CMA report explains how to encourage more use of unit pricing information

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) opened a project on 31 January 2023 to consider the use of unit pricing in the groceries sector. On 20 July 2023, the CMA published its unit pricing review findings. On 30 January 2024, the CMA published its findings from consumer research and unit pricing analysis. These findings examined the awareness, presence and prominence of unit pricing, who uses it and how many use it. Unit pricing is one tool used by consumers among many in making decisions about purchases.

The findings appear in four different documents, which are all downloadable from the CMA Unit Pricing page on the gov.uk website:

  • Consumer research report
  • Unit pricing analysis report
  • Short summary report
  • Short guide

The consumer research report looks at how and when consumers use unit pricing. The CMA found that shoppers most commonly used unit pricing when comparing the same product in different formats, making substantial purchases, helping to select a product when overwhelmed by choice, checking whether supermarket deals were good value for money, shopping for new or infrequently purchased products and buying in bulk.

The unit pricing analysis report is about cases where shoppers can use unit pricing effectively and the impact of retail practices on shoppers.

The summary report presents the highlights of the CMA’s work. It presents findings about consumers’ awareness, understanding and use of unit pricing information, factors that influence use of unit pricing, how shoppers may be losing out by making wrong assumptions about what is best value, how unit pricing can help shoppers identify savings and the CMA’s conclusions.

The CMA’s short guide to unit pricing is a brief and simple unit pricing guide for consumers to help them to get the most out of unit pricing information.

The CMA describes the current situation of unit pricing in the groceries sector and looks at how improvements can be made. This is an important contribution to improving the system of unit pricing for shoppers and ensuring that unit prices are shown where they should appear.

Sources and further information:

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