Aldi

[Laramie]

Disappointed in Aldi's selections. Didn't see anything there with a brand name on them and the canned goods had labels I've never seen; after purchasing a few things, I donated all of the 12/15 canned goods to charity.

The soups were watered down and I was afraid to fall asleep thinking about what I forced myself to eat.

Will admit, the store looked clean.

[Rover]

Disappointed in Aldi's selections. Didn't see anything there with a brand name on them and the canned goods had labels I've never seen; after purchasing a few things, I donated all of the 12/15 canned goods to charity.

The soups were watered down and I was afraid to fall asleep thinking about what I forced myself to eat.

Will admit, the store looked clean.

In most cases, those generic products are manufactured by the same company that puts out the name-brand version. People love to pay more for brands.

Sounds like the mega stores are your best bet.

Aldi has never tried to be all things for all people. Instead, they focus on providing the basic few hundred items people need most. That has been their philosophy from the beginning.

[scottk]

I use to really like Aldi.

Their in-store brands were fine, most had comparable quality, only a few of the items didn't taste as great as the name brands. The biggest driver for me was the cost savings.

However, it appears they have been greatly impacted by the tight margins on their products and rising prices in the grocery industry. I use to go out of my way to buy 70-80% of my grocery needs from Aldi. Now, it's about 20%, most of their prices are equal to store brands elsewhere, the savings for me at least, are not nearly as great as they use to be.

[Brett]

I use to really like Aldi.

Their in-store brands were fine, most had comparable quality, only a few of the items didn't taste as great as the name brands. The biggest driver for me was the cost savings.

However, it appears they have been greatly impacted by the tight margins on their products and rising prices in the grocery industry. I use to go out of my way to buy 70-80% of my grocery needs from Aldi. Now, it's about 20%, most of their prices are equal to store brands elsewhere, the savings for me at least, are not nearly as great as they use to be.

I am curious as to which retailer is beating Aldi in cost saving 70-80% of the time?

[scottk]

I am curious as to which retailer is beating Aldi in cost saving 70-80% of the time?

If you buy the store brands at other retailers (Kroger, Target, Walmart, Crest, etc) their prices match up much closer today than what they use to when compared to Aldi's store brands. Mix and match, the total costs may only save pennies at Aldi, and sometimes 10-30% cheaper for just going with the store brand at a larger retailer. I've shopped Aldi in OKC for about a decade and saw significant jumps in pricing in the past year or two compared to the previous years. Are there still good buys at Aldi, YES, just like any other grocery store, shop the ad, know the specials, and you can save money. But across the board savings just don't seem to be as good as they once were. If you stick to only buying name brands at retailers, of course Aldi is going to save money, but if you do as close as an apple to apple comparison with store brands, the prices are much closer.

There use to be a much wider margin in Aldi's prices compared to store brands at other places.

For example:
Bag of store brand Potato Chips:
Aldi - $2.45
Kroger - $1.99
Target - $2.19
Walmart - $.198

Store Brand 24oz Pasta Sauce
Aldi- $1.75
Kroger - $1.79
Target - $1.59
Walmart - $1.62

Store Brand Gallon of Whole Milk
Aldi - $3.35
Kroger -$3.29
Target - $2.99
Walmart - $3.03

Store Brand Peanut Butter
Aldi- $2.05
Kroger - $1.99
Target - $1.99
Walmart - $1.98

[barrettd]

If you buy the store brands at other retailers (Kroger, Target, Walmart, Crest, etc) their prices match up much closer today than what they use to when compared to Aldi's store brands. Mix and match, the total costs may only save pennies at Aldi, and sometimes 10-30% cheaper for just going with the store brand at a larger retailer. I've shopped Aldi in OKC for about a decade and saw significant jumps in pricing in the past year or two compared to the previous years. Are there still good buys at Aldi, YES, just like any other grocery store, shop the ad, know the specials, and you can save money. But across the board savings just don't seem to be as good as they once were. If you stick to only buying name brands at retailers, of course Aldi is going to save money, but if you do as close as an apple to apple comparison with store brands, the prices are much closer.

There use to be a much wider margin in Aldi's prices compared to store brands at other places.

For example:
Bag of store brand Potato Chips:
Aldi - $2.45
Kroger - $1.99
Target - $2.19
Walmart - $.198

Store Brand 24oz Pasta Sauce
Aldi- $1.75
Kroger - $1.79
Target - $1.59
Walmart - $1.62

Store Brand Gallon of Whole Milk
Aldi - $3.35
Kroger -$3.29
Target - $2.99
Walmart - $3.03

Store Brand Peanut Butter
Aldi- $2.05
Kroger - $1.99
Target - $1.99
Walmart - $1.98

the big surprise, to me, about your list is how often Target is at or below Walmart prices. I still feel like my money goes the furthest at Walmart, but maybe that's just a myth these days.

[Mballard85]

the big surprise, to me, about your list is how often Target is at or below Walmart prices. I still feel like my money goes the furthest at Walmart, but maybe that's just a myth these days.

If you buy Good and Gather from Target, you can really save some money and it seems to be a good product. But if you step out of that lane, that is where they hit you.

[Rover]

If you buy Good and Gather from Target, you can really save some money and it seems to be a good product. But if you step out of that lane, that is where they hit you.

Yeah, I’ve never been able to fill my basket cheaper at Target. They always seem on the high side.

[kukblue1]

Having been a coupon guy back in the day when it was easier to match prices and double coupon days , triple coupon day I used to do a lot of price comparison. Some things are cheaper at store A than store B, C, D. Some things are cheaper at store C than A, B, D. etc etc etc. Really came down to where I liked to shop and for me back in the day it was Meijer when I lived up North. Now it's Crest for me.

[barrettd]

Having been a coupon guy back in the day when it was easier to match prices and double coupon days , triple coupon day I used to do a lot of price comparison. Some things are cheaper at store A than store B, C, D. Some things are cheaper at store C than A, B, D. etc etc etc. Really came down to where I liked to shop and for me back in the day it was Meijer when I lived up North. Now it's Crest for me.

Yes, and I know sometimes I pay more for convenience, or assurance that an item will be in stock. Same reason I usually go to Grand Cru liquor store, really. I pay more, but I know they will have anything and everything I'll need.