Astana's Aru broke away from the pack with about 4km remaining and after exchanging the lead with Froome in the run-in, sprinted clear to win his second stage of the Tour on Thursday.
Alejandro Valverde of Movistar finished third, 13 seconds off the winner.
The 157km stage went from A Estrada to Monte Castrove en Meis in Galicia and finished with a category two ascent with a rise of over 500m in the final 7.2km. It is the second to last summit finish before Sunday’s finale in Santiago de Compostela.
"I knew the final 3km would be steep and so I broke away a little bit earlier," Aru told reporters.
"By this stage of the race your energy levels are not the same but I have prepared well for this Tour. It is the first time that I have taken part and I am enjoying it.
"I worked with Froome in the final stage to maintain the breakaway and get the best time possible."
It was a big day for Froome whose hopes of winning the Vuelta had appeared to be fading.
Tinkoff-Saxo's Contador had looked strong going into the final days of the three-week race, but Thursday's ride helped Team Sky's Froome cut 20 seconds from the Spaniard’s lead.
Froome and Contador both held comfortable positions in the pack over the undulating course and although there were several breakaways, the peloton was able to swallow them up going into the final climb.
"I didn’t expect the speed from Froome at the end. I concentrated on maintaining a strong position in the pack and I also hoped Alejandro (Valverde) would push him further," Contador told reporters.
Contador retains the red jersey while Froome, who is now 1 minute 19 seconds off the lead, moved into second place ahead of Valverde.
(Reporting by Tim Hanlon; Editing by Toby Davis)
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