How to shop in Germany properly

In general, this is quite straightforward. You need to come to the store, choose what you need and pay for it. But on this our article does not end, and we will tell you more.

You’ve probably heard such names more than once: Lidl, Penny, Rewe, Netto, Edeka, Kaufland and Aldi. These are the German retail giants who occupied themselves with the whole market of grocery supermarkets in this country, and many of them even spread throughout the world. These retailers have two types of stores: der Discounter – a small “deli” with a limited selection, and der Supermarkt is a supermarket in a large building with a huge selection. Let the name Discounter (from the English “discount” – a discount) does not mislead you, because it does not mean that prices are lower than in supermarkets. Small shops meet in the city more often, in them, in general, there is everything necessary. But there are also huge supermarkets, even if you do not get the impression that all grocery in Germany are small.
How to shop in Germany?

Although all these stores sell food, they also sell household goods, clothes, baby toys, electric grills, etc.

Alcohol can be bought at any time of the day in any of these stores or in a special alcohol kiosk. There are such stores near supermarkets or discounters. It happens that they are just scattered around the city. The choice of alcohol in specialized places is better.

It’s important to know!

Perhaps if you were in Germany, you noticed that you often pay a card not because there is no terminal, but because you require some kind of EC-card. Today we will talk about what this EC-card is, where to get it and why your card does not fit.

What is the difference in prices in all these places? This is probably the most important issue. Prices in all retail stores are approximately the same. But different traders sell different brands, and some brands may be more expensive. But identical products of the same price segment in all stores will cost roughly the same. For example, each of the above-mentioned networks has its own brand of the most affordable products: “Gut und Günstig”, “Ja!”, Etc. These brands offer almost the same set of basic products: bread, milk, sandwiches, frozen pizza / lasagna, yoghurts … And if the frozen lasagna in one store costs 2.99 euros, then it will cost so everywhere. A typical German always takes the cheapest products, because he can be sure of their quality.

But worth paying attention to the stock! This is something that can greatly differentiate stores from one another. All these retail giants print promotional brochures that you can find in a store or in your mailbox. The Germans really use these booklets, because they greatly help save money.

The perfect strategy is to combine different stores, with different stocks, small stores and supermarkets. And remember that on Sundays the stores are closed (we have already written before, why and what to do with it).