”Culinary Confessions” is a series that opens the books on our eating habits and shares our shopping, cooking, dining and diet strategies with you.
We are budget-conscious shoppers at every turn. If we had more money in the bank, and if we had even less money in the bank, we’d still seek the best deals on consumer products. That thrifty trait is why our allegiance has aligned with Aldi (pronounced All-dee) in recent years for buying our groceries.
Previously, we had rotated our grocery shopping between the other stores in our area, including Food Lion, the usually-more-expensive Ingles and the anxiety-inducing free-for-all store that is Walmart. Aldi didn’t make the cut simply because we weren’t that familiar with it.
Then, my career situation changed. I stepped away from a traditional office job that had become hazardous for my already-shaky mental health, and I suddenly had more time on my hands while we had less income. I decided it was time to investigate Aldi, which meant taking my own reusable shopping bags, a quarter for a cart and an open mind on trying something new.
For almost three years now, we’ve made our regular grocery runs to Aldi about once every other week, and we’ve been very pleased with the prices, shopping experience and products. But like other towns near our home in western North Carolina, our community recently welcomed a similar-but-different German-headquartered grocer, Lidl (pronounced Lee-dle).
Once the local Lidl opened we walked through a few times to scout the shelves and aisle displays, but we didn’t really buy anything. Then we received an already-expired coupon in the mail, I complained about the erroneous discount on social media, and Lidl sent us a no-minimum-purchase-required $20 gift card.
All right, now you’re talking to this couple of budget-minded foodies! On top of the card, I discovered Lidl has a smart phone app (Aldi does but doesn’t really offer deals), and I found a $5 coupon good on a $30 purchase—just for downloading the app! Those potential savings together secured me as a customer, at least for one visit.
I checked out Lidl, substituting the store for Aldi for one full bi-weekly grocery run. With the experiences of both stores in mind, here’s my take on how Aldi and Lidl compare, at least in our community. My wife Molly and I hope this is helpful for all of you who are savers like us. Our stance: Why would we pay more than we need for groceries? Well, many people we know do, either because of brand loyalties or old habits. But not us, and here’s a categorical report on what we think of our local discount grocery stores.
NOTE: This is how we find our local stores. We have seen from food Facebook groups to which we belong that stores can vary in different parts of the United States. In some areas, there may not be Aldi or Lidl locations at all. That was the case recently when we vacationed in an area of Florida, and that led to us paying $3.69 just to have one gallon of milk. We were used to paying 99 cents for a gallon of milk at our Aldi. That contrast, with the very same product, sums up the value of discount shopping.
Let’s get to this Aldi vs. Lidl comparison!
THE STORES: Lidl is a much bigger store than Aldi in our town, meaning there’s much more room to move around with a shopping cart (or buggy, if you prefer to call it, as many do in the South).
However, much of Lidl’s extra space is dedicated to a plethora of organic products and a bakery area. Aldi offers some organic options, but Lidl appeared to stock more, and Aldi does not offer a bakery. More organic items is great for some shoppers, but organic products usually cost more, which in our view means you defeat the purpose of budget-friendly shopping at the checkout.
Speaking of the checkout, Aldi defeats Lidl in that department. At Aldi, the cashier moves scanned items into a cart past the register, and then you pay and move that cart to a long shelf to bag your groceries. At Lidl, the groceries slide onto an extended two-sided conveyer belt, where there’s room for you and one other customer to load groceries while still standing in the checkout area. The whole operation gets a little congested because shoppers are not as efficient at bagging as some employees who bag for a job.
THE WINNER HERE: Aldi might have less room, but it’s a smoother, more streamlined shopping experience overall.
THE PRICES: Overall, most prices on basic products are similar at Aldi and Lidl. At each place, a gallon of milk is normally about $1, a dozen eggs cost about 75 cents, a loaf of plain sandwich bread is less than a dollar, and bags of sugar and flour are just a bit more than a dollar each. There are some differences we found in common items we purchase regularly. For example, cereals, cheeses and avocados cost more at Lidl. On the other hand, ground hamburger meat was more expensive per pound and total at Aldi, by just a little bit.
