Due to inflation, more and more has to be paid at the supermarket checkout. However, not everything is equally expensive everywhere, according to a study by the Spanish Organisation for Consumers and Users (OCU). A family can even save up to €1,056 per year by shopping at the cheapest supermarket.
That is 17.5% of what an average family spends in the supermarket on an annual basis (€6,019). In total, the OCU compared the prices of 236 different products from seventeen different product groups in more than 1,000 supermarkets in 65 different Spanish cities. The most expensive choice for shopping is at Sánchez Romero, a supermarket chain with eleven branches in Madrid, which was taken over by Grupo Corte Inglés last year. If you do your shopping for a week at this luxury supermarket, you will pay €15 more than for the same groceries at Supeco.
Overall, according to a calculation by the OCU, the price of groceries rose by 14.1% in the past year. Sugar, vegetables, rice and olive oil in particular became considerably more expensive. In August, olive oil was even 52.5% more expensive compared to the same month a year ago. Rice prices have increased by 21.6% compared to a year ago.
Hipermercados the cheapest
At a national level, Family Cash, Alcampo, Supeco, Consum and Mercadona stores came out as the cheapest. However, the so-called hipermercados appear to be the cheapest, and Alcampo is the cheapest option in 23 cities in the study. In 21 cities, Mercadona, still the market leader in the sector, was the cheapest choice.
Prices have risen the least at Masymas
Also, not every supermarket chain has increased prices equally. The largest price increases occurred at E. Leclerc (by 18.8%), Supeco (15.8%) and Carrefour Express (15.3%). On the other hand, Mercadona (10%), Eroski City (8.8% and Masymas (8%) had the lowest price increases.
Both archipelagos are the most expensive
A remarkable result from the research is the regional differences in price increases. For example, the most savings can be made on groceries in Madrid (up to €3,928 per year) and the least in Cuenca, where the difference between the most expensive and cheapest supermarket is only €430 per year. Looking at the autonomous communities, La Rioja, Galicia and Murcia are among the cheapest, and the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands are the most expensive.
Also read: Fruit and vegetables much more expensive in Spain
