Aldi has been dethroned as the UK’s best supermarket, after a new store took the top spot in a surprising win. while the budget retailer has dropped down the rankings
There’s been something of a shock in the world of British supermarket rankings.
Aldi has taken a tumble in the league table from consumer champion Which? The popular budget destination only managed to secure third place in the best UK supermarket league tables. Despite being named the cheapest supermarket of the year earlier this month, it was pipped to the post by two major rivals. One of them being the behemoth that is Tesco, yet not even the blue and red bastion of UK society could top the charts.
Which? surveyed over 2,600 shoppers, asking them to rate in-store supermarkets on a variety of factors, not just price. These included store appearance and staff ‘availability and helpfulness’.
Luxury retailer Marks and Spencer took the top spot with an impressive 79% customer score overall. Despite only receiving three stars for ‘value for money’, customers praised the supermarket’s overall quality of its own-brand and fresh products, as well as the range it stocks, checkout queue times, and overall customer service.
Tesco was hot on its heels, coming in second with an overall customer score of 74 per cent. It fell short of M&S in several categories, including staff availability and helpfulness, store appearance, stock availability, and its self-service/ self-scanning facilities, reports the Mirror.
“Our survey shows that a good shopping experience and quality products really matter to consumers – and M&S beating its rivals to the top spot shows some shoppers are prepared to pay a bit more for that,” said Reena Sewraz of Which?
Retail. “Aldi, Lidl or Iceland may be the preferred choice for those who prioritise affordability above all else. For people lucky enough to have a choice of supermarkets, mixing and matching to get the right mix of quality and bargain prices might be the right approach.
One M&S customer raved about M&S, describing it as a ‘real treat’ to shop at the retailer. “[They have] great-quality products that I don’t mind spending a bit more on,” they added. Aldi came joint third place, with a customer score of 72%, along with Iceland and Waitrose.
The budget retailer only received two out of five stars for its overall customer service, staff availability and helpfulness, store appearance, queue times, stock availability, self-scanning facilities, range of products, and overall quality of its own-label and fresh products. It only scored higher (four stars) when it came to value for money. Best in-store supermarket of 2025.
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