I Always Do This One Thing Before Walking Out of an Aldi Store

Picture this …

You’ve just finished a shopping trip at Aldi. You loaded your cart with grocery staples and fun Aldi Finds. You made it through the checkout line with the speedy cashier. You’ve unloaded your haul at home.

Then, you take a closer look at your receipt.

You notice that you were mistakenly charged twice for that package of frozen pancakes or box of cereal.

This doesn’t happen all the time, but it has happened to me enough that I always check my receipt before walking out of Aldi.

Why Do I Sometimes Get Double Charged at Aldi?

While double charges can happen at any store, in my experience, they happen the most at Aldi.

Why is that? I think it happens for a few reasons.

1. Aldi prides itself on speed. 

The first thing to know is that speed and efficiency are very important to Aldi. That includes checkouts. Aldi cashiers move quickly, and a long line at an Aldi checkout usually goes much faster than a long line at other retailers.

Sometimes, that speed can come with an increased risk of mistakes, like double scanning.

2. Aldi products have multiple bar codes printed on them. 

In order for cashiers to quickly scan your groceries, Aldi puts more than one bar code on each product. This makes it so cashiers spend less time looking for the bar code. They can simply wave a product over the scanner without looking and it will very likely scan.

Those multiple bar codes can be both a blessing and a curse, though. The scanner may sometimes pick up two bar codes on the same item … resulting in you getting charged twice for one product.

Cashiers are pretty good about noticing and correcting double charges right away when they’re checking you out. I occasionally see voided items on my receipt, which means they accidentally double scanned something and immediately took off the extra charge.

But … sometimes mistakes get through.

What Should I Do If I’ve Been Charged Twice for Something?

When I catch a double charge on my Aldi receipt, I return to the cashier and explain the mistake — sometimes showing them the contents of my cart — and they always politely refund my money.

I recommend checking your receipt right away, while you’re at the bagging counter or before you’ve walked out of the store.

What happens if you don’t notice the extra charge until you’ve gotten home? Can you still get a refund if you’ve left the store? Most Aldi shoppers who chimed in on the subject on reddit say yes, with many saying Aldi will refund them several days to a week afterward. But some say no.

Closing Thoughts:

It’s not uncommon to accidentally get double charged for an item at Aldi. This sometimes happens because Aldi products have multiple bar codes printed on them to help expedite the checkout process.

It’s a good idea to get into the habit of checking your receipt for accuracy before you leave the store. If you find extra charges, point them out to the cashier. They will likely apologize for the inconvenience and will promptly refund you.

Of course, if you don’t want to deal with this potential issue, most Aldi stores now have self checkout where you can ring up your own groceries and make sure it’s done correctly. Which option comes with the least amount of hassle is a matter of personal preference.