We visited Aldi stores in the US and the UK for the first time and were surprised by how the grocery chain is both efficient and disorganized. Take a look.

With over 10,000 stores across the world in more than 10 countries, the German grocery chain is known for its low prices and has built a loyal following.

There are nearly 1,000 Aldi locations in the UK and 2,285 Aldi locations in the US. In fact, in 2022, it was the US' fastest-growing grocer for the third year running, Insider reported, citing the real-estate-services company JLL.

In both countries, amid rising food-price inflation throughout 2022, more shoppers have been flocking to Aldi for cheaper deals, according to reports from Reuters and the BBC.

But despite Aldi's popularity, neither of us — Maria Noyen in the UK and Talia Lakritz in the US — had ever shopped at one before. Because of that, we were curious to see what shopping there would be like and how our experiences would compare.

The complex also featured stores such as Best Buy, TJ Maxx, Party City, and Bob's Discount Furniture.

The store is in Maida Vale, which is roughly a 25 minutes walk from where our UK-based reporter lives in Notting Hill.

Aldi calls the quarter a"deposit." When shoppers have finished their shopping and return their carts to the corral, they get their quarter back.

A sign at the checkout counter explained the reason for the locked shopping carts: "No extra staff to wrangle carts means extra savings in your pocket."

At this store, shoppers could either choose from large blue roller carts or regular grocery baskets to put produce in while going around the store. Neither required money to use.

There were some brands that we recognized, like Goldfish and Cheez-Its, but most of the products were from Aldi's store brand, Benton's.

At first glance, it was easy to mistake Aldi's version of Chips Ahoy! chocolate-chip cookies for the real thing. The biggest difference was the price: Chips Ahoy! cookies cost $5.96 (about £4.97) for a package weighing 1 pound 9.3 ounces (about 24 cents per ounce), while the Benton's brand at Aldi cost $2.69 (about £2.24) for 1 pound 2.2 ounces (about 15 cents per ounce).

Before getting to any produce or packaged food, shoppers passed by a colorful display of flowers.

Close by, there was an Aldi employee seemingly keeping an eye on people entering and exiting the store.

At its stores in the UK, Aldi chooses six fruits and vegetables to sell at discounted prices to customers every two weeks at no extra cost to its suppliers.

The discounted produce this time around included Brussels sprouts and mini apples. The sprouts were discounted from their original price of £0.95 ($1) to £0.69 ($0.80). Meanwhile, the mini apples were discounted from £0.95 ($1) to £0.59 ($0.70).

There didn't seem to be an obvious reason as to why one was discounted to a cheaper price than the other.

The "retail-ready packaging" acts as both a shipping container and a display tray, saving time and money by reducing waste.

The only items that were unboxed at the UK Aldi were located in the frozen section and some of the fresh produce. Seeing items still in their original cardboard box packaging isn't common in other UK grocery-store chains, either.

With so many products stacked haphazardly on top of one another, it was hard to tell how much anything cost.

Aldi US did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

The clutter made some grocery items difficult to find.

Insider reached out to Aldi US for comment on the store's organization.

There was no gardening or house-plant section in the store, which made these look even more out of place.

Aldi UK did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Yellow goop from the yolks of broken eggs, which cost £1.29 ($1.70), dripped across the shelf.

But while some of the cartons did not seem very well organized in the egg section, most of the others were stacked neatly.

Sold in recyclable, biodegradable bags, the SnapDragon apples cost $1.79 (£1.49) per pound.

Aldi's Emporium-brand cheddar cheese, which cost £2.79 ($3.30) was one of many grocery items that had the British flag somewhere on its branding.

The packet also told consumers that the milk used to make the cheese came from the UK.

Grown by Wish Farms in Florida, pineberries are white strawberries with hints of pineapple, pear, and apricot flavors. Aldi sold them for $4.99 (£4.15) per box.

Other pastries on offer included maple pecan plaits, croissants, cinnamon rolls, and doughnuts.

The New York location did not have a fresh bakery section.

We visited on a Monday around noon, and didn't expect to encounter so many other shoppers.

There were no self-checkout kiosks or express lines for people with fewer items, which contributed to the long lines.

Granted there may have been a few customers there during their lunch break, but we found the Aldi in the UK to be busy at 1 p.m. on a Friday.

That also meant the checkout line was packed. The queue moved relatively slowly since the only way to pay was through self-checkout machines that some customers appeared to have trouble using.

Additionally, there was only one person managing the line and addressing checkout issues, so the entire experience ran less smoothly than it likely would have with a few more cashiers.

Some dairy products, such as milk and butter, were slightly cheaper in the US, but grocery shopping at Aldi in the UK proved much less expensive overall.

For example, a family carton of 15 eggs cost £2.29 ($2.70) in the UK, while a dozen eggs cost $3.79 (£3.15) in the US, and loaves of whole-wheat bread and bags of salad mix cost nearly twice as much in the US as they did in the UK.

Aldi's disorganized aisles and long lines were consistent in both stores we visited. But with their retail-ready packaging and steep discounts helping keep prices low, we can see how the store has earned a loyal following on both sides of the Atlantic.