Most consumers are currently doing everything they can to keep costs low, and that includes cutbacks at the supermarket.
But there’s one simple trick to finding the lowest prices that many customers seem to miss – and that’s going to the bottom shelf.
It’s something that was previously highlighted by food budget expert Lorna Cooper, who said that consumers are often too focused on what is shown at eye level, or on one part of a promotion, that they fail to see the cheapest products can be found low.
She said followers of her Facebook page Feed your family for around £20 a week often ask where she found something so cheap – and that’s because they’re not looking in the right places.
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I decided to follow the ‘down low’ rule for a large store at Tesco this week, to see how much savings can be made compared to big brand products at eye level.
I was surprised by how many shelves were organized this way and for many people, especially those who were in a hurry or shopping with children and got distracted, it would be easy to overlook the cheaper items.
There is clearly a difference in quality between some products – and not everyone is happy to buy own brand or budget items – but with the cost of living still hitting hard, many consumers are having to make different choices, or at least are willing to try cheaper products.
Some price differences are also enormous. For example, a pack of long grain rice from Tesco costs £1.25, while the cheaper brand Grower’s Harvest costs just 52p for a pack of the same size. A liter of Tesco orange or apple juice from the shelf costs £1.25, while the Grower’s Harvest brand, at the bottom, costs 85p.
The big brand curry sauces cost upwards of £2, or £1.50 with the Clubcard offer shouting at eye level, but the cheaper ones are at the bottom for just 99p – and very tasty too.
The same went for the soup, with Heinz cans costing £2 each, or 3 for £4, but Tesco’s, on the bottom shelf, cost £1.10.
While the “low shelf, low price” rule seemed to apply mostly to cans and cabinet items, this was also the case in some refrigerators.
A pack of eight Richmond sausages for £2.60 at eye level, with the Tesco version priced at £1.79 lower; mature cheddar at £3 for 400g, with the cheaper £2.49 Creamfields blocks on the bottom shelf; and Willow Farms’ cheaper chicken fillets, at £6.49 per kg and priced to match Aldi’s, also on the bottom shelf.
It’s still worth keeping an eye out elsewhere though, as the top shelf featured a Clubcard offer on chicken fillets, which came out even cheaper, at £5.79 per kg.
Although the loaves were generally mixed, the ‘low-down’ rule also worked with other’ bakery products, such as Tesco’s eight-pack of tortilla wraps for £1.20, compared to a six-pack of Mission Deli rolls for £1.60. And Tesco’s eight-pack chocolate brioche buns for £1.60 on the bottom shelf, compared to a six-pack of Pitch buns for £1.75.
With the eggs, it was clear that shoppers had found out where to find the cheapest cartons, as the entire bottom shelf of the 15-pack of mixed weight eggs for £1.99 was completely empty.
The freezers, on the other hand, generally have branded and non-branded products next to each other, but while it’s easy to be distracted by the Clubcard offers, such as the one for McCain Skin on Fries which cost £3 for 800g, there was a bag of them next to it 900g with Tesco’s own for £2.50.
The same goes for the Clubcard offer of £4 for 38 Birds Eye chicken dippers (50% chicken fillet), while Tesco’s pack (53% chicken) contains 44 dippers and costs £3.45.
The swaps I made meant a total saving of over £20, so it’s not a small change.
When sharing her advice, budget expert Lorna said: “I know I’ve talked about supermarket psychology before, but I wanted to say it again. Often when I put the prices of the items I buy on here, people say immediately ‘where do you buy that, so cheap?
“This is a local Tesco which is quite small but the cheaper models are still available. But they are out of eye level. Hidden low on the shelf where unless you are specifically looking for them you are unlikely to come across them .watch them. Check the whole shelf!”
We approached Tesco to ask about the cheaper lower shelf products and a spokesperson said: “We offer a wide range of products in our stores, with a variety of branded and own-brand products to meet customer needs, and Thanks to our combination of Aldi Price Match, low everyday prices and Clubcard prices, shoppers can be sure they’re getting value for money at Tesco, however they decide to shop.”
Bottom Shelf Wins (Tesco or main brand product / Bottom Shelf Budget / Savings)
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McVitie’s Jaffa Cakes 220g £2 / Tesco Jaffa Cakes 282g £1.35 / 65p
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Tesco shelf orange or apple juice £1.25 / Grower’s Harvest shelf orange or apple juice 85p / 40p
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Tesco fridge orange juice £2 / Grower’s Harvest fridge orange juice £1.19 / 81p
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Tesco fridge apple juice £2 / Grower’s Harvest fridge apple juice 99p / £1.01
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Cadbury Brunch Bars £1.35 / Tesco Raisin Munch Bars £1.15 / 20p
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Heinz Beanz and Sausage £2 / Tesco Beans and Sausage 56p / £1.44
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Heinz Ravioli £2 / Tesco Beef Ravioli £1 / £1
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Heinz Large Soup £2 / Tesco Thick Soup £1.10 / 90p
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Tesco Tuna Chunks 72p / Stockwell Tuna Chunks 55p / 17p
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Ambrosia custard £1.60 / Tesco custard £1 / 60p
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KP Dry Roasted Peanuts 250g £3.25 / Tesco Dry Roasted Peanuts 200g £1.20 / £2.05
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McVitie’s Chocolate Digestives 266g £1.30 Clubcard / Ms Molly’s Chocolate Digestives 300g 65p / 65p
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Tesco Long Grain Rice £1.25 / Grower’s Harvest Long Grain Rice 52p / 73p
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Patak’s Naans £1.50 Clubcard / Tesco Naans 80p / 70p
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Patak’s curry sauce € 1.50 Clubcard / Tesco curry sauce 99p / 51p
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Hellman’s light mayonnaise 430ml £2 Clubcard / Tesco light mayonnaise 450ml 86pcs / £1.14
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Sarsons Malt Vinegar 250ml £1.15 / Tesco Malt Vinegar 568ml 35pcs / 80pcs
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Richmond sausages £2.60 / Tesco sausages £1.79 / 81p
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Mature Cheddar £3 / Creamfields Mature Cheddar £2.49 / 51p
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Country Life Salted Butter €2.75 / Tesco Salted Butter €1.79 / 96pcs
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Sun-Pat Peanut Butter 300g €2.25 Clubcard / Tesco Peanut Butter 340g €1.09 / €1.16
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Mission Deli Tortilla Wraps six pack £1.60 / Tesco’s eight pack £1.20 / 40pcs
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Pitch Brioche Rolls six-pack €1.75 / Tesco’s eight-pack chocolate brioche rolls €1.60 / 15p
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St Pierre Brioche Burger Buns £2.50 / Tesco Brioche Burger Buns 99p / £1.51
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Fairy Dishwashing Liquid 320ml €1 / Tesco Dishwashing Liquid 500ml 69p / 31p
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Doritos 180g € 1.75 Clubcard / Tesco Tortilla chips 200g € 1.10 / 65pcs
Total saving on bottom shelf = £20.22