American Couple Reacts: The Average Cost of Groceries in Britain vs America! FIRST TIME REACTION!! 

SAINSBURYS ,ASDA ,MORRISONS ,,TESCO ALDI, LIDL, HERON ,ICELAND. MARKS & SPENCERS. WAITROSE. ALL FOOD STORES HERE AROUND BRITAIN. ASDA ARE CELEBRATING HIGH PROFITS . ITS DISGUSTING THE PRICE RISE THEY HAVE DONE.

You two should seriously consider moving to the UK. You'd be an instant hit, I'm sure. Keep it up!

He went to the most expensive shop asda is cheaper i shop at aldl and heron foods some times shop at my local fruit and veg shop bread is 55p in aldl loaf milk in farmfoods 8pints or two 4pints of milk is £2.80p fruit is from 69p to £1.29 veg is 59p to £149p

@@nealridgard7709 yes, he's also since done the Aldi US to Aldi UK comparison. I'm sure the girls will get around to that

Evan also does a comparison with Aldi UK and USA, that'll shock you as well, I would say that the Sainsbury Local is actually a small version of their major supermarket and is more expensive to shop in, also the bread brand Hovis is a more expensive brand, you can get a store brand loaf for 80p and similarly you can shave more money off the UK prices by using the stores own brands.

It's the same with Tesco Metro stores.

You must be joking me!!!! Have you ever even shopped in a co-op or waistrose, the price difference is huge tesco and sainsburys really are in middle of all the stores lol 😂

​@@2595220I think he means the small stores like Tesco Metro will be more expensive than the larger version like a Tesco Extra.

​@NickFoster, tbh I haven't seen a tesco metro for ages, but there are thousands of express stores which on average are slightly more expensive

£6 in Tesco express the other day for Nescafé barista the other day

Yeah seeing this, it should!

If you've got to drive to the shops, that is still much cheaper in the US.

@@lolsaXx They have their own oil wells in the USA and don't have to add taxes to petrol/diesel to help pay for healthcare. Plus they don't have idiots laying down on motorways to ensure more and more drive electric cars - which only makes the OPEC suppliers put up their prices for the dwindling market!

@@lolsaXx you could always just get it delivered in the UK though for like £3 delivery charge

@@lolsaXx we have food delivery in America, it actually started here over 20 years ago

I lived there for six months,and yes American shoppers do get stung! It's outrageous!! Someone is making a killing! You have my comisserations,how do you live???

Aldi are making huge strides in USA, once they get a good foothold it will be "survival of the most adaptable" as it was in UK a few years ag. Remember when Tesco were the major players a few years ago?

Yeah I do. And that is very true! God knows which supermarket it is for us now, major player wise. It’s always changing. I guess if Aldi continue to grow, it could be them in the US then?

Remember their salaries are 2/3 times higher in respective field a lot of the time!

The OTT prices of US fresh produce are well known, it's a big part of why they have such high rates of obesity. British high obesity rates are because we are getting too used to American style fast food - the increase is very noticeably linked to the expansion of fast food chains in the UK. Even with kebab + fish/chip shops we didn't have this kind of problem until McDonalds, Burger King and KFC invaded us 😅 Probably because prior to McDonalds etc we mostly only had fast food as an end of week treat, while McDonalds started becoming an all week, all day solution to many people - and from there it's like a gateway drug to all fast food all the time.

Two lovely ladies. ELAINE IN ZENGLAND.alays cheer me up

Actually sainsbury's last year was a lot cheaper than tesco. Tesco's prices have been going up while sainsbury's has been going down I got a receipt from Tesco and it said if I'd have gone to sainsbury's I would have saved £4.75 and about £6 at Aldi

Seen that one and it is very good

Iv seen it as well and it’s frightening 🇬🇧

The price gouging in the UK is on its way.

Uk asda food price is higher then uk tesco

@@ivantsang2156 don’t know where abouts in uk you are, I have found that a lot of the time Asda is fairly similar if not a little cheaper than Tesco

Been trying to explain this to friends. I've known for ages that our economy is way better than most. My fiancee is Dutch and it's far, far worse there. We're having all these strikes and people need to take into account the past few years. We're doing far better than most other nations. Shame nobody reports facts anymore on the news. You don't need to look far to find we're actually doing better than most.

