With food prices remaining high, choosing the right supermarket can make a real difference to a food bill. Here is how the major UK supermarkets compare on price in 2026.
Read more: See our Cost Of Living guide for a complete overview of this topic.
Overall Price Ranking: September 2026
Which? prices a basket of 93 popular grocery items each month. These are its September 2026 averages, with the gap to Aldi worked out from them:
| Rank | Supermarket | Average price for 93 items | vs. cheapest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aldi | £159.48 | Baseline |
| 2 | Lidl | £161.84 | +£2.36 (+1.5%) |
| 3 | Asda | £186.71 | +£27.23 (+17.1%) |
| 4 | Tesco (with Clubcard Prices) | £187.71 | +£28.23 (+17.7%) |
| 5 | Sainsbury’s (with Nectar Prices) | £188.95 | +£29.47 (+18.5%) |
| 6 | Morrisons | £193.13 | +£33.65 (+21.1%) |
| 7 | Tesco (without Clubcard) | £193.45 | +£33.97 (+21.3%) |
| 8 | Sainsbury’s (without Nectar) | £195.01 | +£35.53 (+22.3%) |
| 9 | Ocado | £208.64 | +£49.16 (+30.8%) |
| 10 | Waitrose | £223.38 | +£63.90 (+40.1%) |
Source: Which? cheapest supermarket of the month, September 2026. Which? does not include Co-op or M&S in this comparison. Costs vary by location and individual basket.
Measured the other way round, Aldi’s basket was about 15% cheaper than Asda’s and about 18% cheaper than Sainsbury’s without Nectar Prices.
Supermarket-by-Supermarket Breakdown
Position is taken from Which?’s September 2026 comparison above. Loyalty details are from Which?’s guide to supermarket loyalty schemes.
| Supermarket | Price position (September 2026) | Loyalty scheme |
|---|---|---|
| Aldi | Cheapest, £159.48 for the 93-item basket | None |
| Lidl | Second cheapest, £161.84 (£161.48 with Lidl Plus) | Lidl Plus app: weekly discounts, 1 point per £1 spent in store |
| Asda | Cheapest of Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons, £186.71 | Asda Rewards: Asda Pounds for certain products or missions; no member-only prices |
| Sainsbury’s | £195.01, or £188.95 with Nectar Prices | Nectar: member-only Nectar Prices, points worth 0.5p each |
| Tesco | £193.45, or £187.71 with Clubcard Prices | Clubcard: member-only Clubcard Prices, points worth 1p each |
| Morrisons | £193.13 | Morrisons More: member-only prices, 5 points on every purchase |
| Ocado | Second most expensive, £208.64 | Not covered here |
| Waitrose | Most expensive, £223.38 | MyWaitrose: limited member-only prices, free hot drink if you bring your own cup |
Co-op and M&S are not part of the Which? comparison. The Co-op offers member-only prices on some items, and membership costs £1.
Tips to Cut Your Grocery Bill
Shopping Strategy
- Switching from a big supermarket to Aldi or Lidl is the largest gap in the Which? figures above.
- Buying own-brand instead of branded items, planning meals weekly and shopping from a list cut the number of unplanned purchases.
- Yellow-sticker reduced items, frozen vegetables and batch cooking with a freezer cut waste.
- Check unit prices (price per kg or litre), not just the total price.
- Online delivery lets you see a running total and remove items before checkout.
- How much each of these saves depends on your household, so the savings are not given as figures here.
Apps and Tools
| App/Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
| Too Good To Go | Surplus food bags from shops and restaurants; Aldi’s bags launched at £3.30 for at least £10 of food |
| Approved Food | Online clearance store for short-dated stock |
| trolley.co.uk | Price comparison across major supermarkets |
| Latest Deals / HotUKDeals | Community-sourced deals and offers |
| Supermarket own apps | Personalised offers, digital coupons, and loyalty points |
The Split-Shop Strategy
Many savvy shoppers use a split-shop approach:
| Shop | What to buy |
|---|---|
| Aldi / Lidl | Fresh fruit, veg, meat, dairy, bakery, own-brand staples |
| Tesco / Sainsbury’s (with loyalty card) | Specific branded products on Clubcard/Nectar Prices, anything you can’t get at discounters |
| Local market | Fresh fruit and veg |
This approach gets you the best prices on bulk essentials while still picking up specific branded items at the best loyalty-card price.