Aldi vs Stop and Shop: Who is Cheaper?
Aldi is a considered a discount grocery store chain with over 2,000 locations in 38 US states. Stop and Shop is a part of the Ahold Delhaize company with about 415 stores in 5 Northeast states.
We have made a solid meal plan for a week and made a grocery list. We will shop both Aldi and Stop & Shop and see which grocery store comes out cheaper. Scroll to the end to see the final verdict!
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Is Aldi cheaper than Stop and Shop?
For this price comparison, I have made a meal plan for a family of 4 using “25 Cheap food that fills you up when you are broke!” as a guide. Our plan is to get groceries for a week that are healthy and cheap!
Here is our meal plan:
Breakfasts
- Egg, Cheese, and Bacon Burritos x2
- Toast with Peanut Butter and Bananas x2
- Baked Apple Oatmeal Bars x3 (easy recipe here)
Lunches
- Spinach Salads with Hard Boiled Eggs and Leftover Ham & Ranch Dressing (and tomato & cucumber)
- Homemade Hummus with Carrots and Celery
- Egg Salad Sandwiches
- Leftovers
Dinners
- Meatloaf with Mashed potatoes and Sauteed Carrots
- Chicken Lo Mein with Broccoli (sauce is made with soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and sesame oil)
- Leftover Chicken and Dumplings (easy dumpling recipe here) using frozen mixed vegetables and 1 can of cream of chicken soup)
- Ham and Cheese Quiche with Homemade Rice a Roni (rice a roni recipe here)
- 3 Meat Pizza using leftover Ham, leftover Bacon, and Pepperoni with a Spinach Side Salad (easy pizza dough recipe here)
- Leftover Chicken and Cheese Quesadillas with Rice and Black Beans
Snacks
- Bananas
- Carrots & Celery with Ranch
- Peanut Butter and Apples
Sweet Treat
- Homemade Cinnamon Rolls (see recipe here)
For this price comparison, I am using prices available in The Bronx, New York. I will be selecting items for our meal plan that are the absolute cheapest.
This means mostly generic store brand options and the smallest size needed. This may not be the best value, but we are going for the cheapest option.
We are assuming that we already have kitchen basics like cooking oil, seasonings, salt/pepper, and baking powder at home. Everything else needed for the meal plan will need to be purchased.
For a more in depth break down on how I would make this meal plan work, check out “Healthy Grocery List for Family of 4 on a Budget #2.”
Produce Section
This is all the fresh vegetables and fruits we need for the week.
| Item | Aldi Price | Stop & Shop Price |
| 6 Bananas | $0.40 each= $2.40 | 1 bunch (4-6)= $1.78 |
| Apples | 3lb bag of gala apples= $3.29 | 4lb bag of gala apples= $3.96 *on sale* |
| Spinach | Little Salad 8oz bag= $1.65 | Stop & Shop 8oz bag= $2.49 |
| Carrots | 1lb baby carrots= $1.05 | 1lb bag organic= $1.49 |
| Celery | 1 bunch= $2.19 | 1 bunch= $1.99 |
| Potatoes | 5lb bag red potatoes= $3.29 | 5lb bag Russets= $2.50 *on sale* |
| Tomato | On the vine pack= $3.09 | Vine Ripe= $1.79 each |
| Cucumber | $0.79 each | $0.99 each |
| Total: (8 items) | $17.75 | $16.99 |
In the produce section, Stop & Shop came out cheaper with a total of $16.99. This was $0.76 cheaper than Aldi’s total of $17.75.
Deli/Meats
This is all the meats that we will need from the deli and meat counter.
| Item | Aldi Price | Stop & Shop Price |
| Bacon | Appleton Farms 16oz pack= $5.15 | Jimmy Dean 12oz pack= $4.99 *on sale* |
| Ground Beef (1lb) | 85% lean 1lb roll= $4.95 | $4.49 a lb (1.2lbs)= $5.39 *on sale* |
| Chicken Breasts (4-6 needed) | Kirkwood $2.49 a lb (5lbs)= $12.45 | Stop & SHop $2.99 a lb (4.5lbs)= $13.46 *on sale* |
| Diced Ham | Appleton Farms 12oz ham slices= $3.85 | Smithfield 8oz pack= $3.49 |
| Pepperoni | Mama Cozzies 6oz pack= $2.99 | Margherita 5oz pack= $3.29 |
| Total: (5 items) | $29.39 | $30.62 |
In the meat section, Aldi came out cheaper with a total of $29.39. This was $1.23 cheaper than Stop & Shop’s total of $30.62.
