A complete guide on grocery and supermarkets in the UK; this ultimate guide will tell you all you need to know about the UK’s groceries and supermarkets, which are the best and how you can save money on your weekly grocery spend in the UK.
One of the most important things in daily living is buying food and knowing where to go to buy it. Luckily in the UK you have a wide variety of supermarkets and groceries all catering for different people’s needs. However, the large number of supermarkets can be a bit too much choice when you first move to the UK so this guide will help you decide which one/s is best for you.
The UK has six major supermarket chains which can found across the UK: Tescos, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Co-op, Morrison’s and Waitrose. There are also two discount supermarkets which are very popular and cheap but have more limited product ranges: Aldi and Lidl. Iceland is also affordable but they focus mainly on frozen goods. Mark and Spencer (M&S) is a specialty grocery store which sells pretty expensive, premium quality foods.
Verdict
I strongly recommend you do your weekly shopping at Aldi because it’s the most affordable and has quite a lot of quality products. However, Aldi doesn’t stock everything you need so I would go to Asda for everything else as it is quite affordable, has a great product range and sells reasonably good quality food and other goods.
Where you shop will depend a lot on which supermarkets are close to your home. If there was a Sainsbury’s or Tesco nearby and no Aldi or Asda, I would happily shop there with Sainsbury’s edging out Tesco as I find their vegetables are fresher.
What are the top supermarkets in the UK?
Asda
This supermarket is the most budget friendly of all the major supermarket chains. There’s not many in London and I don’t remember many smaller stores but there megastores are huge with a huge variety of products and some stores are open 24/7. It is similar to Tescos and Sainsbury’s but is cheaper. I frequently shopped here because it was close to my flat, it was affordable and it was pretty good quality across the board.
Asda is about to launch their first general loyalty scheme. I will update you when it becomes available. Asda does have George rewards scheme already but you can only earn points by buying George branded products in Asda stores.
Food and product quality: 4/5
Product range: 5/5
Affordability: 4/5
Tesco
The largest UK supermarket chain and hence the best supermarket for convenience. Their supermarkets are everywhere and range from superstores with absolutely everything to small convenience stores with just the essentials. Many of these supermarkets are open 24/7. I found their fresh produce was quite average. Their packaged goods were okay though.
Tesco as a free loyalty scheme called the Tesco Clubcard. You can earn one point for every pound spent in store. You can earn further points at Tesco servos/petrol stations. These points can be exchanged for shopping vouchers
Food and product quality: 3/5
Product range: 5/5
Affordability: 4/5
Sainsbury’s
Sainsbury’s have quite high quality fresh produce. It was the supermarket I used to buy my meat and vegetables. They also have a wide variety of products and some of the supermarkets are open 24/7. They seemed a little more expensive than Tescos but are still reasonably priced. They do put more focus on sustainable, locally sourced products and I think their products are a bit better quality than Tescos.
Sainsbury’s have a free loyalty scheme called Nectar where you earn one point for every pound spent. You can also earn further points using Sainsbury’s petrol stations and many other retailers such as Argos. There are also weekly bonus offers.
Food and product quality: 4/5
Product range: 5/5
Affordability: 3/5
Waitrose
The super fancy and expensive supermarket. They have high quality food and stock products with a focus on organic, ethically-farmed, locally sourced products. They offer some of the freshest produce and their desserts are amazing. However, you will pay for it. If you value high quality goods and have cash to spare then you might like this supermarket.
Waitrose have a free loyalty scheme called MyWaitrose. They use to offer a free coffee or tea if you brought your own cup every time you went to a Waitrose but this has been recently suspended. You also get 20% off selected fish on Fridays, a free newspaper if you spend over £10 in store and a free monthly food magazine.
Food and product quality: 5/5
Product range: 4/5
Affordability: 1/5
Co-op
Co-op supermarkets are a co-operative owned by its members. They stock premium, ethically focused products. They have smaller style grocery stores which have all the essentials and are very convenient. They tend to be more expensive than other supermarkets.
The Co-op have a loyalty scheme which costs £1 to join. When you buy selected Co-op branded products in store you will earn a 2% cashback which you can use in Co-op stores. A further 2% will also be donated to a local charity.
Food and product quality: 4/5
Product range: 3/5
Affordability: 2/5
Morrisons
I did not see many of these supermarkets around. However, the one time I shopped there I noticed they had a good range of fresh produce. I thought it was very similar to Asda and the other big supermarket chains. Although they do have a more market oriented supermarket arrangement with the butcher, fish sections all put together like Aussie supermarkets.
Morrisons have a loyalty scheme called My Morrisons where they offer you personalised offers/coupons based on the way you shop.
