Which is the best supermarket delivery service in the UK? We are looking at the major supermarkets in the UK – Sainsbury’s, Ocado, Morrison’s, ASDA, Iceland & Tesco and deciding which does best when it comes to grocery deliveries.
All of the information in this blog post is based upon my own experiences when shopping with each brand. These are not fair, scientific studies, I’m just a Mum buying what she needs for her family each week. All of the opinions are my own, no part of this comparison has been sponsored.
Keep in mind that for things like slot availability can vary from area to area. All of the information presented here is based on my own experiences where I live, so please check the provider’s sites to check availability using your own postcodes.
And I’m sure you are aware, things are changing quite quickly at the moment with regards to coronavirus. While the information in this article regarding price and products is unlikely to change a great deal, for information regarding COVID related issues such as slot availability and item limits, it’s best to check out the specific supermarket’s website for up to the minute information.
Table Of Contents
Sainsbury’s
Delivery Prices
- Orders under £40 are charged £7 for standard delivery
- Orders over £40 will vary between 50p-£7
- There is no delivery charge for orders over £100 booked for delivery on Monday – Thursday after 2pm, once you have selected your time slot on your summary page it will confirm free delivery.
- The delivery charge will be confirmed when you place your order.
Minimum Order
Sainsbury’s minimum order value is £25.
Delivery Pass
With Sainsbury’s Delivery Pass, you can pay an upfront fee and then pay no delivery charge on your online grocery orders for the next 3, 6 or 12 months.
There are two delivery pass options that you can choose from.
Anytime Delivery Pass – entitles you to one free delivery per day, 7 days per week when you spend £40 or more. This pass costs £60 for 12 months, £35 for 6 months or £20 for 3 months.
Midweek Delivery Pass – entitles you to one free delivery per day on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays when you spend £40 or more. Any deliveries outside of these times will be charged at the delivery rate as advertised on our website. This pass costs £30 for a 12 months, £18 for a 6 months or £10 for 3 months.
A Delivery Pass can only be used for Sainsbury’s Online Groceries, and not any Non-Food orders.
Slot Options
Unlike many of the supermarkets, Sainsbury’s offers one-hour slot options, starting wither on the hour or half-past. This can be especially helpful if you have incredibly busy days and want your groceries delivered at a very specific time.
Slots are available from 7:00am – 8:00am with the latest slot being 10:00pm – 11:00pm.
Slot Availability
When the covid crisis initially hit, Sainsbury’s were delivering exclusively to preregistered customers who were identified as vulnerable.
At the time of writing (July 2020), Sainsbury’s now have delivery slots available to non vulnerable customers. Here is what Sainsbury’s has to say.
Slots are still in high demand. We have been working hard to expand our service. More slots are now available and we are able to offer some of them to other customers. Customers who are vulnerable will get priority access and are able to book slots in advance of anyone else. We’re releasing new slots regularly so please check back if you can’t see any available.
From the Sainsbury’s website
On 29th July 2020, this was the delivery availability in my area. The site did not permit me to skip to the following week to book slots further in the future beyond the week shown.
On the day I checked for available slots (Wednesday 29th July), the next available slot was Sunday 2nd August, 4 days later.
Cut Off Time
Sainsbury’s grocery orders can be amended up until 11pm the night before the delivery is due.
Product Range & Quality
Sainsbury’s has an extensive range of really nice products. I was able to order everything I needed.
One thing I found in the haul that is featured in the video above, a few of the items such as the mincemeat, had a very short date. I cannot comment on whether this is common with Sainsbury’s as I haven’t shopped there much, just that it happened in this haul. The raspberries that were delivered were also a little “leaky” and smushed.
Limits & Stock Availability
According to Sainsbury’s Latest Updates page, they are experiencing extremely high demand for certain products and as such have introduced some quantity restrictions.
They have started to remove limits on the number of certain non-essential products you can buy. Limits remain in place on pain relief and cold and flu products and Type IIR Approved Face Masks.
