $3.26 or larger 8 pack of Walmart brand for $6.94.
I did not choose any of these items because I do not think any are a great deal.
I tried to pick comparable packages of ground beef, and Walmart was much cheaper. Just make sure that you know what stores use Pink Slime and see if your store uses it in their meat packaging. If you aren’t familiar with ‘pink slime’ is you can find out more about it in this article.
Aldi – 2-3 lb. packages $3.69 per lb.
Walmart – $7.98 for a 3 lb package = $2.66 per lb.
Looking at which store is cheaper I have to say I was SHOCKED at how much chicken was at Walmart! I could NOT believe how much they were charging! The picture below shows that they are charging $5.18 per lb – that is CRAZY!!!! My grocery store puts the chicken on sale for $1.99 per lb., so even the Aldi price was more expensive.
Aldi – $2.29 per lb (still expensive because many stores around me put it on sale for $1.99)
Walmart – $5.18 per lb (this is the only package of chicken I could find, and it is the kind below their organic kind, so it will obviously be more expensive – thanks Paul!)
No explanation needed – same product – less at Aldi.
Aldi $1.55 √
Walmart $1.78
I compared just the basic store brand bread at both stores. Aldi won out by a few cents!
Aldi – $0.85 √
Walmart – $1.18
This one is simple: same butter and less money at Aldi!
Aldi – $2.09 √
Walmart – $2.18
This was a case of couponer vs. non-couponer. If you use coupons, you can get the same price on name brand Cascade with a coupon as you can the Walmart store brand. Aldi brand detergent is not my favorite, but it is cheaper than the comparable Walmart brand. This category comes down to a case of quality vs. price. Personally, I would go with Cascade with a coupon than get it ad Aldi.
Aldi – $2.49
Walmart – $2.98 for store brand, $3.97 for Cascade Brand (cheaper with coupon) √
This one is also easy peasy – same cups but cheaper at Aldi.
Aldi – 50 ct. of Plastic cups $2.49 √
Walmart – 50 ct. Plastic Cups $3.00
This is another simple one: more plates for less money at Aldi!
Aldi – 80 papers plates $2.79 √
Walmart – 70 papers plates $2.97
You can get sandwich meat with a coupon at Walmart cheaper than you can buy it at Aldi. The Aldi lunch meat was less money than its base price, but when paired with coupons, you can get a better deal on brand-name lunch meat at Walmart. We always see coupons for Hillshire Farm and Sara Lee Deli Meats, so I know that you can get these for less money than the Aldi brand.
Aldi – $2.49
Walmart – Sara Lee $3.98, Great Value Walmart brand $2.68, Hillshire Farm $2.98.
OUCH! Do people actually think that cereal is cheaper at Walmart? Aldi brand cereal ranged from $1.69 – $2.39 per box. The Walmart brand cereal rang in at $1.98. These prices were pretty comparable, but looking at name-brand cereal at Walmart was SCARY! You will pay $3.68 per box at Walmart for Cheerios. On sale with a coupon, you can get it for under $1.50 per box at my local grocery store….Aldi’s won this one by a landslide!
Aldi – $1.69 – $2.39 √
Walmart – Walmart brand $1.98, Name brand $3.68
I found the name brand Cabot cheese at Walmart for less money than the Walmart brand, I thought this was strange! Aldi cheese is cheaper, but I would rather pay an extra $0.21 per bar to get a nicer brand of cheese. Cabot cheese is much better in my opinion than the Aldi brand…
Aldi – $1.79
Walmart – $2.38 store brand, $2.00 Cabot name-brand cheese
I pretty much expected this, BUT that doesn’t mean that I wasn’t surprised that Walmart has cheaper milk than Aldi. With whole milk, we are talking a savings of $0.84 per gallon. If your household goes through a lot of milk you could save a few dollars per week by getting it at Walmart.
Aldi – $2.59-$2.89
Walmart – $2.03
This one was pretty surprising to me, but this is one of those times I’ll choose quality over money spent. Toilet Paper is one item in my house I MUST buy name brand or else I get complaints from my ‘little people!’
Walmart has a brand called White Cloud that is often for $1.00 off making it $4.98 for 12 rolls.
Aldi – Panda 12 Rolls TP – $5.49 ($0.45 per roll)
Walmart – White Cloud $4.97 for 12 Rolls ($0.41 per roll). You can also get Cottonelle TP for $6.47 with a coupon.
There you have it! My side-by-side comparison of which store is cheaper Aldi or Walmart! I’ve included lots of details and ways to save even more, like couponing. I hope that you learned something like I did!
My best advice is to not assume something is cheaper just because it is at Walmart or Aldi. Actually do your research and know your prices.
One bonus I will mention about Walmart: They will price match competitor ads. This means as long as you take your Aldi ad into Walmart with you, you should be able to price match that ad at Walmart.
If you are new to Aldi and need a walk-through of how to shop at Aldi, I have a video on my site. Regardless of where you shop, I do recommend scanning your receipts when you get home to save even more on your grocery bill.
Do you want to learn how to save even more money at Aldi? Check out my ALDI MEAL PLANS here.
