Corona rapid tests from Aldi and Co .: How reliable are the discounter tests?

Created: 01/13/2022, 10:40 AM

From: Jason Blaschke

Retail chains such as Aldi, Lidl or dm sell corona rapid tests for their own use.

New research shows how good the products are.

The number of confirmed infections with the Corona variant 'Omikron' continues to increase in Germany.

In all of Baden-Württemberg alone, reports from HEIDELBERG24 * have confirmed more than 16,000 cases (as of January 12) - and the trend is rising.

In order to master the situation, more and more federal states in Germany are tightening the corona protective measures.

A new corona ordinance * was also issued in Baden-Württemberg, which regulates the mask requirement and quarantine.

Fear of an 'omicron' wave is growing and experts assume that the Corona variant from South Africa will soon be the most dominant virus variant.

The good news is that, according to the latest research, an 'Omicron' infection is milder than a delta or alpha infection.

Unfortunately, that also makes it trickier to find the people who are unknowingly infected and who may not have any typical corona symptoms * at all.

Corona rapid tests from Aldi and Co .: Products do not convince in the test

The quick tests or self-tests promise some security. Numerous products have been in circulation in Germany since mid-2021 - the large retail chains such as Lidl, Aldi * or dm also have corona rapid tests in their range. The only question is: are the products also reliable? Can consumers access it without hesitation? So much in advance: The corona rapid tests are - as the name suggests - for the quick detection of an infection, but do not replace an exact PCR test.

The corona rapid tests from Aldi, Lidl and Co. are therefore fundamentally less precise than a PCR test that is examined in the laboratory.

In many cases - for example, when there are no symptoms or the test is needed for a visit to a restaurant - rapid tests are a good thing.

At the end of 2021, the Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI) took a closer look at numerous tests in a large study and found that around one in five rapid tests is not suitable for determining a corona infection.

Corona rapid tests: Aldi products achieve top values ​​in the test

According to reports from the

(RND), the authority examined a total of 122 Sars-CoV-2 antigen rapid tests in 2021. The most important feature of the investigation was the sensitivity (sensitivity) of the tests. It indicates to what extent the test can reliably detect the coronavirus *. In the investigation, the PEI set a minimum value of 75 percent, i.e. the percentage probability with which a person infected with corona will actually be recognized as infected.

The result of the investigation is sobering: A total of 96 of the tests met the criterion - but the experts were unable to convince 26 corona rapid tests.

Do they include products from Aldi or Lidl?

The bad news first: There are no results for some products.

The good news: All three corona rapid tests - which are sold by Aldi in Germany - achieve top values ​​in terms of sensitivity.

According to the

, the investigation had shown the following:

• Aldi South and North: Novel Coronavirus 2019-nCoV Antigen Test (Colloidal Gold) from Beijing Hotgen Biotech Co., Ltd .:

  100 percent sensitivity

• Aldi South and North: ARS-CoV-2 Ag Diagnostic Test Kit (Colloidal Gold) from Shenzhen Watmind Medical Co., Ltd .: 

  100 percent sensitivity

• Aldi Nord: Wondfo SARS-CoV-2 antigen test (Lateral Flow Method) from Guangzhou Wondfo Biotech Co. Ltd .: 

  88.2 percent sensitivity

  (only available in Aldi Nord branches)

Corona rapid tests from Aldi: The discounter is currently offering the product

When asked by HEIDELBERG24 *, a spokeswoman for Aldi announced that currently (as of January 13) only the Corona rapid test of "Hotgen nose swab test" is in the range.

According to the investigation by the PEI, the Hotgen rapid test also has a sensitivity of 100 percent.

Aldi is currently selling the product for 1.75 euros each.

The Aldi spokeswoman assured the availability of the self-tests.

The availability of the self-tests is generally guaranteed.

Press officer, Aldi Süd

But: "As a result of peaks in demand, it can occasionally happen that the quick tests are temporarily out of stock in some places." Aldi therefore asks customers to only buy the Corona self-tests - just like all other products from the range - in quantities that are normal for households.

The demand situation is regularly checked by Aldi.

In the past there were always bottlenecks due to the high demand.

Corona rapid tests: this is how the products from Aldi, Lidl and Co. work

, the rapid corona tests from Lidl, dm and Rossmann also

achieved good values ​​in the review. There are only two products from the drugstore chain dm that do not provide information on sensitivity. Otherwise, all corona tests - which are offered in stores in Germany - achieve sensitivity values ​​of more than 80 percent. Many products even shine with a sensitivity of 100 percent. Are the tests from Aldi, Lidl and Co. almost as good as a PCR test?

Despite good sensitivity values, the corona rapid tests simply cannot keep up with the accuracy of a PCR test.

One reason is that the test result depends on the viral load of the person tested.

If this amount of virus is too low, the test shows a negative result.

Samples from PCR tests are artificially reproduced in the laboratory and can therefore prove an infection with Covid-19 even with a very low viral load.

Tests by Aldi, Lidl and Co. are therefore not intended for diagnostics.

Corona rapid tests: New investigation shows - these products are convincing

HEIDELBERG24 * summarizes in the linked article which corona rapid tests are of good quality * and can also prove an infection with the new Omikron variant.

The new mutation should not be underestimated, by the way.

Because: A new study recently showed that even a slight infection with 'Omikron' can cause organ damage *.

Corona vaccination offers protection against this.

Which booster vaccination actually protects against 'Omikron' *, writes

* in a service article on the booster vaccination.

*