Lidl Ends Aldi’s Long Run As The UK’s Cheapest Supermarket
Namnews, 3rd November 2023
Lidl has been named the UK’s cheapest supermarket for a basket of groceries, ending a 16-month run by its key rival Aldi.
Meanwhile, the research by consumer watchdog Which? found that for a larger trolley of items, Asda remained the cheapest retailer and Waitrose was the most expensive.
The monthly analysis involves comparing the average prices of a shop consisting of everyday groceries at eight of the country’s biggest supermarkets. It also looks at a larger trolley of groceries at six supermarkets, which excludes the discounters as they do not always stock major brands.
The cheapest supermarket for a smaller basket of goods in October was Lidl, where the cost averaged £74.58 across the month. However, Aldi was just 17p behind on £74.75.
Meanwhile, the basket of groceries at Waitrose totalled £91.15, which is 22% more than Lidl.
Full table of basket results (based on 44 items):
| Retailer | Average basket price |
| Lidl | £74.58 |
| Aldi | £74.75 |
| Asda | £82.11 |
| Tesco | £85.34 |
| Sainsbury’s | £85.88 |
| Morrisons | £86.35 |
| Ocado | £90.37 |
| Waitrose | £91.15 |
Source: Which?
Asda was the cheapest for the larger trolley of groceries, costing £328.42 on average, beating the next cheapest, Morrisons (£339.40), by £10.98.
Sainsbury’s was again the second most expensive at £364.61 for those shopping without its Nectar loyalty card.
The Which? analysis includes special offer prices but not multi-buys or loyalty discounts.
Full table of trolley results (based on 135 items):
| Retailer | Average trolley price |
| Asda | £328.42 |
| Morrisons | £339.40 |
| Ocado | £354.54 |
| Tesco | £358.08 |
| Sainsbury’s | £364.61 |
| Waitrose | £378.08 |
Source: Which?
The consumer watchdog noted that while some good practice exists, it still believes many of the major supermarkets are not doing enough to support their customers during the cost of living crisis.
Which? has been campaigning for supermarkets to stock a wider range of essential budget lines in their smaller convenience stores and ensure unit pricing is clearer so that shoppers can easily work out the best value products.
“As millions continue to struggle with increased food prices and other high household bills, it is no surprise that many are turning to discounters for their food shop. Our latest research has found Lidl is the cheapest supermarket for a basket of groceries, narrowly beating Aldi,” said Ele Clark, Which? Retail Editor.
“Which? believes that supermarkets can do much more to help shoppers during the current cost of living crisis. They must ensure everyone has easy access to basic, affordable food ranges at a store near them – and this includes providing a decent choice of budget-range, healthy essentials in smaller convenience stores.”
Reacting to the Which? findings, Ryan McDonnell, CEO of Lidl GB CEO, said: “As we head into the festive season, we remain relentlessly focused on offering the lowest prices in the market. The latest Which? basket demonstrates that we’re delivering on our price promise and that customers can be confident they are getting the best value possible when they walk through our doors.”
Lidl released its Christmas ad yesterday, which features an animated raccoon to highlight its children’s toy donation campaign.
NAM Implications:
- Active price competition between the discounters will put more pressure on the mults.
- And given both retailers are each bigger than Tesco globally…
- …they can each afford to reduce prices for as long as it takes.