I also compared Walmart vs Target. You can check out the post on Walmart vs Target which one is cheaper
COMMENTS
Do any of you have a Winco nearby? I do quite a bit of shopping there because they have products/brands I cannot find elsewhere. My favorite sections of store are organic produce and bulk items. For baking, they have all types of flour, sweeteners, chips, nuts, etc. You can easily try something new by only getting a small amount. Same with spices, pasta, beans, dried fruit, cereal, etc. I love that they post ingredients and nutritional information. I get organic oatmeal, dried fruit(nothing added),nuts, and seeds(raw or dry roasted with or without salt) for breakfast bars and can buy the amount I need. Everyone working there is a part owner in the company. I have not met anyone who was not helpful. I have also bought their meat, which I found to be very tender. Also, for those who shop Target, three of my children worked there. Whatever name brand milk that is there main milk is the same brand as their generic, delivered by same dairy.
These prices from this article are not true. I think Lauren Cobello is a paid marketer for WALMART…it seems that way. ALDI in Maryland is 40-50% cheaper than even WALMART.
1 dozen eggs $0.47 (not the >$1.50 Lauren mentioned)
And many other items are much cheaper than Lauren stated.
Be careful what you read…and thick of all the wasted time trying to find coupons. Go to ALDI and take back some of your wasted life couponing…
Hey Craig – I actually much prefer ALDI over Walmart. I do think this article needs an update though, it is a few years old and I think ALDI is a lot more competitively priced.
Aldi prices can vary sharply by location. For example I live in St. Louis Mo. and we have quite a few Aldi stores. The Aldi by my house has eggs for $.43/doz while the one near my office sells them for $1.09/doz. Similarly Racine Kringle (stolen/danish) is $3.49 at the location by my home and $5.49 at the location near my office. These locations are less then 10 miles apart are in the same county, have similar commercial real estate costs, and have similar socioeconomic make-ups. I lover Aldi I just wish they could get the pricing to be more uniform.
I agree, Aldi in Longview, TX is way cheaper than Wal-mart on 90% of products. Milk is anywhere from 99cents per gallon to $1.60. Aldi’s organic milk is only $2.89 compared to Wal-mart’s $4.49! Eggs are on average 47 cents. For a long time around the holidays last year they were only 38 cents.
I don’t know where the lady that wrote the article is shopping, but it sure isn’t in Texas!
The prices at Aldi stores vary from location to location in the same city and on the same day. For example, the price of dozen eggs could be $0.45 cents at one Aldi location and it could be $0.99 cents or $1.15 cents at other Aldi locations in the same city and on the same day. The same is true in the case of various kinds of milk. If a particular store wants to get rid of excess inventory of merchandise (especially perishable goods or slow-moving or non-moving items), the store will lower the prices and sell them off. It is financially wiser for the store to sell perishable goods at a lower price and make money than to let them rot and dispose off for nothing. Common sense.
I know this is late since this article was posted, but notice the hamburger she compared. 73% in long tube from Walmart, cheapest they have, to 90% prepackaged ground which Walmart has and is significantly higher. There were other comparison’s that were waaaay off kilter in the same manner. Aldi’s does have the tube hamburger. I believe at our store, it is in the freezer section.
Don’t forget that milk at aldi may be around 2.59 in places like Chicago or NYC or L.A. But in my city about 3 hours south of Chicago they are only .97 a gallon! 🙂 And no I do not live in bufu Illinois, I live in a major city it just isn’t Chicago anymore! Chicago was killing me!
You continually mention the use of coupons throughout your article which makes no sense when you are comparing prices. Coupons are an optional part of shopping and not everyone wants to spend time playing with them.
Tri color packages of peppers are always more expensive. Regular ground beef is different than ground sirloin, toilet paper cannot be solely campared by number of rolls, etc.
Next time do a more thoughtful comparison if you chose to write articles such as this please.
Winco Rules… A bulk food section with over 600 items.. that’s a LOT of packaging you don’t have to pay for.. prices are extremely fair. Wish we had one in South Florida.
WHOA! I agree with the other comment. Eggs, milk, and bell peppers are the number one thing I buy at Aldi because they are HALF the price of Walmart. I go to Walmart for all of my paper products. So I agree about the razors and the paper plates or TP or whatever, but the food prices at least in Northern Kentucky and Ohio are way lower than Walmart.
Cant speak for aldi but i go to walmart regularly and these prices arent accurate. For starters walmart brand white bread is. 88 cents where i am.
The wipes arent even the same brand, i know aldi has huggies so if shes going to use huggies as an example for price at walmart she should do the same for aldi to get a true comparison (this was done for a lot of items on this list) comparing walmart name brands to brands i never heard at at walmart.
I think your bias may be showing. Just to point out: Ground Beef at Walmart’s is NOT comparable to Ground Sirloin at Aldi’s (or anywhere). Ground sirloin is a superior–and always more expensive–cut of beef. Ground Sirloin tends to be leaner (more meat, less fat). Every store I go to has ground sirloin more expensive than ground beef. Ground beef can be up to 30% fat. Ground Sirloin is 14% or less (I often see it at 10% fat).It’s “extra lean ground beef” by definition. So, that comparison is not just.
Also, one doesn’t always have a coupon. So saying, “It will be cheaper at Walmart’s with a coupon” : Duh. Of course it will. But coupons are never guaranteed or convenient. The thing for me with Aldi’s and its by-design limited selection is this: I shop faster. Also, I shop cheaper, and I can find gluten free and organic stuff at really keen prices. And I never had to wait long on line. (Walmart = get ready to read a novel or magazine while waiting). Their Italian olive oil has done well on taste tests against Italian and pricey brands. So, again, some quality.