THE WINNER HERE: In the end, there’s really no clear winner here. Both stores offer great value.
THE PRODUCTS: Very few items we’ve bought at Aldi the past several years have been disappointing, with the consistent exception of bananas. Often, Aldi’s bananas do not ripen properly or, as was the case this week, are severely bruised. Otherwise, we’re very happy with the quality of the food we purchase. The same was certainly true at Lidl. Every item we took home turned out to be solid. From dairy to meat to produce to nonperishable pantry staples, Lidl really held up to the standards Aldi has set in our household for low prices and quality food.
However, as Molly and I compared each individual product from Lidl with what we’re used to from Aldi, we found ourselves often saying Aldi’s is slightly better. The lunchmeat at Aldi is more flavorful. The double-stuff chocolate-cream sandwich cookies (store-brand Oreos) are so good at Aldi that they’re better than Lidl’s version. We even think they’re better, and contain more cream, than the name brand. And the quick-cook oats—I eat a bowl every morning—have a much better taste. Lidl’s had a slight hint of cardboard taste, and I’ve never thought that about Aldi’s oats.
THE WINNER HERE: Lidl’s products are good, but Aldi wins the head-to-head comparison on many products.
THE FINAL VERDICT: While Lidl offers a larger store, more perks like app discounts and a bakery and numerous organic selections, Aldi’s quality holds strong in more areas than Lidl’s, and the checkout experience is so much better.
Personally, I am a shopper who battles significant challenges with anxiety on a daily basis, and I found the experience at Lidl’s checkout to be incredibly stressful. If that’s the normal layout and procedure at all Lidl stores, I’d suggest corporate consider a change to something more like Aldi’s.
I have also battled stress eating and weight challenges my entire life. At one time not that long ago, I weighed 325 pounds. Now about 255 pounds, it’s important to me to eliminate temptations at the grocery store. I like to say that, “I can’t eat junk food that I don’t buy.” It sure is difficult to avoid junk food when there’s more of it in front of me at the grocery store. One perk of staying away from stores like Walmart and Food Lion is that I see far fewer junk and seasonal food items. Lidl’s bakery and additional specials pose a threat to my efforts to simplify and improve my grocery shopping, eating and mental health.
So, there’s nothing wrong with Lidl. I appreciate the availability of coupons and all the store offers. But at the end of the day, we’ll continue to be loyal Aldi customers in our household unless something significant changes our minds.
Where do you buy most of your groceries and why? We’d love to hear your shopping strategies! Comment on this post, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter!
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A Lidl’s in Gastonia opened up (10 miles away from my home (Belmont) about a year or so ago. Have never shopped there, mainly due to the distance to travel there. Aldi, on the other hand, is located a few blocks away. Don’t shop there as often as I use to, but overall they rate an A plus in efficiency. Check out is a quick process. But overall, I found myself not finding all the items I buy on a regular basis available there.. I use to go on a regular basis, up to a few years ago. Their produce (at this store) has gone downhill. I purchased bananas there a few months back and they went bad within a few days,,,same with milk. Primarily, my go to stores are Walmart (I now use the pick up service there)..other times when just a few items are needed, I drive the three miles West to Food Lion. We use to have a BiLo here within a few blocks, but they closed 10 months ago. They were pricey, but did have sales on certain items I used. If I am ever in the vicinity of the Lidl’s here, I will stop by and check it out. I, too, have to avoid the avalanche of ready made sweets, etc…breads, as they bite me (As I’ve aged)..thus it is my desire and determination, to kick these food habits soon. Enjoyed the blog. Best wishes-
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Thank you so much for sharing your experience! 🙂 It’s always great to hear other eaters’ perspectives. The bananas, in particular, have been a consistent issue for me in particular. Otherwise, our Aldi’s produce hasn’t let us down much. But that can always change—and it certainly varies from store to store. I tweeted recently about milk. We get ours for 99 cents at our Aldi. But in Gaffney and Forest City, milk is usually $1.79 or so a gallon. 80 cents for individual products is a huge difference so close in range! 😮 We have on occasion had needs Aldi couldn’t meet that sent us to other stores, so we go to Food Lion and Walmart in those cases because they are closest to us and offer the next-best prices. Did you know Winn-Dixie still exists?!? Not in our area, but we shopped a couple down in the Florida panhandle while on vacation recently. Expensive, we thought, but alive in some places! We hadn’t seen one in quite some time!
