7 most expensive UK supermarkets named – £64 dearer than cheapest

Customers at one UK supermarket are paying £64 more than customers visiting the country’s cheapest, a new analysis has revealed. The UK has welcomed several budget chains onto the market in recent decades, most notably Lidl and Aldi. These German brands have quickly become favourites for UK shoppers, and both have ambitious plans to open new stores across the country to reach even more consumers.

However, some supermarkets remain expensive in comparison. This can be down to a number of reasons, such as the quality of the products and how the chain markets itself as high-end rather than budget. In its latest study of supermarket prices, consumer champion group Which? revealed which supermarkets are the most expensive for a weekly shop, and which ones are the cheapest. It analysed several of the UK’s largest grocery retailers, and listed them based on shopping with and without a loyalty card.

Once again, British supermarket chain Waitrose was named the most expensive in the UK. The group analysed the average price for 95 items in the supermarket, and found the cost of this to be £235.70.

Waitrose is often seen as a higher-end supermarket compared to others in the UK, with a focus on organic and high-quality produce over lower prices. On the other end of the scale, Aldi was once again named the cheapest supermarket in the UK.

The same number of items costs an average of £171.32, which is more than £64 cheaper than Waitrose. Aldi has earned this title for the past few months in the Which? analysis, and it is also one of the supermarkets paying its employees the highest hourly wages.

It should be noted that Which? did not include Marks and Spencer in its recent analysis. According to the consumer group, the most expensive supermarkets in the UK, based on the price of 95 items, are:

1. Waitrose (£235.70)
2. Ocado (£219.86)
3. Sainsbury’s (£205.35)
4. Tesco (£204.41)
5. Morrisons (£201.02)
6. Sainsbury’s (with Nectar) (£199.79)
7. Tesco (with Clubcard) (£198.07)

The Daily Express has contacted Waitrose for comment.

However, a recent analysis by the same consumer group found that some branded products are cheaper at Waitrose than at Tesco and Sainsbury’s when a Clubcard or a Nectar card are not used. It revealed the stark price differences paid by customers not signed up to these loyalty schemes.

Which? retail editor Reena Sewraz said that the study revealed a “shocking truth” about loyalty schemes in major supermarkets. “Branded favourites can actually be cheaper at Waitrose than at the UK’s biggest supermarkets for shoppers who don’t use a loyalty card—something that would have seemed unthinkable until a few years ago,” she said.

Meanwhile, when it comes to a larger shop of 223 items, including a wide range of brands not stocked at Aldi or Lidl, such as Heinz, Kellogg’s and Hovis, Waitrose was still the most expensive.

This analysis found that the cost of this number of items at Waitrose was £653.17. It was again more expensive than Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Morrisons.

In this analysis, Asda was named the cheapest supermarket, costing £574.26, which is £78.91 cheaper than Waitrose. “Our shopping list comprises the country’s most popular and widely available groceries, based on extensive market analysis,” Which? says in its report.

“It includes branded items such as Cathedral City cheddar and Hellmann’s mayonnaise, as well as own-brand products such as potatoes and baked beans.

“Own-brand items won’t be identical across supermarkets, but we’ve ensured everything we’ve compared is as similar as possible, based on several factors, including quality and weight.”

Express.co.uk has contacted Waitrose for comment.