The US City That's Packed With The Absolute Most Aldi Locations Is Surprisingly Not NYC

New York City has no shortage of iconic food options. From slices of "orange" NYC pizza (if you know you know) to the super decadent Ainsworth mac and cheese burger, it's tough to beat the Big Apple when it comes to dining. One category where Chicago has NYC beat, however: its number of Aldi locations. Surprisingly, it's easier to find an Aldi in Chicago than New York. While NYC packs 26 Aldi locations across its five boroughs, Chicago is home to 33.

Of course, Chicagoans have a ton of options when it comes to getting groceries, so we dug deep into why the German discount grocer is such a popular place to stock up on staples. When Aldi first began to expand from Europe into the United States, its flagship Stateside store opened a three-and-a-half hour drive away from Chicago in Iowa City, Iowa. Midwest residents were willing to give then-unheard-of grocery chain Aldi a try when it appeared in the area in 1976, long before the store began to take hold on the coasts. Today, the store's U.S. headquarters is located in Batavia, Illinois, just outside of Chicago. 

Over the past 50 years, Aldi has become a trusted brand in the Midwest. Since shoppers are already familiar with the retailer, they may be more likely to stick to Aldi for their regular shopping trips, while shoppers in other regions may take some time to warm up to the bare-bones shopping experience. Chicago residents also love Aldi for the same reasons as other discount-savvy shoppers across the country, including the aisle of dreams (or shame, depending on who you ask), fresh produce, meat, and seafood. 

While Aldi is now a household name across the United States (and 10 other countries), this wasn't always the case. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (via NPR), grocery prices have jumped up 29% since February 2020. Many Americans are trying to pinch pennies where they can, and for some, that means turning to discount grocery stores. In 2025, the New York Times reported on Americans' love for Aldi, stating that the shoppers love the chain for both its low prices and health-conscious offerings. As Dave Rinaldo, chief operating officer of Aldi USA, told the outlet, "Americans are strapped for time, and after years of inflation, their wallets are pinched. We're in a moment where the demand has come to where we literally can't open the stores fast enough."

Outside of its presence in Chicago and the Midwest, Aldi has big changes coming in the next few years, with plans to add thousands of additional locations across the U.S. by 2028. In 2026 alone, the grocery giant plans to open 180 new stores in the U.S., according to a press release. In addition to continuing to open new stores in areas where Aldi is already well-known and thriving, the chain is planning to expand into new territory, including opening stores in Colorado for the first time. Aldi also plans to open three new distribution centers in Florida, Arizona, and Colorado, making it easier for the chain to focus on its expansion into the American West and Southeast.