What is the cheapest grocery store in South Africa?

According to research conducted by The Outlier, for April 2023, Makro is the most affordable store to buy groceries in South Africa, and SPAR is the most expensive. 

Every month, the company conducts research on a few popular South African grocery supermarkets and compares the prices based on a consistent food basket. 

The supermarkets compared for April are:

1. Pick ‘n Pay

2. Makro

3. Boxer

4. SPAR

5. Food Lover’s Market

6. Checkers

7. Shoprite 

8. Woolworths 

The items in the grocery basket are:

1. 2-litre store brand sunflower oil

2. 700g loaf of Albany Superior Sliced White Bread or a store brand

3. Iwisa maize meal (2.5kg)

4. Selati white sugar (2.5kg)

5. 2-litre store brand milk

6. Tastic rice (2kg)

7. Snowflake cake flour (2.5kg)

8. Dettol Herbal Soap (175g)

9. 2-ply toilet paper (9 pack), average price over all brands

According to this food basket, SPAR has been ranked as the most expensive supermarket in South Africa for April 2023. 

These are the supermarkets ranked, from cheapest to most expensive:

1. Makro - R393,60

2. Food Lover’s Market - R404,87

3. Boxer - R410,91

4. Shoprite - R411,07

5. Woolworths - R413,91

6. Checkers - R421,91

7. Pick ‘n Pay - R428,01

8. SPAR - R433,41

In this year, while the prices fluctuate each month, and the rankings may change slightly, Food Lover’s Market has consistently ranked as the most affordable store, without the inclusion of data from Makro and Boxer. 

SPAR has consistently held the spot for the most expensive grocery store, other than in March 2023 when Checkers was ranked as the most expensive. 

5 things you can do to help you save money on food

1. Create a food budget

No financial planning strategy can be effective without a budget. It may seem simple, but you have to start with a budget. You need to dedicate a certain amount to food and make sure you don’t use any more. 

This is why it’s also important to not set your food budget at a small, unrealistic amount. You need to eat to survive.

Moku tip: Be realistic when setting your food budget. 

2. Create a shopping list and stick to it

It’s very easy for everything to become a necessity when you just visit a grocery store without a shopping list. Instead, before going to the store, plan a shopping list and stick to it. 

3. Prioritise a monthly shop 

Make one big monthly shop where you can buy selected items in bulk, and only do top-up shops when you really need to.

4. Meal plan

While meal prepping has become somewhat of a health trend, what could definitely assist you financially is planning your meals ahead of time. This way you know what groceries you will need to purchase for those meals. It helps take the guesswork out of eating and can end up saving you money. 

5. Use a store’s loyalty or rewards system

Most popular retailers now have a card that you can use to save or accumulate points on. If you haven’t already, find out what system the grocery store you use most often has on offer, and sign up for it. 

While it usually may take awhile to accumulate points, and there isn’t a guarantee that you will always save money, there are deals and it doesn’t cost you any money to sign up, so really, you have nothing to lose.