British Supermarkets and Food Shopping

British Supermarkets and Food Shopping

I always enjoy visiting local supermarkets when travelling abroad. Supermarkets differ from country to country, and it is a great way to introduce yourself to the real home cooking of a particular culture. I remember being pleasantly surprised at how late British supermarkets stay open and how they sell food catered to a student population (meaning easy meals and yummy snacks).

Depending on your home-country, British food prices can be more or less expensive. For me, food here is definitely cheaper than back home. That said, for those who may be shocked at the prices, it is definitely feasible to eat a healthy and well-balanced diet on a budget of around £30 a week.

When I first arrived in the UK, like many international students, I was unsure about which supermarket was the most affordable and suitable to my needs. Because I was unaware of the wide variety of shops, I ended up shopping at the closest and because it catered to students, the most expensive, store. Now that I am well-acquainted with what’s on offer, I make more financially conscious decisions.

To help all new international students, TopCourses decided to categorise all the main British supermarkets by affordability and other defining characteristics.

Affordable supermarkets

• Lidl
  • No online shopping or delivery available, however, its website lists lots of tasty offers.
  • Lidl is famous among students for its bakery, and everyone goes there for library snacks.
  • It’s great for the basics, but it does not have as wide of a variety as the higher priced supermarkets.
• Aldi
  • Offers click and collect shopping, and delivery on select items.
  • Like Lidl, Aldi is good for the basics, but it does not have as wide of a variety or offering as the higher priced supermarkets.

Average priced supermarkets

• Morrisons, Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury’s
  • Online shopping and delivery available, and they are all very similar in price.
  • All four have a decent selection of international ingredients. They also sell a wide range of household, clothing and personal goods.

Expensive supermarkets

• Waitrose
  • Waitrose sells very high-quality produce, fish and meats. They primarily cater to the passionate home cook.
  • It has a reputation for being very “posh”, which is British slang for upper-class.
• M&S
  • Like Waitrose, M&S sells very high-quality produce, fish and meats.
  • They are famous for their excellent desserts and ready-made food. Be sure to check out their Christmas desserts, which taste amazing!
  • In addition to its food halls, M&S is a department store that sells clothing, shoes and accessories.

International supermarkets

• All larger towns and cities will have a range of international supermarkets to cater to its migrant and student population.
• Some of the more popular stores will include a pan-Asian/Chinese supermarket, a Polish supermarket and a halal store (selling halal meat and generally catering to the South-Asian population with some Arabic/Turkish brands). Large cities will have more specialised international supermarkets, such as African, Russian and kosher shops.

Online supermarkets

• Amazon Pantry
  • Students are eligible for a six-month free Amazon Prime account. Although, food may be more expensive on Amazon Pantry, it has all the staples and there’s free next day delivery.
• Uber Eats and Deliveroo
  • Grocery deliveries from smaller, local shops and a few of the larger supermarkets, such as Asda
  • Generally, it will be more expensive than shopping at the store yourself, but it gets delivered very quickly.
• Ocado
  • Sells M&S goods.
  • Great for organic and high-quality food.

We hope this guide was useful for you. As always, we are here to help you with every aspect of moving to, and studying in, the UK. Book your free initial consultation today.