9 Common Customer Complaints About Aldi

Shopping on a budget at Aldi is easy because the store implements tons of unique cost-saving measures to keep its grocery prices low for consumers. The store ranks among the most affordable grocers in the U.S., but those low prices come with some sacrifices. Shoppers must prepare for product inconsistency, chaotic shopping environments, and nontraditional rules, all while avoiding checkout behaviors that employees hate. Being a first-time Aldi customer can be admittedly overwhelming.

While American consumers typically prioritize value, efficiency and time are also important considerations when deciding where to shop. No one wants to visit several grocery stores to get the shopping done for the week. Though customers appreciate Aldi for its stunningly affordable prices and hidden gem snacks, there are some red flags you might want to be aware of before you spend your quarter to retrieve that shopping cart.

One of the most common complaints among Aldi shoppers is the inconsistent quality of its products. In online discourse, customers find that quality varies greatly across locations and product types, which makes it difficult to shop with confidence. For instance, one shopper shared on Reddit that out of the three locations closest to them, one of the local stores seems to always have bread with a looming expiration date, while the other two stores have bread that is perfectly fine.

Another product that seems to have extreme consistency issues is chicken. Several shoppers online share their experiences with buying chicken from different Aldi locations. One comment on Reddit reads, "Some people [say] it's like biting into raw chicken. Others say rubber bands or a slice of thick ham. It's very unnerving." 

Even some Aldi customers who historically had good experiences at their local Aldi stores have been surprised to find suddenly moldy produce and a decline in product quality. This frustration has turned some customers away because they don't feel confident in the quality of the groceries.

Aldi's checkout process is pretty nontraditional and can be stressful to customers who have not shopped the store before. Instead of bagging your groceries for you at checkout, Aldi cashiers will place your grocery items back in your cart for you to bag yourself, which is one of the reasons customers can't stand shopping at Aldi. The store encourages shoppers to bring their own bags and bag their own groceries at a separate bagging counter in order to move customers through the line more efficiently.

This measure helps Aldi keep labor prices low so that they don't need to hire as many cashiers, but this makes some customers nervous as they feel rushed at checkout and don't want to accidentally hold up the customers behind them. One customer states on Reddit, "When I went the last time, I felt like someone trying to keep up with a fast conveyor belt in a factory (like Lucy & [Ethel]) and it was stressful."

Most shoppers have a few staple products that they like to stock up on each time they go to the grocery store, but Aldi customers notice items that once consistently lined the shelves will suddenly disappear without an explanation. One shopper on Reddit explains, "If you want consistency on random products ... Aldi isn't the store for it." As a discount grocery store, it rotates out products often and keeps a much smaller stock than traditional grocery stores, so sometimes even fan-favorite items will be wiped from the shelves to the dismay of shoppers.

A disappointed customer on Facebook explains, "I really like shopping at Aldi but I get so frustrated at the inconsistency of the products they stock. If you find something once you better buy enough to last the year because you'll never see it again." Many of Aldi's products are seasonal, limited-time offers, and Aldi Finds, so they're not restocked regularly. It's hard to get your hands on every item on your grocery list from this store alone without knowing what the stock looks like, often forcing customers to shop multiple stores.

Aldi tends to receive criticism for its produce section because customers find that many of the produce items they purchase spoil faster than they should and lack flavor. It's clear that location has a lot to do with product quality for produce, but customers recommend staying away from fragile products like berries and bananas in general because these tend to rot or grow mold.

Aldi shoppers theorize that Aldi's banana peels are almost always brown because of improper storage. One Facebook commenter explains, "Some Aldi locations keep bananas too cold. The skins will turn brown and it'll probably prevent the natural softening process. This probably is a bigger problem when it is cold outside and I believe that the storage area in the back room is not heated." When it comes to more fragile produce that can spoil quickly, like berries, avocados, bananas, and leafy greens, you want to closely inspect the produce in-store before purchasing.

