Not Saving Enough at Aldi and Lidl? 8 Ways To Save More at Overstock Grocery Outlets
Savvy shoppers know that Aldi and Lidl can help you shave hundreds of dollars off your monthly grocery bills. Providing you can tolerate the often crowded, confusing layout and debatably hit-or-miss customer service — and you don’t mind the lack of national brands on store shelves — Aldi and Lidl provide tremendous cost savings. Plus, you’ll have opportunities to try foods you may not find anywhere else.
See: 10 Cheap Aldi Brand Products Better Than the Name Brands
Find: How To Get Cash Back on Your Everyday Purchases
But if the crowds and store layouts are getting to you (or you just don’t feel like the savings at Aldi and Lidl are worth it), grocery delivery services like Imperfect Foods, Misfits Market and Martie may be the answer.
Why Misfits Market and Martie Are Not Like Instacart, HelloFresh and Others
What are overstock grocery delivery services? These are independent online retailers that purchase excess goods, including produce with imperfections, and sell them at a steep discount online.
These services are not like Instacart, because Instacart shops from local grocery stores and then delivers the products to consumers.
They are also not meal delivery services like HelloFresh, where the company sends the ingredients you need to prepare each meal. Instead, these stores sell direct to consumers at a discount.
It’s also worth mentioning that Imperfect Foods was acquired by Misfits Market in late 2022. If you try to login to Imperfect Foods, you’ll be redirected to the Misfits Market website.
Martie is the new kid on the block, having just launched nationwide on Oct. 4, 2023. Instead of delivering fresh produce and organic meat, along with a selection of shelf stable products, Martie focuses on non-perishable foods only. There are still great deals to be had on health foods, including extra virgin olive oil and apple cider vinegar, as well as fun snacks for the kids.
As a mom-of-two always looking for the best deals on groceries, I have some expert tips on how to save with these services.
Compare Prices While You Shop
It helps to know what the prices cost in regular supermarkets to judge if you are really saving money with one of these services. For instance, when I shopped recently at Martie, I knew the Pirate Booty 6-pack of individual bags my kids love normally sells for $6.99 to $7.99 elsewhere, and I could grab it for $3.69.
However, some items may not be such a good deal. When you’re shopping for meat, fish and poultry, always look at the price per pound. What looks like a value with a low price could actually be a small serving.
Also: 10 Walmart Brand Grocery Items That Are Now Cheaper at Aldi
Recognize Higher Quality Merchandise That May Not Be Lower in Price Than You Normally Pay
Likewise, if you don’t normally purchase organic meat, fruits and vegetables — or even high-end, name-brand snacks — you may not save with these services. A recent report from CNET found that it’s roughly 21% to 22% more expensive to buy organic foods than their non-organic counterparts.
Only when you save enough to make up the difference is it worthwhile if you don’t normally buy organic.
However, self-made millionaires have cited healthy, organic foods as one of the expenses they splurge on. If you can get these foods for roughly the same price (or a little bit more) than other foods, it could be worth it for your family’s health.
Be Careful of Impulse Buys
Just as Aldi has its “Aisle of Shame,” fraught with temptations, impulse purchases lurk online with every click.
Did I really need 24 gummy tarantulas for an upcoming Halloween party? Probably not — or at least maybe not.
To avoid impulse buys that will drive up your grocery bill, shop with a meal plan for the week as well as a list. Due to the nature of these services and their rotating inventory, you may have to make certain substitutions.
You can probably trade off peppers for zucchini in your favorite recipe, chicken thighs for chicken breasts, or salmon steaks for tuna steaks. Most white fish is versatile. And ground beef almost always provides an affordable source of protein, but it can also be swapped out with sirloin or beef for stew depending on what’s available and on sale.
If you have an idea of your grocery needs, and your budget, you’re more likely to stay on track.
Take Advantage of Free Shipping Offers
Your budget for online grocery shopping should always exceed the threshold for free shipping. Otherwise, you might be better off making that quick run to Lidl. Misfits Market offers free shipping on orders $60 and up. Martie has free shipping for orders of $50 or more, but adds a $1.99 handling fee to every order.
Remember To Shop on Time
Misfits Market currently offers a flex plan, which lets you shop within a three-day window any week, and a grocery subscription. With a subscription, Misfits Market fills your cart based on your selected preferences, weekly. You can skip a shipment at any time.
But if you subscribe and forget to customize your order, you’ll be stuck with whatever the service sends. And that can end up as a waste of grocery money if you don’t like what was in your cart. Pay attention to email reminders to enjoy all the perks of your grocery subscription.
Act Fast To Get the Best Deals
Similarly, if you see something you like, don’t hesitate to put it in your cart and place your order right away. I missed out on a few deals because I didn’t place my order quickly enough.
Just because you have it in your cart doesn’t mean it’s yours. You have to process the transaction.
Share the Service with Friends To Save Even More
Misfits Market has a generous referral feature. For every new customer you refer to Misfits Market, you earn $35 off your next order and your friend gets $10 off theirs. You can process a maximum of 30 referrals per year, which is more than one every two weeks. I would definitely appreciate $70 or more savings on groceries every month!
Get Rebates When You Shop
Misfits Market is also generous with rebates, currently offering $10 cash back when you use Rakuten or CapitalOne Shopping, or 750 in SwagBucks. You typically cannot combine these offers.
If you use Shop Pay at checkout with Martie, you will earn 1% Shop Cash that you can use in the Shop Pay app. Shop Pay also offers flexible shopping options so you can pay for your purchase over time. This can help you take advantage of deals before they sell out.
By leveraging all these features, you can make online grocery shopping services work for you, reduce your grocery budget and save time as well as gas money.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Not Saving Enough at Aldi and Lidl? 8 Ways To Save More at Overstock Grocery Outlets
