Choosing where to do your weekly supermarket shop could be a key factor in reducing the household budget according to a study carried out by a consumer’s organisation (la Organización de Consumidores y Usuarios – OCU). It found that Sánchez Romero was the most expensive supermarket while Dani was the cheapest with a 46% difference in prices.

The study by OCU demonstrated that a typical weekly shop which included 132 products by well known brands was once again cheapest at Dani, a supermarket chain in Andalucia. Using the same criteria Cemar, Herbu’s, Simply Market and Alcampo came next on the list.

Sánchez Romero was found to be the most expensive supermarket followed by Ercoreca (32% more expensive than Dani) and El Corte Inglés (27% more expensive).

On a national level Alcampo was the cheapest supermarket chain in 16 Spanish cities followed by Sabeco which was the most economic in 6 cities while Mercadona was found to have the most reasonable prices in 3 of the cities in the study.

Eroski and Carrefour were also found to be among the cheapest supermarkets. OCU highlighted the fact that local and regional supermarket chains are the most economic places to shop for food in more than half of the Spanish cities included in their study.

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, San Sebastian, Pamplona and Bilbao were found to be the most expensive places to buy branded food products while Cuenca, Lugo, Orense, Zamora, León, Ávila, Pontevedra, Soria and Vigo, were the cheapest.

According to OCU an average household spends 4,683 euros a year on food and that savings of up to euros could be achieved by selecting the right place to shop.
In Madrid, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Granada, Castellón and Barcelona families could save over 1000 euros. In fact in Madrid an average household could save in the region of 1575 euros by selecting the cheapest supermarket.

On the other hand supermarkets in Teruel, Cuenca, Puertollano and Ciudad Real had the most uniform prices and families could only save 83 euros in Teruel and Cuenca, 137 euros in Puertollano and 201 euros in Ciudad Real.

The study by OCU looked at more than 87,000 prices in 762 establishments in 54 different cities and on-line supermarkets. It concluded that households should choose a supermarket that has economic prices in general rather than be seduced by special offers in more expensive chains. It also discovered that there is a growing trend to buy the cheapest product regardless of the brand.