THE cheapest supermarket for a basket of 70 grocery items has been revealed as a price war heats up between retailers ahead of Christmas.
Consumer champion Which? has compared the average price of a shop made up of popular groceries at eight of the UK’s biggest supermarkets.
Shoppers can make savings of almost £50 on their grocery shop by switching to a cheaper retailer, its analysis revealed.
Aldi came out on top as the cheapest supermarket in November, with a basket of groceries costing £121.22 on average across the month.
The discounter was £1.13 cheaper than rival Lidl, which was named cheapest supermarket in the monthly analysis in October.
The 70-item shopping basket costs £122.40 on average for Lidl shoppers, or £122.35 for members of its loyalty scheme Lidl Plus.
Asda was third cheapest at £133.59, while Tesco came in fourth at £136.20 – or £133.65 for Clubcard shoppers.
The basket in Sainsbury’s cost £141.62, while shoppers using a Nectar loyalty card would spend £137.77 on average.
Waitrose was the most expensive in November, with a 70-item basket totalling £166.79 on average.
This is £45.57 – 38% – more than Aldi.
Which?’s basket of groceries includes both branded and non-branded items, including Birds Eye Peas, Hovis bread, Cathedral City cheddar, and Hellman’s mayonnaise.
Non-branded items include potatoes, baked beans, milk and butter.
It includes special offer prices and loyalty prices where applicable, but not multibuys.
The consumer champion also analysed the cost of doing a bigger shop of 183 items at the eight major supermarkets.
Asda came out as the cheapest for this category, with a large shop costing £455.52 on average.
A spokesperson for Asda said: “We’re continuing to invest in low prices to help protect customers from inflation.
“That’s why Asda is the UK’s cheapest full-range supermarket, beating rivals on both base and loyalty prices.”
Which? retail editor Reena Sewraz said: “While Aldi is the cheapest supermarket this month, the discounters battling it out each month means shopping at Lidl is also a great money-saving option, according to our latest price analysis.
“The longer list of groceries shows that Asda continues to be one of the UK’s cheapest supermarkets and a good option for those who want to choose from a larger range of branded goods.
“With Christmas just a few weeks away, food prices will be a concern for many households, but our analysis shows it pays to shop around; simply choosing one supermarket over another could save you 27 per cent.”
How to save on your grocery shop
It comes after food inflation – the rate at which food prices are going up – rose to 4.9% in October, official figures revealed last month.
Many supermarket essentials are among the heaviest hit by price hikes right now.
Beef and veal inflation hit 27% in October, while the price of chocolate, coffee and dairy staples are also rising rapidly.
Aside from switching to a cheaper supermarket, there are several things you can do to beat rising food prices and save on your grocery shop.
Try downshifting to own-brand supermarket products, rather than buying premium brands.
These tend to be harder to find as they are normally placed higher or lower than eye-level on shelves.
The Sun recently revealed that shoppers spend an extra £500 a year simply by not looking at the bottom shelf when shopping.
Shopping in the world foods aisle may also save you some cash.
Spices, chillies and rice can often be found for cheaper – and in larger sizes – from this section.
For example, Which? previously found a jar of Sainsbury’s paprika powder was £1.10 for a 44g jar – £2.50 per 100g.
However, in the world foods aisle, a 400g bag of Natco paprika was £2.20 – just 55p per 100g and £1.95 less per 100g than the own brand paprika.
You could also save money by ordering your food shop online rather than physically going to the supermarket.
Some supermarkets do exclusive online discounts, and it can be easier to stick to your shopping list when ordering online.