Substitutions
I didn’t have any unsuitable substitutions delivered with my Sainsbury’s order.
Receipts & Communication
Sainsbury’s sent me a confirmation email when I amended my order, then a paper receipt of what was actually delivered came along with the order.
Points & Rewards
Sainsbury’s offers reward points with the Nectar scheme. Although I used to have a Nectar card years ago, I haven’t had one for a long time. I would imagine that it would be worth signing up with Nectar if you plan to shop regularly with Sainsbury’s.
Price
Although there were lots of items that I bought from Sainsbury’s that were a good price, I would not say that they were the cheapest of the supermarkets.
Sainsbury’s – The Verdict
Overall I liked Sainsbury’s. They had lots of own brand items that were a really nice quality. I especially liked the fact that the offered one hour slots that began with on or half past the hour. When school starts back in September and I am doing 3 school runs every day and time is very tight, this could be very handy.
Morrison’s
Delivery Price
Morrisson’s offers grocery delivery slots ranging from £2 – £6.
Minimum Order
There is a minimum order of £25 in Morrison’s.
Delivery Pass
Since the pandemic, I have had a Morrison’s delivery pass costing £8 per month, which offers unlimited any day deliveries.
They offer both 7 day a week and the cheaper Tuesday – Thursday pass. As with most of the grocery services, you can save more money by committing to a longer period of delivery pass.
Slot Options
Morrison’s offers a choice of 1 hour delivery slots from 8:00am – 9:00am with the last slot at 10:00pm – 11:00pm.
Slot Availability
Throughout the pandemic, I have found that Morrison’s has been one of the best supermarkets when it comes to slot availability in my area.
On the day I checked for available slots (Wednesday 29th July), the next available slot was Wednesday 5th August, one week later.
I do like that Morrison’s give you the option you to jump straight to the first available slot, rather than scrolling through until you find what is available. They are the only supermarket that I have noticed using this feature.
Cut Off Time
Earlier in the pandemic, the cut off time for editing your Morrison’s order was 8:00 pm the night before delivery. You can now update your order up until 11:59 pm the night before. This is the latest cut off times from all of the supermarkets, allowing you maximum time to amend your order.
Product Range & Quality
Morrison’s offers and extensive range of both branded and own brand products. I have always been pleased with their quality.
Limits & Stock Availability
As you will see from my YouTube channel, I have shopped frequently with Morrison’s over the past few months, so feel that I can report more thoroughly about their service. In my experience, they do have items that appear to be “out of stock” quite frequently.
They do not have any upper limits for the number of items that you can add to your basket or limits on the number of any specific item that you can buy, providing of course that it is in stock. Morrison’s rationing measures were lifted back in April.
Substitutions
Although at one stage of the pandemic, Morrison’s were not accepting rejected substitutions back, they have now reverted to being able to take back things that you do not want at the doorstep.
Receipts & Communication
Morrison’s sends out email confirmations each time that you update your order, then another when they are their way with your order and another with your receipt. Personally, I prefer this to the paper option offered by other supermarkets.
Morrison’s also send out handy text message reminders the day before your delivery, prompting you update your basket with anything that you need. They also send a text when they are on their way with the delivery.
Points & Rewards
Although I have shopped online with Morrison’s for a while, I have only just discovered and registered for their points scheme Morrison’s More.
Price
I have found Morrison’s to be competitive on price.
Morrison’s – The Verdict
I like Morrison’s and use them frequently. The fact that they have had ample slots available in my area has been a huge plus for me. Their early cut off time of 8pm used to be a bit of a pain as I often do the final updates on my order after the children are in bed. The fat that this has now been moved to 11:59pm is brilliant.
The Morrison’s site is easy to use and I really like the “jump the the first available slot” option, as it saves time scrolling.
I used to find the inability to reject substitutions difficult, but this issue is now resolved.
Overall, I like Morrison’s. They have a good range and do well price wise, so are in my opinion, a good all round supermarket.
