We compared prices on everything from turkey to mince pies to work out which was the cheapest supermarket for Christmas dinner.
As we get further into December, many of us are already making our shopping lists for the big day.
But which supermarket comes in the cheapest for Christmas dinner?
I’ve done a little digging and based on today’s prices, which you can see in more detail below.
But my headline findings were that Aldi came out the cheapest at £28.95 per family of six or £4.83 per head, while Waitrose was the most expensive at £56.15 and £9.36 respectively.
A quick note on Lidl
While we have been as thorough as possible in our comparisons, unfortunately, Lidl was only able to provide pricing on certain roast veg offers that go live on 18 December.
Supermarkets will often cut prices as we get nearer to Christmas to get rid of excess stock so it isn’t an exact like-for-like comparison.
To reflect this, we’ve put Lidl’s prices in italics and added an explanatory note at the end of each table to avoid confusion.
Cheapest Christmas dinner 2023: the maths
I’ve looked at all the ingredients you’d need for a typical festive feast for six people, including turkey, all the trimmings and Christmas pud.
I’ve provided the cost of the items according to weight and worked out the cost for 12 mince pies and 24 pigs in blankets.
Where I haven’t found the exact same weight, I’ve included a note in brackets to provide the weight you'd need to feed you and your diners, even if it means leftovers.
As some supermarkets have limited availability options on their turkeys, I’ve also noted any date restrictions that apply.
With vegetables, I’ve gone for fresh options and specified if these aren’t available.
To find out how each supermarket fared overall, check out the table below, which is ranked from the cheapest to the priciest Christmas dinner.
Cheapest Christmas dinner by supermarket
|
Supermarket |
Total price |
Price per head (six people) |
|
Aldi |
£28.95 |
£4.83 |
|
Asda |
£33.32 |
£5.55 |
|
Morrisons |
£33.68 |
£5.61 |
|
Tesco |
£33.72 |
£5.62 |
|
Sainsbury’s |
£37.38 |
£6.23 |
|
Iceland |
£45.84 |
£7.64 |
|
Waitrose |
£56.15 |
£9.36 |
|
Lidl* |
£26.96* |
£4.49* |
* Lidl’s prices include offers available from 18/12
The cost per item
Here's how the various supermarket prices compare, just in case you want to go for individual items – the cheapest of each product is in bold.
I calculated the total cost for each supermarket shop by combining the prices of all the items and then divided by six to figure out the price per person.
In some cases, the price for loose vegetables was used if it was cheaper than the pre-packaged version.
In cases where a product is on an offer that is due to expire shortly, I’ve added a disclaimer to indicate this.
To avoid having to make the table too small to fit within the confines of this article, I’ve split it in two.
Supermarkets are listed in alphabetical order to make it easier to find your favourite.
|
Item |
Aldi |
Asda |
Iceland |
Lidl |
|
Turkey (approx 4kg) |
£14.99 (4-5.4kg) |
£16 (4.6kg)
Available until 19/12 |
£21 (approx 4kg) |
£15 (approx. 4kg) |
|
Potatoes (1kg) |
59p (price for 2kg bag) 1 |
£1 |
£1.35 (price for 1.25kg bag) |
15p (price for 2kg pack) 4 |
|
Brussels sprouts (1kg) |
£1.90 |
£2 |
£2 for (price for 1.2kg frozen bag) |
38p 5 |
|
Parsnips (1kg) |
£1.10 |
£1.20 |
£5 (two frozen bags) |
38p 5 |
|
Carrots (1kg) |
60p |
65p |
79p 3 |
19p 4 |
|
Stuffing (170g) |
45p |
60p |
£2 (260g bag) |
49p |
|
Cranberry sauce (200g) |
55p |
69p |
£1.70 (250g jar) |
55p |
|
Christmas pudding (800g) |
£3.69 |
£4.50 |
£4.50 |
£3.69 |
|
Pigs in blankets (24) |
£3.98 |
£4.50 |
£5 (multibuy offer/three x eight pack) |
£3.98 |
|
Mince pies (12) |
£1.10 2 |
£2.18 |
£2.50 |
£2.15 |
|
Total price |
£28.95 |
£33.32 |
£45.84 |
£26.96* |
|
Price per head |
£4.83 |
£5.55 |
£7.64 |
£4.49* |
*Lidl’s prices include offers available from 18/12
1 Original price £1.25
2 Price for two boxes, original price £1.09 per box
3 Original price £1
4 Price available in-store only from 18/12
5 Price for two 500g packs, price available in-store only from 18/12
|
Item |
Morrisons |
Sainsbury's |
Tesco |
Waitrose |
|
Turkey (approx 4kg) |
£17.06 (approx 4.5kg)
Available from 20/12 |
£19 (approx 4kg) > 3 |
£16 (3.9-5.2kg) + 6
Available until 15/12 |
£28 (approx 4kg)
Available from 20/12 |
|
Potatoes (1kg) |
95p |
70p |
70p |
80p |
|
Brussels sprouts (1kg) |
£1.99 |
£1.50 |
£1.90 |
£2.60 |
|
Parsnips (1kg) |
£1.10 |
£1.20 |
£1.20 |
£1.40 |
|
Carrots (1kg) |
60p |
60p |
60p |
70p |
|
Stuffing (170g) |
49p 1 |
49p |
45p |
£2 7 |
|
Cranberry sauce (200g) |
59p 2 |
69p |
69p
|
£1.25 8 |
|
Christmas pudding (800g) |
£4 |
£5 > 4 |
£4 |
£7 |
|
Pigs in blankets (24) |
£4 (multibuy offer/two x 12 packs)
|
£5 > 5 |
£6 + (multibuy offer/three x 12 pack) |
£9 (two x 16 pack) 9 |
|
Mince pies (12 ) |
£2.90 |
£3.20 |
£2.18 |
£3.40 |
|
Total price |
£33.68 |
£37.38 |
£33.72 |
£56.15 |
|
Price per head |
£5.61 |
£6.23 |
£5.62 |
£9.36 |
>Nectar card holders only
+ Clubcard customers only
1 Original price 75p
2 Original price £1.09
3 Original price £21
4 Original price £5.50
5 Price for two packs, original price £3 per pack
6 Original price £20
7 Original price £2
8 Original price £2.10
9 Three for £12 multibuy offer available
The Christmas price war
While all our prices are correct at the time of publication, it’s worth bearing in mind that most supermarkets start slashing their festive prices or launching special offers the nearer we get to Christmas.
During the past few years, roast veg in particular has significantly come down in the run-up to the 25th.
Based on the information Lidl provided, the supermarket is planning to reduce its roast veg to 19p on 18 December and others will likely follow suit.
And while Sainsbury’s came out as the third most expensive on our shopping list, the supermarket will offer a Christmas dinner deal to feed six people for £19.41 (or £3.24 per person) from 19 December.
Remember, it’s always worth keeping an eye out for any discounts that apply at the time when you’re doing your shop.