Tips and tricks to save at your favourite supermarket

Tesco is the biggest supermarket chain in the UK but they are not always the cheapest, often being beaten to the post by Lidl and Aldi. But are there ways to save money at Tesco? We delve deeper into the ways you can save on your shopping.

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Earn Clubcard points

Tesco Clubcard was one of the first retailer loyalty schemes launched way back in 1995, allowing shoppers to earn points when they shop at Tesco. 

You’ll earn loyalty points when you shop, which can be used to pay towards your shopping or with selected partners. It’s not a reason to go to Tesco, but it’s certainly something to collect while you’re there.

There are so many ways to spend your points but to get the best deal, read Andy’s advice on earning and using Tesco Clubcard points.

Get Clubcard Prices

Even if you don’t want the points, Clubcard isn’t a scheme you can afford to miss, as you also benefit from Clubcard Prices – that is cheaper prices and special offers given to you if you scan your Clubcard.

But just because a product has a Clubcard discount, it doesn’t mean it’s a good price. There have been reports of Tesco raising the regular price to make the Clubcard price even more appealing.

And it could be the items could cost you less elsewhere even at full price. Use a comparison site such as Trolley to see if you can get your items cheaper at a different supermarket.

Pay for Clubcard Plus

You could save even more money if you do your big shops at Tesco with Clubcard Plus, which is a separate paid membership.

Andy has reviewed the pros and cons of the Clubcard Plus but in short, with the 10% discount they give you on two shops per month, if you spend at least £40 twice a month or £80 once a month at Tesco, you will off-set the £7.99 subscription fee.  

As well as that, you also get an extra 10% off many Tesco brands, saving you more money. These include:

• F&F clothing
• Tesco Pet 
• Fred & Flo 
• Go Cook
• Go Play
• Go Create
• Carousel
• Fox and Ivy

Shop Tesco Own-label

Tesco Value’s classic blue stripes packaging began to be phased out in 2019, but the value products didn’t. They were just rebranded under a number of sub-brands including Stockwell, Ms. Molly, The Hearty Food Co. and The Growers Harvest to name but a few.

Own-label products in general, tend to be cheaper than the big brands and the own-label value ranges are cheaper again. It’s always a good idea to try these alternatives as you may find some taste identical or even better. 

If you’re not convinced to swap to own-label food and drinks, there’s no excuse when it comes to household and bathroom products. Shower gel, washing up liquid, laundry detergent, even toilet cleaner, are all available as Tesco own-label and so much cheaper than the popular brands.

Let’s face it, you won’t detect much difference with a bottle of bleach for example, but you will save money.

Shop in the evening for yellow stickers

Although stores vary with the times they reduce groceries, the general consensus for Tesco is that it usually takes place between 7pm and 9pm. 

The evening reductions are when they can take up to 90% off the original price so you could find yourself some yellow sticker bargains.

Find Aldi price match products

Tesco price match over 500 comparable Aldi products. If you want to find out which products are price matched against Aldi, you can see them all online. 

One thing to note though, is that you won’t find Aldi price matched product prices at Tesco Express stores or in Northern Ireland. The products also vary by week.

Pick up the magazine

Tesco has its own magazine brimming with inspiration and even the occasional money off coupon, so pick up a copy before you start shopping (it’s usually found after exiting the tills). You may have to walk against the flow of traffic to get a magazine before you shop, but as Tesco says, ‘every little counts’.

See if there are coupons on the Tesco app

Some Tesco app customers have money off coupons in the ‘My coupons’ section of the Clubcard tab. Not everyone will have this – their press office has confirmed to us that they are rolling it out on an individual basis. But it is worth checking your app to see if you are one of the lucky ones.

Check cashback apps

Don’t forget to check your cashback apps like Checkout Smart, Shopmium and Green Jin, before you go shopping as you may find money back on something you were going to buy or even free items. You can find out more about cashback shopping apps here. 

Get a Christmas boost

You can earn up to a 6% bonus when you pay into Tesco’s Christmas saver. The last date to top up your Christmas saver was 18th October in 2023. 

It’s a good idea to add money into the Christmas saving scheme as close to the closing date as possible. By doing this, you’ll still qualify for the bonus but won’t lose out on any interest you would have got if the money was invested elsewhere. Andy has compiled all you need to know about Tesco’s Christmas saving scheme here.

Ditch the Tesco credit card

Earning extra points on your spending by using a Tesco credit card seems like a good idea. The problem is there are currently better reward credit card offers you can get instead and still collect your usual Clubcard points.

For example, spend £40 at Tesco with their own credit card and you’ll earn just 10 extra Clubcard points, which is worth 10p. Spend the same at a different shop and you’ll get just 5 points, worth 5p.

But use a card paying 1% and you’ll earn 40p back at every shop you spend at. That’ll quickly add up.

Take a look at our round up of the best reward credit cards and use one of these when shopping at Tesco.

Buy a discounted gift card

Sites like JamDoughnut and Cheddar will sell you a prepaid gift card to use at Tesco and give you a little back as cashback. Rates can vary, but at the time of writing the normal rate at JamDoughnut is 3%. Here’s how they work. Similar discounts are available with some employer perks or other membership schemes, so take a look. 

Avoid Express stores

We expect to pay more for convenience, but Which? undertook a survey in February 2023 that actually found that for a set 75 items, Tesco Express cost on average £15.73 more than a regular Tesco superstore. 

If that’s your weekly shop, then it would add up to a massive £817.91 over a year so it’s definitely one to consider.

Be flexible with delivery slots

Tesco offers grocery delivery and Click+Collect services with varying prices depending on location and time. 

With deliveries, you’ll pay more to book a one hour slot – anything from £3 to £7. You can reduce the delivery cost by selecting a flexi saving slot which is a 4 hour window, although they will message you on the day to give you a one hour window for delivery.

Click+Collect is a cheaper option ranging from 0 to £2 depending on collection time.

If you’re a regular online shopper with Tesco, it may pay to purchase a Delivery Saver plan, where you can pay a monthly fee based on a 6 month or 12 month plan. It’s cheaper to purchase an off-peak one but even the anytime pass could save you money as at £6.99 a month, it is cheaper than some delivery slots.

Is Tesco the cheapest UK supermarket?

Tesco tends to sit in the middle of the table when it comes to the supermarket price comparison surveys. But with discounts like those with Clubcard Plus, it could bring them closer to the top of the table.