Which UK supermarket loyalty schemes will actually save you money?

We’ve all seen the deals in our local supermarkets offering money off everyday groceries for those who have signed up to their loyalty scheme. But how much difference do they really make and are there other ways to get a cheaper shop? Metro money guru Andy Webb explains all.

Until the end of this month, Tesco is offering double Clubcard points on grocery purchases, which sounds like a great deal.

Since a point has a standard valuation of 1p, it means you’ll get 2p per £1 spent, so 2% back. Say you’re spending £400 this month on groceries, that’s a total of £8 back in points, £4 more than normal.

Potentially it’s worth even more since you can boost Clubcard points to twice their value when using them on things like restaurant vouchers or magazine subscriptions.

However, I find if you shop around you can often get similar deals, or at least offers that mean you’re not fully doubling points in this way. So we’ll stick with just 2% back. Still, that’s not bad at all, and beats the equivalent loyalty and points offerings at the other supermarkets.

While it might feel like a reason to swap shopping trips to Tesco in order to take advantage, I don’t think this promotion, or any loyalty scheme, can justify switching supermarkets. Instead you’re better off focusing on price when choosing where to shop.

When consumer groups such as Which? track prices across the big chains, they often find discounters such as Aldi and Lidl around £10 cheaper than Tesco on smaller baskets, while Asda and Morrisons are potentially £20 to £30 less on bigger trolleys.

That’s much more of a saving than getting the usual Clubcard points, let alone when they’re doubled.

Since these comparisons are looking at a set list of products, your own shopping needs will offer up different price variations, and indeed Tesco, or one of the others, could still work out the cheapest for you. The research really highlights how points are a nice extra – but the key driver to reducing your spend is the actual price.

There are a few tools to help you work out whether you can get your groceries for less elsewhere.

Comparison sites Trolley.co.uk and Supermarket Wizard are good ways to see if the items you buy cost less at alternative shops, and are particularly useful when looking for pricier items on promotion.

You can also get better discounts than loyalty scheme offerings by using cut-price gift cards at the checkout. You’re generally looking at 2-4% off your spend (in the form of cashback) via sites such as HyperJar and JamDoughnut.

And these are often available at supermarkets that don’t have particularly good loyalty perks, though you can of course use them alongside your Clubcard, Nectar and other cards to stack the offers.

However, loyalty cards become essential when it comes to a relatively new trend in supermarket schemes – taking advantage of exclusive prices for members.

Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Morrisons and Iceland all offer this, and Co-op recently joined them by ditching 2% back on own-brand items in favour of similar price cuts.

In many cases these have replaced special offers for all, and mean if you don’t have a card, or if you have one but don’t swipe it, you’ll miss out.

This can be a pain if you are mixing and matching the supermarkets you visit, but you can add most loyalty cards to your phone’s digital wallet or an app such as Stocard, so there’s no need to carry them all in your real wallet or purse, or on your keyring.

Follow Andy – an award-winning blogger and podcaster from Be Clever With Your Cash – on Instagram and YouTube via @becleverwithyourcash or visit becleverwithyourcash.com

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