@@peterb2286 But at the same time in general the working class has slipped 20% in earnings versus comparable nations in the UK in the past 10 years. Against France, Germany, Italy. And then there's the cost in the UK of housing...

You can never trust Lidl or Aldi for pricing, they are not consistent with the brands they sell, phasing in new brands just as you got used to something. Also Lidl & Aldi claiming their baskets are cheapest is because they compare their own brands against other supermarkets prices on name brands, not in any way comparable in either price, taste or quality.

He's quoting like for like brands from like for like middle tier shops, you can no doubt find cheaper and more expensive on both sides.

@@unclegreybeard3969 I trust Lidls for pricing and quality, it is also a much nicer place to shop than the likes of Tesco and Asda that have long waits at the self scan checkouts since they rid of the manual tills, I never shop in Asda or Tesco due to their inflated prices, poor stocking levels and very variable quality in the their fresh veg and meat sections. Their cheap and nasty Chinese/ Indian manufactured clothing and footwear departments are also laughable as far as pricing and quality goes.

@@unclegreybeard3969 I agree

@@unclegreybeard3969 taste and quality is IMO better at lidl and aldi. The vegetables and fruit last longer and they source from local farms for meat and veg probably the reason why the quality is good and shelf life is better. If you have to have named brand things like cereals then you are going to be out of luck but nothing to stop you getting the named brand stuff in another supermarket. A lot of us are doing that now.

Food items if unprocessed or classed as basic are not taxed, the reason for the expensive court case over jaffa Cakes, biscuit or cake as the VAT is different.

@@tonys1636 even many processed foods are zero tax rate. Cake is zero tax whether coated in chocolate or not, while biscuits/cookies are zero-rated unless fully or partial coated with chocolate (even chocolate chip cookies are zero tax). Pretty sure all dairy except Ice Cream is zero tax etc.

@@jennetscarborough5145 yes dairy is 0% VAT. Strangely millionare's shortbread is also 0% VAT but chocolate covered shortbread is 20% VAT. Just one of the odderties of the VAT system.

A lot of the uk do shop at Lidi Aldi witch is low cost supermarket

@@madabbafan you pay more tax on chocolate!!! Well that's just rude.

Food prices haven't gone up much in the UK over the last 5 years in comparison to many European countries and the US. I have friends in Sweden always complaining the even MandS food is cheaper than in Sweden. But I'm pretty sure we earn less in the UK.

I’m from wales and englands prices are outrageous to me lol americas prices are just shocking , I get a pint of Stella in Swansea for £2.80 it’s around £4 in most pubs in England , had 16oz steak and chips while there cost me around £18 while I can get it for about £13 where I live the cost of living in wales is the lowest in the entire uk 15% less than England , Scotland and northern Ireland I have English friends that I met in Swansea university and they couldn’t believe the low prices down here

There is a big difference when you compare grocery shopping to eating out or takeaway. England is expensive for restaurants and takeaway but cheap for groceries, I've found the opposite to be the case in the USA and France, Spain etc . In the USA, France and other parts of the EU food is far more expensive in supermarkets than the uk but far cheaper to eat in restaurants or takeaway. I was shocked at the prices in USA and France in supermarkets but very relieved to find restaurants and takeaway is far cheaper than in the uk. So as a tourist its actually cheaper to eat in the USA than the uk , because you tend to eat out. I think those visiting from the USA would probably be surprised at our restaurant prices and find those very expensive, in the same way we find their supermarket prices very expensive.

Even more expensive in Ireland .Everything ,cars,gas ,electricity all more.

I've got family in Austria and Germany, and believe me Britain is really cheap for groceries.

You say Sainsburys is more expensive but that's not been true for a long time. Sainsburys now regularly comes in cheaper than ASDA and Tesco. It doesn't keep up with Aldi and Lidl but check online and you'll be surprised. Shopping at a local store though is a no-no, any supermarket will be cheaper than that.

Totally agree, but American bread! not even on par with ours. It's so hard to find decent bread over there.

Forget the branded items. Brand snobbery's madness, and it's all psychology: The IDEA it's better quality and all due to a pretty label. Forget it. You're much better off buying the non-branded stuff. You'll save a fortune. I spend £30 for a WEEK'S worth of food for myself ... in 2023.

