Tesco UK vs Tesco IE vs Countdown NZ

Matt Simis

Someone on British Expats posted up Tesco (UK) vs Countdown Nz grocery shopping in response to the price of groceries (specifically veg and fruit) in Nz, so for the fun of it (and to contrast to Ireland) I added in the Tesco IE prices (today, from Online Shop), matching where possible the same stuff as in the original doc (also recent), ie no absolute cheapest Tesco Value, but mid range stuff.

PDF Version: Tesco UK, IE vs Countdown Nz shopping basket

What do you think? Certain Veg prices are indeed off the wall, but the overall basket came out cheaper than both UK (only slightly) and Ireland (by an easy 10%). Also interesting to compare Tesco IE vs its UK parent.

Cookie_Monster

$8 for wine is way to low, buying beers in 6 is the most expensive way to do it - also you'd get 6x500ml for €7 in rieland but 6 x 330 for $13 in NZD so not fair comparison. Pizza's are not that cheap unless it's some crap own brand rubbish.

what size is mince, 1kg is $10 on offer last night, so is it 500g and like for like?

It leaves out a lot of staple veg; capcicum, potato, carrot, brocolli, onoins, leeks which would be important and likely affect pricing depending on season as prices here fluxuate massivly. same with cucumber, depending on time of year it could be 89c - $3.99!

Still interesting, I though NZ would be more. Ireland seemed so cheap when we were home.

Matt Simis

To clarify, this was someone elses list, I just added like for like from the Tesco IE site, based on their notes! Its aim wasnt so much as to find the cheapest possible item in each location, but to just provide a sampling of random but normal things. In a way, its a nicely adhoc example of the way people might "grab a 6pack" as opposed a well thought out budget.

But the 3 regions goods in this list should be fairly comparable in quality, all of them based on prices from the respective online stores (you can find the mince, pizza and beer details there ) in the last 48hrs.

Rosy Posy

I'd never buy veg in the supermarket- what a rip off! We buy straight from the farmers or off the side of the road. Also there are massive seasonal fluctuations in price of veggies over here- it really pays to learn to eat seasonally (sick of pumpkin soup yet ). Also Countdown does really good specials so I normally buy in bulk when these are on. I usually buy meat from the butchers too. I do think that the price of groceries has gone up dramatically in the seven years that we've been here but I did a shop in Superquinn the last time I was home and it was bleeding ridiculous too.

mathepac

I suppose my issue is with the composition of the basket of goods which consists of 21% alcohol purchases by value, on average. How typical is that? (I don't drink)

As I would have expected given the respective levels of excise duty, VAT, etc Ireland's booze is dearest at 23.2% of the basket by vale with the Kiwi basket at 22% and the Brits lowest with 16.4%.

For me they are still eye-watering chunks out of a basket of "groceries".

pclancy

Yeah local farmers and roadside veggie shops are the bomb when it comes to buying veggies. I love going for a nice drive to see them at weekends and actually seeing the green fields around the shop where my dinner has come from.

Just out of interest, why do people want so much to compare prices with the UK or Ireland? What is the point? You're here now, on the other side of the planet and there's SFA you can do about the cost of goods and how you might be paying $0.50 more for an apple or a potato then you would back home? Unless you become prime minister and somehow decide to fix pricing how on earth is anything ever going to change?

I just don't get why people move abroad then instantly start comparing prices to where they just came from to see are they getting a good deal or not. I came here to make a new life and though I realize things are often more expensive here I focus on living and enjoying it. Why frustrate yourself about something you cannot possibly influence?

Rosy Posy

Totally agree, clancy. My dad drives me spare with this- they're retired and they spend the year between Ireland, France, South Africa and here and he has a mental tally of the price of everything in each place. Its like a hobby. Its brainmeltingly boring to listen to. He got in trouble the last time he went home for having his suitcase full of fruit from our garden!

My attitude is that you have to look at it holistically- you're getting a whole package and of course there are going to be swings and roundabouts but I'd happily pay a little over the odds for a few luxury items (or just go without most of the time, tbh) so that my kids will be allowed to run and climb trees at school without being stopped for fear of the parents suing the school... :rolleyes:

Matt Simis

pclancy wrote: »

Just out of interest, why do people want so much to compare prices with the UK or Ireland? What is the point? You're here now, on the other side of the planet and there's SFA you can do about the cost of goods and how you might be paying $0.50 more for an apple or a potato then you would back home? Unless you become prime minister and somehow decide to fix pricing how on earth is anything ever going to change?

To clarify my own position, I made this point too (on the source forum this came from). Comparisons like the above are more for entertainment value as you are being paid in a different currency and have different purchasing power in different regions, a direct comparison normalised to one currency doesn't reveal what it might suggest.