Tesco has raised the price of its most costly delivery slots, so if you want your shopping delivered between Friday and Sunday you'll have to pay even more for the privilege.
The supermarket giant has increased the price of some morning slots from £6 to £7, a nearly 20% increase which means your weekly home delivery could cost you £364 a year.
Tesco said its new prices came into effect for slots booked from 7th March; however as a regular Tesco shopper and someone who’s signed up to its mailing list, I didn’t see any advance warning of the price increase.
The delivery slots that now come with a £7 price tag are Fridays and Saturdays from 8am to 9am, and Sundays from 8am through to 10am.
Tesco said it had raised prices to “ensure its online shopping service remains sustainable for the future” and claimed it was important to “encourage shopping across the week; as midweek is not as popular as the weekend”.
Tesco was also quick to point out that it has increased the number of £1 slots available each week, from 10% of all slots to 12%. These tend to be offered on midweek or late night slots.
But after a quick tot up, I found Tesco offers just fourteen slots for £1 over the course of a week; significantly less than competitors like Asda or Sainsbury’s.
Tesco’s increased delivery charge comes less than a year after it announced a £4 surcharge on online orders under £40. Previously this only applied on orders under £25.
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Supermarket delivery charges
So how do the other supermarkets stack up with their delivery rates?
Asda
Home delivery is available in two hour slots from 7am through to 11pm from Monday to Saturday and then between 8am and 10pm on Sundays at Asda.
Like Tesco it also offers £1 delivery slots, there are more to choose from with a total of seventeen each week. However, as with Tesco these cheap slots will not suit everyone, as they’re typically midweek and mid-afternoon.
Weekend delivery costs up to £6 a time, although regular shoppers can cut costs using a Delivery Pass. The ‘Anytime’ version costs £60 for a year , £36 for six months or £8 for a one-month option.
Alternatively there is a midweek Delivery Pass which costs just £24 a year. However, it only covers deliveries between Tuesday and Thursday.
All orders are subject to a £40 minimum spend, otherwise you’ll pay the standard delivery charge that applies to the slot you book.
Morrisons
Morrisons offers one-hour delivery slots from £1 up to a maximum of £5, depending on the day and time chosen.
And it offers nearly eighteen hours a day of deliveries from 6am through to 11.30pm.
Delivery pass options cost from £5 to £7 a month for the ‘Anytime’ option, or from £2.50 to £5 for midweek, which applies from Tuesday to Thursday.
Like most of the other supermarkets, there’s a £40 minimum on all orders.
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Ocado
Ocado offers one hour slots from 6.30am to 11pm every day of the week, but you must place an order of at least £40.
Delivery charges vary according to both order value and time of day, with orders under £75 charged anything from £2.99 up to a maximum of £6.99.
[SPOTLIGHT]However for orders of £75 or more you can get free delivery.
Ocado shoppers can cut costs with its ‘Smart Pass’. This costs £10.99 a month for anytime delivery (subject to £40 minimum order) or £6.99 a month for midweek delivery which applies to Tuesday through to Thursday.
Sainsbury’s
Sainsbury's offers free delivery on orders over £100 after 2pm between Monday and Thursday.
Otherwise standard delivery charges apply, which range from £1 to £6 with one hour timeslots available from 8am to 11pm.
All deliveries are subject to a minimum £25 order, with orders under £40 incurring a £6.95 delivery charge.
Sainsbury’s ‘Anytime’ delivery pass means one free delivery any day of the week. It costs £60 for a year, £35 for six months or £20 for three months.
Cheaper still is the midweek delivery pass, which gets you a free delivery on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. It costs £30 for a year, £18 for six months or £10 for three months. All delivery pass orders are subject to a £40 minimum spend.
Waitrose
Free home delivery on orders over £60 sounds like a great deal, especially when you consider the fact that Waitrose promises to price match Tesco on branded groceries.
However on the down side, there’s no delivery option available for smaller orders under £60, even if you’re prepared to pay for it.
Hourly slots are available from 9am through to 10pm seven days a week, except days like Easter Sunday.
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