DistantNews
Support us
Grocery prices are rising, and shoppers face more pain at the checkout
🇦🇺 Australia /Economy & Trade

Grocery prices are rising, and shoppers face more pain at the checkout

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • A Canstar comparison found that the same Woolworths groceries cost $232.02 in July 2026, up 8.5% from $213.89 in March 2025.
  • Australian wage growth reached 3.3% in the year to March, while prices for staples including milk and mince increased.
  • Shoppers reported changing their buying habits, while Woolworths and Coles each reported annual profits of $1.1 billion.

A weekly grocery shop for the same items at Woolworths rose from $213.89 in March 2025 to $232.02 in July 2026, according to consumer research company Canstar. The 8.5% increase has left shoppers looking for ways to reduce the pressure at the checkout.

Wages are not catching up and, as a result, you're really feeling the pinch when you get to the checkout.

— Lisa AsherThe University of Sydney retail academic researcher described the pressure created by rising grocery prices and slower wage growth.

Lisa Asher, a retail academic researcher at the University of Sydney, said wages were not keeping pace with grocery prices. Weather events affecting farmers have pushed up the cost of basics such as milk and mince, while the full impact of the Iran war on food prices has not yet been felt.

Canstar spokesperson Eden Radford said consumers were bulk-buying, choosing frozen products, comparing stores and replacing meat with lentils. Canstar had previously found less than $2 difference between comparable shops at Coles and Woolworths.

They're doing things like bulk buying, going frozen where they can, shopping around, and even doing things like replacing meat with things like lentils.

— Eden RadfordThe Canstar spokesperson outlined how consumers are changing their shopping habits.

Shoppers described a growing gap between what they spend and what they bring home. Chris Jackson said feeding a family of four had risen from about $300 a week last year to more than $400. Roseanne Browning said she now bought less, including no chocolate or confectionery. Anne Coleman said her weekly shop had increased by $20 to $30, while even toilet paper appeared to have shrunk in width.

I am really conscious of making sure we are feeding the kids the right things, so we're kind of forced into buying certain things.

— Chris JacksonA shopper described the difficulty of reducing grocery costs while feeding a family.

Sea Miller said a small tube of sunblock had risen from $3 to $4.50 in a year. He also pointed to higher butter prices and said consumers were paying more without receiving higher incomes. Woolworths reported an 18% rise in headline profit to $1.1 billion, while Coles also reported a full-year profit of $1.1 billion.

You still buy what you have to, but it costs more, and we don't get more money, but they make record profits.

— Sea MillerA shopper criticized the gap between rising household costs and supermarket profits.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog