A fantastic way to save money on your groceries is to visit the yellow sticker shelves at supermarkets. This is where supermarkets reduce their food that has a best before date coming up soon. They will massively slash their prices to get rid of stock. I am going to share the best supermarket reduction times.
Why buy yellow sticker food?
Yellow sticker food shopping is great for so many reasons.
First of all it has a massive impact on your budget, helping you to spend less on your weekly shop.
It also allows you to try out foods that you might not usually try.
It also helps the environment – think about how much energy has gone into producing something, only for it to then be thrown away. By shopping from supermarket reduced shelves you can stop that food and packaging going to waste.
How much you can save buying supermarket reductions?
The amount of money you can save by buying supermarket reductions depends on the supermarket, the time of day and the items on sale.
You can save anything from a few pence to a massive 90% off the full price of the items you are buying.
What food to buy from the supermarket reduction shelf?
You can buy anything from the supermarket yellow sticker shelves.
The most important thing is to look at the produce and decide if it still looks like it is decent quality. That means that fruit and veg isn’t wet or mouldy, and that meat packets haven’t expanded.
Food from the cheap shelf can be used to help to stretch your budget or stockpile your freezer. For example products like meat, fish and bread can be frozen, and something like cream can be turned into butter.
There are also foods that are perfectly safe to eat after their best before date. A yogurt that expired a day ago is unlikely to cause you any harm!
The best supermarket reduction times
Here are the best supermarket reduction times listed by the supermarket.
ASDA reduction times
ASDA’s final reductions start around 7pm which is when you will save the most money at the cheap shelf. Visit after 9pm and you are likely to have missed out on the bargains.
Sainsbury’s reduction times
Sainsbury’s reduction times will vary depending on the store, however from lunch time onwards you can see reductions in store. My husband actually worked at Sainsbury’s a good few years ago, and when I would drop him off for work around 8.45pm I would often find reductions down to just 10p in our local store.
Morrisons reduction times
Morrisons reduction times seem to be a bit more set across the board than other supermarkets. The night before the sell by date you can expect to find items reduced by about 20%, and for items past their sell by date that day you can expect them to be reduced to about 50% by 3pm. You can then expect a 75% reduction after 5pm and sometimes as late as 8pm.
Later than this and you might even bag some items for mere pennies.
Tesco supermarket reduction times
Tesco is another store where the reduction times vary. You can usually find some half-arsed attempts at reductions from around lunch time, where you can find maybe 10 – 20% off. Visit after 8pm and you are likely to find the best reductions on offer.
M&S reduction times
M&S reductions depend on what time you store closes. If your store closes at 7pm you can expect final reduction by 6.30pm, and if your store closes at 9pm then you can expect final reductions at 8pm.
Some M&S stores also have heavy discounts after the lunch time rush – from about 2pm onwards.
Aldi supermarket reduction times
You might think that Aldi doesn’t do food reductions, but they do! You will find reductions on their fresh product and meat, but instead of being confined to a reduction shelf the items will likely be on the shelf in their usual place, with a 50% off sticker across them.
You can expect 50% off at Aldi from around 7.30pm.
Lidl reduction times
Lidl do have a reduction shelf with items 30% off. Whilst the discount isn’t massive you will find the cheap shelf is stocked at most times of the day.
Co-op reduction times
The Co-op reduction times also vary my store. We lived in a village with two Co-op stores and they didn’t follow the same reduction patterns.
The yellow sticker shelf at the Co-op tends to have its first reductions for the afternoon school run, then after 8pm you can expect final reductions which are 75% off. Some stores do a reduction at around 5pm.
Waitrose reduction times
Waitrose reduction times are store dependent, however I have found Waitrose to be the least generously discounted supermarket. Even at 5 minutes to closing time on Christmas Eve their Christmas turkeys aren’t more than 50% off. Visit as close to the closing time as you can for the best discounts.
Share your supermarket reduction times in the comments
The above supermarket reduction times have been compiled based on my experience and asking others online. Help to keep this list as up to date as possible by sharing your supermarket yellow sticker times in the comments below.
This is incredibly useful! Particularly for salad and fruit, I hate seeing it go to waste if it is still good to eat
Thanks I’m going out to look for those yellow stickers !
I am a huge yellow sticker hunter. Waitrose is the meanest and sometimes the reductions are about 20p off, I would rather buy fresh at full price to save my freezer space.
Our Co-Op seems to be any time so always worth popping in regularly.
gotta love those reductions , great for topping up the freezer
I often go to our nearest Tesco local at 7pm. They have bread every day, as well as ready made sandwiches and microwave meals. I look out for fruit, veg and things such as sausages that can be frozen.
