Sainsbury's Nectar Card warning: Shoppers could pay £615 more a year compared to at Aldi

Consumer group Which? carried out shopping trolley comparisons throughout the year.

It has found that Sainsbury’s shoppers will pay an average of £615.68 more than Aldi customers over the course of a year’s weekly shops - even if they use a Nectar Card to collect points and unlock cheaper prices. This is based on December prices.

Which? used a typical trolley of 56 branded and own-brand food and drink items in December across at Aldi, Lidl, Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Waitrose.

Aldi was the cheapest at £100.29, while Waitrose was the most dear at £129.83.

Sainsbury’s shoppers who use a Nectar would have paid £112.13 for the same goods in December, said Which?. And that means that multiplied across 52 weekly trolleyloads, , Sainsbury’s shoppers would be paying £615.68 more than those in Aldi. Without a Nectar Card, the Sainsbury’s trolley price was £116.70 - translating to £630.76 more a year.

After Aldi, Lidl was the cheapest supermaket, followed by Tesco - when shoppers used a Clubcard - and then Nectar-using Sainsbury’s shoppers. Sainsbury’s shoppers who don’t used a Nectar Card had a more expensive shopthan anywhere except for Ocado and Waitrose.

Across a trolleyload of 158 items, Sainsbury’s with Nectar card beat Asda and Morrisons but was behind Tesco, while without a Nectar card, Sainsbury’s was second-most expensive beating only Waitrose.

Harry Rose, editor of Which? magazine, said: “Our research shows Aldi has retained its crown as the UK’s cheapest supermarket in 2024. After the added expense of the festive period, many households will be looking to cut costs. Our analysis shows that by switching supermarkets, shoppers can make significant savings, highlighting the advantages of shopping around where possible.”