MADRID – The VAT reduction, in force since the beginning of this year, has had an impact on supermarket prices. However, not all stores consistently implement that reduction. A comparative study between Lidl and Día, the 3rd and 4th largest chains offers some insight.
The temporary VAT reduction was introduced on some essential products such as milk, bread, eggs and legumes. These basic products no longer have VAT and others have gone from 10% to 5%. Nevertheless, some supermarkets started raising their prices to compensate for the reduction in VAT. We previously wrote about the extent to which supermarkets adhered to the VAT reduction. This time, however, it is a consumer who has compared the prices of two specific supermarket chains.
According to the consultancy NielsenIQ, Lidl remains the third supermarket people choose to make their purchases with a market share of 6.1%. Día follows in fourth place. Both are surpassed by Mercadona and Carrefour. El Confidencial analysed which of these two supermarkets is cheaper to make purchases. It can be seen that the price difference is minimal between Lidl and Día. However, the Día is slightly cheaper than the German chain.
In some cases, such as with the private label medium size eggs, Lidl is the cheapest on the market (€2.09). Whereas, Día has the cheapest olive oil (€5.20 euros). On the other hand, Lidl has the most expensive private-label milk on the market (€0.95). El Confidencial shows the products in which the price difference is most noticeable.
Comparison with September 2022
A dozen eggs, according to data published by consumer Marclife on his Instagram account, could be bought in September 2022 for €2.15 in both stores. Now the price shoots up to €2.39 in Día and drops to €2.09 in Lidl.
Macaroni hasn’t had much price swing. In both supermarkets, they have risen in price between 3 and 4 cents. However, oil is the product where the price increase is most noticeable. You could buy a 1-litre bottle for €3.89 at Lidl in September 2022. However, now it costs €5.45 for the same brand. In Día, the oil used to cost €4.45, but now you will pay €5.20.
Lidl or Día
Based on the catalogues of both supermarkets, it can be confirmed that the German supermarket is slightly more expensive. A kilo of kiwis in Lidl costs €1.99, while in Día they are €1.59. However, a kilo of mangoes costs the same in both supermarkets (€1.99). In the butcher’s shop, the chorizo is more expensive in Lidl (€1.89) than in Dia (€1.75). The same goes for the serrano ham, €1.69 in Lidl and €1.43 in Día. With chocolate it is the other way around: in Lidl, you will find a bar of milk chocolate for €0.99, while in Día it costs €1.29.
The biggest difference, however, is in the three-layer kitchen roll. In the package of 3 pieces, there is almost a €1.50 difference between one supermarket and the other. In Dia, it is on sale for €2.55 while in Lidl it is €3.99. The sum of all these analysed products leads to the conclusion that the shopping cart in Lidl would amount to €23.13, while in Día it would have cost €21.45. That means a difference of €1.68 between the two supermarkets.
Mercadona or Carrefour cheaper?
In an earlier article, the same newspaper compared Spain’s two largest supermarkets: Mercadona and Carrefour. The conclusion was that the difference was minimal, but the Carrefour was slightly cheaper than Mercadona.
A price comparison of the so-called house brands, conducted by an Instagram user, @marclife, went viral. It turned out that Carrefour was slightly cheaper, although it depends on which products are being compared.