That’s great. I often pop down to the local one-stop around 6 to 7pm to grab the reduced isle bits. Ive had some great bargains in the past.
I love finding yellow sticker bargains. My local Waitrose often has the best bargains the mornings.
Great tips, bargains galore!
Nice one. I approve of bargain hunting XXX
We love shopping like this
Very useful , thank you x
I always go straight to the reduced section, although my local Tesco has started putting them on the normal shelves, with stickers, all around the store. Apparently they would like shoppers to buy products that they were intending on buying anyway to get a true bargain, instead of buying something just because it was reduced.
i love our local co-op, always lots of reductions
Great article. I loves me a bargain.
Love finding a supermarket yellow sticker! Great guide to the different shops times
My local co-op does final reductions at 6:30pm even though they don’t close until 8pm. There’s usually me and an elderly man waiting lol
Such a useful article, thank you so much. There will be no stopping me now!
Some people seem to look at the reduction sections with distain, but I’m all over them, some of the reductions are fantastic!
We shop at lidl and the yellow stickers are great, they reduce anything with two days to go usually and often items are reduced by 30% or to 90p or 20p. We’ve had some great reduced items.
Hoping to do more of this in 2020
Sometimes it’s hard to find the sale stuff if all you want is tonight’s tea – better to buy what they need to sell than spend more on it for a few days grace!!
It’s a good idea but I don’t want to go out to the shops in the evening.
Co-op is my favourite for bargains as it’s my local shop anyway and they are quite generous with the reductions.
My local Tesco reduces their veggies down to a couple of pence at around 11pm at night. Great for blanching and soups etc.
This was a very interesting post. I do try to buy yellow sticker reductions when I do my usual shopping but trying to persuade my husband that it is ok to use food (or freeze) that is on its use by date is proving very difficult. Sometimes he won’t even eat food that is “nearly out of date”!
The best reductions seem to be in the evening when I am generally at home. But if I am ever out then I will remember to swing by a supermarket to grab a bargain.
My friend always bags massive reductions in food from the supermarkets. It’s interesting to know which ones discount when.
I am always on the lookout for a bargain so visit the reduced shelves but don’t go at any particular time
This is so useful for us, as we love bargains on food , thank you x
Such a cool idea we love our fruit and yellow sticker are such cool colour and easy to see
What a really great idea
I would love to be able to go around 7.30ish but because I have to catch the bus and they are only every 3o mins it’s too much hassle.
I love to see what reductions i can get at end of the day
Thank you
Can’t beat a bargain!
I am always looking for a yellow sticker or a whoops one! 😀
I love finding low dates/reduced items. I absolutely hate waste and hate to think that food that can still be eaten is thrown away, I also love a bargain too! xx
thanks i love a bargain!
An interesting article, I will be looking out for those yellow stickers now.
Me and my husband calls these whoopsies, our freezer always has a load of yellow stickers in it
I love the Reduction Shelf – I need to get more organised about visiting it!
Good tips i love a good bargain at our local
I love looking through the yellow stickers, I find m&s are the best at reductions as they mark items down less than half price
Cant beat a bargain – i always look for yellow stickers and the Whoopsie section – 5 minutes earlier and it would be full price !
Interesting facts never heard them before I always like a bargain might try this out some time to see if this works.
I often buy yellow sticker food – tryng to avoid food waste
I get sooooo excited when I see a yellow sticker!!! Sometimes things can be as little as ten p! Last week I got haddock fillets reduced to ten p each and I’ve frozen them ready for a family meal xx
love getting a bargain but never seems to be much when im shopping
Good article – always worth looking for bargains
Great to know this information. Am always on the look out for yellow stickers.
Am not always able to access some of the shops at the best time.
Our nearest Tesco local has big reductions on bread, fresh fruit and veg at 7pm daily. I stop by most days to see what I can pick up. The other day, I bought 4 packets of leeks for 26p each! My husband made a huge batch of leek and potato soup. We have frozen half of the soup and the rest provided my lunch for 3 days.
Very useful post, thanks for sharing. I often head down to my local Tesco Express around 7pm to nab reduced food items. I’ve had many great bargains in my past shopping trips, especially after events like Easter and Christmas!
I will look out for Yellow Stickers
thanks for the tips
Tesco moves their yellow sticker position every two weeks.
as we have a large family I always look out for the yellow stickers to save money , on christmas eve we got some great bargains with steaks at only 60p a packet and pork joints at only 80p , they are in my freezer
I always try to pop in our local Morrisons once a day to see what’s on offer daily
Amazing tips.
