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Which supermarket is cheapest for Easter?
Whether you're looking to feed hungry kids during the school holidays or put on an Easter Sunday spread, our analysis shows that you don't need to shell out a fortune.
Which? has crunched the numbers, and we've got the lowdown on the cheapest supermarket for your school holiday shopping.
We also compare prices on popular Easter Sunday lunch items including lamb, chicken, and a selection of sides.
Which supermarket is cheapest for the Easter school holidays?
Our Easter school holiday basket included everyday essentials such as milk, eggs and bread, plus ingredients for healthier lunches and dinners (based on school holiday shopping lists compiled by some of the big supermarkets and NHS Better Health).
We compared the prices of 21 items in the two weeks before 4 April, including royal gala apples, bananas, sweet potatoes, own-label peanut butter, and houmous. Our basket also included those ingredients you might need for healthy and filling dinners, such as own-label spaghetti, onions and beef mince.
Aldi (Aldi.co.uk)came out cheapest overall, with our basket costing £24.49, while Lidl (Lidl.co.uk) was just over £1 more expensive. The same shop at Waitrose (Waitrose.com) would cost you over £13 extra - that's nearly 54% more.
In our larger shopping trolley of 43 goods we included a larger range of branded groceries - such as Birds Eye fish fingers, a Dairylea snacking pot and Organix apple rice cakes - which aren't always available in the discounter supermarkets. For this larger shopping list, we weren't able to include Aldi or Lidl.
Asda(Asda.com) at £80.30, was the cheapest of the traditional supermarkets. It was £15.71 cheaper than the most expensive supermarket, Waitrose.
- Find out more: advice on managing the cost of living
Where to buy your Easter meal
If you're hosting this Easter, then you may well be serving lamb like 76 out of 217 respondents in our social media poll.
In our analysis, a whole lamb shoulder ranged in price per kg from £8.50 at Tesco to £11 at Morrisons (total price depends on the size you buy), on average. For those serving a half lamb leg, Asda offers the best value (£10.99/kg).
Those planning a roast chicken main will find the best value at Aldi, at £1.87 per kg for a large British whole chicken (fixed price of £3.55 for a 1.6kg-1.9kg variable weight chicken).
For vegetarians at Easter, the Linda McCartney's frozen vegetarian chicken roast was cheapest at Waitrose (£3). The lowest prices are in bold in the table below.
| Aldi | Asda | Lidl | Morrisons | Ocado | Sainsbury's | Tesco | Waitrose | |
| Half leg of lamb (950g-1.27kg) | £10.99 | £14.50 | £12 | £13.50 | £11.62 | |||
| Lamb whole shoulder (1-2kg) | £9 | £11 | £10 | £9.50 | £8.50 | £10.50 | ||
| Large whole chicken (1.6-2kg) | £1.87 | £2.38 | £2.35 | £2.43 | £2.37 | £2.45 | £2.83 | |
| Pork shoulder joint (1-2kg) | £2.89 | £3.50 | £2.89 | £3.57 | £3.85 | £2.89 | £3.50 | £6.50 |
| Linda McCartney's frozen vegetarian chicken roast (400g) | £3.50 | £3.50 | £3.85 | £3.85 | £3 |
Prices of meat in the table are per kilogram. Total cost will depend on the size bought.
Of course, no Sunday lunch table is complete without your favourite side dishes. We've compared the prices of common spring roast accompaniments below. Whether you prefer roasties or baby potatoes, broccoli or cabbage alongside your main, you can see which supermarket has the lowest price (in bold).
| Aldi | Asda | Lidl | Morrisons | Ocado | Sainsbury's | Tesco | Waitrose | |
| Birds Eye Frozen Garden Peas (375g) | £1.40 | £1.39 | £1 | £1.06 | £1.40 | £1.40 | ||
| Own Label Asparagus (230g - 250g) | £1.89 | £1.99 | £2.05 | £1.98 | £2.00 | £1.80 | ||
| Own Label Baby Potatoes (1000g) | £0.55 | £0.90 | £0.79 | £0.85 | £0.91 | £1 | ||
| Own Label Broccoli Crown (300g - 400g) | £0.47 | £0.50 | £0.44 | £0.49 | £0.49 | £1.40 | ||
| Own Label Carrot Bag 1000g | £0.39 | £0.43 | £0.39 | £0.40 | £0.40 | £0.39 | £0.65 | |
| Own Label King Edward Potatoes (2000-2500g) | £1.19 | £1.50 | £1.76 | £1.33 | £1.50 | £1.57 | ||
| Own Label Leeks (400-500g) | £0.95 | £0.88 | £1.20 | £0.95 | £0.95 | £1.50 |
Our analysis is based on independent data and includes discounts but not multi buys.
- Find out more: supermarket price comparisons by month
Kids eat free during the school holidays
Thankfully some places offer a kids eat free scheme during the break. Below is a selection, but it's worth checking with local restaurants or cafes to see if they are running any school holiday deals.
- Asda - children can eat free after 3pm Monday to Friday, and you can get a free Ella's Kitchen baby food pouch for children under 18 months with any purchase.
- Bella Italia - £1 for one children's three-course meal plus drink per adult meal that's bought. Running from 1-24 April, excluding Saturdays.
- Dunelm Cafe-Pausa - one free mini-main, two snacks and a drink for every £4 spent in the cafe. Offer from 1-24 April.
- Farmhouse Inns - for each paying adult, two children can eat for £1. Valid for junior carvery or any kids' meal, 4-22 April.
- Hungry Horse - kids eat breakfast free at Hungry Horse pubs when accompanied by a paying adult during the Easter holidays, 9am-12pm.
- M&S cafes - one free kid's meal deal when you spend £5 or more in the cafe. Running from 4-22 April.
- Morrisons - kids eat free at Morrisons cafes all day, every day, if you spend £4.99 on an adult meal. It's also running a family meal deal offer, including two adult mains, two kids mains and four drinks for £10.
- The Real Greek - kids eat free on Sundays. One free meal per adult spending £10 or more.
With any of these offers, be sure to check that you qualify by reading the terms and conditions before the meal. The time of day, location, age of your kids, or the food under offer might vary.
- Find out more:keep kids entertained on a budget