Food and product quality: 4/5
Product range: 5/5
Affordability: 3/5
Aldi
Very good. Cheap with lots of good products. However, they do not have the same range of products as the bigger supermarkets. I saved a lot of money buying the majority of my food here. The fresh produce was also good and I thought it was even better quality than the Aldi’s in Australia. Whenever I visited a new city in the UK I would always try to find an Aldi first.
Aldi does not have a loyalty scheme.
Food and product quality: 4/5
Product range: 3/5
Affordability: 5/5
Lidl
Very similar to Aldi. I can’t rate this supermarket as I have never shopped there but it is as popular as Aldi.
Lidl has a loyalty scheme called Lidl Plus. It is a rewards app that provides coupons and other discounts. Some coupons are unlocked depending on how much you spend in stores.
Iceland
This is another discount supermarket which focuses on selling frozen goods. I never shopped here so I haven’t added any ratings.
Iceland have a loyalty scheme in the form of a bonus card. You can earn £1 for every £20 you load onto the card. It doesn’t seem worth the hassle though.
M&S
Mark and Spencer had a lot of tasty, high quality sandwiches and other foods. I loved their desserts which were the best amongst all the supermarkets. I found these stores were well suited for busy people who wanted already prepared, well packaged foods. It was not a place I would visit regularly as they were quite expensive. However I did visit quite a lot of times to grab a quick lunch or dinner which I knew was going to be much healthier than the local takeaway.
M&S have a digital loyalty scheme called Sparks. It provides personalised offers based on the way you shop and once SPARK customer will get their shop free each week.
Food and product quality: 5/5
Product range: 3/5
Affordability: 1/5
What is the average food cost per month for one person in the UK?
The average monthly grocery bill for one person is approximately £170-200.
What is the best UK supermarket?
It’s hard to say as it really depends on what you value in your local supermarket but I decided to give it a go based on my own UK supermarket experiences!
Best supermarket for convenience: Tesco – They are everywhere. They have long opening hours and they sell the legendary three pound meal deal!
Best supermarket for affordability: It’s a tie between Aldi and Lidl. Both will save you money.
Best quality produce and goods: Waitrose. Although Sainsbury’s and Co-op are close on Waitrose’s heels. Note: I didn’t include M&S here. Although they do sell top quality products, their fresh produce range is quite limited compared to the other supermarkets.
Best supermarket overall: Asda. If you live close to one of their megastores Asda offers a wider range of products than Aldi and Lidl. However, they still stock quality products at budget friendly prices.
What is the cheapest UK supermarket?
Aldi and Lidl are the most affordable supermarkets in the UK. The two German supermarkets easily beat the rest on price and they have pretty good quality products. They may not stock everything which means you will need to still shop at other UK supermarkets too but I highly recommend shopping here regularly. I also think there’s more choice at Aldi in the UK than in Australia.
Things to know about UK supermarkets
- The quality of the fresh produce is nowhere near as good as Australia except when it comes to strawberries, herbs and potatoes (Wait til you see how many types of potatoes there are. You will be mind-blown).
- Meat is kind of gross in UK supermarkets. I like my meat but in the UK I noticed over time I gradually started eating more veggies and Quorn (Vegan meat). The meat at pubs and restaurants was fine though.
- Most UK supermarkets close on public holidays (called bank holidays in the UK)
- Many supermarkets have meal deals (sandwich + drink + crisps) if you want a cheap, quick lunch. Yes they call chips, crisps here.
- Most flats only have small fridges and freezers so don’t buy too much in one go.
- There is a wide range of alcohol at UK supermarkets. You won’t need to find a liquor store.
- Bring a £1 coin if you want to use a trolley.
- Supermarkets in the inner city are usually small with essential items. The huge supermarkets are on the outskirts of cities and will usually sell other products like clothes and homewares. Some even have their own petrol stations, pharmacies and ATMs.
- Bring your own bags because otherwise you will have to buy them.
- UK supermarkets have self-checkout counters like Australia but for the normal check-out counters you will still be expected to pack your own groceries like Aldi in Australia.
Tips for saving at UK supermarkets
- Sign up for the Loyalty cards (e.g. Nectar for Sainsbury supermarkets). They are usually free and will save you money.
- Shop at 7-8pm when they start putting reduced price labels on some foods.
- Shop for things on the World food aisle. There’s a lot of products like rice and spices which are very good value there.
- Sign up for supermarket cashback apps like Shopmium which will tell you the current bargains and will send you cashback on selected items you purchase.
- Try out Too Good to Go. It’s a really cool app that allows UK restaurants to sell their excess food for great low prices instead of just binning it.
- All the normal tips every supermarket saving blog lists like planning a meal budget and ordering online to prevent impulse buys etc.
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