Grocery price showdown March 2025 – Woolies vs Checkers vs Pick n Pay and more

Makro is the most affordable grocery retailer in South Africa for a basket of essential grocery items compared to its top six competitors.

This is according to BusinessTech’s grocery basket comparison, which collected the online prices of nine staple foods and products in a typical middle-income grocery basket as of March 2025.

The comparison included seven of South Africa’s major retailers – Shoprite, Checkers, Pick n Pay, Spar, Woolworths, Food Lover’s Market, and Makro.

The grocery basket comparison includes the following:

• 700g loaf of Albany Superior sliced white bread
• 2-litre sunflower oil (cheapest option)
• 2.5kg Iwisa maize meal
• 2.5kg Selati white sugar
• 2-litre milk (cheapest option)
• 2kg Tastic rice
• 2.5kg Snowflake cake flour
• 175g bar of Dettol herbal soap
• 9-pack of two-ply toilet paper (cheapest option)

In certain instances, not all retailers may carry specific brands that are directly comparable to one another.

For example, Woolworths may not offer Albany Superior sliced white bread, but they may provide a similar alternative for comparison purposes.

To ensure consistency, each store selects the most affordable version of sunflower oil, milk, and toilet paper available.

If any substitutions are necessary, these are clearly outlined and justified in the price comparison table below.

It’s important to note that it’s possible to discover the same basket of products at a lower price or opt for less expensive non-branded options.

Prices may also vary from one region to another (such as provinces or cities) or within different franchises, which is the case with Spar.

The basket is, therefore, not a representation of the absolute cheapest version of every item. The specific brands are chosen for consistency across retailers and their recognisability among middle-class shoppers.

The pricing in the analysis comes from retailers in Gauteng. The normal price of items was used, and limited-time specials were not considered.

The results

According to the data collected, the average cost for our basket of nine staple items in March 2025 was R422.05. This is R11.55 more than the price of the same basket for foods recorded in March 2024.

Following its position in March 2024, Makro still offers the cheapest basket in 2025, totalling R376.40, which was R15.76 more than last year, slightly higher than the average increase.

This is also R36.98 less than the second cheapest retailer, Food Lover’s Market, which priced the basket at R413.38.

Spar is in third place, priced at R415.91. This is R39.51 more than Marko and R19.00 more than March 2024. It must be noted that Spar is franchised, meaning prices and items can vary from store to store.

Pick n Pay has the most expensive basket at R455.91, a significant R36.00 more than last year and R79.51 more than Makro. Checkers is the second most expensive at R439.91.

Woolworths followed just behind Checkers with a basket price of R435.91. Interestingly, this is R6.00 less than in 2024. Woolworths’ basket is also R59.51 more than Makro.

Shoprite saw teh biggest year-on-year decline in prices, with it basket priced at R416.91—which is R14.00 less than in 2024.

The table below breaks down the prices for each item from the eight grocery retailers and who is the cheapest.