Consumer group CHOICE has released the results of the second quarterly, government-funded report on supermarket prices across Australia – and found IGA supermarkets are the most expensive.
In June, the consumer group visited 104 supermarkets across the country, including Aldi, Coles, Woolworths, and IGA, recording the prices of a basket of 14 common grocery items.
They found the cost of both the Aldi and Coles baskets dropped since the first CHOICE survey in March, while the price of the Woolworths basket increased the most.
Overall, Aldi had the cheapest basket of goods, followed by Coles, Woolworths and IGA at the rear.
CHOICE CEO Ashley de Silva says the data is a reminder that genuine specials have a big influence on how much you end up spending at the supermarket.
“When looking at prices with specials, Woolworths has slipped from second to third place in this wave of research,” he says.
“The Woolworths basket cost $68.37, compared to $64.93 in March. Coles, however, came down in price with our basket of 14 items costing $66.22, compared to $68.52 in March.”
“Aldi’s basket came in at $50.79, compared to $51.51 in March, and was once again the clear winner when it came to value for money.”
CHOICE found IGA had the most expensive basket of the four, coming in at $78.95. CHOICE says the less than impressive result is mainly due to the wide variation in IGA store sizes.
Tips for finding the best prices
Mr de Silva says supermarket specials are the key to regularly saving money on your shop and that the supermarket with the best specials in a given week will most likely have the lowest price for the basket of goods.
“Buying items on special can make a difference to overall grocery costs, and reinforces the benefits of shopping around where possible,” he says.
“A discount on tea bags at Coles during our survey period was a major influence on the results of this survey.”
Pay attention to the unit price of each item, usually displayed in tiny numerals under the main price. Unit pricing allows you to compare prices based on the price per unit, such as per 100g or 1L. Or in other words, it allows you to compare apples with apples.
“Unfortunately, CHOICE has previously found supermarket labels are often confusing, making it difficult to tell if there is a true discount on offer or not,” says Mr de Silva.
“Our second quarterly supermarket survey highlights the importance of clear, simple labelling, that leaves the customer in no doubt about whether a product is actually on special.”
If you can, shop around for the best deals and don’t be beholden to the same supermarket (and its specials) each time.
Try not to buy the same things each time, for example, try different cuts of meat if they’re on special, use frozen fruits and vegetables and check out the supermarket’s house brands.
How have you found your grocery bills lately? Do you change your shopping routine to find the best deals? Let us know in the comments section below.
Also read: Supermarket loyalty programs on the nose with consumers
