Is Aldi's Crock-Pot Dupe Worth Buying, Or Is It Too Good To Be True?

Aldi is becoming a household name in everything from groceries to home goods, so it's not a huge surprise that many of their items go viral or trend on social media. After all, when you can buy a stylish Aldi shower caddy that acts as a great Pottery Barn dupe or an Aldi beanless beanbag chair that rivals Wayfair for a fraction of the cost, it makes sense that people flock to grab the Aldi finds or simply snag the great deals they have lining their shelves. As one of their recent releases, the Ambiano 2-Qt Slow Cooker already has reviewers raving, and despite this crockpot having been featured on Aldi's aisles in 2023 and 2024, people are still thrilled about it. At just $9.99, it's normal to be wary of the quality. Yet it seems this inexpensive dupe holds up, with reviewers and bloggers noting how useful it is for reduced recipes like dips and smaller meals, which is ideal for anyone who doesn't need to prepare a massive amount of food anyway.

In order to determine if this dupe was worth the money (despite the low cost), it came down to checking reviews and specs of all the different tasks and options it provides. Size, features, and cleaning requirements all play a role in working out if a product is good enough to bring home, and with the help of consumers, it was easy to get a good idea of how well this slow cooker performed in the kitchen. Size didn't seem to bother people for the price regardless of it being smaller, and the settings were proved useful for cooking and keeping items warm. Lastly, having dishwasher safe parts made cleanup easier.

Because the crockpot/slow cooker was only released on August 13, product details on the website itself are scarce. However, you can see from the photo that there are three settings, including low, high, and warm. Among the reviews, people noted that the settings are ideal for melting cheese for queso and similar snacks, as well as keeping a variety of delicious homemade dips warm and ready to consume. Because of its smaller size, many find it suitable for preparing simpler meals. The price likely plays into the size, so while you are losing space to cook bigger meals, for those who aren't looking to prepare a feast, the Aldi cooker is worth it.

Larger, more traditional crockpots range anywhere from $20 to $80 from a quick online search, which means this useful and popular option is half the cost of other slow cookers like the JC Penny version, which only holds 1.5 quarts. Aldi's can hold up to 2 quarts, and reviewers are all a big fan of the warming feature, which keeps dishes ready to eat for hosting or general use.

Not that you'd need two crockpots or slow cookers, but for the price of one big brand version, you could buy several of these Aldi dupes to make up for the lack of space that larger crockpots provide. A perk of that means you could make two separate meals or multiple dips, stews, or soups at one time, which is great for hosting or events. 

Another reviewer even answered the question: Can you wash a slow cooker in the dishwasher? They noted that this slow cooker has a dishwasher safe lid and pot, which makes cleaning much more effective, especially for liquid items that may get stuck on. People have noted that the slow cooker heats up fairly quickly, within about five minutes, and the only complaints were of a smoky odor after the first use, which dissipated and did not linger after the initial recipe. So, all in all, the Aldi crockpot dupe is worth buying if you want a compact, affordable, and easy-to-clean slow cooker.