The first time I went into an Aldi store, I went on the recommendation of a coworker. She raved about the prices and produce. I walked in, looked around, and quickly walked back out. I didn’t recognize the brands. The layout was small and felt confusing. It didn’t look like a regular grocery store. And this was how I missed out on half a decade of good deals.
If only that coworker could see me now. She would be so proud. I am an Aldi fanatic. I make my grocery list based on the order things are kept in the store. I am that familiar with the layout. I save money every week by buying most of my groceries there. I save time because the store is small, and I don’t have to walk up and down 15 aisles to get what I need. My local Aldi has five aisles. Five.
If this isn’t enough to convince you to try Aldi, let me tell you about its “double guarantee.” If you purchase an Aldi brand product, and you don’t love it, you can return it. They will replace the product AND refund your money. You have nothing to lose.
I dare you to try it. Take your grocery list to Aldi, and see how much less you spend! To help you make your list, here are 30 of my favorite items to buy from Aldi.
- Millville fruit & grain cereal bars in strawberry. My kids love these.
- Benton’s fudge mint cookies. These are less than $1, and they taste like thin mints. Your freezer needs these.
- Clancy’s veggie straws. These are my daughter’s ultimate favorite snack!
- SimplyNature strawberry fruit strips.
- SimplyNature sweet potato chips.
- SimplyNature apple banana fruit squeezies. I’ll admit these are not as good as Go-Go Squeeze applesauce, but they are cheaper, and my toddler likes them!
- Goldhen grade A large eggs.
- Friendly Farms original sweetened almond milk. It’s comparable to Silk, and it is generally $1 to $2 cheaper.
- Stonemill Essentials spices. My pantry is filled with these, and most are just as good as name brand.
- LiveGFree items. This is a whole line of gluten-free items for half the price as regular stores. I have only had a few items from this line because we don’t eat gluten-free, but the things I had are good!
- Baker’s Corner muffin mix. The double chocolate and blueberry muffin mixes are totally worth buying! They are awesome to keep in the pantry for last-minute snack emergencies!
- Baking basics. I keep Baker’s Corner flour, granulated sugar, raw sugar, baking soda, and chocolate chips on hand at all times.
- Produce. Aldi produce is cheap, but it doesn’t last as long as other stores. I’m not sure why this is, but I recommend buying only what you’ll use in three-to-five days. My favorites to buy here are grapes, pineapple, potatoes, zucchini, avocados, broccoli, and onions.
- Countryside Creamery salted butter. They have cheap, real butter! I buy lots of this during the holidays when I am baking in bulk. They also carry Kerrygold butter most of the time!
- Happy Farms cheese. I usually buy block cheese, but the shredded cheese is a good value, too!
- Fit and Active multigrain bread. One slice is only 45 calories.
- SimplyNature organic chicken broth. I usually make my own chicken broth, but when I can’t, this is my favorite option.
- Kirkwood frozen chicken breasts. I always keep one or two bags of these in my freezer to use for a quick meal.
- SimplyNature black beans.
- Casa Mamita diced tomatoes with green chilies. Tastes just like Rotel!
- Boulder tall drawstring kitchen bags. These aren’t the best trash bags I have ever used, but they are fine. And for the price point, fine is okay with me.
- Boulder gallon and quart storage twin lock bags. These are all I buy. I will never buy Ziploc again. That is how great these work!
- Specially Selected garlic naan bread. This is the perfect base for pizza, and we all love it! It’s also perfect as a side to any Indian dish.
- Appleton Farms sopressata slices. This is so delicious on our naan bread pizzas! It has a mild flavor, so it’s good for the kids but also tastes great.
- Specially Selected jasmine rice. My kids love rice, and this is our favorite!
- SimplyNature organic marinara pasta sauce.
- Reggano penne rigate pasta. We go through a lot of this at our house. My kids really like carbohydrates.
- Little Journey diapers. A package of diapers generally costs around $4 at Aldi. These diapers work great! I recommend them to every new mama I meet.
- Little Journey baby wipes. These are unscented, and a bundle of three packages is around $4!
- Aldifinds. Every week, Aldi gets a new shipment of random things — toys, socks, shoes, kitchen items, garden tools, patio furniture, and plants! This is one of my favorite parts of shopping here! My favorite no-show athletic socks are from Aldi. I stock up every time it carries them!
Not everything at Aldi is the best. So here are some things I don’t like.
- Southern Grove cashew halves and pieces. I used to buy these, but the quality and price don’t make it worthwhile for me.
- Happy Harvest cut green beans. These are just a little blah.
- Lunch Mate deli meat. This deli meat is bland. We don’t eat deli meat often, so it’s worth going to a regular deli section of a grocery store when we do.
So try it out! See if you like it, and see how much you can save on your grocery bill! Comment below with your favorite Aldi finds!
We love Aldi!!! The only thing we’ve bought that we didn’t like was their chili, and that was probably 6 years ago, so to be fair, we should probably give it another shot. And I agree about the produce- we buy the same things you do, plus mushrooms and Brussels sprouts. (But I really like their frozen baby Brussels sprouts.) Oh, and we also love their German foods, especially spaetzel and red cabbage! Other than that, I pretty much plan out menu based on what Aldi carries- we save so much $!
My brother-in-law is German. He has been in the US maybe 8 years or so. But even he buys (and likes!) the German food from Aldi. Someone also recommended the sea salt caramels to me. I’ve never had them, so I am excited to go grocery shopping this week and see if they have them.