It's nearly Christmas time and that means shopping for the turkey, mince pies and brandy butter needs to get underway. But where's the cheapest place to buy the Christmas lunch?
The average Christmas family budget is £478.50, according to Morrisons, with £48.30 of this going on food for the day. But this year the supermarket has launched a bargain meal which promises to only cost £2.49 per person including all the trimmings.
That includes items such as Christmas cake, cranberry sauce, stuffing and mince pies, but when looking at the cost alone, how does it compare to the other supermarket’s offerings?
I decided to look at all the major supermarkets and to see how much they’re charging for the same items.
Obviously in some cases the food doesn’t match exactly either because the weight is different or the exact products aren’t sold in each shop, but in these instances I’ve attempted to find the nearest match.
This is a basic dinner and it’ll obviously be cheaper if there are less people eating and if you cut out certain items. Shopping locally for fruit and vegetables may also knock down the cost further and there are lots of extras, such as alcohol, which aren't included and will add quite a bit to the final cost.
The cheapest Christmas lunch
When looking at the essential items, for eight people, Morrisons is the clear winner when it comes to price. Its meal is £19.95, which works out at £2.49 a head, £4.52 cheaper than the second cheapest lunch from Aldi at £24.47.
Just edging slightly into third place, with a tiny 7p difference, is Tesco followed by Asda at £26.38, or £3.30 per person, with its turkey and Christmas cake pushing the price up.
When looking at the prices on offer, the vegetables are pretty much the same price across all supermarkets but it’s things like the turkey, Christmas cake and brandy butter which make the difference.
The weight of the products also makes a big impact and at Aldi, Asda, Waitrose and Ocado the cheapest turkeys for sale are all bigger than Morrisons'. Therefore the price is understandably going to be more expensive.
The most expensive Christmas lunch
Unsurprisingly Ocado at £40.08 is the most expensive place to buy a Christmas lunch, followed by Waitrose with a bill of £37.54.
However, these two are the only supermarkets which don't sell frozen turkeys. Because the price of the fresh, free range turkeys are higher it's pushed the whole cost of the lunch up.
When you cut out the price of the turkey from the Ocado shop it actually comes in at £2.84 per head – making it the second cheapest Christmas lunch.
The results
|
Supermarket |
Total price |
Price per head (eight people) |
|
Morrisons |
£19.95 | £2.49 |
|
Aldi |
£24.47 | £3.06 |
|
Tesco |
£24.54 | £3.07 |
|
Asda |
£26.38 | £3.30 |
|
The Co-op |
£27.92 | £3.49 |
|
Sainsbury’s |
£29.51 | £3.69 |
|
Waitrose |
£37.54 | £4.69 |
|
Ocado |
£40.08 | £5.01 |
Those are the totals, but what about the individual supermarket break down? The tables below outline what each outlet charges for each constituent of the classic Christmas lunch.
Morrisons
|
Item |
Amount |
Price |
|
Turkey |
2.6-3.8kg |
£9.00 |
|
Potatoes |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Frozen sprouts |
1kg |
£0.75 |
|
Parsnips |
850g |
£0.70 |
|
Carrots |
1kg |
£0.55 |
|
Stuffing |
85g |
£0.15 |
|
Cranberry sauce |
200g |
£0.50 |
|
Christmas pudding |
Two at 454g each |
£1.70 |
|
Christmas cake |
900g |
£3.40 |
|
Brandy butter |
200g |
£1.00 |
|
Mince pies |
Two packs of six |
£1.20 |
|
Total |
|
£19.95 |
|
Per head (for eight people) |
|
£2.49 |
Aldi
|
Item |
Amount |
Price |
|
Turkey |
4.2kg |
£9.99 |
|
Potatoes |
1kg |
£0.85 |
|
Frozen sprouts |