Dry Goods
This is all the dry goods and shelf stable items that we need for our meal plan.
| Item | Aldi Price | Stop & Shop Price |
| Flour Tortillas | Pueblo Lindo 10ct= $1.89 | Stop & Shop 8ct= $1.79 |
| Sandwich Bread | L’oven 20oz white bread= $1.35 | Stop & Shop 16oz white bread=$1.49 |
| Peanut Butter | Peanut Delight 18oz jar= $1.89 | Stop & Shop 16.3oz jar= $2.19 |
| Quick Oats | Millville 42oz container= $3.85 | Nature’s Promise 18oz container= $3.19 |
| Brown Sugar | Baker’s Corner 2lb bag= $2.09 | Domino 1lb box= $2.19 |
| Garbanzo beans (canned) | Dakota’s Pride 15.5oz can= $0.99 | Stop & Shop 15.5 oz can= $0.75 *on sale* |
| Mayonnaise | Burman’s 30oz jar= $3.25 | Mike’s 15oz jar= $2.59 |
| Soy Sauce | Fusia 15oz bottle= $2.04 | Stop & Shop 10oz bottle= $1.79 |
| Hoisin Sauce | *substitution* Fusia 14.5 oz bottle of teriyaki sauce= $2.54 | Lee Kum Kee 8.5oz jar= $3.29 |
| Sesame Oil | Did not carry and no substitution available | Lee Kum Kee 3.9oz bottle= $3.49 |
| Spaghetti Noodles | Reggano 32oz box= $2.19 | Stop & Shop 16oz box= $1.49 |
| All Purpose Flour | Baker’s Corner 5lb bag= $2.35 | Stop & Shop 2lb bag= $2.99 |
| Cream of Chicken Soup | Chef’s Cupboard 10.5oz can= $0.99 | Stop & Shop 10.5oz can= $1.19 |
| Chicken Bouillon Cubes | Knorr Boullion 32oz = $6.39 | Maggi 6ct= $1.29 |
| Dry Active Yeast (need 2) | Baker’s Corner 3ct= $1.35 | Fleishmann’s 3ct= $2.59 |
| White Rice | Earthly Grains 3lb bag= $2.45 | Stop & Shop 1lb bag= $2.09 |
| Black Beans (canned) | Dakota’s Pride 15oz can= $0.89 | Stop & Shop 15.5oz can= $0.75 *on sale* |
| Powdered Sugar | Baker’s Corner 2lb bag= $2.09 | Stop & Shop 1lb bag= $2.19 |
| Total: (19 items) | $38.59 | $37.34 |
In the dry goods section, Stop & Shop came out cheaper with a total of $37.34. This was $1.25 cheaper than Aldi’s total of $38.59.
It is worth noting that Aldi did not carry hoisin sauce or sesame oil. I found a similar item for the hoisin sauce, but there was no alternative for the sesame oil.
Frozen Foods
These are the frozen items needed for this week’s meal plan.
| Item | Aldi Price | Stop & Shop Price |
| Frozen Broccoli | Season’s Choice 12oz bag= $1.49 | Stop & Shop 12oz bag= $2.19 |
| Frozen Mixed Vegetables | Season’s Choice 12oz bag= $1.25 | Stop & Shop 12oz bag= $1.69 |
| Pie Crust | Bake House 2ct= $2.15 | Stop & Shop 2ct= $3.89 |
| Total: (3 items) | $4.89 | $7.77 |
In the frozen section, Aldi came out cheaper with a total of $4.89. This was $2.88 cheaper than Stop & Shop’s total of $7.77.
Dairy Section
These are all the dairy items needed like milk and cheeses.
| Item | Aldi Price | Stop & Shop Price |
| Eggs | Goldhen 12ct white eggs= $3.29 | Land O Lakes 12ct brown eggs= $3.00 *on sale* |
| Shredded Cheddar Cheese | Happy Farms 11oz block= $3.75 | Stop & Shop 8oz bag=$2.50 *on sale* |
| Shredded Mozzarella Cheese | Happy Farms 11oz bag= $3.75 | Stop & Shop 8oz bag=$2.50 *on sale* |
| Milk | Friendly Farms gallon= $5.25 | Stop & Shop gallon= $4.49 |
| Total: (4 items) | $16.04 | $12.49 |
In the dairy section, Stop & Shop came out cheaper with a total of $12.49. This was $3.55 cheaper than Aldi’s total of $16.04.
Is Stop and Shop more expensive than Aldi?
There was a lot of back and forth in each section for who was cheaper. Let’s look at the overall totals.
| Section | Aldi Price | Stop & Shop Price |
| Produce | $17.75 | $16.99 |
| Deli/Meats | $29.39 | $30.62 |
| Dry Goods | $38.59 | $37.34 |
| Frozen Foods | $4.89 | $7.77 |
| Dairy | $16.04 | $12.49 |
| Overall Total: (38 items) | $106.66 | $105.21 |
Overall, Stop & Shop was cheaper than Aldi with a total of $105.21. This was $1.45 (about 1%) cheaper than Aldi’s total of $106.66.
We should note that Aldi did not have a few ingredients and substituted items had to be used or in the case of sesame oil they didn’t even have a substitution.
In some cases, Stop & Shop’s sale prices were better than Aldi regular prices. On the other hand, some of the items were cheaper at Aldi.
If these are the two stores nearest to you, I would focus on what is on sale each week. I would also keep in mind that Aldi have very limited sizes and options on certain products.
For instance, they only had a gigantic size of the bouillon cubes and mayonnaise. The mayonnaise from Aldi came out cheaper per oz compared to Stop & Shop but if you are not going to need or use 30oz, then it is not a helpful option.
Stop & Shop offers discounts too with digital coupons and you are able to redeem points with GO rewards for free products and dollars off at checkout. If you prefer online shopping, check out their GO Pass which give you free delivery and pick-up. Current Offer is $50 off and Free Delivery on your first 2 online orders!
For more grocery store price comparisons, check out “Safeway vs King Soopers: Who is Cheaper?” and “Aldi vs Albertsons: Who is Cheaper?“