I noticed the canned veggies are equivalent to the name brands I bought at Publix, and crazy cheap.
And I tend to spend less as I’m not distracted by all the stuff that got me impulse buying at Walmart. 😀
Plus, easier to park and walk to everything. Walmart parking is usually a pain, the lot a behemoth, the store huge. I hate huge stores, long lines, and troublesome parking. With Aldi’s I save time parking (I often park right in front of the door) and the store is smallish so I’m in and out fast. I carry lots of bags and never use the shopping cart. Makes life easier to have the bare bones and great prices.
Walmart shopping is a pain (to my feet and my peace of mind.) I wish more Aldi’s would crop up and Trader Joe’s and that new Whole Foods related one that’s supposed to be cheaper. My budget needs better options and my feet (plantar fasciitis) hate Walmart.
An add in – Walmart’s low priced goods are never available on the shelf on a busy day! Aldi has a system that keeps the shelves well stocked all day. This is a HUGE difference.
Mirta Ana Schultz I agree with everything you said and one thing that wasn’t taken into consideration is that when Aldi has a sale – it has a sale! I purchased 2lb bags of carrots for 25 cents recently, and the week prior I got a 4+ lb of chicken legs marked down to (literally) 15 cents. It’s not the who, it’s he when!
I agree. Her bias for Walmart is showing and her ability to compare products that are similar isn’t very good. For example, she took a picture of the best hamburger package option at Aldi and compared it to the least expensive option at Wal-Mart. I also feel like she should have tried these two products before giving her opinion on which items she thinks is better without trying the two items. For example, she says quality over quantity and compares what she thinks will happen if using Aldi wipes compared to pampers or huggies. I tried to use the Wal-Mart Parent Choice brand wipes and had to use 2-3Xs what I used with Huggies BUT assuming that Aldi brand will be like the other store brand options without using them herself is not a good comparison. Aldi brand wipes are the same or less expensive than the store brand wipes but performs comparable to huggies wipes. Just my two cents.
Ditto.
I am a saving kinda’ gal. The more I save…..The Prouder I Am. I was a Wally World Shopper “ONLY”….. Until they set an Aldi Store about 14 miles from my door step to theirs. I am a full blown Aldi shopper now and hopefully Aldi is here to stay. I save more than half of my budgeted grocery list when I shop at Aldi compared to Wally World. Everybody knows who “Wally World” is. I only pay .49 for a dozen of eggs and $1.88 for a gallon of Skim milk at Aldi……. Wally World can’t touch that. I really do suggest trying Aldi and see what you will save.
This is a TRUE Confession.
Thank for pointing that out on the hamburger I found it very irritating plus she didn’t even compare the same type of cheese. Even in the same store different types of cheese are different prices for the same amount. Plus the milk comparison is wrong she compared Aldi’s no growth hormones added to Walmarts cheapest great value. You can even see the regular milk in the side of the picture. When she actually compared like items i believe Aldi’s was always cheaper, as it is in my location.
Hah, I just mentioned that in my comment. No distractions with a zillion things to buy–not in the store, not at the checkout. Walmart is a danger zone for impulse-buyers.I tend to spend 70 bucks at Aldi’s. I used to spend 300 at Walmart. Impulse-buying is my bane. I’m safer at Aldi’s.
Messy. Too big. Long, long, long checkout lines. Shoot, even when I’d go at 2 AM, there were lines. Sigh.
Not only that, I don’t like being made to feel like a criminal when I try to leave with MY items that I paid for. The WalMart near me has a guy at the door asking to check my receipt. I quit going after that happened the second time. (And no, I didn’t show him my receipt. I politely refused and kept walking. NOBODY has the right to stop and search me or my belongings without reasonable suspicion, and at that, they’d better be wearing a city or county police/sheriff badge).
Yeah, the receipt checking is insulting. Aldi’s is pretty small, and I guess they’d have better “eyes on the thieves.” If Walmart has a thieving issue, they need to have people patrolling the store, not insulting folks with receipts.
OMG !! that happened to me yesterday at our local walmart !! i have not been there in months when i needed to get eggs and then a couple other things ” jumped into the cart “, i get to the door and there is a line of people standing there ! i get up to the lady and ask what is going on and she tells me they have to check every item on my receipt. i said why, when the receipt is clearly in my hand. her reply…”guess they don’t trust us”. i was so mad to have her go thru my bags after i just left the register, i said i will never set foot in this store again. they should keep cameras trained on the bagging area of the registers instead, then they would see stuff going in and not assault the customer leaving the store with a price gun in their hand. Shame on walmart !!!
I concur. Their cottage cheese is yum. If they had smaller cartons of half/half and milk, I’d get it (I’m the only one in the house who uses it, so half of the stuff would go to waste or more if I bought large size). But I can scarf down the larger cottage cheese all on my own with fruit. 😀
Yep.Not a fair comparison at all.
I bought the ground sirloin at Aldi’s on my first visit last month cuz I could not believe the price. Also got the frozen angus burgers for hubby who is a beef man (I could live without beef, he can’t).
They take credit cards at my Aldi’s. Maybe a year ago that wasn’t what they did and it changed..I guess.
And I never use the cart. I take a bunch of burlap and Baggu nylon bags and when they are full (that is, what I can carry), I’m done shopping. If I can’t carry it, I don’t buy it.
