17 Under $5 Seasonal Aldi Finds To Upgrade Your Holiday Charcuterie Board

Fall and winter mark my favorite time of year — and by that, I mean charcuterie board season. During the holidays, schedules get hectic, the flow of hosting company gets heavy, and trying to make full meals under those conditions can be overwhelming. So, between November and January, I rely on charcuterie for most of my entertaining fare (and leftovers for my own satiation). It's super easy to prepare, offers a wide array of flavors to explore, and if you know where to look, it can be the most affordable way to feed a group of merrymakers. And personally, I look to Aldi. 

Even though I have to go a little out of my way when heading to my local store, I'm never disappointed at the selection or the price point. I can almost always find my must-have prosciutto and cantaloupe for under $5, and then I just scroll through the app or stroll down the aisles for the other more affordably priced options. No matter what size crowd you're feeding this holiday season, the get-together's theme, or your own personal style, you'll want to add a few of these under-five-bucks seasonal Aldi finds to your charcuterie spread.

Butterkäse isn't a common cheese here in the U.S. So, if you can find it, especially for a good price, I highly recommend you get it. The German cheese's name speaks for itself, translating to "butter cheese" in English, and that's exactly the flavor you can expect from this Emporium Selection item.

This rich, slightly soft, aromatically mild cheese will easily go with anything on your charcuterie board. It offers a silky, salty flavor to herbed breads or spiced meats. Paired with a sweet berry or melon, it creates a richness that will elevate the fruit's sugar for a more robust bite. During the holidays, it's something that I also like to add if I'm going to make up a platter of small ham or turkey sandwiches, as the taste and texture offer a spread-like feel without the mess of mayonnaise or mustard. Highly versatile, great for all ages, and one of Tasting Table's favorite Aldi cheeses, this is one not to pass up.

These Savoritz artisan crisps will offer guests a unique alternative to the usual plain water crackers or sliced baguette on your holiday charcuterie board. They have a lovely look with a robust brown coloring that has visible pieces of fig, seeds, and grains. The sweet-and-savory flavor profile of these amply sized mini-toasts can be enjoyed alone or smeared with a variety of cheese flavors — sharp, spicy, salty, or mild — elevating and enhancing numerous topping options. Made with pumpkin seeds, black sesame, golden flax, and the aforementioned fruit, they also pair well with salty cured meats and add a crusty, dense texture for a great mouthfeel.

With about 30 crisps per box, the affordable price is perfect. If fig isn't your flavor of choice, Aldi also carries raisin and rosemary or cranberry and sea salt crisps, both offering alternative sweet, savory, and decidedly seasonal foundational bites.

When shopping for a holiday charcuterie board, I'm always on the lookout for an interesting spread to offer a pop of color and intriguing flavor profile to the usual meats and cheeses. This Specially Selected caramelized red onion chutney is the perfect example. This seasonal Aldi find comes in a large, nearly 11-ounce jar, so it's big enough for a crowd or multiple boards. With a rich, dark color, this chutney is flavored with red onion, balsamic vinegar, and muscovado sugar, offering a robust profile with hints of rich molasses and a tart, sweet, savory finish.

I like to serve this type of spread two ways — already dolloped atop a soft cheese and crusty bread or in my white ceramic ramekins — to show off the beautiful color and allow visitors to experiment for themselves. I advise taking folded gift tags or seating cards and labeling the different options on your charcuterie board, so your crowd knows exactly what they're getting. Believe me, with this Aldi find, folks are going to want to know what it is and where to get it.

As a special product by Sartori, this cherrywood smoked cheddar is a winner of multiple awards. It's created by taking the company's MontAmoré cheddar, which has a sharp, salty, Parmesan vibe, and smoking it to produce a subtly sweet-and-smoky profile. With notes of nuttiness, brown butter, and custard, this artisan cheese — which pairs nicely with both white and red wines, as well as light beers — is sure to elevate your holiday charcuterie offerings.

When serving this smoked cheddar on your board, try to place it alongside some fresh (or dried) tart fruits or savory, salty meats. This will bring out the full flavors of both the cheese and its accompaniment. If cheeses from this Wisconsin-based company are generally up your alley, Aldi has quite the selection to choose from, like the aforementioned MontAmoré cheddar or sriracha cheddar. This one just happens to be one of my seasonal favorites.

While gouda is generally considered a mild cheese, this one has a bit of a temper, which is going to stand out on your board. With bright, visible flecks of pepper, this chili-infused gouda has an overall lovely golden color that makes it extra inviting. No one is going to confuse it for any ordinary cheese, but it might be best to put it next to plain crackers or bread to break through the heat (although, it isn't too intense).