@@SevenEllen sorry you can tell the differance,its not snobbery

A lot of the same goods come from the same factories but under different branding. The meat in my area in Scotland is the same for M & S ,Aldi and Balmoral Castle ,not a lot of people know that .

@@f.m.bproductions7197 Increasingly own brands match and even surpass the branded equivalent. Lidl crumpets compared to Warburton, 75% the cost and 10 to 20% fluffier and yummier. Lidl chocolate, Lidl ground coffee cheaper and notably better.

You are right, however aldi is surging forward, I work for the company at this rate , 4th spot won't be soon far off.

I was about to say the same. This is meaningless unless you compare the income. It should really compare the average percentage of income that’s spent on groceries and then look at other expenses like health care and fuel in order to get a proper understanding.

Absolutely

You really need to compare median salaries not mean. The US has a huge number of super rich that tip the scales on the mean. The median US salary was $56,420 in 2022. The median UK salary was £33,000 or around $41,000.

No health insurance required in the UK.

All the little Sainsbury’s locals are always more expensive than the superstore Sainsbury’s same as Aldo locals they are more expensive as opposed to the superstore Asda.

Random I buy a lot of British good and American farming is awful.

I'm really shocked that as a world major producer the US customers have to pay so much at end user level. UK gets apples, oranges, grapes, sweetcorn and green veg from as far away as South Africa. More oranges from Israel and Spain and tomatoes from Spain and Italy. I had blueberries last week from Peru. Orange juice is from Brazil. Some of the bacon and butter from Denmark. Salad veg year round from greenhouses in Holland. I was particularly shocked at the US price for raisins as ours all come from California.

the crap that the US stuff has in it is disgusting

Don't forget ASDA (originally a Walmart company)

@@crackpot148 Indeed!

Asda was Originally "Associated Dairies" and originated in Leeds, its flirtation with Walmart was relatively recent... @@crackpot148

Wow! That's a lot!... we spend 250 tops at Asda each month and we are also a family of 5

Never bin to Aldi so cannot comment but Lidl for us is crap the meat is awful the tinned food is a joke but the breads ok some of the pasties are good milks fine and some frozen but no good for a proper shop

Wow that’s a lot, and at Aldi? Not knocking you, but wouldn’t need to spend that at a Sainsburys. Growing boys I bet?

@@daylightdies7194Yeh you get what you pay for in some cases. Watch out for salt and sugar content on the cheap foods.

We're a family of 9 and spend about £140 a week in aldi or £160 in asda

I always assumed that was one item that would be cheaper in the US, given the huge amount of cereal crops grown there...

Same! I just commented to my Dad how a box of Shreddies is over £3 now and it seemed grossly overpriced. I guess not when compared to US prices.

Average wage in the US is $54,000 a year though - That's the reason for the higher prices as UK average wage is £35,000 - £40,000...

@@BassandoForte yes but that’s the average and is skewed dreadfully by a few more affluent regions, so the majority of people earn far less than that (in the same way that most people I know earn less than the UK average wage). Relatively speaking the US has it far worse than us food-shopping-wise.

@@Cazzdevil - That is what average means... Add all the wages from all the population together and divide by the amount of people in the population - That's how you work out average wage... 👍

Try parking your RV in Sainsburys overnight and see what happens.

Basic food is NOT subject to VAT (fruit, veg, pasta, rice, breads etc). Luxury items such as chocolate biscuits, cake, jams etc DO have VAT on them. It's just that because we're used to paying the price we see we don't think about whether VAT has been added or not. There's going to be a split at some point between basic milk and yoghurts and fancy creamy desserts/mousses etc, and I guess things like Shredded Wheat, cornflakes and bran cereals won't have VAT, where as Coco Pops, Crunchy Nut Cornflakes and Alpen etc will. It's an interesting subject, though, and might be worth someone's while googling what is and what isn't vatable for the sake of interest. Likewise in the US I noticed going down my receipt that most of the basic foods had no sales tax added, but the bags of crisps and M&Ms etc did have sales tax.

As they will have in the US too - and don't forget that in the US the price on the shelves isnt what you pay, there's tax on top of anything up to 6%...