At ours, you get your quarter back when you return the cart.
Yes, all stores do that I believe.
Always check online before you go to stores. Aldi’s and Publix and other stores will post what they have on sale (prices). I always check before I go so I can zero in on the reduced/special stuff or buy 1/get1 sales.
They should just price at the competitor’s price and not make you go through an extra step with an app,imo. 🙂
Pity. Cashew butter is yum and it’s better in smoothies imo than peanut. I will look to see if it’s back when I shop next time.
I’d go to Costco more often for the way they treat employees (much better than most), but they are always so busy and parking is a major pain. Ah, well.
when comparing items like tissue, paper towels and toliet paper, have to consider type and sheets per roll price, cant compare a one ply to two ply, but simlar type and sheet size, then have to figure price per sheet not roll as rolls vary how many sheets per roll.
Aldi’s current brand “Willow” standard 1 ply tissue is almost a direct comparison to Scott Tissue. Their softer 2 ply is a closer comparison to Charmin.
I don’t know what state you are in but here in Lakeland Florida Walmart’s milk is $3.52 I haven’t seen it for $2.03 anytime I’ve been there
I was thinking the same thing, but I am wondering how old this comparison is. I’m in the Houston area, and milk at Aldi is less than $1.89 a gallon. Eggs were only $.89 last time I bought them (though they did have them on sale last week for $.69 a dozen last week). Not sure what those items cost at Walmart, as I absolutely refuse to shop at the Walmart near me because it takes so long just to get through the line. Never mind the journey through the labyrinth that is known as WalMart.
Milk in Delaware is $1.47 a gallon and eggs are $0.47 a dozen. I go to Florida ever Christmas and everything is much more expensive..but in balance you do have great weather! 🙂
I agree that WalMart employees are grumpy, and the rest of what you mentioned above. But I will say that the clerks at my Aldi’s have 0.0 sense of humor or personality. They never smile, and they greet you in monotone. They aren’t grumpy, they are robots! And I have encountered about six different clerks over the past 18 months with the same disposition. But then again, I am not shopping there just to see a smiley face!
Yeah, I don’t care about that. I’m not there to chitchat. I”m there to get in and out with solid prices and as little delay as possible. I don’t much care for the checkout at Aldi’s (I have to HUSTLE with my bagging), but I understand the no-nonsense focus is what is helping keep prices down. It’s a compromise, I guess. They are robotic because they HAVE to make a quota/speed-level. THat requires total focus and just moving on with items.
I love my Aldis employees! They always chat up my kids and are super helpful, but they’re SO EFFICIENT. In and out makes grocery shopping with three kids far less of a hassle.
What aldi are you shopping at? the milk at the one in north syracuse its only $1.85 which is cheapest compare to walmart brand and 10 cents less than wegmans.
Our Aldi in Tennessee has them normally at $.59 a dozen. Last week they were $.39 cent per dozen (!). I never had much success with Wal-mart’s ground beef (pink slime aplenty) but Aldi is of better quality. I tend to stay away from the produce at either place.
Wal Mart wins every time with me because Aldi don’t have an electric cart. Nor do they have any place to sit in the store. I have to have one or the other or I can’t shop there. So I go to Wal Mart or our other local grocery stores.
I noticed that you failed to mention that though the price of the beef was better at walmart you were not comparing the same quality beef. You were comparing 90/10 beef at aldi to crappy 73/27 tube beef at walmart. Of course you saved money, you also got a worse cut of meat. Aldi sells tube meat too. You did the same thing with the trash bags. The quality is not at all an equal comparison. The only thing I really ever find cheaper at stores other that Aldi is Milk, and that is only because I like Whole Milk. I have found the Meijer by me is usually the most affordable with that.
yea i went in and grabbed 6 gallons for 1.69 each a few weeks ago.
You can’t compare 73% lean burger to 90% lean ground sirloin, huge price difference.
Bananas with bumps and bruises are the best bananas. They’re sweeter and more ripe.
I’m reading this a little late, but I think you have to also know your area. The prices you wrote about between Aldi and Walmart were not the same as the ones in my area. Milk at Aldi’s has been $1.59 a gallon until this past week. That price was for any kind whether it was whole or skim. `
Deb, it seems like prices vary a lot per area.
Wow what city do you live in as here a gallon of milk is about $5 at Walmart and $3.71 at Aldi. One green pepper is almost $2 there and .69 each at Aldi. And butter is $4.42 at Walmart and $2.69 at Aldi. Eggs are up to .95 while they were .65 must of 2016 at Aldi. They are almost$2 at our Walmart. Chicken also can’t be beat at Aldi. Maybe priceses are different per area. I know Aldi has spaghetti sauce very cheap and it is horrible though. Same with the chips. So those I get at Walmart, but fresh is best at Aldi here.
live in Upstate NY.
I do not shop at Walmart because they support Monsanto and I do not want to eat GMO foods. Therefore, I will shop at Aldi’s and Marc’s before I even think about Wal-Mart. What I found out is that Wal-Mart want to put all dairy farmers out of business and that is why the milk is cheaper. This is their plan to close our local dairy farmers. This is truly terrible. Wal-Mart is for GMO and I will not buy their foods. Their plan was to get rid of Raw Milk and they did next it is organic. I refuse to support Walmart and their food since they are linked to Monsanto’s. We need to say no or all we have left is monster food that will kill all of us. The rich is not eating it but they want to give it to us. Now they want us to have apples that do not turn brown when they are going bad. Plus this will not be labeled. I do not want GMO and we need to tell Wal-Mart and their corporate buddies we do not want GMO.