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I miss our Winn Dixie. It closed the summer of 2005 here in Belmont.
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I can’t remember when our Winn-Dixie closed in Stanley, where my mom often shopped when I was growing up, but it was quite some time ago, too.
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The Lidl (isn’t it ‘liddle’?) checkout arrangement isn’t all that different from Aldi’s – yes they have those dual columns at the end, but they also have the long countertop-like shelf where you can load up your bags as you like. Even if you and the customer next to you doesn’t use it, unless the two shoppers bag their stuff at less than half the rate of the cashier, it shouldn’t be a problem.
I do like how Aldi has banned junk food from their checkout aisles.
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Your comment on the checkouts is interesting. Here in the U.K. it is the complete reverse with Lidl having nowhere to stack shopping as it is passed by the cashier. You are supposed to put it back in the cart and pack it away using a large shelf set back from the checkout. But us Brits prefer to pack our shopping as it is passed by the cashier, down to a large area ready to collect the shopping as you pack into you own bags. This is how Aldi stores operate.
As it is, because there are seldom staff to pack shopping for you, we Brits are pretty nifty at it and cope easily with the tiny area immediately next to the cashier in Lidl.
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That is so interesting. Thank you so much for sharing. We always enjoy hearing how things are different, at the store or in the kitchen, in parts of the world that differ from what we experience here in the States. Do you have an overall shopping preference between the two, Aldi or Lidl?
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My preference is for Lidl. I have shopped quite a few times in various Aldi stores but have never enjoyed the experience as they tend to be very untidy and lack some very basic essentials. Their prices are comparable and quality in general the same between both stores. Aldi have mail order wines and non-grocery items. Lidl also has good wines and their meat is IMHO, better quality. Many Lidl stores have in-house bakeries where they cook chilled bread dough and such like.
I’ve shopped in Lidl on mainland Europe where their stores are often better than the UK ones and they also offer mail order for anything from swimming pools to motorcycles. Lidl also have regular ‘weeks’ such as French week, Italian week, Greek week and so on.Then I stock up with some of their specialities such as Calvados, dried hams and regional foods. I’m afraid their American week does not have much of interest to me, being mainly food heavy on sugar and palm syrup and tasteless beer.
As a general rule of thumb I’d say Aldi is for people who aren’t into cooking and like opening boxes. Lidl is more for keen cooks who want raw ingredients.
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Those are some great observations, Mark! Thank you so much for sharing with us. It’s always valuable and fascinating to us to get the experiences of others, especially when they compare and contrast in detail to our own!
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I shop at both Lidl and Aldi and love them both. Some things I like better at Aldi (ready made hamburgers, beef brisket when available, fresh salmon,and the check out process). I love the bakery at Lidl, probably too much, they have the best cocktail shrimp ( cooked) and sauce of anywhere, and I like the amount of name brands they have much less than the stores. So all in all, it just depends on my needs for the day, which I like best!
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Thank you so much for reading our blog and for sharing your experiences with us and with other readers! 🙂 You put it so well: Grocery shopping is all about what you’re looking for at that time. We follow the same rule. Sometimes we end up having to shop at other stores to get what we need. On one of our recent recipes we had to go to a Hispanic market to get Pork Belly because we couldn’t find it anywhere else near us. Thank you again, and Eat Well! — Matthew & Molly, #FoodieScore
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