Household Bills
Aldi crowned UK’s cheapest supermarket
The budget supermarket was found to be the cheapest for a trolley of 41 items by researchers at Which? in the consumer champion’s monthly survey.
Aldi was the cheapest overall in March 2023, with a shop for 41 items costing £72.54, on average, beating rival discounter Lidl by just 25p. Aldi was also the cheapest supermarket in February.
The same shop at Waitrose was £92.55, on average, making it £20.01 pricier than Aldi. Of the ‘big four’ supermarkets, Sainsbury’s was the cheapest at £80.27.
The full list of cheapest supermarkets for a basket of 41 items was:
- Aldi – £72.54
- Lidl – £72.79
- Sainsbury’s – £80.27
- Tesco – £81.58
- Asda £81.88
- Morrisons – £83.63
- Ocado – £88.03
- Waitrose – £92.55
Big trolley shop
Which? also analysed the cost of a larger trolley of 137 grocery items, made up of the original 41, plus 96 more.
Asda came out cheapest for this trolley of groceries, continuing its streak, which started in January 2020, as the cheapest traditional supermarket. It cost £343.91, on average, for Which?’s big trolley shop, beating the next cheapest supermarket Sainsbury’s (£353.16) by £9.25.
Meanwhile, the most expensive supermarket based on the analysis was Waitrose. Its total for Which?’s trolley of 137 items was £41.83 more expensive than Asda, coming in at £385.74, on average, for the same range of products.
The full list of cheapest supermarkets for a trolley of 137 items was:
- Asda – £343.91
- Sainsbury’s – £353.16
- Morrisons – £354.87
- Tesco – £366.65
- Ocado – £371.85
- Waitrose – £385.74
Which? retail editor Ele Clark said: “We know people are suffering through the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades and the price of food and drink has skyrocketed no matter where you shop.
“However, our monthly supermarket analysis shows you could save £20 on a basket of everyday groceries at the cheapest supermarket compared to the priciest one.
“Supermarkets aren’t currently doing enough to help customers. Which? believes the big retailers have a responsibility to ensure everyone has easy access to basic, affordable food ranges at a store near them, and to provide transparent pricing so people can easily work out which products offer the best value.”
