Grocery Price Index: Aldi drops $9 this week
Aldi's basket fell $9.13 in a single week to $216.14, widening its gap over Coles ($230.05) and Woolies ($229.21), while IGA remains $33 dearer than Aldi at $249.50.
Every Friday we price the same 15-item basket at Coles, Woolies, Aldi and IGA. Same products, same quantities, same methodology, the only thing that changes is the number. Here's where things landed this week.
This week's totals
| Store | This week | Last week | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aldi | $216.14 | $225.27 | -$9.13 |
| Woolworths | $229.21 | $231.30 | -$2.09 |
| Coles | $230.05 | $232.02 | -$1.97 |
| IGA | $249.50 | $255.25 | -$5.75 |
| Cheapest per item | $196.36 | , | , |
Important: Aldi's total is missing 3 items and IGA's is also missing 3. Woolies and Coles are each missing 1. Those totals aren't directly comparable to each other, treat them as indicative, not exact. The full methodology is on the Cuugo Grocery Price Index hub.
Every store moved down this week, which is good news. Aldi's drop of $9.13 is the headline, that's a big single-week shift for a basket this size. We don't have a confirmed reason behind it, so we won't guess.
Where the real gaps are
The per-item spreads tell you more than the basket total does, especially if you shop across two stores.
A few standouts worth knowing:
- Pasta sauce: $1.59 at Aldi versus $4.00 at IGA. Same category, wildly different price.
- Dishwasher tablets: $4.00 at Woolies versus $11.50 at IGA. If you're buying these at IGA, that's worth a rethink.
- Beef sausages: $3.89 at Aldi, $9.00 at Woolies. The biggest raw dollar gap this week on a single item.
- Weet-Bix: $7.00 at Coles, $15.96 at Aldi. The branded version at Aldi costs more than twice what Coles charges, Aldi's own-brand version is cheaper, but it's a different product.
- Pumpkin: $1.49 at Aldi, $5.40 at Woolies. Produce pricing swings hard week to week.
- Laundry liquid: $1.99 at Aldi, $6.00 at IGA. Own-brand versus branded is almost certainly what's driving this one.
- Long grain rice: $1.80 at Coles, $3.59 at Aldi. One of those items where Aldi is actually the dearest option.
That last point matters. Aldi wins on the overall basket, but it's not cheapest on every item. Rice, shampoo, orange juice and instant coffee are all cheaper at one of the big two or at IGA this week. If you've got the time to split your shop, the "cheapest per item" figure of $196.36 shows what's theoretically on the table, $19.78 under Aldi's total.
IGA's strength this week is in a few specific spots: cheapest orange juice ($2.85), cheapest cavendish bananas ($3.50), cheapest frozen peas ($2.00) and cheapest shampoo ($1.85). If there's an IGA near you and you're buying those items, it's worth checking.
Frequently asked questions
What's in the Cuugo Grocery Price Index basket?
The basket contains 15 everyday staples, a fixed set of products priced every Friday at Coles, Woolworths, Aldi and IGA. The full list of items and methodology is on the Cuugo Grocery Price Index hub page. Because some items aren't stocked by every store, weekly totals per store aren't always directly comparable.
Is Aldi always the cheapest supermarket in Australia?
Aldi wins the overall basket most weeks, but it's not the cheapest on every individual item. This week, for example, long grain rice, shampoo, orange juice and instant coffee were all cheaper at Coles, Woolies or IGA. Shopping the cheapest per item across stores saves the most, but requires visiting more than one place.