UK shoppers should see clearer price information on supermarket shelves and online listings under reforms to the Price Marking Order 2004, which govern how retailers display selling prices and unit prices.
The changes are aimed at making it easier to compare products that look similar but are sold in different pack sizes, weights or volumes. That matters in everyday supermarket aisles, where the cheapest-looking item is not always the best value once the price per kilo, litre or other unit is taken into account.
The rules are particularly relevant to major grocery chains such as Aldi, Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s, although the obligations apply by category of trader and product rather than by brand name alone.
What the price label reforms cover
The Price Marking Order already requires retailers to show the selling price of goods and, where applicable, a unit price. Government guidance for the amended rules says the reforms are intended to make those prices clearer where shoppers are comparing goods across different sizes, promotions and loyalty offers.
One practical change is a stronger push toward standardised unit pricing. Instead of labels using inconsistent measures that make comparison harder, the amended framework points retailers toward clearer units such as kilograms, litres, metres, square metres and cubic metres where those measures apply.
That is meant to reduce situations where shoppers have to compare, for example, one product priced by grams against another priced by kilograms. The issue has become more noticeable as pack sizes have changed and shoppers have paid closer attention to so-called shrinkflation, where products get smaller while the headline price stays the same or rises.
Loyalty prices must be shown more clearly
Loyalty pricing is another major part of the reforms. Where an item is offered at more than one price, such as a standard shelf price and a loyalty-card price, the amended guidance says traders should show the relevant selling prices together. Where unit pricing applies, the matching unit price should also be shown for each offer.
That means a supermarket label should not make it hard to tell whether a lower Clubcard, Nectar or other loyalty price is genuinely better value by unit. Eligibility conditions, such as needing a valid loyalty card, should be clear and placed close to the relevant prices.
The guidance also addresses prominence. In practical terms, shoppers should not have to hunt for the standard price while a loyalty price dominates the shelf label, or vice versa. The point is to make the comparison visible at the moment a buying decision is being made.
More everyday products are expected to be covered
The reforms also broaden the range of goods where unit pricing can matter. Alongside food items, the updated rules are expected to affect more packaged household and personal care products, including categories such as detergents, cleaning products and cosmetics where pack sizes can vary widely.
Smaller shops are treated differently under the Price Marking Order. Stores below the relevant floor-space threshold are not subject to every unit-pricing obligation in the same way as larger retailers, although they still have separate duties around clear and non-misleading prices.
The rules also allow some broad promotional reductions without requiring every affected shelf label to be replaced individually. For example, a store-wide or category-wide discount can be handled differently from a product-specific price change, provided the customer is still given clear price information.
For shoppers, the practical effect should be simpler comparison at the shelf edge: the standard price, any loyalty price and the relevant unit price should be easier to read together. The reforms do not guarantee lower supermarket prices, but they are designed to make value-for-money claims easier to check before an item reaches the checkout.