Aldi crowned cheapest supermarket for the 12th month in a row

Aldi has been named the UK’s cheapest supermarket in May by Which? for the 12th consecutive month.

The consumer champion’s analysis, which involves comparing the average prices of a shop consisting of popular groceries at eight of the UK’s biggest supermarkets, found that Aldi shoppers could save over £18 on a basket of items there compared to the most expensive store, Waitrose.

According to the analysis, a basket of Aldi goods cost £68.60 on average across the month. Lidl placed behind Aldi with a difference of £1.91 (£70.51), widening the gap from last month which was just a 65p difference. 

In comparison, Waitrose came out as the most expensive this month, with a basket of goods totalling £86.91, that is 23.5 per cent more than Aldi.

This latest pricing analysis from Which? demonstrates that shoppers can make considerable savings on their groceries depending on where they buy their food. However, with even budget ranges and prices at the discounters rising significantly, and the traditional supermarkets’ convenience stores failing to offer or stock budget lines, the consumer champion believes supermarkets must do more to help their customers.

While some of the supermarkets have engaged with the consumer champion as part of its Affordable Food For All campaign, none have committed to any of the changes laid out by Which? as being vital for consumers during this difficult time.

In addition, the consumer champion’s analysis also compared the cost of a larger trolley of 131 items, including groceries such as Andrex toilet paper and Cathedral City cheese but leaving out discounter supermarkets Aldi and Lidl, as they do not always stock some of these products.  

This month, Asda was yet again the cheapest for this larger trolley of groceries, a title it has held since January 2020. In May 2023, it cost £332.40 on average for this shop, beating the next cheapest, Morrisons (£334.47), by just £2.07.

Ele Clark, Which? retail editor, said: “The Which? Food Inflation Tracker shows that the price of food and drink is continuing to soar, as people suffer through the worst cost of living crisis in decades. It’s no surprise to see many shoppers turning to discounters like Aldi and Lidl when our research shows they could make savings of more than £18 on a basket of everyday groceries.

“Supermarkets aren’t currently doing enough to help shoppers. Which? believes the big retailers have a responsibility to ensure everyone has easy access to basic, affordable food ranges at a store near them, and to provide transparent and comparable pricing so people can easily work out which products offer the best value.”