M&S beats Waitrose in annual supermarket satisfaction survey

More than 3,000 people weigh in about their in-store and online shopping experiences

A man walks past a branch of Marks and Spencer supermarket in west London. AFP

M&S has nudged out Waitrose and fought off competition from discounter Aldi to top an annual supermarket satisfaction survey.

Which? asked more than 3,000 members of the public in October last year about their in-store and online shopping experience at the UK's biggest supermarkets, looking at a range of factors including store appearance, product range and value for money.

The traditional “big four” of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons fell to the bottom half of the ranking of the 10 major grocers for their in-store experiences, suggesting that the middle ground between quality and cheaper food is less appealing to shoppers during a cost-of-living crisis, Which? said.

Co-op achieved 61 per cent, only one star for value for money and two stars for availability, range and quality, making it the worst performer.

M&S got the highest overall customer score of 77 per cent for its in-store offer, earning praise for the quality of its own-label and fresh products, customer service and store appearance.

However, both M&S and Waitrose fell down on value for money, achieving only two out of five stars.

Waitrose and Aldi came joint second with scores of 73 per cent, highlighting the success of the German discounter’s efforts to compete with the high-end grocers.

Aldi scored four stars for value for money and the quality of its fresh products but only two stars for stock availability and queue waiting times.

Iceland and Lidl rounded out the top five, both scoring 69 per cent.

Ocado topped the ranking for best online grocer retailer, achieving a customer score of 81 per cent.

Iceland and Waitrose scored joint second for online shopping with scores of 76 per cent, both scoring highly for availability of delivery slots, range of products and customer service at collection and delivery.

Morrisons fell to the bottom of the table for online shopping, scoring 66 per cent and only two stars for value for money, stock availability and the choice of substitute items.

“Our results highlight how many shoppers are prioritising value for money above all else but, for those who can afford it, high-quality products and a positive shopping experience still really matter,” Which? retail editor Reena Sewraz said.

“None of the supermarkets received five stars for value in-store, but the discounters still led the way in this category.”