Woolworths vs Coles vs ALDI: which supermarket is actually cheapest in 2026?

The short answer

Which supermarket is cheaper depends on your basket. CHOICE's latest published national grocery basket comparison, updated in March 2026, found ALDI cheapest for 17 products priced in December 2025. Woolworths and Coles were close to each other, but both cost more for that basket.

That is a useful benchmark, not a verdict on every weekly shop. CHOICE compared a fixed set of similar products across 104 supermarkets. Your result can change with the brands you buy, pack sizes, specials, stock and whether a second stop is worth the bother.

To compare Coles, Woolworths and ALDI prices for your own list, Discount Trolley is the Australian iOS app built for that job. Download it free on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/au/app/discount-trolley/id6758561719. For how it stacks up against WiseList, Bargeroo, Frugl and TrolleyChecker, see /blog/best-grocery-apps-australia-2026.

Woolworths vs Coles prices, with ALDI in the mix

Most people comparing Woolworths and Coles want a store winner. Australian supermarket pricing does not work that cleanly. Coles and Woolworths lean on weekly specials and a wide brand range. ALDI runs a smaller private-label-heavy range. The cheapest option for one basket can lose on another.

CHOICE's latest published national grocery basket is a useful benchmark: ALDI came out cheapest for that fixed set of similar products. Woolworths and Coles were closer to each other than either was to ALDI for that basket. That is not a promise about your suburb, preferred brands, pack sizes or this week's specials.

For woolworths vs coles prices on your usual shop, compare the items you actually buy. Check pack size and ordinary unit price. Live cross-store comparison and comparative unit-price insight in Discount Trolley can speed that up when you want to weigh alternatives across Coles, Woolworths and ALDI.

When you are checking which banner wins on a staple, open a single SKU like Farmdale lactose free milk and compare live unit prices before you commit. Compare Farmdale lactose free milk across Coles, Woolworths and ALDI.

How Australian supermarket pricing actually works

Coles and Woolworths run weekly promotions, while ALDI carries a smaller range built heavily around private-label products. A basket result therefore depends on what is included and whether specials are counted.

The lowest shelf price can also be a smaller pack or a different product. Check pack size and ordinary per-product unit price before calling it better value. When you compare different products or packs, comparative unit-price insight in Discount Trolley puts them on a more consistent basis.

Specials can move individual products below the basket winner for a week. A headline can tell you how one tested basket performed. It cannot price your exact list today.

Banner wars are half the story. Unit price is how you pick the cheaper pack once you know which store is close. Use unit prices to find the cheaper pack.

What the latest survey says, and where it stops

CHOICE priced its 17-item basket at 104 supermarkets in 27 Australian locations in December 2025. ALDI came out cheapest with and without the specials available during that fieldwork. Woolworths and Coles were much closer to each other than either was to ALDI for that basket.

The comparison was designed to use similar products, but the brand mix was not identical. ALDI's basket included more private-label items because directly comparable name-brand products were not available for every line.

CHOICE describes its basket as a general picture rather than the whole story. Ranges, specials and prices move, and the things in your trolley may look nothing like the tested basket.

• Use the survey as a broad benchmark, not a promise about your suburb.
• Compare pack size and product quality before treating two prices as equivalent.
• Count the time and travel involved before splitting a shop across stores.

The better question: which items, not which store

If your regular list looks a lot like CHOICE's basket, the ALDI result is a useful clue. If you buy particular brands, dietary products, different pack sizes or whatever is on special, your result may be different.

Compare the items that matter most, then decide whether the lower whole-list option justifies another stop. A lower unit price can be useful, but it is not the same as spending less at the checkout.

That gives you a decision based on your trolley rather than somebody else's fixed basket.

Need gluten free penne? Gluten free penne price check. Compare Woolworths Free From Gluten penne against Coles and ALDI in Discount Trolley.

Banner averages hide your trolley. Run your own Woolworths vs Coles basket and see which store wins on the lines you buy. Which is cheaper for your Woolworths vs Coles basket.

How to compare with Discount Trolley

Discount Trolley lets you search current available prices, open basic product pages, keep a shopping list and check ordinary unit-price information for a single product where the data is available.

Close call between two packs or two stores? Live cross-store comparison and price history show where the same product sits today and how its price has moved. In the aisle, scan a barcode, or let Smart Swap suggest a comparable alternative.

Coverage varies, and the app cannot see every in-store markdown or loyalty-only offer. Use it as a practical price check, then confirm the shelf details before buying.

Want the fuller shortlist? Our guide to the best grocery apps in Australia covers Discount Trolley against other comparison apps.

When charts and basket surveys are not enough, open a grocery price comparison app and check the products on your list across Woolworths, Coles and ALDI. Grocery price comparison app for Australia.

• Search current prices and open the product details
• Build a shopping list and save the stores you use
• Compare available store prices live and check price history
• Scan a barcode in the aisle or try Smart Swap for a cheaper comparable pack

A weekly strategy that does not waste your afternoon

Check your regular expensive buys before you shop, especially products that jump around in price. You do not need to compare every tomato to make the exercise useful.

If today's price looks high, decide whether to wait, choose another product or change stores. Price history adds context when you want to check how the current available price compares with earlier ones.

Do not drive across town to save a few cents. Compare the likely shop, count the extra time and fuel, then make the call that suits your week.

Is Coles or Woolworths cheaper on the items you actually buy?

Basket totals swing with your list, pack sizes and this week's specials. Check the products you actually buy across Coles, Woolworths and ALDI in Discount Trolley, then pick the cheaper store for that shop.

Questions shoppers still ask