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I’m a frugal shopper like I know most of you are, so I’m always trying to figure out where I can get the best deal. I like shopping at Aldi, but we also have a Costco membership. Sometimes it’s hard on the spot to figure out which is cheaper. Off the top of my head, with the items I usually purchase, I’d think that Aldi is cheaper. TO my surprise, based on the items I buy most regularly, about half were cheaper at one and half were cheaper at the other. To see how it broke down, read on! I’ve also included a printable Costco vs Aldi comparison so you can print it out and take it to your store and see how it compares.
A quick note: There are cases where Aldi is cheaper, but the Costco option may be organic or higher quality, which might make it worth the higher price for you. As always, do your own research because your mileage may vary!
Costco vs Aldi: Which Saves You More?
Below is a comparison of 25 basic items I buy regularly at the grocery store. If the price is green, that means it’s the better price. If it’s yellow, that means the price is about the same at both stores. I calculated the unit price by taking the total cost and dividing it by the amount. So Costco sells 2-20 oz packages of bread, so I divided the total cost by 40 oz to get the price per oz. Doing this calculation lets you see if you’re really saving money because sometimes when one store sells a huge amount, it can seem like you’re saving money when you’re actually not.
Download the Costco vs Aldi comparison!
Things that are cheaper at Costco
Of the 25 items I compared, 9 of them were cheaper at Costco. The biggest surprise was vanilla! Vanilla extract is more than 3 times the price per oz at Aldi than at Costco. If you are a baker, definitely go to Costco. Other items that were substantially cheaper at Costco were ground beef, frozen green beans, butter, flour, cashews, rice, honey, and potato chips.
Things that are cheaper at Aldi
Peanut butter is half the price per ounce at Aldi! There were 11 out of 25 items that were cheaper than Costco. They were: mandarin oranges, bread, pasta, sugar, cheese, eggs, milk, chicken breasts, and chicken nuggets.
Things that are about the same
There were six items that were about the same: bananas, Honey Nut cheerios, coffee, black beans, extra virgin olive oil, and Greek yogurt.
Overall results
As you can see, there was no rhyme or reason. Dairy is not necessarily cheaper vs dry goods at any one store. It really just depends. It might be worth it to you to shop at both stores if they’re convenient to your house. But the main point is to always compare the unit price!
