Trader Joe’s, Aldi, and Lidl are running circles around many supermarket chains when it comes to foot traffic, according to the latest data from Placer.ai.
The grocery segment overall increased only 1.5% YoY in the first half of 2025, but foot traffic over the same period increased 11.9% at Trader Joe’s, 7.1% at Aldi, and 4.9% at Lidl, according to a recent post on Placer.ai’s website.
While some of that aggregate growth could be attributed to the chains adding locations, per-location traffic increases outpaced the segment for the first half of the year, too. While the per-location increase for the segment grew just 1.2% for the period, it jumped more than five times for Trader Joe’s to 6.2%, and for Aldi and Lidl it increased to 2.8% and 2.1%, respectively.
“The grocery segment has never been more competitive, and Aldi, Trader Joe’s, and Lidl have consistently emerged as top players,” the report found. “The three chains share similarities: all offer a limited assortment of groceries and tend to operate at lower price points.”
The findings echo a March report from Placer.ai that tracked how Aldi and Trader Joe’s made dramatic foot-traffic gains for the full year of 2024, with Aldi up 18.2% YoY and Trader Joe’s up 6.2%.
As for the first half of this year, the latest report also tracked how Trader Joe’s has gained a greater foot-traffic share in California, from 13.2% in 2019 to 15.7% for the first half of 2025. Over the same period Safeway’s share fell from 25.1% to 24.7%, Ralphs’s from 18.8% to 17.6%, and Vons’s from 16.4% to 14.9%.
Retail news that keeps industry pros in the know
Retail Brew delivers the latest retail industry news and insights surrounding marketing, DTC, and e-commerce to keep leaders and decision-makers up to date.