'This supermarket is cheaper than Aldi and Lidl for basics, so I went for a big shop'

The Aldi and Lidl Price Match is one of the promotions attracting shoppers to Morrisons
-Credit: (Image: Manchester Family / MEN)


Most shoppers know that Aldi and Lidl are where they'll generally find the cheapest groceries.

Our own price comparison of the six main supermarkets tends to see those two neck and neck when it comes to the cheapest basket of essentials.

But in the last fortnight, it's been Morrisons that's pipped both of those to the post, with the least expensive bill of all.

It came as quite a shock, especially when you consider that just five months ago, it was working out dearest for the basket, which includes chicken breasts, mince, bread, butter, beans, tea, coffee and milk.

Read more: Shoppers divided as The Range makes big change to stores

The reason it's currently working out cheaper is because of a huge expansion of its More Card scheme, which - just like Tesco's Clubcard and Sainsbury's Nectar card - offers exclusive prices on a number of products and lets shoppers collect points which can be turned into vouchers.

Morrisons has expanded its More Card offers
Morrisons has expanded its More Card offers -Credit:Manchester Family / MEN

This month the retailer has added hundreds of additional More Card prices, with reductions on more than 2,000 of its best-selling and branded products.

Intrigued by its new position, I decided to head to Morrisons to do a big shop and see how its prices are faring overall, making sure I got myself a More Card first, which I did so easily on the app, but can also be done on the website, or in store.

A More Card offer on its chicken is how it managed to swipe the cheapest supermarket title from Aldi, and the empty shelf where that should be was a sure sign that the reductions are proving popular with shoppers.

And it's not just the More Card luring shoppers in. The larger 1kg pack of chicken breasts I bought was £6.49, the same as at Aldi and Lidl as part of Morrisons' price match with both retailers, which launched in February.

The offers, like the £2.25 packs of 330g chicken breasts, are clearly proving popular
The offers, like the £2.25 packs of 330g chicken breasts, are clearly proving popular -Credit:Manchester Family / MEN

But I earned 400 points on them too, along with hundreds more points on five other items. For every 5,000 points you collect, you get a £5 voucher to spend in store.

I saved almost £13 with More Card offers overall and was seriously impressed with some of the reductions, including honeydew melons down from £1.89 - the price at Aldi and Lidl - to £1.50 each, and Pot Noodles reduced from £1.20 each to 65p.

Lots of the discounts applied to big brands too and I picked up a 605ml bottle of Heinz Ketchup down from £3.90 to £3, a 300g tub of Bisto gravy down from £3.79 to £2.50, a pack of seven Gold bars down from £1.75 to £1 and tins of Ambrosia Custard down from £1.99 each to £1.50 for two.

A decent five for £5 frozen deal meant I was able to stock up some of the kids' favourites like Alphabites and Birds Eye Crispy Chicken too.

You can get a five for £5 deal on frozen food
You can get a five for £5 deal on frozen food -Credit:Manchester Family / MEN

I didn't need any beans, but it was good to see a four-pack of Heinz down to £3 with the More Card and cereals like Rice Krispies (430g), Frosties (470g) and Shreddies (630g) down to £2.50 a box. The 200g jars of Kenco coffee, down from £7 to £5, are the lowest price I've seen for a while.

I rarely buy real brand Magnum ice cream lollies these days as they tend to be too expensive, so my kids were delighted when I returned with two three-packs, which were less than half the usual £3.25 price at £1.58.

The lower prices meant I was able to buy some other treats that I've tended to leave out of the trolley these days too.

I don't have to tell you how much chocolate has risen in cost, so it was a novelty to see Cadbury packs on offer for two for £3. The Wispa Gold and Dairy Milk packs I picked up would usually cost £1.75 each at Asda and Tesco. I also got a packet of Rowntree's Safari Mix, down from £1.50 to £1.

Aside from the More Card and the Aldi and Lidl Price Match, there were so many other reductions that helped me save too, like a six-pack of Seabrook crisps for £1.25, Mr Kipling Angel Slices down from £2.50 to £1.50, two loaves of Hovis bread for £2.50, large packs of biscuits on offer at two for £1.20 and a pack of Extra Large Young's Chip Shop Fish Fillets down from £3.25 to £2.50.

My Morrisons big shop
My Morrisons big shop -Credit:Manchester Family / MEN

But it's the extra touches that Morrisons has that I like too. We love their fresh pizzas from the counter and I got a huge 14 inch pepperoni one for £4.75. I picked up a pack of four large Lincolnshire sausage rolls from the pastry counter for £2 and then there's the fresh bread from the bakery, with a pack of six wonderfully soft, large tiger rolls costing me £1.30.

With special offers and the More Card I saved a total of £24.72 on a £160 shop, which is certainly no small change.

It might not be winning the Which? accolade of the UK’s Cheapest Supermarket just yet, but with its More Card, price match and other offers, Morrisons is winning more customers than ever right now.

Aldi disputes the results of our weekly comparison and says that it doesn’t take into account like-for-like products or ‘the higher quality’ of its products.

An Aldi spokesperson said: “Our promise to customers is that they will make significant savings every time they shop with Aldi, which is why we’ve been named Which? Cheapest Supermarket of the Year for three years running. Which? has also named Aldi the UK’s Cheapest Supermarket every month this year, even in its latest analysis including loyalty prices."