The latest Sainsbury’s and Nectar scheme offers extra discounts on your shopping.
There’s been a change in the way you can get offers at Sainsbury’s via Nectar. It’s effectively the same as Tesco’s Clubcard prices, with extra discounts available to those who swipe their Nectar card at the till.
This is in addition to similarly named My Nectar prices, now known as Your Nectar prices. More on how to take advantage below.
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What are “Nectar Prices”?
Nectar Prices is a new promotion from Nectar and Sainsbury’s. You’ll be offered reduced prices on a selection of items, starting with 300 products from “household products, pet food and confectionary” and expanding further as the year goes on.
This is actually quite a broad range as household products includes things like cereal, baked beans, tea and gin. The main absentees look like fresh and frozen food.
How to get Nectar Prices
You’ll need to be a member of the free Nectar loyalty scheme, and then scan your card at checkout or have it linked to your online Sainsbury’s account. The discount will then be automatically applied to your basket when you pay.
How good are the My Nectar Prices discounts?
The discounts are only on specific items, so you won’t save any money if what you want to buy isn’t part of the promotion.
But if you do want to buy something included, how much will you save? I’ve looked at a handful of random products at launch in April 2023.
| Item | Full price | Nectar Price | Discount % |
| Hellmann’s Real Squeezy Mayonnaise 750ml | £3.90 | £3.25 | 16.67% |
| McVitie’s Hobnobs Milk Chocolate Biscuits 262g | £1.90 | £1.25 | 34.21% |
| Corona Extra Premium Lager Beer Bottles 12x330ml | £14.00 | £9.00 | 35.71% |
| Taylors of Harrogate Lazy Sunday Ground Coffee 227g | £4.30 | 3.5 | 18.60% |
| Fairy Fabric Conditioner Original for Sensitive Skin 2.905L | £4.75 | £4.25 | 10.53% |
| Aussie Mega Instant Shampoo 500ml | £5.50 | £4.50 | 18.18% |
| Capri-Sun Nothing Artificial No Added Sugar Multvitamin 8x200ml | £3.00 | £2.25 | 25.00% |
| Cadbury Darkmilk Hazelnut Chocolate Bar 85g | £1.50 | £1.25 | 16.67% |
| Diet Coke 2L | £2.40 | £1.50 | 37.50% |
| Gillette Venus Swirl Flexiball Women’s Razor +2 Blades | £19.00 | £12.65 | 33.42% |
| Sharwood’s Butter Chicken Curry Sauce 420g | £3.00 | £1.60 | 46.67% |
| Lynx Black Deodorant & Bodyspray 250ml | £5.00 | £3.00 | 40.00% |
| —– | —– | —– | —– |
| TOTAL | £68.25 | £48.00 | 29.67% |
From this random selection of items, the discount ranged from 10% to 47%. That’s quite a difference.
However 300 items isn’t actually that much, and it looks like it skews towards things like washing up and shampoo rather than food. And many are variations of the same thing – so 10 types of Lynx deodorant, or 7 different bottles of Fairy Liquid.
So don’t expect to find the bulk of your trolley to be discounted – at least for now.
Are other supermarkets cheaper?
Sainsbury’s doesn’t have a reputation as particularly cheap. So even with the discounted prices it stands to reason you might still get these items for the same price or less at another supermarket – particularly if they have offers on the go.
Well I had a quick look at the Trolley supermarket comparison site for the 12 items above and prices were either the same or less at Sainsbury’s! Quite a surprise. Of course, that will change depending on your offers not just at Sainsbury’s but those other retailers.
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How do Nectar Prices work with other Nectar offers?
Nectar points
Nectar prices is an extra offer rather than replacing the usual points system. That means you’ll still be able to earn Nectar points on your shopping. The rate will remain at 1 point per £1 spent, which works out as the equivalent of 0.5% back.
Your Nectar Prices
The similarly named Your Nectar Prices are personalised discounts based on products you buy regularly. To access them in store you need to use a SmartShop app or scanner. Since 31 October 2023 they’ve also been available online. If the Nectar Price is cheaper than the Your Nectar Price, you’ll pay the lowest one. Here’s more on how they work.
Sainsbury’s Offers
The Weekly Sainsbury’s Offers look like they are here to stay. Each week you’ll get the chance to earn bonus points on selected products. They’re often based on your shopping history. You need to first save the offer via the Nectar app and then buy it before the deal expires.
Other deals
There’s not really much to shout about here at the best of times, but it doesn’t look like there’s been any change to the other ways you can use your points. You can read more about the best ways to spend and collect Nectar points here.
Are Nectar Prices good or bad for shoppers?
Andy’s Analysis
My early take on the offer is that it’s OK. If you shop at Sainsbury’s anyway, and if you are going to buy those items anyway, then you may as well grab the discount. But this isn’t going to revolutionise loyalty schemes.
It does mean you’ll need to remember to bring your Nectar card with you when shopping – though it’s easy to access this via the Nectar app so that shouldn’t be a problem.
However, I’m still not convinced by Your Nectar Prices – why the need for two different apps to get the savings? Why can’t they offer the discounts online?
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Hi there,
You seem to suggest that to benefit from Nectar Prices, those advertised on the shelf, you have to have the app or the smart shopper thingy.
I’ve been into Sainsbury’s twice in the last week to purchase Leffe beer at £13.00 down from £16.00 as advertised online and on shelf. Both times I have been charged full price and had to justify the reduction at customer service. They don’t seem to have a clue. I’ve been told, unconvincingly, that I need the app, I need the smart shopper thingy, that it’s online only, that it stopped on Sunday. Despite this I bought another, different, item and the Nectar Price was clearly shown on my receipt.
The advertising blurb from Sainsbury’s says all Nectar Card holders. Just swipe at the till. Perhaps you can explain to me that which Sainsbury’s have been unable to. Can I just go in and put stuff in my basket and pay at the till having swiped my Nectar Card and receive the discount or will I have to train myself to use the smart shopper doubrey? I do not carry my phone with me all the time so the app would be no good to me!
Thank you for reading and hopefully responding.
No, there are two promotions – Nectar Prices, which is online and instore and available to all with a Nectar card; and Your Nectar Prices – which is instore only and requires the Smart Shop scanners. Details are in the article