I implore you not to watch that one. You've already been punished enough. 😱

@@The.Android we have no intention to

Yeah it's depressing. A lot of families are really hurting here

@@TheNatashaDebbieShow - Evan Edinger has done another USA - UK comparison video. He went to Aldi. Worth checking out.

@@TheNatashaDebbieShow There is a follow up comparing USA Aldi to UK Aldi no spoilers *BUT* very worth reacting to and you might learn something new as well

Prefer Lidl for the 30% and 60% discounts in the morning

We still have our milk delivered. Every other day (Milk and More) to the doorstep, along with, occasionally, other household stuff. It’s delivered in glass 1 pint bottles which better for the planet - empties are recycled back to the milkman, washed and refilled for next time. NO PLASTIC !!!

i still get pint glass milk delivered, they are still around

British cows were bred over many centuries to produce milk in multiples of 1 pint so it's impossible to switch to litres without genetically modifying the cattle. 😃

Well we Brits do like to be a little eccentric, we can't let the world think we're normal, that would be boaring.

These days even market stalls don't bother with grammes coz everyone wants lbs and oz but shops still use metric which means you have to convert in you head, sausages are sold in 454 grammes or half a pound, vinegar in 568ml or a pt. Even sweets are sold iimperial just translated to metric(113g, 227g or a qtr or half lb)

That is why the poor in America so much worse off.The healthcare for starters there is none for them.

@@foppo100 Is/was Medicare not a thing anymore?! If that is infact what it was called!?! 🤷🏼‍♀️

@@louiseb6111 I have heard that poor people are looked after and the old but its those in the middle who suffer.

@@lindylou18 That is true. There are millions of spongers in this country who are content to live their entire lives generation after generation purely on state benefits. It's too easy to scam the system and these people have no shame or sense of responsibility "I tried to get a job but there aren't any" yeah right. The system incentivises them to just pump out kid after kid to get more and more government money, and then the job of raising all these kids & keeping them in line falls to state school staff, teachers, NHS staff & the police. These parasites contribute absolutely nothing & are an enormous drain on society. Notnto mention all of the millions of state-funded middle-management penpushers needed to administer & run these systems. There's no commercial incentive in any of these organisations to be efficient or spend money wisely. They just burn through money throwing endless resources at these problems then hold out their hands to the government wanting more. Rich people don't care because they're rich. They just pay the tax & barely notice. The mSsive financial burden of paying for all of this falls on the average respectable law-abiding working people of this country. They are the ones who get screwed by the UK system. The rich don't care because they're rich, good luck to them. The civil service and welfate state are a massive financial millstone around the neck of average working British people. You guys always watch theseninfantile videos & go "oh wow free healthcare thats amazing" but never consider the other side of the argument. It incentivises entire communities, millions upon millions of people to live comfortable lives generation after generation funded entirely by the middle-income tax payers of this country who sacrifice the most to the system & benefit the least from it. What we need in this country is a meritocracy. You should get the level of service you earn.

@@finbarrsaunders You took the opposite from what I was saying! Americans pay more than twice for government provided healthcare than we do but it doesn't cover everyone. Mainly, as I understand it, because Medicare and Medicaid are not allowed to negotiate prices. Everything in US is set up to support big companies. As for UK there are a few who scam the system but the vast majority are proud and want to support their families. Unemployment is about the same as in America and nobody goes to the doctor if they don't need to, unless they have some other problem.

Hi 👋

My friend just came back from Sweden and paid £13 for a loaf of bread. Ok artisan and large but that would still just be £5 in U.K.

@@phoenix-xu9xj I have no clue what the prices are for things like that, sorry. I bake everything myself.

@@phoenix-xu9xj The most expensive branded large loaf at my local Co-Op is £1.75.

I used to make bread but with the ingredients and electricity it cost about the same as buying bread. (UK priced). Also home made bread goes stale quicker and doesn't freeze well so you're more likely to waste some. It's nice to have absolutely fresh home made bread but certainly not cheaper. Obviously the price difference might not be the same in Sweden.

We are first and foremost Proud Americans! We love our Country and this is our home. We have many things we love about it as you do yours. 🇺🇸❤️🇬🇧 P.S. we are both very healthy.

Then there's the family that in UK you pay the price you see in states there are taxes added at pay point. Too.

