Shoppers More Likely to Compare Prices in These Frugal Cities

Consumers in Bristol are most likely to compare prices when searching for insurance, holidays, flights, food, electronics, clothes, utilities and mobile phone contracts—making the city the UK’s most frugal.

Nationally, 86% of Brits spend time sleuthing out a deal, according to a survey conducted by comparison site idealo.co.uk. But an alarming 14% purchase the first product they see, missing out on hundreds of pounds of savings.

Idealo has estimated Brits spend an average of £365 more when they don’t compare prices on a new television set. Failing to shop around for a laptop will cost you an average of £91 and you’ll pay £65 more if you don’t compare prices for your new fridge.

Younger consumers are the savviest shoppers, with more than 90% of those under 24 always considering comparing prices. In contrast, one in five Brits over 55 never considers comparing prices.

But price comparison isn’t the only way to pinch pennies. 65% of us collect points and coupons to save cash, while a third shop in secondhand shops and another 27% take public transport. Others report making money by taking online surveys and selling unwanted items on sites like eBay and Depop.

However, many of us are leaving savings on the table—or maybe behind on the kitchen worktop. Under half (46%) of us make packed lunches, which means a staggering 54% are buying lunch every day. But forgoing Pret and taking lunch into work can save us £1,300 a year. The particularly frugal and cost-conscious are batch-cooking, often making their meals for the entire week over the weekend and shoved them in the freezer.

And 70% of us could benefit from snooping through supermarket fridges for yellow-labelled food. Just 30% are buying these discounted items, although they appear on shelves throughout the day, usually based on supply and sell-by date.

Bristolians are the reportedly the best at snooping out deals and scrimping and saving other ways, followed closely by Londoners and Norvicians (that’s denizens of Norwich).

idealo’s Ekin Ogurlu said: “We think it’s so important for Brits to save money when they can. Price comparison is so simple and can save you hundreds of pounds!

“In light of the current situation across the world, it’s now more important than ever to make sure we save as much money as possible on our purchases. With many people now on less income, the extra cash goes a long way!

“Our advice is to stay savvy all year round as there are several reasons why prices can fluctuate, with many retailers using artificial intelligence and algorithms to dynamically adjust prices according to consumer demand, competitor prices, and even the weather.”

The UK’s Most Frugal Cities

1.  Bristol
2.  London
3.  Norwich
4.  Southampton
5.  Edinburgh and Sheffield
6.  Leeds
7.  Glasgow and Cardiff
8.  Newcastle
9.  Manchester
10.  Liverpool