Aldi Vs Trader Joe's Vs Costco: The Best Grocery Store Return Policy, Hands-Down

No one goes into the supermarket with the intention of buying too much of something or getting the wrong thing, but it happens. You buy six pounds of cheese for a party that gets cancelled, you pick up a 24-pack of toilet paper only to realize you already have 37 rolls at home, or you take a chance on that jar of organic kudzu flower jelly only to later decide it's really not your jam. That's when a good return policy can be your best friend. As for the grocery store with the hands-down best return policy? The winner is ... drum roll, please ... Aldi!

Aldi, Trader Joe's, and Costco all have quite generous return policies. With any of the three, you'd be able to easily bring back almost anything you didn't like, don't need, or probably shouldn't have bought in the first place. They were neck and neck through this whole cut-throat return policy race, but Aldi came out ahead by a nose.

At Aldi, you can return practically anything that didn't work out for you and get a refund. Even alcohol is returnable in some cases. Food items that aren't satisfactory for any reason (like if you think the Kirkwood Frozen Ground Turkey tastes gross), Aldi will do right by you two times over. Thanks to the store's Twice as Nice Guarantee, not only will it give you back your money, it will also replace the item. In other words, you walk out with another product plus your money back. Win-win. (What Aldi does with food once you bring it back is another story.)

Although Aldi wins because of its doubly good generosity, the return policies at Trader Joe's and Costco are nothing to scoff at. Costco's policy is pretty straightforward. It offers a Risk-Free 100% Satisfaction Guarantee that's applicable to most items, with some exceptions. There's no time limit on returns (except for electronics) and items can be opened or not, which means the partially consumed 10-pound bag of pasta that's been sitting in your cupboard since you started your low-carb diet two years ago should be eligible. Go ahead, take it back for a refund if you must, but be aware that Costco does track what you bring back to get refunded and how often. People who take advantage of Costco's kindness with excessive returns could be flagged on the Naughty List.

Trader Joe's is likewise quite kind to customers who want to get their money back or replace an item. The internet is full of people shouting praises for TJ's no questions asked return policy and raving about how you don't even need a receipt. In some cases, you can even get away with not even bringing the item back to the store — just give a legitimate reason to management why the thing didn't do it for you and the manager will hook you up with a refund or a better item. Trader Joe's was very close to nudging out Aldi for the lead in this return-policy skirmish, but it definitely lost points for not clearly stating its return policy in a designated section on its website.