I wouldn't call Waitrose a mainstream supermarket. It's more top end, alongside M&S. Also, I think you meant 'Aldi', not Audi. :)

Mid July I organised a BBQ for a celebration week end for a church group of 100 people most of whom were teens early twenties age range and boy can they eat buying burgers, sausages, chicken drumsticks, hot dogs various cold cuts,crisps by the box burger buns ( rolls) hot dog rolls tea, coffee soft canned drinks diluting drinks salads condiments, paper cups plates napkins cutlery sweets ice cream variety of fruits and seasonings corn cobs butter cheeses variety of chops and frying steaks I still had change left over from £350 and at end of the event we took enough left overs into my workplace which is the homeless centre also run by my church and there was more than enough for the 52 clients living there all to have a buffet supper with all we supplied from centre being tea and coffee. I don't know where you shopped for those prices in this country but I'm based in West end of Glasgow and the butcher meats cold meats etc all came from my local family butchers shop.???

@@amsodoneworkingnow1978I think they meant they went back to the US and shocked at the prices there not in Scotland

Am in a very similar position and age in Vancouver Canada. The prices here are high for a number of reasons but your prices make me want to cry at times. However when I checked my average weekly cost broken down from my delivered groceries(very similar to you), ordered every 3-5 weeks, I was paying $60-80 Cdn per week. Supply chain issues, petrol, have increased the cost of living in an already expensive city. I try to use every bargain and Club benefit at my choice of store so I usually can save up to $120 on an order and use points to get free delivery. Makes a huge difference. The beginning of the pandemic hugely upset this but my store kept adapting to try to ensure people got by.

I am also alone, an OAP and live in rural Suffolk but the walk to the local Co-Op each week is a bit of exercise. Sorry to hear you can't get out so much. My weekly budget is £30 and I buy every week. So some items will be bought in one week and not the next. Prices have gone up but last Monday my shop was £29.

I’m alone and 25. Please tell me your tips on only spending £25 a week on food and everything else. I easily spend double that 😂😂

@@bethanymay7720 Seeioiust what the hell are you eating? I spend £150 a month on the standard food shop for two people and we eat salmon, duck and sometimes lamb once a fortnight

My son lives in France, in the North, and I agree. Food is more expensive, we were there a couple of weeks ago.

Totally agree - we’ve been spoiled for decades - that’s why people are much fatter now and waste money on other things.

I live in London but originally from Slovakia and I can tell you guys, some stuff is cheaper in London than in Slovakia...

I blame Brexit 😉

@@beardyface8492 So you are blaming Brexit for the UK having cheaper food than the rest of Europe? The only only good thing Brexit has done in my view.

I have found that Milk in local Premier store is 10 pence cheaper than in ASDA

See you use Asda! Do try their Just Essentials lines, handy if your economising! I'm a pensioner so the UK isn't generous with us I economise weekly!!

@@georgejob2156 I've been using there just essentials range when it was known as smart price way back in 2007. I was in store yesterday and they are limiting to only 3 items of each just essentials per visit

It's not just the prices. Certain items are unavailable. My favourite instant coffee was hard to find about March/April but it's just not there any more. Washing up liquid doesn't have the same selection. Biscuit selection is also sporadic. Lately there are always empty shelves in my nearest Tesco which is very very unusual.

Hopefully the farmers have started to grow orchards, you know, the ones we had to burn down when we joined the Common market.Lets get our British apples back. Maybe some Pears as well.♥️

@@iriscollins7583 We have apples grown here - but they tend not to be Pink Lady (which has copyright protection or some such). Cox's being the British variety but also Gala and Braeburn (Antipodean) are popular. Apples such as Pink Lady and Jazz (also Antipodean) are about twice the price of Cox. Looking at a supermarket site - 6 Pink Lady (aka Cripp's Pink) apples are £2.50. Six Braeburn apples are 99p. Six Cox (or 6 Royal Gala) apples are £1.39 But yes it would be nice to get some of the traditional varieties back in the supermarket but I think people have been sold on the taste of Pink Lady and Jazz and Honey Crunch and that is what they want rather than a Worcester Pearmain or Chivers Delight let alone an Egremont Russet.

@@iriscollins7583 I live in Herefordshire. Since Brexit I have seen hundreds of acres of apple orchard *dug up* and turned over to cereal and rape seed (called canola oil seed in the US). Growers can't get the workers now we are out of the EU.

