A new supermarket has just overtaken Waitrose as the most expensive, says Which?
A new supermarket has just overtaken Waitrose as the most expensive, says Which?
A new supermarket has overtaken Waitrose as the most expensive for a big shop – if you don’t use a loyalty card.
Sainsbury’s has been named by Which? in its monthly survey of prices of 131 items at Aldi, Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose – which does not include loyalty offers.
A basket of 131 popular goods costs £359.23 at Sainsbury’s for shoppers without a Nectar card. This puts it ahead of the £355.51 basket at Waitrose, by just less than £4.
However, it’s worth pointing out that in a smaller survey of 39 items, Waitrose was most expensive and Sainsbury’s was named as fourth-most. Whereas, Aldi was named as the cheapest.
It comes as supermarkets have been increasingly making special offers only available to those who are members of loyalty schemes, creating two very different shopping experiences.
Which? has previously warned that the rise of loyalty schemes make it difficult for shoppers to compare prices between different supermarkets.
Ele Clark – the retail editor at Which? – said: ‘As millions 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 shows that once again Aldi is the cheapest supermarket for a basket of groceries but for the first time, Sainsbury’s has come out as the most expensive for a big shop.’
A new supermarket has overtaken Waitrose as the most expensive for a big shop – if you don’t use a loyalty card.
Sainsbury’s has been named by Which? in its monthly survey of prices of 131 items at Aldi, Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose – which does not include loyalty offers.
A basket of 131 popular goods costs £359.23 at Sainsbury’s for shoppers without a Nectar card. This puts it ahead of the £355.51 basket at Waitrose, by just less than £4.
However, it’s worth pointing out that in a smaller survey of 39 items, Waitrose was most expensive and Sainsbury’s was named as fourth-most. Whereas, Aldi was named as the cheapest.
It comes as supermarkets have been increasingly making special offers only available to those who are members of loyalty schemes, creating two very different shopping experiences.
Which? has previously warned that the rise of loyalty schemes make it difficult for shoppers to compare prices between different supermarkets.
Ele Clark – the retail editor at Which? – said: ‘As millions 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 shows that once again Aldi is the cheapest supermarket for a basket of groceries but for the first time, Sainsbury’s has come out as the most expensive for a big shop.’
Were you surprised to find Sainsbury’s to be more expensive than Waitrose?
However, Sainsbury’s has argued the claims are ‘false’ and ‘insulting’, instead stressing the items in question are ‘cherry picked’ and not a true representation of its pricing.
In response to the data, a Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: ‘These claims are entirely false and insulting to the millions of savvy customers who choose to shop with us every week. There is an overwhelming amount of independently verified data showing the great value customers get when shopping at Sainsbury’s.
‘We are disappointed that Which has refused to share its data with us and has instead chosen to mislead customers by choosing to exclude Nectar Prices promotions in its research.
‘The vast majority of our customers are shopping with Nectar Prices and have saved £400 million on their shopping in the last six months. Customers can be sure they getting great value every time they shop with us.’
