CHOICE has released the results of the second wave of its quarterly, government-funded report on supermarket prices across Australia. Once again, ALDI has bene found to be consistently cheaper than its competitors.
In June, the consumer group visited 104 supermarkets across the country, including ALDI, Coles, Woolworths, and IGA, and again recorded the prices of 14 common grocery items.
CHOICE found the cost of both ALDI and Coles baskets including specials have dropped since the first survey, while the price of the Woolworths basket with specials has increased.
“When looking at prices with specials, Woolworths has slipped from second to third place in this wave of research,” said CHOICE CEO Ashley de Silva. “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,” said de Silva.
CHOICE says IGA’s basket with specials “lagged” behind the other supermarkets, coming in at $78.95. This average, based on prices recorded at 27 locations across the country, reflects large variations in pricing between stores of different sizes in CHOICE’s survey.
“Buying items on special can make a difference to overall grocery costs, and reinforces the benefits of shopping around where possible,” said de Silva. “A discount on tea bags at Coles during our survey period was a major influence on the results of this survey.”
“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. 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,” he said.