One Of The Biggest Mistakes You Can Make At The Aldi Checkout Line

As enjoyable as grocery shopping can be, everyone has those days when it feels like just another chore. It is especially tedious when so many other people have the same errands to run, causing large crowds and long lines at checkout. The popular grocery store chain Aldi, for example, has almost 1,400 store locations across the U.S. and serves approximately 30 million people every month, according to the company's website. With that many shoppers, a fast and efficient checkout process is essential to keeping things running smoothly.

Checkout line culture is actually a two-way street: While it is the cashier's job to scan and bag items in a timely fashion, the shopper also has plenty of responsibilities to juggle in order to keep the line from getting too long. One of the biggest mistakes you can make at Aldi is holding up the checkout line, especially during peak shopping hours. For the best results, keep the socializing to a minimum and swiftly unload your items onto the conveyor belt.

Everyone appreciates a sense of urgency when it comes to grocery checkout lines. Unlike the well-lit aisles of products that encourage shoppers to browse at a leisurely pace, the checkout line is no place to dilly-dally. No matter how full your cart is, it should never take more than a few minutes to place all your items onto the conveyor belt.

If you are buying bulk items while shopping at Aldi, be ready to unload your heavy items when you get to the front of the line. Aldi cashiers expect customers to put all their items onto the conveyor belt to be scanned, so waiting for your cashier to remind you that you need to remove certain items from your cart will take even longer. If you plan on buying more than you can carry, it might be beneficial to ask a friend or family member to go shopping with you – this will also double the amount of helping hands unloading your cart and shed a few minutes off your checkout time.

Once your cart is unloaded and the cashier begins scanning your items, be sure to let them do their job with minimal distractions. Some light, polite conversation is completely normal and even encouraged by Aldi's employees, but no one has the time to hear your life story while bagging your groceries. Too much discussion about the great deals you found, complaints about certain out-of-stock items, or even too much banter back and forth with your cashier may cause the disgruntled shoppers behind you to get a little bit restless. 

On the other hand, be sure to greet them and be kind. Ignoring their questions, talking on the phone, or criticizing their bagging methods will not only take up even more of everyone's time, but it will come off as extremely rude. Like many social interactions, finding that sweet spot of brief and polite chatter will take some practice. When in doubt, follow your cashier's lead – they are the professionals, after all.