I love Aldi! It’s true they don’t have everything I “want” but they have everything I “need.”
Their milk is the BEST! No matter what other store I buy milk from it always goes bad either a few days before expiration date or right on the date. Aldi milk ALWAYS stays fresh even beyond the expire date.
I’ve noticed that, when in season, their produce is the best and the cheapest.
I used to spend $100 at Walmart, now I spend half that at Aldi.
The staff at my Aldi, (Dallas-Gaston Rd) are always friendly, unlike at Walmart where they’re ALWAYS grumpy.
Walmart produce contains GMO and is treated improperly before going to the store.
Aldis is GMO free and their produce taste better. I rather shop at Aldis than Walmart any day of the week because it healthier and their branded food has absolutely zero GMO.
The Aldis over here in Middletown NY always has better prices than the Walmart down the street… and lets be honest, when you walk into a Walmart, their have isles of junk food, frozen food packed full of sodium, and produce that is contaminated with GMO’s and chemicals. Do you want to buy your food at the same place that sells chemicals, TV’s and cheap clothing? Aldis is GMO free, they have better prices, better produce, a much small selection of junk food, the best selection of real cheese, and Aldi has wonderful European imported foods. Aldis also has occasional seasonal surprises that show up on the shelf’s every once in awhile.
Aldi sells those little frozen chicken with cheese and Broccoli stuffed in it… THOSE ARE SOOOO GOOOD… and its real chicken, not fake. The price is very good on it as well.
I used to buy the Glad stetchy trash bags, but one day I was in Aldi and bought their trash bags instead and to my surprise the Aldi trash bag was WAY stronger than the Glad bags. Ever since then, I’ve been buying the Aldi’s bags instead.
Where I live (Birmingham, AL area), store-brand milk at Walmart is MUCH more expensive than the milk at ALDI.
I shop at Aldi for the majority of my list. Everything else I purchase from Kroger. I never go to Walmart unless they have a sale, and I only buy the one specific item that I need. If I need general merchandise, I’d choose Meijer over Walmart any day.
I’m not sure where the author lives, but in my experience you can’t beat Aldi. I live near Atlanta and we have a Walmart and an Aldi both 1/4 of a mile from my house. Walmart is at least 25% more in price per shopping cart. I’ve compared many times and get pissed that I’m overpaying. The only reason I go to Walmart now is when Aldi doesn’t have the item I need. They are a little limited on selection.
The pricing are all obsolete. Plus, there is now a savings catcher from walmart. If they found a price lower than the one you purchased, they will refund you the difference. I will still go for walmart.
Yes, Savings catcher is nice for name brand items, but WalMart doesn’t price compare with savings catcher on things like fresh produce, fresh meat, and store brand stuff. If you bought Walmart brand spaghetti and Aldi brand spaghetti was cheaper, savings catcher wouldn’t catch it because it doesn’t look at store brands.
I did my own comparison of prices between ALDI and Walmart on my blog a while back, and here locally, ALDI costs MUCH less than Walmart. For example, a gallon of milk here at Walmart is almost $1 more than a gallon of milk at ALDI. So a lot of this may depend on where you live. Walmart here does not live up to its slogan of “always the low price.”
Please don’t include coupons. Not everyone bothers collecting or looking through coupons.
My year of shopping at Aldi’s was in suburban Chicago in the late 1980’s, when Aldi’s was “the stock-up store”. The bread (a quarter a loaf) was cardboard, so I didn’t buy it; the limited produce (onions, potatoes, sometimes one or two other vegs) was always bottom-of-the-barrel; there were no recognizable name brands, although I understand how the manufacture of private brands in the food & clothing industries works; some of the canned items (“Happy Harvest”) were ok but you always had to watch out for stems, hulls, and so forth. After the health department nailed them for a rodent infestation in the warehouse I swore I would never go back. From what I’m seeing lately I can only hope they’ve improved, but I’m not going to hold my breath.
Milk at aldi in IL is under 2.00 eggs are 30 cents to 50 cents at aldi .it depends on what state your in.
Whoever wrote this article is DEFINETLY a huge fan of Wal-Mart. Crest foods alone is by far cheaper than Wal-Mart. Aldi not only is cheaper than Wal-Mart. Aldi is cheaper than Crest too. The produce & dairy is fresher at Aldi. Aldi is cheaper with speciality meats, canned broth, almond milk, yogurt, string cheese, organics, gluten free, salad dressing, seafood/shrimp, produce, canned goods, specialty chocolate, baking goods, frozen vegitables, & Red-Hot Buys. I buy a large percentage of my grocies at Aldi; the small percent at Crest. If you’re like me, a coupon clipper. Aldi doesn’t accept coupons, therefore, you’d save more money buying: paper goods, cereal, dough, chips, & coffee with coupons.
As of 8-12-2017, ALDI (Trussville, AL.) has superior deals on the following items:
1 dz. US grade A eggs = $0.28 !!!
1 gal. US milk = $1.09 !!!
5.03 oz. Greek yogurt 100 calorie w/ blueberry = $0.49
8 pack pork sausage links = $1
Chicken breasts US cage free = $1.89 / lb.
