Aldi and Lidl vs Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons: which supermarket is cheapest now?

On 22 October 2026 the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said Aldi and Lidl will now follow the same rules on land deals as Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrisons and the other big supermarkets. They can no longer use restrictive covenants or exclusivity deals to stop a rival opening nearby. Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrisons, Co-op, M&S and Waitrose have been bound by these rules, under the Groceries (Controlled Land) Order 2010, since 2010.

"We put in place rules to stop big supermarket chains from blocking rival stores opening in their area, and now those rules apply to Aldi and Lidl," said Juliette Enser, the CMA's executive director for competition enforcement and markets. The CMA says Aldi and Lidl are now both among the five biggest grocers by market share.

So, with the Christmas food shop coming up, how do the six compare? We've looked at prices, loyalty schemes, delivery and price promises, using Which?'s latest monthly price check and the supermarkets' own websites on 22 October 2026. Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Aldi's websites blocked our checks, so for those we've relied on Which?'s reporting and the pages we could load.

At a glance

• Cheapest basket: Aldi, at £159.48 for Which?'s 93 items in September, just ahead of Lidl.
• Cheapest of the big four: Asda, at £186.71, with no loyalty card needed.
• Loyalty card makes the biggest difference at: Sainsbury's and Tesco, where non-members paid around £6 more.
• No online food shop: Lidl, while Aldi is only trialling delivery through Deliveroo at eight stores.
• Cheapest delivery pass in Which?'s list: Asda, from £3.95 a month for mid-week slots.

Prices: what a basket costs

Every month, Which? prices 93 branded and own-brand groceries at eight supermarkets, averaging each price over the month. It includes loyalty prices open to all members, but not points, personalised offers or multibuys. In September 2026:

• Aldi: £159.48 (no loyalty scheme)
• Lidl: £161.48 with Lidl Plus, £161.84 without
• Asda: £186.71
• Tesco: £187.71 with Clubcard, £193.45 without
• Sainsbury's: £188.95 with Nectar, £195.01 without
• Morrisons: £192.93 with a More Card, £193.13 without

That puts Aldi £28.23 below Tesco with a Clubcard and £33.97 below Tesco without one. Lidl was just £2 behind Aldi. Asda was the cheapest of the traditional supermarkets without needing a card, though Tesco with Clubcard was only £1 more.

Loyalty schemes

• Aldi has no loyalty scheme. Its prices are the same for everyone.
• Lidl Plus is an app. Which? says you earn 1 point per £1 in store, and 500 points gets you £5 off a shop. There are also weekly app offers and personalised coupons. The loyalty price saved just 0.22% on Which?'s list, because the value is mostly in points and coupons, which Which? doesn't count.
• Tesco Clubcard earns 1 point per £1, worth 1p each, or up to twice that with Tesco's reward partners. Clubcard Prices saved 2.97% on Which?'s September list.
• Sainsbury's Nectar earns at least 1 point per £1, with each point worth 0.5p, so 500 points are worth £2.50. Nectar Prices saved 3.11%, the most of any scheme.
• Asda Rewards doesn't have member-only prices. Instead, buying a "Star Product" adds 10% of its price to your Cashpot in the app, which you turn into vouchers to spend at Asda.
• Morrisons More gives you 5 points on each product you buy, and 5,000 points become a £5 "Fiver". More Card Prices saved only 0.1% on Which?'s list.

Which? has also questioned loyalty pricing: it says its research raised questions about every scheme it looked at, and that non-member prices are sometimes raised to make member discounts look bigger. Check the price per kilo or litre, not just the yellow label.

