Aldi Might Be Affordable, But Are The Products Good Quality?

With its glut of private-brand labels, shipping boxes used to display product, and lack of overhead music – all cost-cutting measures — Aldi consistently outperforms fellow budget grocers Walmart and Trader Joe's when it comes to pricing. Is the juice worth the squeeze, however? After all, there's little point in saving money on buying groceries if you are dissatisfied with what you're getting. The internet is rife with mixed opinions about Aldi's offerings: for every win — like the fact that you should buy basic spices at Aldi for the best price and raves about great quality — there are a few big misses, like the entire Aldi meat department, which is allegedly so sketchy that there's a (debunked) myth the proteins are actually expired.

After having covered Aldi for a long time, our opinion is that Aldi is a great place to shop for informed customers. In particular, it's good for those who are willing to expend the time and effort to shop at multiple stores. That's because, frankly, Aldi will never be a one-stop shop for everything on your list, not only because certain items are less appealing there, but also because of the practical, objective fact that these stores are scaled down. Aldi is by its nature a small-footprint grocer that doesn't carry every single thing a big store can. If you know what you like at Aldi and are willing to experiment with new items (perhaps taking advantage of the store's generous "twice as nice" money-back satisfaction guarantee), it can be a real asset to the frugal shopper.

Having a sense for where Aldi shines and where it falls short is the key to successful shopping there. Aldi's selection of European chocolate bars, for instance, are sublime. On the other hand, fresh and refrigerated items like produce, yogurt, and deli meat get seriously mixed reviews. Think of Aldi like a treasure hunt: a bit of searching can yield items of great value. The only question is if that's an experience you're willing to put up with at a grocery store.

"I went to an Aldi once and never came back. The produce looked old and unappealing and most of the products were a store label that I would not trust," a Redditor, who clearly was unused to the hunt, stated. Other reviewers have noted that, despite good prices, some Aldi products appeared a touch older than they ought to be, and could be unimpressive flavor-wise. However, comments like these are far outnumbered by the folks who are absolutely picking up what Aldi's throwing down — and it's hard to ignore those really, really good prices. Aldi may not be for everyone, but its many fans like both the products and pricing.