Bottle of organic ketchup = $1
Bottle of mustard = $0.89
Canned veggies = $0.39 to $0.69
Red grapes (from California) = $0.79 / lb.
Bananas = $0.29 / lb.
eggs @ $0.28c? Sorta like Walmart’s Pay Scale!
NB: a/o 10/19/17 Walmart’s web site reflects HUGE increases from 9/11/17
Canned vegetables that were 68c now $1.98
10z Vlasic Dill Pickle Relish, was 98c now 1.69
Idahoan Buttery Mashed was $3.98 now $4.93
I absolutely hate Walmart and avoid it at all costs. Disgusting service, terribly slow service, and often crappy products… And I used to work there so i know exactly how employees are treated.
In my area, I’m devoted to Farm Fresh, even though it can be more expensive than some. I will give Aldi a try, but certain products I will not try store brand on.
As for coupons, here’s something this article completely left out… You pay TAXES on every coupon you use. So your savings aren’t as big as you think! Aldi may win the battle on more of these than is indicated!
OMG! You must have taken hours and hours to put this page together! Your blog is beautiful. I am a bidget shopper myself and really appreciate you doing the heavy lifting for me on this one. 😉
Aldi = Usually better quality, no need to walk miles to find everything, no ridiculous musak or continuos annoying announcements, staff are more relaxed (probably because of a quiet environment, and always well stocked.
Seems like you put a lot of effort in which is awesome, but I don’t know how valid this comparison is given that, in many of these price comparisons, you’re comparing store brand items to name brand items. You do realize that store brands are cheaper than name brand items? For a more accurate comparison, you should be comparing private label to private label.
Comparing Walmart’s Natural peanut butter with Aldi’s normal PB tells me this shopper is paid by Walmart or a complete idiot. You choose
My problem with Aldi is that it’s very complicated for a newcomer, and other shoppers seem to be impatient with you as you try and figure it out. I went once and haven’t been back primarily for that reason. Also, I feel that some of their store-brand stuff is not the amazing quality that people claim. Wal-Mart is far from perfect but at least I can grab a cart with my small child easily instead of having to pay for it. It’s also difficult to bag groceries when you have a little one with you. It just seems super complicated. I remember coming upon a three (!) part blog series about “How to Shop at ALDI” and I was like, I’m not sure if I have the time/patience to shop somewhere that requires a three-part blog series about how to shop there. I’ve been a Sam’s member in the past and am a current Costco member. I feel that there are some items that you just can’t beat as far as paying for them once and then having enough of XYX to last you a whole year. Although a friend of mine pointed out that if you have a small family like both of ours, with the membership fees, etc., once you’re out of diapers/formula stage, it’s often just as cost-effective to go to Wal-Mart or similar.
you don’t pay for the cart, you get the quarter back… if you didn’t take the cart back that’s not aldi’s fault.
You know what my favorite thing about this article is? You type Aldi instead of Aldi’s. Everyone says Aldi’s even though it’s just Aldi.
Sometimes I think you were comparing apples to oranges….for instance you compared cheaper 73% lean ground beef from Walmart to more expensive 90% lean ground beef from Aldi, not fair! :)) The leaner the meat the higher the price! Same with milk, you compared whole milk (costs more because of higher fat content) to cheaper 2% milk. 🙁 I buy gallon of 2% in Aldi in St. Cloud MN for $1.98 which is cheaper than Walmart. Also dozen of eggs cost only $0.43 at this location. That Aldi you shop at is way too expensive…is it in CA, NYC?
kroger/Ruler Chiquita bananas are 21 cents per pound. Butter at Aldi’s is $2.99 You need to check your prices.
Hi,
Just wanted to comment on the different prices at different Aldi’s at the same city. I once asked elsewhere about this and it’s because of other stores. As in, if there are other grocery stores very close by, Aldi will cut down their prices even lower so as to get that business. If they are the only market within a fairly reasonable distance, then the prices will be higher. I don’t know if that’s true in all cases but, I have several Aldi’s nearby and the ones by big supermarkets are definitely cheaper.
Just a quick fix, you said that the Ruffle’s trash bags were a pack of 30 when they are actually a pack of 12, 30 gallon size, making Aldi the better deal.
Every Aldi is different. Milk at ours is .79-.99 a gallon.
People seem to neglect cost of fuel. My Walmart is 30 miles closer – that’s a $$ saver –
What people are missing is this:
It’s not worth driving far to a cheaper supermarket.
If I’m in town, I shop at ASDA (Walmart).
If I’m travelling East, I shop at Morrisons or Sainsbury.
If I’m visiting a relative, I can shop at Tesco, ALDI or LIDL.
So for me, it’s not worth driving to ALDI or LIDL.
I’ve found that some ALDI/ LIDL stuff is cheaper than other shops.
I have a large pantry. Just buy the good offers and use it over 6 to 12 months.
Bought GoldenHen eggs @ $.49 a dz in Wixom MI this morning. Limit 6 dz per shopping trip. How do they do it?
sure, you can be one of these coupon people and sit and cut out coupons every week like a job. who has time for that? time is precious and has to be considered as a cost too. just because you might save a few cents by clipping a coupon and driving to walmart, instead of just paying full price at aldi? no thanks, i’ll just shop at aldi except for a few select items. you have to compare regular price to regular price, not regular price to coupon price.
