Italian supermarkets: where food is cheapest

The cheapest basket is at the discounters Lidl/Eurospin/MD; a family, per the community, spends around 500 EUR a month. Conad, Coop and Carrefour cost a bit more, Esselunga is premium, and vegetables and fruit are better bought at the market. Below: how the chains differ, what turns out cheaper and what more expensive than in Russia, where to find tvorog and buckwheat, how delivery works and what you can really save on.

Let us be honest about the big picture right away. Food in Italy is on average more expensive than in Russia, but the difference is not cosmic: some products are noticeably cheaper, some more expensive, and on quality and taste many rate it higher. If you are used to the prices of, say, Moscow or Sochi, you will feel the difference in spending, but it is unlikely to shock you.

This is not financial advice: any prices here are a community guideline, they depend on the city and the season and are constantly changing, so verify against your own receipts.

We moved from the Czech Republic to Monza and on the very first trip to the supermarket we got stuck at the shelves - both at the prices and at the quality. Grana Padano at 8 euro for half a kilo is an ordinary thing by local standards, and the vegetables and fruit after the Czech ones are night and day. Largely because of the food we decided to stay.

What grocery shops and supermarkets are there in Italy?

Grocery shops in Italy roughly break down into three price tiers: discounters like Lidl, regular chains like Conad and Coop, and premium like Esselunga. There are many chain grocery shops - for such a small country compared with Russia the number of large chains is surprising. Below is how the tiers differ in prices and quality.

• Discounters - the cheapest segment. The main reference here is Lidl, with Eurospin and MD alongside, and Aldi crops up. The prices are low at acceptable quality, but the vegetables and fruit at the discounters, according to the community, are often weaker than at the pricier chains.
• Regular chains - the middle tier: Conad (the largest Italian retailer, with many formats - from Conad City to the large Conad Superstore), Carrefour (including the small Carrefour Express), Coop, Pam, Spar/Despar, and the regional Decò and Emisfero.
• Premium - Esselunga, familiar to residents of the north (south of Florence it is almost absent). More expensive, but with a wide selection and good quality; this is also where the rarer items are more often found.

The table below is a community generalization to quickly gauge where to go for what; specific prices and delivery coverage change constantly, verify on the spot.

A handy thing to remember about delivery: Lidl has none of its own, but Everli brings it (and also Coop and Carrefour), according to the community within a couple of hours; Esselunga delivers itself, but often only the next day.

I sorted it out for myself: the staples I get at Lidl or Eurospin, and if I am too lazy to go - I order through Everli, they bring it in a couple of hours. For quality and rare things I go to Esselunga, but I hardly use their own delivery - it is usually next day, not right away. I got the Fìdaty card for the vouchers for points.

Besides the chains, Italy has a multitude of markets and small specialized shops: vegetable shops (fruttivendolo, ortolano), butchers (macelleria), fishmongers (pescheria), cheese-and-cured-meat shops (salumeria), bakeries (panetteria). Markets and farm points in non-tourist places are usually cheaper than supermarkets, but the small shops and bakeries are almost always more expensive - you go there for quality and service, not for savings.

We shop wherever it works out: Eurospin, Conad, Coop, Lidl, plus the local Decò and Ard. Fish not every time, but if there is a port nearby - we take it right there, you can take a large fish whole, several kilograms, and not overpay.

How much a basic basket costs and what is going on with prices

A convenient local detail: by law every price tag has the price per 1 kg or 1 l in the corner - so you can see at once which item is really cheaper and which simply has a smaller package. This also works in the online shops.

A rough guideline for the price level at a discounter (according to the community, with no claim to precision - verify the current details on the spot):

• potatoes - about 1.2 euro per kg
• eggs - roughly 1.8-2.2 euro per dozen
• onions - about 2 euro per kg
• sliced bread - roughly 1 euro per pack
• tomatoes on the vine - from 1 euro per kg (but ordinary ones easily come to 3 euro and more)
• beef (fillet) - from 10 euro per kg
• rice - about 2 euro per kg
• Barilla pasta - roughly 1.5 euro per kg
• watermelon - about 0.9 euro per kg
• a tub of fruit yogurt - around 0.35 euro

What is usually cheaper than in Russia. From observations, more often in the plus are cheese, ground coffee, chocolate, tea, butter, lemons, olives, many fruits, and also - noticeably - alcohol. What is usually more expensive. Onions, potatoes, eggs, beef, tomatoes, and from the non-food side - tobacco and household chemicals.