ASDA
Delivery Prices
ASDA delivery prices are from £1 – £6.50 depending upon which slot you choose.
Minimum Order
You can place an order for any amount with ASDA. You will pay an additional £3 as a minimum basket charge if your basket total is less than £40 for delivery orders.
The £3 charge is on top of any delivery, collection or carrier bag charges. Delivery charges are shown on the delivery time slots when you sign in and click on ‘Book a delivery’.
If ASDA makes any substitutions that result in your basket dropping below the amounts above, you won’t pay the £3 charge.
Delivery Pass
New delivery passes are not available with ASDA right now. They have made this decision to help them manage demand as they cannot guarantee you a delivery slot right now. If you do not save money on your existing delivery pass ASDA will refund the difference.
Slot Options
In my area, ASDA only offer 2 hour delivery slots, which personally I find inconvenient when juggling a busy schedule of school runs and after school activities with my children. With that said, viewers in the comments of my ASDA haul videos have reported that in their area, ASDA offers 1 hour slots. The best thing ti do is to put your own postcode into the ASDA site and check what they can offer in your area.
Slot Availability
Early in the pandemic, ASDA delivery slots were very difficult to come by, although this has improved now.
When I checked on Wednesday 29th July 2020, the next available slot to my address was Sunday 2nd August, 4 days later.
Cut Off Time
You can amend your ASDA slot up until 10:00pm the day before your delivery is due.
Product Range & Quality
ASDA has probably the most extensive range of the supermarket delivery services, with many own brand options. With this said, even ASDA seem to offer a cut down selection compared to their in store options.
Limits & Stock Availability
Initially ASDA had a limit of 3 of any one item per basket. While this has been eased now, ASDA’s website states “To ensure there is enough for everyone, we will occasionally place purchase limits on certain products that are in high demand.”
Substitutions
In my last ASDA delivery, I had 3 substitutions, all of which were fine, plus one out of stock item with no alternative.
Receipts & Communication
ASDA sends confirmation emails when you place or update your order. You get a text when your delivery driver is on their way, plus your receipt via email too.
Points & Rewards
ASDA has a points scheme called George Rewards, but it is only for non food and you do not earn points for groceries.
Price
ASDA is very competitive on price and identifies reduced items as “roll back”.
ASDA – The Verdict
ASDA is very competitive on price, but for me, the 2 hour delivery slot is off putting, especially once school starts back. Their range of products is good, but they don’t currently offer any rewards scheme or delivery pass options.
Ocado
Delivery Price
The delivery charge depends on the day and time of your slot, and the value of your order.
If your order is less than £75, there’s a minimum charge of £2.99 and a maximum of £6.99. For standard orders of £75 or more, you may be offered free delivery. You can view the various options when you book your delivery slot. There you will be able to select a delivery time and cost that best suits you.
Minimum Order
Ocado’s minimum spend per order is £40.
Delivery Pass
Ocado’s delivery pass is called Smart Pass, although, at the time of writing, they are not taking on any new Smart Pass members.
Slot Options
Ocado show delivery slots on their site starting from 5:30 – 6:30am with the last one showing at 11:00pm – 11:59pm. With this being said I have only ever been offered available slots from 7:00am – 8:00am until 10:00pm – 11:00pm, but I would imaging that this varies from area to area.
Like Sainsbury’s, Ocado offers slots starting both one the hour and half past the hour, which is highly beneficial when you have a busy schedule.
Slot Availability
Ocado’s slot availability during the pandemic has been good in my area.
When I checks slot availability on Wednesday 29th July 2020, the next available slot was Monday 3rd August, 5 days later.
Cut Off Time
Ocado’s cut off time is currently 48 hours before delivery. This meant that I had to finalise my order for Monday morning on Saturday night. This can prove problematic, especially when you end up running out of things within this 2 day window.
By all accounts, this was not always Ocado’s policy, so hopefully when the demands of Covid ease, they can move this cut off time to a more suitable time.