The ground beef from Walmart is 73%lean (as noted on the front of the package) pink slime produced by Monsanto, Conagra or another major producer, you can tell from the tube it’s packaged in. The package you compared it to from Aldi is a 90% lean (as noted on the package) ground sirloin. This is like comparing The Pope to Satan.
Our eggs here in middle Georgia were .85 a dozen a couple of months ago. I went this past weekend and they are $3.05 a dozen! Wth!!!!!!!
Our milk is $1.59 a gallon!
April 2018
Aldi’s pays their employees much more than WalMart, by the hourly rate.
All Aldi’s employees are cross-trained, which means they can stock shelves, operate a cash register, just about everything. Check out is the very fastest in the industry and you don’t have to wait long in line. Very efficient all around.
We spend about $1,000 a month for our food pantry and know that Mac and Cheese (sometimes as low as 28-cents) and canned tuna, and peanut butter is always cheaper at Aldi’s. Prices will vary but Aldi’s is consistently the lowest price in our community.
It would be really interesting, how the quality of the products compare to each other. From my experience, one of the qualities of ALDI is, to offer good/better quality products at low price points. They offer limited, but very good selection.
I also know for a fact that Wal-Mart dummy’s down their store brand products to sell cheaper, beware.
I do not grocery shop at Walmart unless it is an emergency. I DO shop online at Walmart.com to get things shipped to the store for free and a better price a lot of times than Amazon. That’s what Walmart is good at!
Yesterday, I shopped at an Aldi’s in the Midwest. It was the first time I’d been there for many years. I wasn’t impressed. Not only was the store filthy and disorganized, but I felt that I could get products with a greater value at Walmart and Sam’s–often name brands. For the Aldi products that are less expensive, I found that they’re usually smaller and of inferior quality such as the salads, which are only five ounces and nearly $2.00.
Hoping to trim down our grocery bill, I was looking for good deals on canned vegetables and meat. The price of the canned green beans was a few cents cheaper, but when I opened it today, it was only half full.
I did buy some seasoned pork tenderloin roasts for $1.66 per pound, which was about $4.50 per tenderloin. At Walmart, they’re about $7.50 so Aldi’s are less expensive, and the quality appears to be comparable. But otherwise, I didn’t see anything in the meat section that I thought was a good deal. I specifically wanted the whole chickens, which were listed in their ads for .79 a pound. Of course, they didn’t have any.
Maybe an experienced Aldi shopper knows how to find better deals there and what to avoid.
The only good thing I can say about Aldi is that I love their Friendly Farms Almond Milk. It’s the best, with the exception of Nutpods, milk substitute that I’ve ever had, and I’ve tried them all as I have a milk allergy. It has a similar consistency to milk (most are watery) and no nasty after-taste. I will definitely return to the store for that. I’m anxious to see how a pumpkin pie turns out with it.
Oh, and boneless, skinless chicken breasts are only $1.99 a pound at both Walmart and Sam’s.
This “comparison” is all wrong none of these items are like items, you picked Aldi’s highest milk to compare to Walmarts great value milk you can even see Aldi’s cheaper milk to the side on the picture. Panda toilet paper is Aldi’s highest brand and is much better than white cloud,I know since I have used both brands. Panda is more comparable to cottonelle . Plus on toilet paper or paper towels you have to compare the number of squares or sheets your getting not just the number of rolls. Again all these comparisons are inaccurate as they are comparing apples to oranges not apples to apples. The lead in stated store brand to store brand but that’s not what was done and is very misleading and irritating. Prices do vary from location to location so don’t pay any attention to this so called comparison and do your own if you have both stores in your town and I believe you will find as in my location Aldi’s is significant less and better quality than Walmart store brand, which is great value, and in some cases better than the name brands
You need to do your research on “Pink Slime” before further propagating a twisting of facts that ABC News started, and was eventually successfully sued for by the Beef industry for defamation. “Pink Slime” is nothing more than lean finely textured ground beef, is 100% beef, and has been used in ground beef for decades. I do not think you would want to be part of any continuing defamation. It just irritates me when people spread information irresponsibly on the internet.
I live in the Binghamton ny area and we have two Walmart stores and three aldis. The prices you have here are not accurate for my area. Aldis pretty much beats out Walmart or matches them on their prices so it doesn’t matter which one you go to and the prices you listed here are higher than the prices in the stores in my area…
Thanks for your list. I just recently discovered Aldi and have been finding their products with the best price compared to my local ShopRite. Regarding yogurt, Aldi does not offer low-fat, only whole fat or non-fat. I find that a disappointing shortcoming. I do enjoy their chocolate and cheese selection and pricing.
I haven’t seen a date on this article. That’s a problem because a lot of the prices looked weird to me.
Just comparing prices without quality is problematic. Many of the Aldi brand itmes are very good and you have to take it into account.
** ITS NOT ALL ABOUT THE PRICE **
I know this is an old thread but I have to comment as well… Remember, Aldi does not lower its prices on the backs of its employee’s. The STARTING wage at the Aldi in Tampa is $14/ per hour and all employees have full benefits WITH medical, and anecdotally, ask an Aldi employee if they like working there; I bet you get a positive response. Try that with your average Walmart employee.
Aldi proves, it is possible to have profitable company, low grocery prices AND decently paid employee’s.
That is of course, if you don’t have to add to the Walton family’s $150 BILLION fortune.
