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Do Aldi Ads Take Effect on Sunday or Wednesday?

EDITOR’S NOTE: Aldi appears to have shifted most, if not all, of its stores to Wednesdays. We’ve written more about this here.

Each time Aldi rolls out a new weekly ad, it’s a bit like Christmas to us. We find it fun to browse the Aldi ad page to see what’s coming up. For us, it’s not just personal, since we also cover each weekly ad as writers, but even if we weren’t covering it here, seeing what’s on the horizon is a fun exercise just as an Aldi fan. If you’re anything like us, you might even start plotting which middle aisle Aldi Finds you might be picking up.

Over the years, though, we’ve noticed a curious thing: Aldi ads don’t take effect on the same day everywhere in the United States. Depending on where you live, your ads either take effect on a Sunday or a Wednesday.

Why the Difference?

Some shoppers might wonder why a big grocer like Aldi — which doesn’t have franchises — doesn’t use a common ad date nationwide.

We posed the question to a grocery insider, and the answer we got was: newspapers. Back during the heyday of print newspapers, major ones would set aside an advertising date for all grocers in the area to advertise to the local market. In some cities, like Philadelphia, it might be Sunday. In other cities, like St. Louis, it might be Wednesday.

Although print newspapers are not what they once were, many markets still keep to those days. Take St. Louis as an example. The Midwestern city has two major regional grocery chains (Schnucks and Dierbergs) and three small store chains (Aldi, Save-A-Lot, and Kroger’s Ruler Foods). All of those chains use Wednesday as their ad date.

In What Areas Does the Aldi Ad Take Effect on Sunday?

At the time of this post, areas that have a Sunday ad date include:

  • Philadelphia, PA
  • New York, NY
  • Buffalo, NY
  • Boston, MA
  • Bennington, VT
  • Detroit, MI
  • Minneapolis, MN

Many stores in the Northeast and parts of the upper Midwest seem to be Sunday stores. That’s not universally true, but if you’re in New York, for example, odds are that you’ll have a store with a Sunday ad date.

In What Areas Does the Aldi Ad Take Effect on Wednesday?

At the time of this post, areas that roll out their ads midweek include:

  • Pittsburgh, PA
  • Washington, D.C.
  • Louisville, KY
  • Cincinnati, OH
  • Columbus, OH
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Charlotte, NC
  • Atlanta, GA
  • Miami, FL
  • Dallas, TX
  • Milwaukee, WI
  • St. Louis, MO
  • Kansas City, MO
  • Los Angeles, CA
  • Chicago, IL, and its suburb, Batavia, where Aldi US is headquartered.

Wednesday seems to be the more common date for Aldi ads. It’s the primary day in most, if not all, of the South and out West, and it is frequent in the Midwest as well. There are even some places in the Northeast where you’ll see Wednesday ads, like Pittsburgh. (Keep in mind that another major Pennsylvania city, Philadelphia, is a Sunday city.)

A Final Pro Tip for Wednesday Shoppers

When you go to Aldi’s website, you can access the Sneak Peek ad for your area. If you live in an area where the ad takes effect on a Wednesday, you won’t be able to see the Sneak Peek until the Wednesday before your ad takes effect.

But there is a workaround, and it’s surprisingly simple. Set your ad location to an area with a Sunday ad date. If you’re not sure exactly where to look, you could pick a store in Detroit, MI (zip code 48215), or Buffalo, NY (zip code 14212). Those will show you an ad even if you’re in a Wednesday area.

Unfortunately, none of this means your store will have those Aldi Finds ready any earlier. It just means you have longer to make your plans.

And when it comes to Aldi shopping, we’re all about the plans.

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2 Comments

  1. Its really weird where I live. Lidl starts Wednesday, the “expensive” store for my area starts Friday, the popular store and Aldi start Sunday. I could hit each store on the first day of the ads with no problem. They’re all pretty near each other which means exceptional loss leaders are easy to get.

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