Grocery Price Index: Woolies up $5, Coles still leads
This week's Cuugo basket check: Woolies jumps $5.00, Coles holds steady at $76.65, and cherry-picking saves you $11.88 versus the priciest single store.
Every Friday, Cuugo prices the same 15 staples at Coles, Woolies, Aldi and IGA. No swapped products, no different pack sizes, the same basket, week after week. That consistency is what makes the trend meaningful. The full price table and methodology live on the Cuugo Grocery Price Index hub page.
This week's basket totals
| Store | This week | Last week | Change | |, -|, -|, -|, -| | Coles | $76.65 * | $76.75 | -$0.10 | | Aldi | $77.16 | $77.66 | -$0.50 | | Woolies | $82.37 | $77.37 | +$5.00 | | IGA | $82.42 * | $81.17 | +$1.25 |
\* One item was unavailable at this store this week, so that total isn't directly comparable to the others.
Coles and Aldi both edged down slightly. Woolies had the week's big mover: up $5.00 on the basket from last Friday. IGA also crept up $1.25. We don't have a sourced reason for Woolies' jump, so we're not going to guess, but it's worth watching next week to see if it holds or snaps back.
If you shop at a single store and want the lowest bill right now, Coles at $76.65 (with the caveat above) or Aldi at $77.16 are your best bets.
Where the big gaps are
The basket total only tells half the story. A few items have gaps wide enough to be worth going out of your way for:
- Chicken breast fillets: $9.17 at IGA vs $14.20 at Coles, a $5.03 swing on one product alone.
- Beef mince: $4.99 at Aldi vs $10.00 at IGA. Double the price at IGA.
- Tasty cheese block: $5.98 at Aldi vs $9.00 at IGA.
- Cavendish bananas: $4.86 at Aldi vs $7.92 at Woolies.
- Weet-Bix: $6.88 at Aldi vs $10.50 at IGA.
- Sliced white bread: $3.00 at Aldi vs $4.70 at Coles.
- Apples: $2.99 at Aldi vs $5.90 at IGA.
On the flip side, toilet paper bucks the Aldi-is-cheapest pattern this week: Aldi comes in at $13.49 versus $4.60 at IGA. Pack sizes differ, so check the per-sheet price before you buy.
Long grain rice is the quietest win: $1.80 at Coles vs $3.10 at IGA. Easy one to shift if you walk past a Coles anyway.
The cherry-pick verdict
Buying each item at its cheapest store across all four retailers brings the basket down to $65.28 this week. That's $11.88 cheaper than Aldi, the lowest single-store total (excluding the incomplete Coles tally).
Running two stores to chase every bargain isn't always worth the petrol and time. But if you're already splitting your shop between a big Aldi run and a Coles or Woolies top-up, the data suggests you're making a smart call.
Frequently asked questions
What's in the Cuugo Grocery Price Index basket?
The basket has 15 everyday staples priced every Friday at Coles, Woolies, Aldi and IGA. The items include sliced white bread, free range eggs, chicken breast fillets, beef mince, Weet-Bix, apples, Cavendish bananas, carrots, tasty cheese block, long grain rice, butter, toilet paper, laundry powder and a couple of other household staples. The full list and methodology are on the Cuugo Grocery Price Index hub page.
Which supermarket is cheapest for groceries in Australia right now?
Based on this week's Cuugo basket, Coles ($76.65, one item missing) and Aldi ($77.16 for all 15 items) are the cheapest single stores. Woolies ($82.37) and IGA ($82.42, one item missing) are both around $5-6 more. Cherry-picking the cheapest price for each item across all four stores brings the total down to $65.28.