I always try to have a bit of spice thrown amongst my charcuterie options, especially during the holidays for a warming bite, and this Aldi cheese is a bit more adventurous than a Monterey Jack. If you're only making a small board, pair this with a mild white cheddar, some dark chocolate, fresh fruit, and crusty bread. That will offer your guests several tastes and textures. If you're going for a bigger board, know that the spicier meats and cheeses also pair well with olives, pickles, or intense dark mustards, so try to place them in proximity to each other.

If you aren't looking to put much work into your board or need an easy way to build it out this holiday season, Aldi carries these great, ready-to-eat panino bites in a variety of flavors. Choose from a mild applewood smoked prosciutto, a medium-spiced soppressata, or a spicy chorizo, each of which have been pinwheel-wrapped around a thick band of fresh mozzarella.

These substantial bites are visibly stunning, and it's unlikely anyone will guess you didn't wrap them yourself. Sometimes, I will extend them outside of my board to their own platter, setting them on top of some untoasted French bread with a smear of sundried tomato pesto. With very little effort, it's easy to make these panino bites into a hearty appetizer or finger-food addition to your charcuterie spread.

I like these Savoritz flatbread crackers both for the size and shape. Long and triangular, these have a great visual aesthetic that allows you to play around with them on your holiday charcuterie board. They can easily be served flat, or if you want to add some height, place these interesting crackers standing in a glass or small serving dish. They're also big enough to enjoy a bite of crisp, salty cracker with a topping, and then have a finishing bite to clean the palate.

While sesame is generally my choice in order to offer a neutral foundation for toppings, Aldi also offers these flatbread crackers in rosemary and everything flavors. So, you can mix and match based on your other charcuterie flavor options or for your own personal flair.

Havarti is a great buttery cheese for charcuterie boards. I like this Roth Cheese selection, as adding a little kick of French onion enhances the natural tanginess of the cheese while taking it to new heights. Due to its flavor profile, I consider this choice the little black dress of the board. It's super tasty paired with almost anything — breads, jams, or cured meats — so it's sure to create elevated flavors and great tastes no matter what your guests choose to combine it with.

Although it's sure to be a party pleaser, as French onion is a common profile that many people enjoy, you can't really tell by appearance that this is a flavored cheese. So, this is one Aldi find I'd definitely advise labeling on your holiday charcuterie board.

These sausage snack bites go quick at my house, but they're a must-have charcuterie item for many reasons. They taste great and give you the perfect bite-sized cured meat without having to do any work, like cubing a stick of pepperoni or slicing a summer sausage. Honestly, I think the turkey and beef versions at Aldi taste the same, but it's nice to have options for guests during the holidays.

I always make up a couple of boards with these in a small serving dish alongside one dish of cubed cheese and one of pickles, and I call them my grazing stations. As the evening wears on, it's normal to see the small plates disappear and passersby just opting to grab one more nibble or two. So, be sure to also have toothpicks close at hand. I generally place those standing up in colored votive cups to add a little visual, seasonal charm.

Bagel chips are another must-have for me when entertaining. I like to find ways that cut down on my personal prep time, especially during the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, and bagel chips are a quick solution when I don't want to cut and toast a baguette or roll. They offer a hearty foundation for a cheese log or spreadable item, and their crunch is an undeniably fun texture to pair with cheese and meat.

While these Clancy's bagel chips also come in roasted garlic, I generally choose the sea salt variety. The salt is going to help elevate the other flavors you're highlighting on your board, whether it be a dark chocolate or a creamy cheese. They can also serve as a palate cleanser, which is something I feel is needed when offering an array of strong flavors. With about 36 sizable chips per bag, this Aldi find is a great value.

I love having dried figs as a charcuterie board option. They're very seasonal, and their rich, sweet flavor is such a nice addition to salty, savory options. With these being so affordable at Aldi, it's easy to grab more than one bag.

In addition to placing a small amount of Specially Selected's dried mission figs on your board as-is, I would highly suggest making an easy yet irresistible appetizer by wrapping them in bacon and baking them in your oven. A divine, warming combination, these taste wonderful when paired with all your favorite holiday beverages, ciders, and wines. Having a hot option that's super simple to make is going to take your board to a whole other level.

Park Street Deli atomic spicy pickles first went viral back in 2020 before taking an unfortunate hiatus from the store. So, while Aldi still has them back in stock, I suggest you try them yourself and share them with your holiday guests. Since you'll be getting a 32-ounce jar for under $5, it's easy to do both.

