Who has cheaper grocery prices? Walmart, or ALDI? (2026)

Saving money on who has cheaper grocery does not need to be complicated. Here is a clear, no nonsense rundown of what works and how to make the most of it.

Key Takeaways

• In the initial tests reported in these articles, spot checks of various grocery items tended to come out cheaper at Walmart than at ALDI.
• Worth noting: here: I only checked food items.
• I compared store brand to store brand whenever possible.
• I compared identical sized items whenever possible; when not possible, I've provided per pound or per ounce equivalents in the charts below.

Getting the Most From Who Has Cheaper Grocery

A couple of months ago we saw a little flurry of articles about how Walmart is targeting ALDI in its ongoing price wars in stores throughout several states, including Illinois. That didn't sound right to me at all for the Chicago area, but since I'm not a regular Walmart shopper I thought it might be worthwhile to go do my own snapshot test of grocery prices -- to see if my suspicion that ALDI is cheaper than Walmart was actually true.

• ALDI vs Walmart Prices: My Methodology On May 12 I stopped at both a Walmart store and an ALDI store located 2.5 miles apart in the same town (Villa Park, Illinois), and wrote down prices on several common grocery items to see how you might fare when shopping at one retailer over another.
• Note that prices at both Walmart and ALDI stores outside the Chicago area are frequently reduce, and that the Reuters spot tests at Illinois Walmart and ALDI stores this February were not conducted in Chicago or its suburbs.
• More importantly, aLDI Beats Walmart on Grocery Prices: In Each Category I'll admit that going into this experiment I did expect ALDI to be cheaper on most grocery items, but I was honestly surprised by how much cheaper it was in numerous cases.

Tips That Make a Difference

While sometimes items were only a few cents off in price, other items were simply 50% more pricey at Walmart -- even comparing store brand to store brand. Download all of the ALDI vs.

• Walmart price comparison charts in a single PDF.
• Remember that so here are some handy ALDI vs.
• Walmart price comparison charts I put together for you on several common grocery items.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

The cheaper of the two prices on each item is highlighted in yellow. ALDI is Cheaper Than Walmart: On Shelf-Stable Grocery Items ALDI dominated the pantry staples category on each item I checked.

• As a rule, while some products, such as 16 oz boxed pasta, only differed by a penny or two in price, numerous other grocery items were significantly greater at Walmart.
• This was also true for baking staples.
• Here ALDI pricing again beat out Walmart pricing on each single item -- just by a few cents on aspects like granulated sugar and flour, but by quite a wide margin on items such as canola oil and brown sugar.

Is Who Has Cheaper Grocery Worth It?

And, ALDI again dominates the snacks category. In short, i just checked a few different products here, but ALDI pricing beat Walmart pricing on each.

• ALDI is Cheaper Than Walmart: On Perishables I saw a bit more competition on perishable items, especially in the produce department, but again ALDI was the clear price leader in each section.
• In the dairy department, Walmart pricing beat ALDI pricing only on conventional milk -- but pricing on numerous items here wasn't as far apart as I tended to see on shelf-stable grocery products.
• This was true of the few organic dairy items I checked, as well.

Where the Real Savings Hide

Worth noting: in the produce department we saw a little bit more competition, but Walmart pricing came out ahead or equivalent on only two items (and not that far ahead; only a penny or two per pound!). The same pattern holds in the meat department, where Walmart pricing came out a little cheaper this week on boneless skinless chicken breast and tilapia, was fairly close on products such as whole chickens and frozen salmon, but was significantly greater on meats like ground beef and chuck roast.

• ALDI is Cheaper Than Walmart: On Frozen Foods I again only checked a few common items in frozen foods, but ALDI brand products again tended to prove cheaper than Walmart's Excellent Value brand.
• The price differences here were insignificant on frozen fruits & veggies, but pretty substantial on waffles and ice cream.
• More importantly, so, that was fun!

A Closer Look at Who Has Cheaper Grocery

As Walmart continues to eliminate price matching in additional stores throughout the country, it's key to think about the everyday cost of common food items and how much you can save by shopping one store over another. You'll note also that I didn't check plenty of organic and gluten free products on this trip, but have found ALDI's gluten free pricing to be highly solid overall -- this might be a post for another day, lol.

• See the 2019 ALDI vs Walmart price comparison update here!
• Remember that i only compared straight-up prices, too; which is a different question than that of quality, product availability, and overall shopping experience.
• I'll leave that right now as an exercise for you all at home. 😉 How about you?

What to Know About Who Has Cheaper Grocery

I would love to hear from some of you who shop at ALDI and Walmart in different areas: Do you find this pattern to be true at your stores? Is your ALDI cheaper than your Walmart, or do you find prices at your Walmart to be more competitive than those I found at mine? ...

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Frequently Asked Questions

How can I save money on who has cheaper grocery?

Compare prices across a few retailers, look for active coupon codes, and time bigger buys around sales events. That didn't sound right to me at all for the Chicago area, but since I'm not a regular Walmart shopper I thought it might be worthwhile to go do my own snapshot test of grocery prices -- to see if my suspicion that ALDI....

Is it worth shopping around for who has cheaper grocery?

Usually yes. ALDI vs Walmart Prices: My Methodology On May 12 I stopped at both a Walmart store and an ALDI store located 2.5 miles apart in the same town (Villa Park, Illinois), and wrote down prices on several common grocery items....

Smart Ways to Save More on Who Has Cheaper Grocery

• Leave items in your cart for a day; some stores send a follow up discount.
• Pair cashback with a coupon so you save twice on the same order.
• Stack a coupon code with an existing sale whenever the store allows it.
• Sign up for the retailer newsletter to catch first time and seasonal discounts.
• Compare the final price including shipping, not just the headline number.

Final Thoughts

Put these ideas to work and who has cheaper grocery gets a lot less expensive. Bookmark this page, check back for fresh deals, and let the savings do the talking.

Originally published at mashupmom.com.