Product Range & Quality
Ocado offer a wide range of high end and luxury products in addition to the standard and own brands. They offer a selection of Waitrose products and will soon be partnering with M&S Food too.
Limits & Stock Availability
I found that Ocado had almost no limits that impacted my shop. Here is what they had to say;
We are experiencing a high demand for certain products at the moment. We ask that you shop considerately by spending a maximum of £250 per order. We’re relaxing restrictions a bit, so you won’t be as limited on how many of the same items of certain products you can add to one order – though we do ask that you only buy what you really need. We’ve also made a few frozen items available again – we’ll continue reviewing demand and add more products when we can. We’ve removed all limitations on the number of orders you can place per week. However, please continue to order considerately so that others have a fair chance of getting what they need.
Ocado’s statement regarding limits through the crisis
Substitutions
In my Ocado haul video, you will see that I had 2 items that were acceptable substations and 2 items that were out of stock with no alternative offered.
Receipts & Communication
All of Ocado’s communication comes via email. They send a confirmation when you order, an email reminder to update you order before the cut off time, then an update when you have updated your order. After your order is delivered, you get an email receipt.
The best thing about the Ocado communication (and I haven’t seen any other supermarkets doing this), is how they organise their receipts.
When Ocado emails out receipts, they list their items in sections; fridge, freezer and cupboard as most supermarkets do. The genius part is that they then list each item within this section telling you when it will need to be used by. This saves so much time and hassle when it comes to stock taking and meal planning.
Points & Rewards
Ocado’s rewards system is called Vitality. The system is based upon offering discounts and rewards for making healthy choices. Here’s what Ocado has to say about it;
You can get up to 25% off healthy food, and free delivery. Your percentage discount is linked to your Vitality status. To get the maximum 25% discount, you need to be on Platinum Vitality status and have earned at least 40 Vitality activity points in the previous month. Vitality memberships with two or more adults need to earn a combined 60 Vitality activity points in the previous month. Your Vitality discount applies to the first £100 of healthy food you buy per month. For Vitality memberships with two or more adults, the discount applies to the first £200 of healthy food per month. To get free delivery, at least 30% of your food and drink spend must be healthy food. For more information, go to your Vitality Member Zone.
Ocado’s Vitality Membership
Price
Although I felt that I perhaps didn’t get as much, quantity wise, for my money with Ocado, after the order was delivered they dent this email comparing the shop with Tesco.
Ocado – The Verdict
Ocado is more of a premium rather than a budget service. They offer prime products from Waitrose (and soon M&S) that are not available through any other delivery service.
I like the fact that you can select slots starting either on the hour or half past the hour and I LOVE the way they organise their receipts.
The biggest problem with Ocado at the moment has to be the 48 hour cut off time, meaning that you may end up missing last minute items from your shop.
Iceland
Delivery Prices
Iceland delivery costs just £2 or is free for orders over £35.
Minimum Order
Technically there is no minimum order, but it is worth ordering at least £35 to qualify for free delivery.
Delivery Pass
There is no delivery pass needed with Iceland! All orders over £35 are free. This is a huge bonus in my eyes.
Slot Options
The earliest available delivery slot from Iceland is 6:00am – 8:00am and the latest is 5:00pm to 7:00pm.
As I found with ASDA, Iceland only offer 2 hour windows in my area, which can be tricky if you are busy. Still, the fact that they are free makes this perhaps something to persevere with.
Slot Availability
In my experience, Iceland have had the best slot availability.
When I checked slot availability on Wednesday 29th July 2020, the next available slot was Thursday 30th July, the very next day. There were also slots available every day for the next 7 days.
Cut Off Time
Orders need to be amended by 11:00pm the day before delivery.
Product Range & Quality
I must say that I was pleasantly surprised with the range and quality of Iceland’s products. They had an extensive frozen range, which I expected, but I was surprised at the amount of other products that they had on sale.