In order for Aldi to keep prices low, the store has some cost-cutting measures that customers claim make the shopping experience a little stressful. EatingWell coined the term "Aldi Anxiety" to describe the feeling, and it even keeps some from grocery shopping at the store, despite the undeniable savings. Outside of remembering to bring your quarter to unlock the grocery cart, customers describe the environment as chaotic, with overcrowded aisles of impatient shoppers. The aisles are more disorganized than your traditional grocery store, and there are few displays.

Foregoing these conveniences is one of the ways in which the store saves its shoppers money, but it may come as a shock to unprepared first-timers. Additionally, the store does not play music to avoid paying high music license fees, which can add to the overwhelming chatter and noise in the store. Between the chaotic energy often present in the store, the rushed checkout process, and the lack of soothing music, Aldi Anxiety can be overwhelming enough for shoppers to turn to other options for their groceries.

There is no guarantee that your local Aldi will be stocked with the products you are looking for. In addition to lots of seasonal and limited-time items available only in the Aldi Finds section of the store, regular items will often be understocked. If you choose to shop at Aldi, you have to organize your grocery shop around their restocking schedule, which may deter some customers. Shoppers have discovered that Aldi restocks its groceries on Wednesdays, so this is the day to shop if you want the best chance at finding your items.

Wednesday morning will be your best bet to explore the Aldi Finds section, where new items are stocked each week, and this is when produce and meats will likely be the freshest, though availability will vary by location. The store saves money on labor by only stocking once a week, and those savings are returned to shoppers in low grocery prices.

Aldi carries very few name-brand products, which might come as a shock to new Aldi shoppers looking for recognizable names they know and love. Over 90% of the items sold at Aldi are from its exclusive brands, and these private-label products help the store keep costs low. Some of these include Clancy's, Earth Grown, Happy Farms, Simply Nature, and Mama Cozzi's pizzas. For instance, it sells Crispy Rice Cereal instead of Rice Krispies, and some customers believe some Aldi dupes are even better than the name brand. However, some Aldi products simply don't hold up, like these baked beans that Reddit calls 'the worst of the worst'.

This also means you won't be able to find many of the products you typically buy at the traditional grocery store. Trader Joe's and other discount grocers use a similar business model in which the exclusive labels allow the store to surpass stocking and advertising fees. So, if you are attached to your brand names and aren't willing to explore dupes, Aldi might not be the place for you to shop.

In 2021, Aldi faced two lawsuits over questionable seafood source labeling. One lawsuit claimed that Aldi mislabeled its salmon as sustainably sourced when, in fact, the fish was sourced from farms in Chile that used farming practices that were not aligned with international standards. The suit alleged that these Chilean farms used unsustainable sourcing practices that were harmful to the environment. This suit — as well as a class action lawsuit levied against the grocery store for misleading salmon labeling — was dismissed once Aldi agreed to revise its product labels. 

The sustainability suits shocked some Aldi loyalists who expect more from the sourcing practices of the company. Aldi claims to source fish from farms that have "minimal impacts on the wider marine environment and are committed to human rights and fair labor practices throughout the supply chain," per the company website. However, the mislabeling lawsuit deterred some customers from purchasing fish products from Aldi altogether.

Aldi is a lot smaller than your average grocery store, in both size and product availability. You are not going to find the variety of products you might be used to from large retailers like Target or Walmart. A first-time Aldi shopper explains their shock to find just how limited the selection is on Reddit: "It appeared to be maybe 1/10th the size of the Kroger supermarket I usually go to. As a result, there is almost no selection at all for anything you might be interested in. Frozen dinners? You have two choices, hope you like one of them!"

This limited selection can be frustrating for customers who end up having to go to multiple stores to get their entire shopping trip done. Traditional supermarkets stock around 40,000 products, according to a 2019 CNN Business report. In comparison, Aldi stocks about 1,400, so customers must manage their expectations and understand that this is one of the prices you pay for a cheaper grocery bill.

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