Algiers shops in layers: Ottoman craft workshops in the Casbah, French arcades along Larbi Ben M'hidi, and glass malls out at Bab Ezzouar. Cash is king, prices are negotiable, and the best pieces are still made by hand.
The capital's largest covered market opens around 07:00 in two iron halls: Blida oranges, Kabyle olives cured in brine, dried Biskra dates and mounds of loose ras el hanout weighed out by the 100 grams.
The Casbah's lower spine turns into a rolling street market: handcarts of deglet nour dates, sacks of couscous semolina in three grinds, cheap enamelware and the tea glasses every Algerois household uses.
A compact neighbourhood market a block below Didouche Mourad, favoured by locals for its cheesemongers, olive stalls and butchers. Smaller and calmer than Ali Mellah, with better produce and less haggling pressure.
Vaulted colonial arcades running toward the Casbah, lined with fabric merchants selling brocade for the karakou jacket, plus haberdashers stocking gold thread, sequins and the fetla embroidery trim used on wedding dress.
The city's main shopping avenue climbs from the Grande Poste past Haussmann-style facades: independent clothing boutiques, shoe shops, perfumeries and pastry counters, busiest late morning and again after 17:00.
The state-run department store in a 1930s building on the pedestrianised stretch of Larbi Ben M'hidi. Several floors of clothing, household goods and an Algerian craft section with fixed, labelled prices.
The hillside district where Algiers' moneyed set shops: small concept stores, tailors, imported-label boutiques and cafés packed along Rue Sidi Yahia and its side streets, open until roughly 19:00–20:00.
A terraced 1980s complex of boutiques, bookshops, art galleries and craft stalls stacked on the El Madania hillside, with contemporary Algerian painting and ceramics sold alongside clothing and music shops.
Restored Ottoman seafront palaces housing artisan workshops and a craft shop: Kabyle enamelled silver from Beni Yenni, Tuareg crosses, hand-painted Tlemcen pottery and woven Ghardaïa rugs, sold with certificates.
An institution since 1970 on the square below the Grande Poste, stocking Algerian publishers Chihab, Barzakh and Casbah Éditions — Arabic and French titles on the Casbah, Berber history and Algerian cookery.
Algeria's flagship mall east of the centre, roughly 100 stores over three levels with international chains, a hypermarket, food court and cinema. Air-conditioned, card-friendly and open daily until about 21:00.
The working-class quarter's sprawling street market: fish landed that morning, cheap housewares, secondhand clothing racks and stalls of Algerian sweets — makroud, baklawa and zlabia sold loose by weight.