An important caveat about price aggregators: automatic comparisons (like Numbeo) often lie in both directions, so double-check against real receipts.

I checked online comparisons against reality - the data on the shops is off. It shows chicken fillet at 13 euro, while we take it for 6; beef supposedly 25, in fact you can take it for 8; it draws tomatoes at 2, although I have not seen them cheaper than 3; beer at 2.5, while really it is 1-1.5. Double-check any such figure.

Prices differ from region to region and from season to season: in the north a lot is more expensive than in Rome, vegetables and fruit in season are several times cheaper. The common saying "in the south life is cheaper" barely applies to groceries - that is more about rent.

Markets and farm produce

Markets are a separate story and often the best way to get fresh produce cheaply. In non-tourist places they are, as a rule, cheaper than supermarkets, but they are not open daily (more often on Wednesdays, on Fridays, and in the smallest towns - once a week) and it is better to come in the morning: by midday the stalls empty out. Many hold to the "0 km" system - points next to the farmers where they sell the local and seasonal.

The tastiest vegetables of my life were at a rural market in Apulia - everything for a euro, peasant sellers with soil on their hands. Having moved north, we were badly disappointed both by the taste and by the prices, but here too we found those who grow it themselves, though only in season. The general rule is simple: the more expensive, the tastier, and at the discounters the vegetables are usually worse.

At the market, unlike the supermarket, it is sometimes appropriate to haggle - but not on the principle of "just give me a discount because I feel like it". And note the local etiquette: weighed vegetables, fruit and unpacked baked goods are not touched with bare hands - you put on a disposable glove or take them through a bag, and in some places you cannot touch the goods at all.

What Italy does not have: tvorog, smetana, buckwheat and substitutes

The range looks familiar at first glance, but someone moving from Russia should know about the gaps. In ordinary Italian shops there is no tvorog, smetana, buckwheat, raw beetroot, pelmeni or vareniki, and Russian hot mustard is replaced by a mild and sweet one. This is not a tragedy - almost everything is solved with substitutes or Eastern European shops, but you have to be prepared for it.

• Tvorog. The closest in the supermarket is fiocchi di latte or ricotta classica (available at MD and Eurospin), but it is not that taste. At Lidl they sell a soft Quark, though low-fat. Many make tvorog at home from Greek yogurt.
• Smetana. It is sought under the name panna acida, but the taste differs noticeably; as a substitute people take Greek or organic yogurt. Sometimes good options turn up - for example, at Esselunga there is a very thick German product around 24% fat, close to our smetana.
• Buckwheat. The ordinary kind is not available; in health-food shops there may be green (including at Lidl and Eurospin) - you roast and cook it yourself. The familiar buckwheat is brought from Russia or bought at Slavic shops.

We hunted for smetana as a whole chat. The best find so far is at Esselunga: it sits next to the butter, very thick, 24%, unsweetened and unsour, creamy - at first it seems like a mousse, but if you stir the top in the tub, it becomes silky. Produced in Germany. Not Italian, but the closest to our taste.

I find fresh beetroot in the frutta/verdura and at the small markets, about 2 euro per kg. Instead of tvorog I take ricotta classica at MD or Eurospin - excellent for syrniki. Herring and smoked herring I bought at Lidl and Eurospin, and the green buckwheat there too - I roast it in a thick-bottomed pot and then cook it.

The familiar products can be obtained if you want: Eastern European shops (the same Mix Markt chain is in almost all the large cities) stock tvorog, smetana and buckwheat at reasonable prices; some things are found on Amazon. If you are bringing something from Russia by parcel - factor in the risk of a delay at customs, that happens.

