Oreo kiddin' me? Supermarket 'Thins' prices take the biscuit
If you've walked down the supermarket's biscuit aisle recently, you'll probably have seen 'Thins', sold by brands such as Oreo and McVitie's, seemingly offering an identical treat - other than the fact each biccie's a bit thinner than normal.
Just for fun, I’ve been comparing prices of standard-size biscuits to their ‘Thins’ alternative, and after crunching the numbers (sorry), I can reveal choosing ‘Thins’ could see you being charged almost double for half as much biscuit – now that’s crummy.
Of course, those without much self-discipline (such as myself) when it comes to packets of tasty treats may prefer to save in the waistline rather than the wallet – but if you just want more cookie for your cash, you can satisfy your sweet or savoury craving for less.
It follows similar findings from our previous research into the exotic pricing secrets of World Foods, rip-offs in the ‘Free From’ section and Beauty vs Baby aisle bargains. We checked all the major supermarkets and found there wasn’t much difference in prices, the ingredients appeared the same and the ‘Thins’ always came out more expensive. So while my table uses Tesco prices, it’s more or less the same wherever you shop:
| Product | Price (per 100g) | |
| Normal pack | 'Thins' pack | |
| Ryvita crisp bread | 99p for 250g (40p per 100g) | £1.89 for 125g (£1.51 per 100g) |
| Oreo biscuits | £1.08 for 154g (70p per 100g) | £1.08 for 96g (£1.12 per 100g) |
| McVitie's chocolate digestives | £1.50 for 266g (56p per 100g) | £1.59 for 180g (88p per 100g) |
Whether Ryvita’s a biscuit is open to debate - it’s a cracker if you ask me - but I’ve included it in my list anyway, as the Ryvita ‘Thins’ price gap is too big to be ignored.
You may think it stops there, but, as well as ‘Thins’ there are ‘Minis’, which again seem to offer an identical snack – only smaller – but in reality what's shrinking is your wallet:
| Product | Price (per 100g) | |
| Normal pack | 'Minis' pack | |
| Jammie Dodgers | 69p for 140g (49p per 100g) | £1 for 120g (83p per 100g) |
| Penguin chocolate biscuits | £1.39 for 197g (71p per 100g) | £1.69 for 150g (£1.13 per 100g) |
| Maryland cookies | £1.25 for 230g (53p per 100g) | £1 from 150g (67p per 100g) |
Now I’m no nutritionist, but, as far as I can tell, ‘Thins’ and ‘Mini’ alternatives are essentially the same products inside - the only difference being the size of each biscuit.
So you can still eat smaller portions, but also save money, if you instead choose the regular-size version and can exercise some self-control (I know, easier said than done).
Will you be switching back to regular size? Do you know of any other supermarket pricing hacks? I’d love to know in the comments below or on Twitter.
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