Pickles are a great, refreshing option to add to a charcuterie board. With a snappy texture and tangy juiciness, they will enhance and slice through cured meats. These pickles in particular are going to add seasonal sweetness, tartness, and a delightful kick of heat to every bite they're a part of. I suggest placing them in proximity to a crusty bread to make sure they're paired together. The brined juice soaked into a toasty texture makes for a combination that will keep people coming back for more.

Aldi's sweet jalapeño chili jam is made with jalapeño, flame-roasted bird's eye chilis, and red pepper. It offers a savory heat that's matched with a sugary sweet tartness, a seasonal balance that will go great with those milder, buttery cheeses. The jar that it comes in is cute enough to place on or beside your board if you want to skip a dish.

Additionally, something I suggest you try at least once is serving this jam atop cream cheese with crackers. You simply let a block of cream cheese soften to a spreadable room temperature, pour the jam over the top, and surround it with your choice of crackers. This can serve as a tasty appetizer or charcuterie addition to a holiday get-together, and it's much simpler than making a cheese ball or log.

I personally don't care for olives, but I find that my guests always clean me out. My husband loves them, as well, so I try to find a nice, flavorful selection for holiday snacking. These blue cheese-stuffed olives are a sophisticated-looking option that I find most people really enjoy. The salty brine of the olives seems to pair very well with the creamy, robust flavor of the cheese. I've been told that the textures are highly satisfying.

If you're into olives, Aldi really does have quite the treat for you, with a very large selection of these offerings for under $5. You can choose from an assortment of olives stuffed with garlic, feta, jalapeño, jalapeño Jack, and white cheddar. Consider getting a few selections to create a small olive bar as the centerpiece of your board.

I have a wonderful recipe for oven-roasted, sugar-crusted pecans. While I love the way they make my house smell and how they taste fresh from the oven, sometimes the holidays get a little too busy to make them from scratch, and sometimes the pecans just aren't priced well enough to make a bulk batch. But I appreciate that Aldi offers this seasonal treat pre-made and priced right.

These glazed pecans are sweet and salty, which will bring a tasty addition to your holiday charcuterie board. They pair wonderfully with a variety of cheeses, cured meats, and fruits, elevating these flavors with their sweet-salty aspect and enhancing different notes with their blunt meatiness. You can place these in a dish or sprinkle them playfully between options as an edible border. Either way, they're sure to delight.

I always enjoy the melding of flavors that you can get from a cheese log or ball. This choice from Aldi is particularly interesting. The pungent earthiness of the goat cheese is muted into a creamy companion of the blueberries and vanilla flavoring. It's quite lovely to look at and will add texture, depth, and color to your holiday charcuterie board.

What I like to do if I'm hosting a large crowd and making multiple boards to place in different rooms is cut my cheese logs in half lengthwise. You can place the cut side down on the board and still have a nice domed, colorful spread for people to enjoy. It makes it a bit easier for guests to slice through. Try it the next time you need to make your charcuterie go a bit further.

This orange fig fruit spread is a lovely option for a simple cheese plate or large charcuterie board offering. The color is vibrant and eye-catching with an orange-gold color, visible seeds, and chunky zest. So, I suggest taking it from its decorative jar and giving it a dish of its own.

This seasonal Aldi find is great on crackers or bread to offer a sweet-and-tangy taste that's refreshingly brilliant but light. I would put this next to a buttery soft cheese or sliced prosciutto to get the best of combined flavors. It would also be perfect paired with some roasted garlic and softened brie. But it's not going to disappoint with any option. This fruit spread is perfect for the holidays, with the citrus and fig working together, and one that's not to be missed.

I start my charcuterie planning by making a list of holiday parties I know are coming up, and whether I'll be hosting or making a board to-go. I also take inventory of my different boards and platters, looking for various sizes, shapes, and colors. I put together a few boards when hosting larger gatherings, placing them in different rooms to create the need and want to move and mingle to snag one's snack of choice. It also makes it easier to keep the boards restocked.

When I perused the Aldi app to submit a pickup order, I started with the charcuterie basics — prosciutto, melon, and nuts — and then ventured into more seasonal spreads, cheeses, crackers, and garnishes. It's astounding how many charcuterie options Aldi offers for under $5, and either I or my close friends have enjoyed the numerous items on this list well enough to make trips back for future parties. Many are non-perishable, so it's easy to stock up early. Just be sure and check those label dates and plan accordingly. (I generally get fresh fruit and breads the day before.)

Making a charcuterie board can be a great expression of one's own personality and taste. I've shared the different pairing ideas I'll be using, and I'll be able to handle a multitude of holiday get-togethers with what's on this list. So, go ahead and enjoy partaking in these festive flavors for your own charcuterie creations!