Prices gallop and the purchasing power of Italian families is increasingly reduced. In this situation, it may be necessary to pay more attention to what slips into the shopping cart given that around 20% of the family budget (€6372 on average according to Istat) ends up in supermarket checkouts. Altroconsumo has published a survey in which the prices of the products of nearly a thousand points of sale throughout Italy are compared. The study shows that by looking for the most advantageous prices, it is possible to save up to 1.500 euros in a year, which can become 3.500 if one avoids branded products.
The cheapest supermarket in Italy according to Altroconsumo is located in Arezzo but in all cities, except for Aosta and Syracuse, you can find outlets with bargain prices. The cheapest cities are all located in central-northern Italy. In Pisa, Florence and Verona the average expenditure is around €6.000 a year, followed by Perugia, Modena, Vicenza, La Spezia, Alessandria, Parma and Padua. The bill is more salty in the islands with Cagliari, Syracuse and Catania which together with Aosta lead the ranks of the most expensive cities. The savings that can be achieved by choosing the cheapest point of sale varies from €1.500 in Florence to €100 in Campobasso, passing through €200 in Rome and €XNUMX in Naples. But the figure is not significant if it is not considered together with that of the average price, where the lack of competition is combined with above-average prices, saving becomes more difficult.
So what is the recipe for saving money? In cities where prices tend to rise, you have to rely on promotions, choose products with the supermarket brand or choose the first prices (products with the best price offered by supermarkets). Promotions can lead to savings of up to 24% but greatly limit the choice of products. Choosing private label products can lead to savings of 38%, while selecting the best priced products leads to an average savings of 55%. For those wishing to save further, shopping at a hard discounter can save over 60% on total spending. Altrocunsumo points out that price is not necessarily an indication of quality and suggests reading the label carefully for better orientation.
The Altroconsumo investigation.
