The shopping experience at Costco and Aldi couldn’t be more different. The former is a cavernous space with merchandise stacked to the ceilings and the latter is a four-aisle minimart that’s about the size of your local chain pharmacy.
But when it comes to price, which one offers you the best deals?
Both Aldi and Costco are big into store brands. With Costco, it’s primarily the Kirkland Signature label. With Aldi, there are any of a variety of store labels like Happy Farms, SimplyNature, Never Any! and Tandil, to name just a few.
We can talk all day about whether Costco offers better quality store brands than Aldi. That’s a separate issue. The real test for me in thinking about these two very different kinds of stores is price. Which one is cheaper? Read on below to find out…the answer may surprise you.
(Special thanks to Queen Bee Coupons for pulling the data on Costco’s prices in this February 2017 spreadsheet. I pulled the numbers myself on Aldi prices while shopping there this weekend.)
(Full disclosure: I received no compensation from either Aldi or Costco to write this article.)
Dry dog food
Aldi
Shep Complete Nutrition Dry Dog Food
Total price: $7.99
Unit price: 43.2 cents per pound
Costco
Dog food, Kirkland Signature Chicken, veg and rice
Total price: $27.99
Unit price: 70 cents per ounce
Winner: Aldi
Dry cat food
Aldi
Fine Feline Complete Nutrition Dry Cat Food
Total price: $7.99
Unit price: 50 cents per pound
Costco
Cat food, Nutra Nuggets Dry Super Premium
Total price: $10.89
Unit price: 55 cents per pound
Winner: Aldi
Organic kale
Aldi
SimplyNature Organic Kale
Total price: $3.49
Unit price: 29.1 cents per ounce or $4.65 per pound
Costco
Kale, baby, organic mixed
Total price: $4.79
Unit price: $3.19 per lb
Winner: Costco
Nonfat Greek yogurt
Aldi
Friendly Farms Plain Nonfat Greek Yogurt
Total price: $3.49
Unit price: 11 cents per ounce
Costco
Yogurt, Kirkland Signature Greek Non-fat
Total price: $5.99
Unit price: 9 cents per ounce
Winner: Costco
Salted butter
Aldi
Friendly Farms Salted Butter
Total price: $2.79
Unit price: $2.80 per pound
Costco
Butter, Kirkland Signature Butter Quarters
Total price: $9.99
Unit price: $2.50 per lb
Winner: Costco
Organic almondmilk
Aldi
Friendly Farms Unsweetened Original or Vanilla Almondmilk
Tandil Premium HE (high efficiency) Liquid Laundry Detergent
Total price: $6.49
Unit price: 6.5 cents per fluid ounce
Costco
Laundry Detergent, Kirkland Signature Ultra Free and Clear 2x HE
Total price: $13.99
Unit price: 7 cents per fluid ounce
Winner: Aldi
Store brand sparkling water
Aldi
Pur Aqua Belle Vie Sparkling Flavored Water
Total price: $2.99
Unit price: 2.1 cents per fluid ounce
Costco
Kirkland Signature Sparkling Flavored Water Variety
Total price: $8.99
Unit price: 3.8 cents per fluid ounce
Winner: Aldi
Grape tomatoes
Aldi
Double Diamond Farms Grape Tomatoes
Total price: 1.79 cents per dry pint
Price per pound: ~less than $1.79 (One dry pint is 18.6 ounces. A pound is 16 ounces. We’ll call it a pound for argument’s sake.)
Costco
Tomatoes, grape, hothouse grown
Total price: $5.99
Price per pound: $3
Winner: Aldi
Organic apples
Aldi
Organic apples, Gala
Total price: $4.99
Unit price: $1.66 per pound
Costco
Apples, Gala, organic
Total price: $8.99
Unit price: $1.63 per pound
Winner: Costco
Store brand organic milk
Aldi
Simply Nature organic fat-free milk
Total price: $2.95
Unit price: 4.7 cents per fluid ounce
Costco
Milk, Kirkland Signature, 1%, organic
Total price: $10.99
Unit price: 5.7 cents per fluid ounce
Winner: Aldi
Store brand organic tortilla chips
Aldi
Simply Nature Organic Yellow Corn Tortilla Chips
Total price: $1.99
Unit price: 18 cents per ounce
Costco
Kirkland Signature Tortilla Chips, organic
Total price: $4.99
Unit price: 13 cents per ounce
Winner: Costco
Conclusion
Though my selection of items was highly arbitrary, I have to declare this contest a tie. Aldi won in 10 of the 19 categories and Costco won in the other 9.
I think these results really say something. Many people I talk to rave about how cheap Costco is…but are they really?
At Costco, you have to purchase in bulk, which doesn’t necessarily work for everyone. And let’s not forget that shopping at Costco costs $55 a year for a membership.
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Of course, this isn’t to say that Costco can’t be a smart choice for you or your family. I picked 19 randomly selected items to price compare based on what went into my shopping cart this past weekend. Your results may vary and they could make that Costco membership worth it for your family.