Are You Better Off Buying Frozen Chicken Wings At Aldi Or Costco?

Frozen meals are popular for a reason. They're usually quick, easy to prepare, and, more often than not, grocery store customers can find plenty of family-friendly options for a busy weeknight. Both Aldi and Costco have their fair share of frozen options, and, in terms of convenience, few lunch or dinner options are easier to throw in the oven or air fryer than chicken wings.

But, convenience aside, how do these two stores match up when it comes to chicken wing prices? That's what we set out to find when we researched and compared wings from both Aldi and Costco. And, in our opinion, you'll find the overall better deal at Costco. Of note, we're talking about value here, not a taste test. We looked at factors like available options, customer feedback, and price in determining which store had the better chicken wings.

We've told you Costco has the better value, and we'll expand on that in detail later. But let's start with Aldi. This grocery store chain has slightly fewer options when it comes to chicken wings — all of which are from Aldi's Kirkwood brand. If you consider there's about eight to 10 wings per pound (we'll split it down the middle and say nine per pound for math's sake), Aldi's 22-ounce bags will hold somewhere in the neighborhood of 12 wings. The Kirkwood Buffalo Style Chicken Wings costs $8.19 at Aldi, while the Kirkwood Honey BBQ Flavored Chicken Wings sells for $9.05. Using our 12 wing standard, Aldi's two options cost 68 cents per wing (Buffalo) and 75 cents per wing (Honey BBQ) each. Costco's options, on the other hand, are all under 60 cents a wing.

As you might expect, the biggest difference between Costco and Aldi's chicken wings is volume. Instead of 22 ounces, Costco's various frozen wings come in much bigger bags — both 4 pounds and 10 pounds each. That's a helluva lot of wings, but it's perfect to ration out for dinner over time or as a bargain party appetizer. Costco's 4-pound (or approximately 36-wing) options start with Pilgrim's Crispy Wings with Honey BBQ Sauce for $21.55 (59 cents per wing) and Foster Farms Take Out Crispy Sweet Chipotle BBQ Chicken Wings for $20.42 (56 cents per wing). Then there's Costco's Kirkland Signature Crispy Wings with Classic Buffalo Sauce that costs $19.28 (53 cents per wing). Meanwhile, the massive 10-pound of Kirkland Signature Chicken Wings comes to $30.52 (just 34 cents per wing).

When it comes to price, Costco is the obvious winner here, especially since in-store prices are typically lower than those for online same-day delivery. (Just note that exact prices may also vary by location.) Not to mention the warehouse retailer has more wing options as well. Both stores also receive pretty good customer reviews of their wing offerings. At Costco, the Foster Farms Crispy Wings are a big hit, while at Aldi, the Kirkwood brand Buffalo Style Chicken Wings receives good reviews.

That's where it all gets back to overall value. And it's hard to beat Costco on both price and variety. While the portion sizes are huge, there are four kinds to choose from, and since they're frozen, you can buy a bunch and enjoy them over multiple meals.