Shoppers spent average of £476 at supermarket in December as inflation eased

Grocery prices were 4.3 per cent higher than a year earlier, down from November’s 4.7 per cent, offering modest relief to households, according to market research firm Worldpanel by Numerator, formerly Kantar.

The festive month saw a record £13.8 billion in take-home grocery sales – up 3.8 per cent year on year – with 92 per cent of shoppers indulging in premium own-label products and sales of the lines exceeding £1 billion for the first time.

The highest spending was in fresh meat, reaching sales of £115 million, and £80 million in sales of chilled snacks such as finger food, dips, and antipasti.

However spending on promotions and deals also rose from 32 per cent last year to 33.3 per cent – the highest proportion of overall sales since December 2019, before the onset of the pandemic.

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Despite the typical price of seasonal chocolate tubs rising above £5 for the first time and average pack sizes shrinking by 5 per cent to 551g, sales rose by 19 per cent in the four weeks to Christmas as nearly one million more shoppers bought the treats.

Households spent an additional £36 million on discounted fresh vegetables compared with last Christmas.

Traditional, large format supermarkets accounted for 60.3 per cent of sales over the four-week period, but the discounters had their biggest share of sales at Christmas, reaching a total of 16.8 per cent.

Scottish households were the most likely to buy seasonal chocolate tubs, sweets and sparkling wine, while gravy granules were most popular in the north of England, and shoppers in the South favoured fortified wines, mince pies and Christmas puddings.

Three quarters of British shoppers bought alcoholic drinks for the festivities, while the low and no-alcohol category saw a 14 per cent rise in spending, bought by 2.7 million households.

Despite this, the proportion of households choosing no and low-alcohol drinks edged down slightly, from 9.6 per cent to 9.5 per cent.

Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel, said: “It was a Christmas of smart savings and considered choices – almost every household bought into supermarkets’ premium ranges, while price remained front of mind.

“Discounters enjoyed their biggest-ever Christmas share, and shoppers leaned on their loyalty cards to get the best deals.”

Mr McKevitt added: “Over the last five years, the number of households cutting alcohol out of their shopping basket altogether has steadily increased. Alongside this, we’ve seen a rapid rise in sales of low and no-alcohol alternatives.

“However, the slight dip in the numbers of buyers in December may signal that the category is beginning to mature, while the rise in sales shows that converted households are doubling down on their favourite low and no- alcohol tipples.”

Ocado was once again the fastest growing grocer, with sales increasing by 15 per cent over the 12 weeks to December 28 compared to the same period a year ago, and accounting for 2.1 per cent of the market.

Lidl made the greatest gain in market share among the supermarkets, adding 0.5 percentage points to claim 7.8 per cent of the market.

Sainsbury’s market share in December reached 16.3 per cent, up from 16 per cent last year, while

Tesco’s sales were 4.3 per cent higher than in 2024 to take a market share of 28.7 per cent.

Waitrose moved up to 4.7 per cent share from 4.6 per cent last year, increasing the average amount spent on a trip by 6.5 per cent, outpacing gains by its competitors.