Milk, bread and butter warning for everyone shopping at Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury's

The research from consumer champions Which? compared prices from 42 everyday essentials, including milk at bigger supermarkets to their smaller 'local' or 'Extra' stores

Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury's shoppers have been issued a warning: they could be paying more for their milk, bread and butter in different branches of the same chain.

Consumer champions Which? conducted research comparing prices from 42 everyday essentials at larger supermarkets to their smaller 'local' or 'express' stores. Essentials such as milk, bread and butter all had a big markup, reports the Express.

Releasing the findings, Which? said: "Shoppers pay eight percent more for two pints of own brand semi-skimmed milk at all of the three supermarkets' smaller chains. While many of us choose to use convenience stores for top-up shops and food on the go, others have no choice but to use them. Just under a fifth of convenience store shoppers say their nearest large supermarket is too far away, and nearly one in eight don't own a car. Others say online shopping isn't an option for them."

Study's key findings

• The total cost of the basket of groceries at Morrisons Daily averaged £16 more. This could set consumers back a total of £832 more over the course of the year if they bought the same products once a week.
• In total, the basket of 42 groceries would have averaged around £11 more at Sainsbury’s Local and £10 more at Tesco Express for loyalty scheme members, compared to their prices at the larger stores, which adds up to more than £500 extra over a year.
• The total cost of the basket of groceries at Morrisons Daily averaged £16 more. This could set consumers back a total of £832 more over the course of the year if they bought the same products once a week.
• Essentials such as milk, bread and butter all had a big markup.
• All three supermarket convenience stores charged eight per cent more for two pints of own-label, semi-skimmed milk - with or without a loyalty card.
• A medium white Hovis loaf cost 12 per cent more at both Sainsbury’s Local and Tesco Express, and 14 per cent more at Morrisons Daily.

In general, the study found Tesco Express was the cheapest out of all the convenience stores — with a Clubcard. Which? found the total cost of the 42 everyday items, which also included bread, butter and chickpeas, saw Tesco shoppers pay on average £108.28 for Clubcard members and £117.30 for non-members.

This comes as people facing a cost of living crisis are going to extra lengths to ensure our money goes further. Which? said: “When we put our findings to Tesco, it said its Express stores are mainly in built-up areas where rents, rates and operating costs are higher, and the difference in prices of some products reflect these increased costs. It also said customers make different ‘shopper journeys’ at Express stores, so it tailors Clubcard offers to suit customer shopping habits.”

A Sainsbury’s spokeswoman told PA: “There may be price differences between convenience stores and supermarkets. This is because our Sainsbury’s Local stores, which tend to be located in city or town centre locations, often have higher operating costs relative to their size, such as rents and business rates.”

Morrisons said: “We’re always working hard to keep prices down and competitive for our customers while maintaining high standards and availability in all our stores. Last year, we became the first supermarket to introduce our budget ‘Savers’ range into Morrisons Daily stores nationwide. We know our customers and business partners would like to see the More Card accepted in Morrisons Daily stores, so we are actively working on introducing the offer into our convenience estate in the coming months.”