I love doing this!
I love finding a reduction and If it looks ok then I will go for it!
Love a M&S yellow sticker
Great article. Thank you for sharing with us.
Thank you for the tips
I always have a rummage in the reduced item shelves when doing my weekly/top up shops – but would find it difficult to go late at night, specifically, with the kids at home etc. I usually find us a treat or two – something I wouldn’t have bought full price but that I’m happy to treat us to (a starter or dessert) whilst it’s reduced.
I buy lots of stuff like this, I even buy reduced deli meat and I freeze them, you then always have sliced meat in for a sandwich
Very useful to know for future shopping deals 🙂
Great article thanks for the tips.I love a bargain and look for reduced items, I hate waste especially with food
Really useful advice, thank you
We always look out for bargains on the yellow stickers, i love finding something I know that we will use
Great topic !
our local sainsburys have a fridge section dedicated to yellow label items, as well as a shelf section.
i’ll have to keep these tips in mind and bag some bargains x
This is super useful thank you for the tips!
Geeat read and we are always on look out food particularly meat that has been reduced so we can stock up our freezer. Good to know ‘re timings
We usually shop at Sainsbury’s and a few others there’s always some reduced items worth picking up especially in the evenings
Wonderful tips – my colleague always has yellow sticker m&s items!!
Thanks for this info, I will have to visit Asda after 7. I usually find that there isn’t much off the price in Sainsbury’s. I want a good discount if something is close to its use by date x
Great tips I’m always looking for offers and bargains
I’m a huge fan of the yellow sticker and working in a supermarket I can often grab the bargains first hand – it’s a great way to save money and eat posh! lol
I’ve always checked out the reduced section, my daughter says I have a built in radar to seek the bargains
I live in a village with just a Co-op that is in walking distance and their best reductions start at 7.30pm.
This is really good information, thank you
Thank you for the information, local stores of each can vary. I wouldn’t go out that late at night personally but it’s great for those who can and do.
Thanks for the tips, the yellow stickers are great for bargains
Accessibility to Healthy, Nutritious Food is Important for Quality of Life. Finances is an ISSUE for many. Perhaps the British Goverment should take action to ‘ Protect the Public ‘ from ‘ Food Poverty ‘, poor nutrition, insufficient nutrition, etc. As surely this impacts negatively on ‘ The Health of the Nation ‘. As well as putting pressures onto the NHS ( National Health Services), as well as Social Care, etc.
A great post, I usually avoid the yellow sticker items, although I did visit Tesco recently and they had triple chocolate muffin, jam doughnuts, tiger bread loaves etc reduced which I had to save lol xxx
My husband and I started buying reduced food about a month ago and we didn’t know much about it before then except for the odd thing at Tesco’s near where we live. I would hands down say ASDA has the best reduced things I found a fresh bakery tiger loaf for 10p as well as a big box of stir-fry mix for 10p bearing in mind I went there at 9:30 and most of the good things were gone by then as they close at 10. I asked the lady who works there at self checkout and she said they start doing it arounf 7pm.
For Lidl where I live they say that they start the reduced section around 7:30ish and my husband and I have gotten really good deals there with good quality pork belly for 70p, good Farmhouse seeded bread for 20p, a whole chicken for £2, pork steaks pack of 6 at one point for £2, deluxe quality quiche for £1.50, seasoned sweet potato fries for 69p and loads of other things.
I haven’t found any reduced stuff at Aldi ever unfortunely and we have asked the people that work there and thye said that they don’t do reduced stuff. At times when we go there late in the evening they are throwing away loads of food.
Tesco’s sometimes has some really good stuff especially with the bread with 6 pack of freshly baked buns for 17p and fruit loaf for 25p. But some of the stuff even reduced you can cheaper for non-reduced full price at Lidl or Aldi.
I have yet to check out Sainsbury but needless to say there is always places where in our daily lives where we can save money regardless of our financial situation.
*For also cheaper washing things and cleaning things I go to either wilko, B&M or farmfoods they usually do deals for stuff you can buy in bulk and these things are never usually reduced unless they are broken or half of it is gone. Just a side note for those looking to save on the whole shopping. Also for toiletries if you have a Savers near you then also go there because they sell stuff way cheaper than the general retail price you would find in supermarkets and also after Christmas in big Tesco’s superstores they have toiletry packs that haven’t sold and it’s stuff like Baylis and Harding for £3.25 reduced from around £10 with a bag as well.