As a frequent ALDI shopper, I’ve tried many of their exclusive store-brand products. Many ALDI finds are now staples in my kitchen, like the Park Street Deli Egg Rolls and Simply Nature Pasta Sauce, just to name a couple. Even though I’ve become loyal to plenty of ALDI’s offerings, there are some products that I’ve just always stuck to purchasing the name brand option of, like Diet Coke.

As a daily drinker of Diet Coke, I’ve never branched out to try ALDI’s brand of diet soda, or any store brand for that matter. It’s just something I’ve never given much thought to, until recently.

After sipping on a few cans throughout the week, I opened both a can of Diet Coke and a can of Summit Diet Cola to taste them side by side. I must say, I was quite surprised with just how similar the two tasted. In my opinion, I think the Summit Diet Cola is just slightly sweeter than Diet Coke, but the main difference to me was the carbonation.

As I mentioned, when I first opened a can of Summit Diet Cola from ALDI, it was much flatter than I was expecting. When comparing the two side by side, this factor was confirmed. I could tell when tasting them back to back that the Diet Coke had a lot more carbonation, was a little more crisp, and just tasted less flat. I poured them into cups and was able to clearly see more bubbles in the Diet Coke than in the Summit Diet Cola.

While the Summit Diet Cola does taste slightly different than Diet Coke, it’s definitely not in a bad way, and I would purchase them again. Coming in at just $5 for a 12-pack, it’s definitely more cost effective than purchasing a 12-pack of Diet Coke.

I wouldn’t say it’s the same or better than a Diet Coke, but it’s definitely a good way to save a few dollars for those who are willing to stray from the original. But I could see that some Diet Coke loyalists may prefer to continue paying a little more for their beloved soda.