Publix and Aldi are fierce competitors in the supermarket space. Both sell similar items catering to similar customers. But if you are presented with the choice between the two of them, which one is better. To help you answer this question, I compared both of the stores based on three major decision making factors.
These three major decision factors are:
- Price
- Quality
- Variety
By the end of this article, you should have a much better idea as to which store is better for you based on your shopping needs.
Which is Better: Publix or Aldi? Aldi offers cheaper products than Publix by a range of anywhere from 8% to 56%. However, Publix has higher quality items according to the FDA. Publix has more than 21 times the amount of products that Aldi has.
Is Publix Cheaper Than Aldi?
Price point is a huge consideration for most customers when they are deciding between which grocery store to shop at. In other words, many people might be wondering if Publix is cheaper than Aldi, and vice versa.
To find out which store is cheaper between Publix and Aldi, I took a look at the most commonly purchased store brand items and averaged out their prices. Below is the table that represents those average prices based on the shopping category.
| Category | Aldi Brand | Publix Brand |
| Beverages | ✓ | |
| Baking Goods | ✓ | |
| Canned Goods | ✓ | |
| Dairy | ✓ | |
| Dry Goods | ✓ | |
| Frozen Foods | ✓ | |
| Personal Care | ✓ | ✓ |
| Cleaners | ✓ | |
Aldi is cheaper than Publix by anywhere from 8% to 56%.
The only categories where Publix was cheaper was in the Dry Goods and Personal Care categories. So, unless you are shopping for these two categories, then you are going to save more money shopping at Aldi, versus shopping at Publix.
To paint a better picture of the price disparity between the two stores, I created this bar chart that compares the average prices. As you can see, in categories like bread, dairy, frozen foods, and cleaner, Publix is significantly more expensive.
So if you are the type of shopper that prefers savings, then Aldi is a much better option for you.
Product Quality: Publix vs Aldi
The quality of products is also a huge consideration for most shoppers. Customers like to know that what they are purchasing is safe and of the highest quality. To see which store offers the best quality, I took a look at the FDA’s product recall database.
This database highlights how many recalls each store has had in recent years. The store with more product recalls is likely the store with lower quality products.
| Category | Publix Recalls | Aldi Recalls |
| Animal & Veterinary | 1 | 0 |
| Biologics | 0 | 0 |
| Cosmetics | 0 | 0 |
| Dietary Supplements | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 0 | 0 |
| Food and Beverages | 14 | 31 |
| Medical Devices | 0 | 0 |
| Radiation Emitting Products | 0 | 0 |
| Tobacco | 0 | 0 |
Aldi has more than doubled the amount of product recalls compared to Publix. More specifically, Publix has 15 product recalls whereas Aldi has 31.
A majority of the product recalls for both of the stores are focused within the food and beverages category, which makes sense because that’s what they primarily sell.
So, if you are a shopper that prefers to go to the store with higher quality products, then you are likely going to get them at Publix instead of Aldi.
Product Variety: Publix vs Aldi
The amount of options that a store offers is also something to consider. A store that has a lot of pride variety essentially guarantees that you’re going to find everything that you need and more.
| Total Publix Products | Total Aldi Products |
| 30,000 | 1,400 |
Publix has significantly more product variety in comparison to Aldi. Or specifically Publix has more than 21 times the amount of products in their store.
For reference, the average grocery store carries around 31,000 products. So, Publix is right around the average and Aldi is significantly below the average.
What Does Each Store Sell?
For the most part, each store typically sells the same items. You’ll be able to find most big brand items as well as other private label items that each store brand has.
The only real difference between the two stores is that all the has a much bigger focus on discounted items.
Which One Should You Shop At: Publix vs Aldi?
When to shop at Publix: While Publix doesn’t offer the cheapest prices, they do offer higher quality products as well as significantly more product variety. If you don’t mind paying a little bit more money for higher quality and more options, then Publix is the right place for you to shop.
When to shop at Aldi: all the offers significantly discounted prices when compared to Publix. Although they do not have as high quality of products nor the same amount of product options, you will be saving money when you shop there.
Final Thoughts: Publix vs Aldi
Something to note is that while these two stores do have their differences, they both are very good grocery stores to shop at. While Aldi has an advantage in terms of price, Publix has its advantage in quality and variety.
It’s important to emphasize that both the stores have built a great reputation for themselves, so neither is really an inferior store. They both are good options for most shoppers.