I've only ever had Coco pops about 3 times in my life, and I'm as old as dirt. Porridge with raisins or banana or whiskey marmalade & cranberries, but only on gala occasions.

The own brand versions are a lot cheaper and almost as good.

To add to that a USA gallon is smaller. Half a UK Imperial gallon = 5 USA pints.

We did use quarts in the 70’s.

@@harryjones4167 ah I didn’t know that :)

You can buy a large wholemeal sliced loaf in Tesco for 39p, same price for milk. Nice to be able to shop around and realise that other countries are suffering from inflation as well.

Try Australian prices at the moment. 18 eggs are $9.50. Mid range bread $4.90. Cabbage head $7.00. 250gr roma tomatoes $5.50 its way cheaper to buy junk food. My groceries have almost tripled in less than 6 months so I've gone from $70 per week to $180-$200 per week for the exact same stuff for one person.

@@tanjacristina7913 that's crazy, I now you guys are like 2 Aussie dollars to one pound but even so those prices are insane, in the UK we feed a family of 5 for £90 a week or 180 Aussie dollars

@@tanjacristina7913 Australia is weird because your prices are higher, but also your min wage is $21 an hour, so that really messes with things. This is where a straight "exchange rate" comparison starts to fall apart and you need to look at grocery costs as a % of disposable income.

@@SE-tc3cr Yeah my brother, his wife and their 2 toddlers have grocery costs on average of $500 per week. No special diets, just healthy fresh food and most are homebrand which isn't that much cheaper than name brand here anymore. Oz is shockingly expensive for everything.

Somebody on here was asking about gluten free products in the UK,Most UK supermarkets have a good stock of gf foods,but the basics can still be obtained by prescription.

I’m coelaic and gluten free is still expensive but has recently got so much better. Every major store has a free from section (not really Aldi and Lidl). Some items can be three times the price of non-GF items and be half the size but I noticed Asda bringing the prices of basic GF things down in the last few years. Not all places offer GF on NHS subscription anymore, it’s a lot more limited.

Thank you for letting me know! I found that I don't eat much gluten free foods, but I do like bread, Crackers, and sweets. I do have an app to help me figure out if something is gluten free too, so that can help.

Gluten free has improved alot recently - I'm allergic to wheat and barley - and can hapily say in M&S, Tesco, Asda and Sainburys there's actually isles of freefrom now! Years in the making but its there and food of all sorts... freefrom though is of mostly all free from eggs, milk, wheat and soya though. Went to LA not long ago and wowza, was much harder to find groceries, but then I just bought ingredients and food I know doesn't include my allergies and went from there

@@BookNomming my local Aldi has a free from section now, so if yours doesn’t it probably will soon. The plant based croissants are amazing if you heat them in an air fryer for a couple of minutes

Our local butchers closed not long ago, I was heartbroken.

Im not saying its fully the governments fault, but.. just cause the US government is also shit and corrupt as ours... Things like groceries and fuel are being ALLOWED to increase with no regulation. Their are things like the pandemic and the ukraine war affecting supply and inflation. However the gov pretending thats the whole reason is just false. Its going up in the UK more than a lot of places in Europe because of the post Brexit particular issues in fulfiling supplies due to shortage of workers and co2, plus the complications of shipping red tape and thr increased costs associated. Also fuel costs are not rising due to hardships of the fuel companies, the are reporting record profits than ever to billions of ££. And yet there is no regulation from the government to stop these companies not just ripping us off but thwarting all efforts for climate change action for the last 50 years (yes these oil companies knew the climate crisis a very long time ago). And yet the gov action has been to lower wages, make cuts, refuse to pay rail workers, carers, nhs staff decent wages, increasing the cap on cost of bills making them thousands more per year, all while increasing their own pay not even along with inflation leaving the rest of us even worse off. These are things the gov can do shit about and yet they dont. Also yes we have choices depending on where you live but these are all more expensive options.. not really options for a lot of people

Yea but the quality is shockingly bad!

*Morrison's was much better.*

Yes. What we save on food we spend on petrol to drive to the supermarket!

Still expensive in Vancouver. Supply chain issues (pandemic)and gasoline here has really hit us hard.