Woolworths, Coles, Aldi: Simple hack to compare best grocery deals
As the cost of soft drinks and other grocery items continues to rise, a groundbreaking price-comparison app is revealing where to find the best deals on products at six major Aussie supermarket chains.
Grocery comparison app Frugl takes publicly available sales info, and compiles it into an online shopping space for consumers to browse and find the biggest discounts near them.
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Previously comparing prices at just two major grocery retailers, Frugl has announced a February update that now offers price comparisons on items sold at Aldi, IGA, Drakes and Foodland, along with Coles and Woolworths.
The app allows shoppers to search for a product in their chosen postcode, then tracks down which of the six supermarket retailers has advertised the item at the lowest price.
Soft drink prices skyrocket in 2022
Soft drinks are among the grocery products that have had extreme price rises in recent weeks.
Frugl data, which was provided to Yahoo Finance, confirmed that Woolworths stores have increased the price of a 2L Coca-Cola bottle by 50 per cent, while Coles has increased the price of the same item by 60 per cent.
Other soda brands including Schweppes, Kirks, Bundaberg and Pepsi were also shown to have received significant price rises at both Coles and Woolworths, with some prices jumping up over 75 per cent.
As grocery price hikes become a big concern for consumers, apps like Frugl are growing in popularity, with tens of thousands of savvy shoppers already a part of the growing comparison community.
How to beat the soft drink price hikes
The rising price of soft drinks continues to be a hot topic, as customers take to social media to voice their concerns about the extra strain on their hip pockets.
"Why have the cost of Pepsi Max 30 can boxes gone up from $16 to $32 in one week?" one customer posted on Woolworths' Facebook page.
"2 litre Coca-Cola is now $4.20 rather than $2.75," added another.
"Kirks 10 packs have had a 100 per cent price rise in one week!" wrote a third.
By searching for a key grocery item such as soft drinks, Frugl app users now have the option to price-compare products and be informed when it comes to promotions and sales.
Woolworths and Coles offer explanation for rising prices
Responding to complaints of price gouging, Woolworths and Coles spokespersons confirmed the reason for store-wide price hikes.
“In response to a wholesale cost increase from the supplier, we've updated our retail prices,” a Woolworths spokesperson told Yahoo Finance.
Meanwhile a Coles spokesperson told Yahoo Finance: “Coles is committed to offering value to our customers and the prices in question are competitive with those offered by other retailers.”
How do the supermarkets compare?
Data previously collected by Frugl has revealed bargain trends and lowest price-point availability on key grocery and household items at Coles and Woolworths.
One Pantene product, for example, was shown to increase in price at both Coles and Woolworths in April 2020. Throughout that period, both grocery giants heavily promoted the item, but it was Coles that offered deeper discounts.
On the other hand, data provided to Yahoo Finance demonstrated that Woolworths supermarkets offered deeper discounts on Omo washing powder and Finish dishwasher tablets.
Frugl also revealed that Woolworths tends to offer more significant discounts on many beauty and personal hygiene products, including Listerine mouthwash, Colgate toothpaste, and Dove moisturising lotion.
With additional supermarket chains added to the Frugl app since this data was collected, shoppers will now be able to get a more complete view of where to find the best prices on a wide range of products.
Comparison app still growing: ‘Just the beginning’
Frugl’s Managing Director and CEO, Sean Smith said that at the end of December 2021, Frugl’s community had over 40,000 registered users.
“With a growing demand for more comparison retailers to help Australian grocery buyers save more every week at the checkout, our team has worked incredibly hard to launch the latest version of our app. Frugl checks the catalogues for consumers so that they can save more on items at the stores at the best prices,” he said.
“This is just the beginning for our significant app upgrades for the Frugl community, and with the new capability to add unlimited retailers to our platform to enhance shopping options for users, we’re looking forward to making Frugl even bigger in 2022.”
“With over 5,200 grocery stores tracked on the app weekly and almost 60,000 products available to compare, Frugl is encouraging Australians to get behind its latest update and save more at the checkout."
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