GROCERY SHOPPING GUIDE FOR THE NETHERLANDS

In this episode, Michelle and Alex break down the many grocery stores in the Netherlands, from the major players Albert Heijn and Jumbo to discount chains Dirk and Aldi, and even have their first experience inside the bougie Ekoplaza. Find out which Dutch grocery store is right for you!

Episode 68 · Filmed on June 17, 2023 · Dordrecht, the Netherlands

📸 Our shooting gear:

📸 Our in-house gear:

0:00 Introduction
0:58 Weekly markets!
1:12 What do we buy at a weekly market vs. grocery store?
1:36 Albert Heijn
2:23 Jumbo
3:01 Which do we prefer: Albert Heijn or Jumbo?
3:57 Discount stores
4:05 Dirk
4:25 Aldi
4:54 Lidl
5:13 The discount aisle
5:26 How do we save money at the grocery store?
5:56 Organic stores
6:08 Ekoplaza
6:41 What did we think of Ekoplaza?
7:45 Spar
7:52 Our tips for shopping at Dutch supermarkets
9:35 Wrap up

#expatlife #netherlands #groceryshopping #grocerystore

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WHO IS BUNCHARTED?

We're Michelle and Alex, a travel-obsessed American couple living abroad in the Netherlands.

In 2020, we quit our jobs to travel the world, and... yeah, that didn't happen. So in 2022, we decided to make an even BIGGER change, packing up our lives (and our cats 🐈), moving from Austin, Texas, to Rotterdam, in the Netherlands. Subscribe for new videos like this every week!

[josh_prada]

As we prepare to move from Indianapolis to Groningen in a few weeks, your videos have been very helpful. Hope to welcome you in Groningen soon to thank you in person. J and W

[tmwister_vlogs]

Small addition to the refundable security deposit portion.
Since April 1, all cans of drinks have a refundable deposit. There is no deposit on cans with liquids that are not intended for drinking directly, such as lemonade syrup, thick juice and soup. There is also no refundable deposit on other cans, such as frankfurters, other meat products and vegetables.
Because old stocks of cans in stores must first be cleared, there may be both refundable and non-refundable cans on the shelves. The cans with a refundable deposit can be recognized by a deposit logo. In addition, the can must have an undamaged barcode and be in good condition.

In most cases you can put these cans in the same machine that you can put the plastic bottles in.

[JeacoMeiyin]

Just for anyone watching who isn’t Dutch, this is a regional-influenced video. I live in a city up north where there’s a bunch of inner city Jumbo and Albert Heijn ;)
Next to that I think an important (growing) part of Dutch grocery shopping is home delivery services such as Gorillas, Getyr and Picnic. (Oh, and the fact that as soon as you live anywhere semi-close to the German border, it is very normal to shop across country borders)

[claudiazaatable]

Tip: the A brands are always in the middle, housebrands are below that and a little bit cheaper (but most of the time they are made by/at the same maker/factory)

[joop]

8:30 You can also weigh produce at the self checkout. 8:52 The table with the (scanner) window in it also has a scale build in it. Just put your produce on it and select the appropriate product in the computer.

[ivo]

About the creditcard payments. Most cash registers or checkouts support contactless payments these day. Especially since corona. Contactless payments are made using NFC. You can use your phone with a payment app. Any banking app, or Google-pay or Apple-pay will do. And most (if not all) of the NFC-readers on the checkouts also support Visa, Mastercards and American Express.
If you want to pay the 'normal/old' way, the cash registers only support Maestro/Vpay cards. If you use the contactless NFC-reader, almost anything goes, including credit cards.

[fpwest]

Thanks for the refresher on Albert Heijn etiqutte. When we were there in 2018, I loved going in. I forgot about the exit scanners for getting out. It's a good reminder for our upcoming trip.

[lillekenatnek]

What I like about my favorite grocery store is that it sells groceries and its a store.

[InWeCome]

Albert Heijn is actually one of the cheapest non-discount stores if you only focus on their wide selection of weekly deals. And they have personalized weekly deals as well. I prefer to shop at Albert Heijn and Lidl.

[MxSheep]

The "statiegeld" or return you bottle thing you mention has been expended. now also includes small plastic drink bottles and soda/beer cans. I'm also missing the mention of delivery groceries, but that could probably be a whole video on it's own. personally I do a combi of AH and Picnic.

[Dafoodmaster]

Dekamarkt is my favorite at the moment. Straddles the line between Dirk like prices but with a little nicer homely store atmosphere.
Reminds me of the ones from my childhood. Great sales too!

[theburnix]

LOL seeing how you took the shots of the different shops were in Dordrecht, my hometown and home to one of the best weekend farmersmarkets in the Netherlands

[MelissaPhillips-njsb]

American here, who has been in the Netherlands for the last 3 summers. My favorite grocery store is Albert Hein. My favorite love is the open air markets. We shop like the locals several times a week. I almost always go in with an open mind and try to go for the special discounts, then its very good prices, especially compared to the US. Get to buy things you don't actually know, and we are usually very happy. Food quality is good in the Netherlands.

[heartshinemusic]

Albert Heijn is the OG Dutch supermarket. It's where my grandma already did her shopping in the early 80's. Jumbo is a fairly new brand. Yes, Albert Heijn is known to be the most expensive supermarket, BUT when you buy things that are "in de bonus" (or 1+1 gratis) they're actually way cheaper than Jumbo or even Dirk. (Of course they have discounts too.) You just have to pay attention when to strike ;-) (If you're on a budget.) Ekoplaza may sell very healthy food, but the prizes can give you a heart attack.

[jfkoetse]

As I live near the border of Germany, we often go there for shopping. The Edeka is a nice store (sometimes with a completely different name, like in the city of Leer, you'll find the Mülti, or in Meppen the Marktkauf, both owned by Edeka), and we olso shop at Kaufland, which belongs to the same organisation as Lidl.

[Blackadder]

I used to go to 6 or more different grocery stores, as you say we have so many in every city, so I could go to any without time loss, just by choosing a different route from work. But Jumbo and AH have bought up much of the competition, it's basically only those 2 left + the Aldi and Lidl, which I also sometimes visit. they all have strong and weak points so I like to visit them all.

[Michael.Barath]

Thanks Guys - this was awesome for someone who is new in the Netherlands. Jumbo is my go to. Thanks for the great content.

[urbandiscount]

In Dordt you're very lucky with the Odin shop (organic only from smaller producers) and it's a store you can become a member of, because it's a proper cooperative

[marcblokpoel]

In the center of Dordrecht there is indeed no Jumbo. But on the Krispijnseweg (not that far from the center) you'll find a small Jumbo. Also, the Dirk in the center is quite small, on the Brouwersdijk and in Crabbehof the Dirk is way bigger. Jumbo in Sterreburg is a giant one, and the AH at Maasplaza (also quite close to the center) is also fairly big. You missed the Plus and maybe try the Avantage (mainly Turkish based), also about three of them in Dordrecht.

[FrankHouwelingBoskoop]

I often go to Lidl these days. I love the fruit & veg and their bake-off is also really good. They are great for the basics but they don't offer many items I need so I'll get them at Albert Heijn which is my favorite supermarket, if money wouldn't be an issue. With AH, there is a lot of difference from location to location, but generally I like the big ones.
I come to Plus more often than I would like since I dislike the supermarket, it's just really close to my home and convenient for a fast grocery trip.