Alcohol, coffee and habits

Here the news is good. Wine and beer in Italy are on the whole cheaper than in Moscow: wine starts from 1-1.5 euro for the simplest, the decent goes for 4-6 euro, a ready Aperol Spritz or Lambrusco - around 2 euro. The selection of Italian wines is huge and of good quality, although there is less wine from other countries in the shops than you might expect. But tobacco, because of the excise duties, is 2-3 times more expensive, and you can buy it only at the tabaccheria, not at the grocery shop.

Separately about coffee and ready food - this is already about habits, not about money. Coffee here is drunk sitting in a bar, not on the run from a paper cup, and that is considered the norm. There are ready salads and dishes in the shops, but there is little point in them: it is simpler and more pleasant to go to a restaurant for pasta for 8-12 euro than to heat a container for 7-8. And do not order a latte at a bar - they will bring you a glass of milk; what you need is a cappuccino.

Grocery delivery to the home

There is plenty of delivery in Italy, especially in the cities. The main app is Everli (formerly Supermercato24): it is precisely through it that people order from Lidl, which has no delivery of its own, and also from Coop, Carrefour and other chains. They usually bring it within a couple of hours; the chains have their own deliveries too - HeyConad at Conad, separate services at Carrefour, Esselunga and Coop. Standing apart is Too Good to Go - there cafes and shops sell boxes with food that would otherwise be thrown out, for a third of the price.

The main thing to understand about delivery: it is a convenience, not a saving. According to the community, each item in the app is more expensive than in the store by about 0.15-0.20 euro, plus the fee for the delivery itself - on a weekly basket a tangible difference adds up. That is why Italians themselves almost never use grocery delivery.

We counted our weekly basket: the same goods, the prices long since memorized. In delivery through Everli from Lidl or Carrefour each unit is more expensive than the store by 15-20 centesimi, plus the delivery itself - in total on a family basket it comes to an extra 20-30 euro. So we take delivery only when a cheap shop is not within walking distance.

I have been using delivery from Lidl through Everli for more than a year and a half, they bring it during working hours within a couple of hours. Once an order was not delivered - the chain apologized, said it happens, and refunded all the money (payment is always one hundred percent through the app). For a family without a car this is a lifesaver, even if a bit more expensive than going on foot.

Before counting on delivery, check the coverage for your address right in the app - the chains' reach differs, in small towns it may not exist.

How to save on groceries

• Buy at a discounter, vegetables - at the market. A basic basket is cheapest to assemble at Lidl or Eurospin, and for tasty vegetables and fruit go to the market or to the farmers.
• Catch the markdowns. Many shops have a corner with expiring (but not expired) shelf life: blue stickers at Esselunga and Carrefour, discounts of up to half at the checkout, separate displays in the meat department, the same kind of corners at Lidl.
• Watch the promotions and apps. The chains post discount leaflets (volantini) on their sites, and the Lidl app regularly has decent promo codes. Loyalty cards (for example, Fìdaty at Esselunga) give access to part of the promotions.
• Save food through Too Good to Go - surprise boxes for a third of the price, and less waste at the same time.
• Take the seasonal. Vegetables and fruit in season are several times cheaper, out of season - the opposite.

The main saving is the markdown display. At Carrefour there is a separate shelf with a 50% discount at the checkout, plus I check the meat department: sometimes there are little cakes at half price, more rarely fish. At Esselunga the same blue stickers, at Lidl their own corners. The yellow price tags, by the way, are not worth specifically hunting for - that is not a markdown.

Useful little things about the Italian supermarket

• The cart is usually taken with a coin (0.5-1 euro), which is returned when you put the cart back in place.
• The bag at the checkout costs money (from 0.1 euro), you pack the purchases yourself - it is customary to come with your own bag.
• Cards may not be accepted at small non-chain shops in small towns - keep a little cash.
• Most shops close by 21-22, there are practically no 24-hour ones, and in small towns a shop may close for lunch. Queues at the checkouts with large carts are the norm: Italians more often do one big shop for the week.