1kg |
£0.99 |
|
Parsnips |
750g |
£0.69 |
|
Carrots |
1kg |
£0.75 |
|
Stuffing |
85g |
£0.37 |
|
Cranberry sauce |
400g |
£0.59 |
|
Christmas pudding |
750g |
£2.99 |
|
Christmas cake (two) |
800g |
£3.78 |
|
Brandy butter |
200g |
£1.49 |
|
Mince pies |
Two packs of six |
£1.98 |
|
Total |
|
£24.47 |
|
Per head (for eight people) |
|
£3.06 |
Tesco
|
Item |
Amount |
Price |
|
Turkey |
2.6-3.8kg |
£10.00 |
|
Potatoes (Frozen) |
1kg |
£0.80 |
|
Brussel Sprouts |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Parsnips |
750g |
£0.85 |
|
Carrots |
1.5kg |
£0.69 |
|
Stuffing |
85g |
£0.15 |
|
Cranberry sauce |
185g |
£0.50 |
|
Christmas pudding |
907g |
£2.00 |
|
Christmas cake |
907g |
£5.00 |
|
Brandy butter |
200g |
£1.55 |
|
Mince pies |
Two packs of six |
£1.50 |
|
Total |
|
£24.54 |
|
Per head (for eight people) |
|
£3.07 |
Asda
|
Item |
Amount |
Price |
|
Turkey |
3.54-5.19kg |
£12 |
|
Potatoes |
1kg |
£0.69 |
|
Frozen sprouts |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Parsnips |
750g |
£0.80 |
|
Carrots |
1kg |
£0.80 |
|
Stuffing |
85g |
£0.15 |
|
Cranberry sauce |
240g |
£1.00 |
|
Christmas pudding |
Two at 454g each |
£1.96 |
|
Christmas cake |
907g |
£5.00 |
|
Brandy flavour sauce (packet) |
500g |
£1.48 |
|
Mince pies |
Two packs of six |
£1.50 |
|
Total |
|
£26.38 |
|
Per head (for eight people) |
|
£3.30 |
The Co-operative
|
Item |
Amount |
Price |
|
Turkey |
2 - 3.59kg |
£10.00 |
|
Potatoes |
1.5kg |
£2.00 |
|
Frozen sprouts |
907g |
£1.00 |
|
Parsnips |
600g |
£1.00 |
|
Carrots |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Stuffing |
85g |
£0.33 |
|
Cranberry sauce |
190g |
£0.74 |
|
Christmas pudding |
Two at 454g each |
£3.50 |
|
Christmas cake |
907g |
£5.00 |
|
Brandy cream |
250ml |
£1.75 |
|
Mince pies |
Two packs of six |
£1.60 |
|
Total |
|
£27.92 |
|
Per head (for eight people) |
|
£3.49 |
Sainsbury’s
|
Item |
Amount |
Price |
|
Turkey |
2.6-3.8kg |
£13.75 |
|
Potatoes |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Frozen sprouts |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Parsnips |
850g |
£0.96 |
|
Carrots |
1kg |
£0.50 |
|
Stuffing |
85g |
£0.15 |
|
Cranberry sauce |
200g |
£0.63 |
|
Christmas pudding |
Two at 454g each |
£1.96 |
|
Christmas cake |
900g |
£6.00 |
|
Brandy butter |
200g |
£1.55 |
|
Mince pies |
Two packs of six |
£2.00 |
|
Total |
|
£29.51 |
|
Per head (for eight people) |
|
£3.69 |
Waitrose
|
Item |
Amount |
Price |
|
Turkey |
up to 4.7kg |
£15.00 |
|
Potatoes |
1kg |
£0.66 |
|
Frozen sprouts |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Parsnips |
850g |
£1.67 |
|
Carrots |
1kg |
£0.90 |
|
Stuffing |
85g |
£0.40 |
|
Cranberry sauce |
200g |
£0.95 |
|
Christmas pudding |
Two at 454g each |
£6.98 |
|
Christmas cake |
900g |
£5.99 |
|
Brandy butter |
200g |
£1.99 |
|
Mince pies |
Two packs of six |
£2.00 |
|
Total |
|
£37.54 |
|
Per head (for eight people) |
|
£4.69 |
Ocado
|
Item |
Amount |
Price |
|
Turkey (free range) |
3Kg |
£17.37 (£5.79 per Kg) |
|
Potatoes |
1kg |
£1.17 |
|
Frozen sprouts |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Parsnips |
700g |
£1.00 |
|
Carrots |
1kg |
£1.00 |
|
Stuffing |
100g |
£0.85 |
|
Cranberry sauce |
195g |
£0.95 |
|
Christmas pudding |
Two at 454g each |
£6.98 |
|
Christmas cake |
907g |
£6.49 |
|
Brandy butter |
200g |
£1.99 |
|
Mince pies |
Packs of 12 |
£2.00 |
|
Total |
|
£40.08 |
|
Per head (for eight people) |
|
£5.01 |
Before you hit the supermarket, remember to always check MySupermarket to compare the best deals.
Where are you planning to do your Christmas food shopping? And when's the best time to do it?
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