3 Drawbacks of Shopping at Aldi You Should Know About

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Aldi is a great place to buy groceries, but it has its flaws. 

Inflation has driven the cost of groceries way up. As of January, supermarket prices were up 11.3% on an annual basis, according to that month’s Consumer Price Index.

In light of this, I’ve been trying to do what I can to save money on groceries to keep my credit card bills manageable. One thing I’ve done is try to get more organized and plan meals in advance. I’ve also tried shopping for food more strategically.

Normally, I shop at Costco once a week to benefit from the bulk discounts it offers. And because I have an executive membership, I get 2% cash back on all of my purchases.

Meanwhile, there happens to be an Aldi in the same shopping center as my local Costco. And I started shopping there a few months ago because I’d heard that you can snag a lot of discounts.

That’s definitely true. In the past few months, I’ve saved my fair share by purchasing food at Aldi — particularly produce, which I’d normally buy at Costco. But I’ve also run into a few pitfalls in the course of shopping at Aldi. So if you’re looking to give it a try, here are some drawbacks you should be aware of.

1. Lesser-known brands

Most of the brands you’ll find at Aldi aren’t nationally recognized ones. Aldi specifically carries brands that are exclusive to the store so it can offer lower prices to consumers. But because I have picky eater kids in my household, that’s a problem.

My kids and I eat cereal frequently. Now I don’t care if the toasted, circular oats floating around my cereal bowl are called Cheerios or something else. But my kids do. And so I can’t buy the Aldi brand cereals because I know they won’t get eaten.

2. Limited products

When I go to Costco, I know full well that I won’t be able to do all of my shopping for the week there. Though Costco carries a wide variety of food products, it doesn’t stock everything I need, so I generally have to visit a regular grocery store at least once a week as well.

Aldi, however, doesn’t have the same amount of inventory as my regular grocery store. And so even when I shop at Aldi and Costco, it doesn’t tend to save me a trip to the regular supermarket.

3. Less consistency

Back in 2021, when supply chains were all hammered, it was common for me to walk into my regular supermarket and struggle to find something basic, like cream cheese or grapes. These days, that’s thankfully not an issue anymore. But at Aldi, it is.

I’ve found that Aldi’s product offerings are not very consistent. There are some weeks when I’ll stop in only to find that they don’t have strawberries, or cucumbers, or another common product you’d expect to see at a grocery store. That can be a frustrating thing when you only have time to stop at one store.

All told, I still recommend checking out Aldi if you’re looking to save money on groceries. But do be aware that shopping there might leave you disappointed — and needing to hit up yet another supermarket after the fact.

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The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.Maurie Backman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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