The average basket of groceries at Woolworths is costing shoppers more than it did a year ago, while the same items at Coles and Aldi have become cheaper.
Those are the findings of the latest government-funded quarterly report by consumer advocacy group Choice, which has been tracking the average price of groceries at Australian supermarkets since March last year.
The report found that the price of 14 common grocery items at Coles and Aldi supermarkets had declined since releasing its first quarterly report, both with specials and without.
Between March and December last year, the price of Aldi’s basket was relatively unchanged, falling by 0.3 per cent, while the same basket of grocery items on special at Coles decreased by 2.5 per cent during that time.
However, a basket of the same items with specials at Woolworths increased by 3.7 per cent — with the price rising from $64.93 to $67.34.
Even without specials, Choice found the prices of the baskets at each supermarket, with Coles and Aldi seeing lower prices, while Woolworths saw a slight increase.
| March 2024 | December 2024 | % change | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woolworths | With specials | $64.93 | $67.34 | +3.7% |
| Without specials | $68.58 | $69.63 | +1.5% | |
| Coles | With specials | $68.52 | $66.84 | -2.5% |
| Without specials | $69.33 | $67.84 | -2.1% | |
| Aldi | With specials | $51.51 | $51.36 | -0.3% |
| Without specials | $51.51 | $51.36 | -0.3% | |
| Source: Choice | ||||
While Coles and Woolworths may not have substantially different baskets on dollar terms, Choice CEO Ashley de Silva said it was the first time there had been such a clear divergence between the two supermarket giants.
“Coles and Woolworths pricing has been pretty close, I think it was 75 cents without specials between the baskets that we did the first time, whereas that’s now $1.79,” he said.
“It’s still not a huge difference, but it certainly has shifted in that time.
“We have always reported each quarter the gaps between them, but I think this is the most pronounced that that gap has been.
“While the difference doesn’t seem that much, over a year of weekly shops, the difference would add up to more than $90.“
To collect the data, Choice sent dozens of “mystery shoppers” to 104 supermarkets at 27 locations around the country, recording the prices of 14 common grocery items in December.
IGA stores have only been included in three surveys by Choice, but were also found to have a cheaper basket on average compared to June.
Choice’s data shows the cost of an average basket of groceries has fallen at Coles. (ABC North Qld: Georgia Loney)
Supermarkets under scrutiny
The latest supermarket price report comes a week after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) released the findings of its inquiry into the country’s supermarket sector.
The competition watchdog found that Australia’s supermarkets are among the most profitable in the world, and had “limited incentive” to compete on price.
However, the inquiry was unable to determine if price gouging was taking place, but noted that the supermarkets had seen their earnings margins rise — with Woolworths seeing the most significant increase.
The ACCC made 20 recommendations in total, including providing greater transparency on prices and promotions to better inform consumers.
It followed the competition watchdog separately launching legal action against Coles and Woolworths last year for allegedly misleading consumers with their discount pricing claims on hundreds of items.
The ACCC report said promotional tactics inside supermarkets can confuse shoppers. (AAP: Darren England)
Mr de Silva said Choice supported the recommendations from the inquiry that would require supermarkets to be more transparent with shoppers about prices, particularly with specials.
“The information that’s included on special labels isn’t sufficient very often for consumers to know information, like has the unit price changed, what is the discount actually, and what’s it based on?” he said.
“The data shows us that without [price transparency] being actually enforced, the supermarkets aren’t going to do it on their own, or they already would be.
“So these are things that can stimulate a bit more competition [and] level the playing field for consumers so they can actually have quality information to make their decisions.”
The federal government is yet to commit to implementing the recommendations put forward by the ACCC, but has supported them “in principle”.
Woolworths, Coles and Metcash are reviewing the report and considering the ACCC’s recommendations.
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