As you’ll see from the video, I managed to get a full shop from Iceland, which surprised me.
The only thing that I will say is that their food range is far more extensive than their household range. If you keep this in mind when shopping, I don’t think you will be disappointed.
Limits & Stock Availability
Although Iceland had limits and restrictions earlier in the crisis, these have now been removed.
Substitutions
In my order, I had one substitution, which was fine, and no “out of stock” items.
Receipts & Communication
Iceland send out emails when you place or update your order, then another when it is on it’s way. This email contains details of exactly which items will be delivered.
On tip of this, they leave you a paper receipt that includes the local store and store manager’s nunber for you to call if there are any problems.
Points & Rewards
Iceland offers a Bonus Card where you can save money to spend in store. For every £20 you save, Iceland will give you a bonus £1 back.
Price
Iceland seemed very competitive on price, especially when you shop their multi buy deals.
They were more expensive on household items as they only seemed to offer a limited selection of branded products, such as dishwasher tablets.
I think that if you stick to just food items in Iceland and buy homewares elsewhere, you can defiantly save money.
Iceland – The Verdict
I must admit, I was not expecting to be so impressed with Iceland. The free delivery is a huge bonus, as it the amazing availability of delivery slots.
The 2 hour window may prove a problems for me in September, but it may be worth staying in for one evening or weekend considering that it’s free.
Tesco
Delivery Prices
Tesco deliveries are £4.50, or £5.50 without a delivery pass. They call this a ‘pick, pack and deliver’ charge. “Flexi saver” slots are cheaper at £3 each.
Minimum Order
There is no minimum order, but a charge of £4 is added to baskets under £40.
Delivery Pass
Tesco are currently offering any day deliveries with their delivery saver plan for £7.99 a month or £47.94 for 6 months.
Slot Options
Tesco’s earliest delivery slot is 8:00am – 9:00am and their latest is 10:00pm – 11:00pm. The slots are 1 hour, apart from the flexi slots which are a 4-hour window.
Slot Availability
I have had a delivery saver pass with Tesco for a number of years. Even before the pandemic, I found that the slot availability was a little inconsistent. Some times I could get a slot for later that day and others I couldn’t get one for over a week.
Earlier this year slots were pretty hard to come by, but now there is more availability.
When I tried to book a Tesco delivery slot on Wednesday 29th July 2020, the next available slot was Sunday 9th August, 11 days later. This is the longest wait for a delivery in this study.
Cut Off Time
Tesco orders need to be amended by 11:46pm the night before your delivery.
Product Range & Quality
The range and quality of Tesco’s products is good.
Limits & Stock Availability
Early in the pandemic, Tesco imposed a limit of 80- items per delivery, which was challenging as a family of 6 when I was also shopping for vulnerable family members. They have now moved this to an upper limit of 95 items. They are the only supermarket to still have this type of restriction.
Substitutions
In my last Tesco haul, I had one substitution, which was fine (literally apples for apples). There were also 2 out of stock items for which they offered no alternative.
Receipts & Communication
Tesco sends out emails for order confirmations and to remind you to amend your orders. They also back this up with a text message reminder and a push notification from the app, if you have these turned on.
The final breakdown of what is actually delivered is broken down on a paper receipt with your order.
Points & Rewards
Tesco operates a Tesco Clubcard rewards system. If yo have a Tesco credit card, then you can collect even more points on your shopping. Over the years we have had many meals out, days out and even Merlin Annual passes all paid for out of Clubcard points.
Price
Tesco is pretty competitive on price. They also offer an Aldi price match.
Tesco – The Verdict
I have shopped with Tesco for years, partly because it has been easy to just reorder form my favourites. I like the fact that I have collected so many points over the years to spend on my family.
In this comparison, however, they cam out worst when it comes to actually being able to book a slot. It’s also not super helpful that they still have a maximum number of items per order, especially as a large family.
I’d also like to see them emailing out the receipt like other supermarkets do.
Join the conversation
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