And the last thing about groceries, but important for the budget: do not go by someone else's "average" amount of spending. In discussions a bar of around 500 euro a month on food for a family flashes by as a comfortable minimum, but the real figure is each person's own - keep your own receipts for the first month and count by fact.

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• Italy benefits for foreigners by ISEE - what is really available to foreigners and how it lowers spending.
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• Utilities: gas, electricity, water - the second large item of everyday spending after food.
• Bank and money in Italy - the account, cards and transfers for everyday purchases.
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Frequently asked questions

How do the main supermarket chains in Italy differ?

According to the community, the discounters (Lidl, MD, Eurospin, with Aldi cropping up) are the cheapest segment for the basic basket; the mid chains (Conad, Coop, Carrefour) cost a little more but have a wider selection; Esselunga is premium with the best quality and convenient online. Delivery from Lidl (which has none of its own) is brought by the Everli app, according to the community within a couple of hours, and from Coop and Carrefour too; Conad has its own HeyConad, Esselunga has its own delivery, but often only the next day. Loyalty cards exist at most chains (for example Fìdaty at Esselunga with vouchers for points). This is not financial advice, verify prices and coverage on the spot.

Which supermarket in Italy is the cheapest?

According to the community, the lowest prices are held by the discounters - first of all Lidl, with Eurospin and MD close behind. The regular chains (Conad, Carrefour, Coop) cost a little more, while Esselunga and the farm shops are noticeably more expensive but with a better selection and quality. The difference between chains on the basic basket is small, so many people buy the staples at a discounter and get vegetables and fruit at the market. Verify specific prices on the spot - they are constantly changing.

Are groceries in Italy more expensive than in Russia?

According to the community, on average more expensive, but without a catastrophe: some items are noticeably cheaper, some more expensive. Cheaper are usually cheese, coffee, chocolate, tea, butter, olives, wine and beer; more expensive are onions, potatoes, eggs, beef, tomatoes and tobacco. Many note that for a comparable bill the food in Italy is tastier and of higher quality. The figures depend heavily on the city and the season - this is not a financial forecast, verify against your own receipts.

Where in Italy do you buy tvorog, smetana and buckwheat?

According to the community, ordinary tvorog, smetana and buckwheat are not available in Italian supermarkets. Tvorog is often made at home from Greek yogurt; as a substitute people take fiocchi di latte or ricotta classica (available at MD and Eurospin); smetana is sought under the name panna acida, but the taste is different. The familiar tvorog, smetana and buckwheat are easier to find at Eastern European shops (for example, Mix Markt) or to order on Amazon. Green buckwheat is sometimes available at Lidl and Eurospin.

Is there grocery delivery to the home in Italy?

According to the community, yes: through the Everli app they bring from Lidl, Coop and Carrefour, usually within a couple of hours; Conad (HeyConad), Carrefour, Esselunga and Coop have their own delivery. In delivery each item is more expensive than in the store by about 0.15-0.20 euro plus the delivery fee, so you almost never save this way - it is a convenience, not a way to economize. Verify availability and prices in the app itself for your address.

How much money goes on food in Italy?

According to the community, the spread is large and depends on the city, the family size and the habits. In discussions a guideline of around 500 euro a month on groceries for a family comes up as a comfortable lower bound, but some manage on less and some spend noticeably more. It is better to go not by someone else's average but by your own receipts for the first month. This is not a norm, but a rough guideline.

Why do so few shops in Italy stay open late?

According to the community, there are practically no 24-hour grocery shops here, most close by 21-22, and in small towns a shop may also close for lunch in the middle of the day. If you did not make it before closing, in the evening there is almost nowhere to buy groceries. So Italians more often do one big shop for the week rather than running to the corner shop every day. Each location has its own hours - check in advance.

Related materials - Guides

• Buying property in Italy as a foreigner
• Italian bureaucracy: a map of the agencies
• Cost of living in Italy: monthly budget
• Renting a flat in Italy: contracts, deposits

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