Delivery and click and collect

• Aldi doesn't run its own online food shop. A Deliveroo "Shop & Deliver" trial started in early October at eight stores, in Ashford, Dover, Margate, Strood, Norwich, Ipswich, Letchworth Garden City and Tamworth, with more stores due in early 2027.
• Lidl says the only way to buy its products is in store. It doesn't do online grocery orders or home delivery.
• Tesco Delivery Saver costs £6.99 a month for anytime slots or £3.99 for off-peak (both on 12-month plans), or £2.49 a month for click and collect only. Normal minimum basket charges still apply.
• Sainsbury's Delivery Pass costs £7.50 a month, £43 for six months or £80 a year for anytime slots, or £4 a month or £40 a year for midweek. Pass holders get free delivery on orders of £50 or more. Without a pass, Which? says delivery costs £1 to £6 on orders over £50, and £7.50 to £9.50 under £50.
• Asda's anytime pass is £6.95 a month on a 12-month plan, and its mid-week and click and collect passes are £3.95 a month.
• Morrisons charges £8 a month, £45 for six months or £70 a year for an Anytime pass, or £5, £25 or £40 for Midweek. Both include free click and collect.

For Christmas, Which? says Asda opened slots to everyone on 20 October and Sainsbury's opens to everyone on 23 October. Morrisons is already open. Tesco opens on 3 November for Delivery Saver and Click+Collect subscribers, and 5 November for everyone else.

Price promises

Morrisons now promises its prices on more than 500 everyday lines won't be beaten by Aldi, Lidl, Tesco, Sainsbury's or Asda. Tesco and Sainsbury's both run Aldi Price Match schemes on hundreds of products, according to Which?, which also reported that Asda dropped its own scheme in 2025. These promises only cover the products they list, so the rest of your trolley may still cost more than at a discounter.

Where each wins and falls short

• Aldi is the cheapest on Which?'s list and needs no app, but has no online food shop of its own, and its Deliveroo trial covers just eight stores.
• Lidl is almost as cheap, and Lidl Plus adds points and coupons, but there's no online ordering at all, and you need the app to get the member prices.
• Asda is the cheapest of the big four without a card and has the cheapest delivery passes in Which?'s list, but its rewards only come from selected Star Products.
• Tesco with Clubcard is close to Asda on price, and points are worth up to double with reward partners, but without a card it was nearly £6 dearer on Which?'s list.
• Sainsbury's has the biggest loyalty saving, but it was still the second dearest of the six even with Nectar, and Nectar points are worth half as much as Clubcard points.
• Morrisons has a broad price promise and passes that include click and collect, but its basket was the dearest of the six with a card.

Your questions answered

Will the CMA decision make Aldi or Lidl cheaper?

Not directly. The rules are about land deals, not prices. The CMA says they stop big grocers blocking rival stores from opening nearby, which should mean more choice in some areas over time.

Is it worth signing up to a loyalty scheme?

At Tesco and Sainsbury's, yes, if you shop there. Non-members paid £5.74 more at Tesco and £6.06 more at Sainsbury's for Which?'s list. At Morrisons, the card saved only 20p.

Does Aldi deliver?

Only in a few places for now. Aldi is trialling deliveries through Deliveroo from eight stores, with more due in early 2027.

Ways to save

At Aldi, the Super 6 fruit and veg lines change every two weeks, alongside weekly offers on meat and fish. Lidl shoppers can pick up personalised coupons and points in the Lidl Plus app. Tesco was offering Quality Street 700g for £6 with Clubcard, and up to £12 bonus when you top up Clubcard Christmas Savers. Sainsbury's was offering 10x Nectar points on all fresh fruit and veg. New Morrisons online shoppers can get £15 off a first order over £60, plus £12 off the next three. And if you shop at Asda, look out for Star Products to build up your Cashpot before Christmas.

Sources: CMA, Which?: cheapest supermarket in September, Which?: loyalty schemes compared, Which?: Christmas delivery slots, Which?: Aldi Price Match schemes, Lidl Plus, Lidl Help Hub, Morrisons More, Morrisons: Unbeatable Prices, Asda Rewards terms, Deliveroo: Aldi Shop & Deliver trial

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