I was looking for some average prices for Aldi products, specifically cheese this afternoon, before heading out to the stores and came across your page. While I didn’t find the info I was looking for, I just had to comment on one particular comparison you did. The ground beef comparison is HUGELY faulty. You cannot compare the price of 73% lean beef at Walmart to 90% lean at Aldi and say that Walmart is definitely cheaper. To do an accurate comparison, you need to do a direct comparison, Aldi does sell the 73% beef as well. It was recently on sale for $8.95 for a 5-lb roll, versus the $7.98 for a 3-lb roll you are showing at Walmart, which would definitely make Aldi cheaper, even at their regular price per pound.
Hold up you are comparing apples to oranges so to speak.
Example chicken Walmart you show organic chicken aldi is non organic.
You cant price compair that way.
Huge for me is the size of the parking lot and the store. I cannot make it through walmart. But navigating aldis is easy…
Prices go up and down at both stores depending on what’s on sale. And not everyone has access to these coupons that the writer refers to. I don’t subscribe to the newspaper and don’t have access to the coupons to be used at Wal Mart to make the item cheaper.
i live in sw Florida near the beach and live right aross the street from walmart and i have a aldi right around the corner and our milk at walmart is 3.63 very high here so i think aldi is much better than
walmart
You did not compare size on the cereals, in fact most your comparisons did not have size in it. The cereal ounce per ounce is usually cheaper at Walmart. You can not even compare name brand cereal because very seldom does Aldi have it. When you do a study and do research you just don’t give two products. You have to compare by ounce or your study is flawed.
I like going to aldis… even thou some of their prices may be higher they are even or lower in the meat department.. .. The dont change were they have the stuff from time to time like giant does…. and as far as checking out.. well at my store in leghighton pa If I have only a few items and someone in front of me has a cart full and offers me to go ahead of them . i usually decline… the girls are fast and friendly which I can say other stores are not…. so I dont mind the short wait… Besides aldis will open other check out lanes as soon as they see four or more people waiting… I have nothing bad to say about aldis.. except one thing….I can not get to see everything they have in my local store on their website…
I noticed, as did a couple other people that commented, the ground beef comparison’s were inaccurate as Aldi’s was much leaner & made from ground sirloin….how can you compare 73% lean (ground beef) as to 90% (ground sirloin)???? Also I have noticed that Walmart’s meat prices are definitely quite more expensive than Aldi’s. In fact Walmart’s prices are higher than Jewel food store prices on quite a lot of meat products….I was astonished at to just how much Walmart’s meats have skyrocketed! Whoa!
I guess it depends on what you buy and how much. This article is a few years old, but I find that Aldi is cheaper and more convenient overall, especially if you stick to the private label Aldi brands. I am a recently graduated college student and live in tax addicted CT. Today at Aldi I paid $1.97 for a gallon of whole milk, $0.89 for a loaf of wheat bread, and $0.29 for each 6 oz container of yogurt. Also, store brand cheese singles tend to be between $3 and $4 for 16 slices. Aldi’s are only $1.45. At Aldi you can buy a broad range of items and fill a shopping cart for well under $100. Today I filled half a cart for $35.
The date the shopping took place would be helpful.
aldis is a treat…..exc. prices and fresh produce…we ” splurged” and bought 2 ribeye steaks at Walmart this summer, my God, they were so tough and horrible! i grill rare to med. so they were not overcooked…i will never buy meat from walmart again.
Aldi is terrible, you could not pay me to shop there. And for healthy as well as organic foods, Walmart Neighborhood Market prices beat ALDI every day of the week here where I live.
Note that above I am speaking of Walmart Neighborhood Market, not regular Walmart. You still could not pay me enough to make me shop in ALDI.
The pricing within this article are extremely changed, especially since the COVID-19 quarantine. It is now 10/2020 and my local Walmarts carry mostly brand items, with their own brand priced close behind these, their essential paper products are way out of line. Aldi stocks plenty of their brand paper products but limits quantities. Their bananas are no more bruised than Walmarts, and the people bagging at Walmart will often place them under heavier items, so I bag my own purchases. One ‘however’: Aldi’s has been carrying more healthier choice items and selling lots of miscellaneous goods which take up space in the store; in the last two trips I feel the regular items for less-rich folks has been reduced quite a bit – but currently it’s still the better choice in Ohio.
If you have a Lidl near you, please do a comparison. I’ve noticed that their price for milk is much lower than the competitors.
I don’t have a Lidi near me – I wish!!!
Hard to read the articles with too many pop up ads
I am fortunate to live in an area where Aldi and Walmart are right across the street from each other. There are select items I buy at Walmart that Aldi doesn’t necessarily have an equivalent. But I am at Aldi on a weekly basis. I could never afford to shop at Jewel for everything. We have a jewel right around the corner, so I shop there if the prices are equivalent or for last minute items I forgot. One point Lauren made and I agree with, is it is important to have an idea about what specific items cost in the area. What do you pay per pound for apples or butter, eggs etc. This helps me save and decide where it is best to buy the product if I plan ahead. This might not work for everyone, but I live in an area where I have 3-4 choices on where to shop. I even find that Walmart and Target online should also be checked. I ordered a whole batch of La Choy canned bean sprouts as it was a good 50 cents cheaper. Happy food budgeting to everyone!
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I choose Aldi’s each time over Walmart .