Thousands of everyday products get smaller while prices stay the same - how to beat 'shrinkflation'

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has found 2,529 items – mostly food and drink – which had shrunk in size but not price between January 2012 and June this year. Sweets, chocolate, sugar, jams and syrups were among the worst 'shrinkflation' offenders.

The ONS report cited well-publicised size reductions of chocolate such as Toblerone, and other household items such as loo roll, coffee, sausages, beer and chips.

The study found that over the same five-year period just 614 products had increased in size without any notable price increase.

How to beat shrinkflation and cut the cost of your supermarket shop

Nobody enjoys seeing the cost of their weekly shop soar, but we've a host of savvy shopping tips to help make your money go further. Here are a few to start you off:

• Compare the cost of your trolley. Use the Mysupermarket comparison tool to benchmark the cost of your weekly shop at the major online supermarkets.

• Bag discounts when you can. Check out our Supermarket deals page for the latest coupons, cashback and bargains.

• Don't be a brand slave. Whether it's bacon, biscuits or baked beans, try dropping one brand level from your usual choice and if you can't tell the difference, stick with the cheaper one. Our Downshift Challenge tool can help.

• Keep your eyes on the prize. Supermarkets tend to place the most profitable stock at eye level (or children's eye level if it's targeted at them), yet profitable goods tend not to be the best deals for shoppers. Don't be distracted by this – look high and low for the best deals.

For more tips see our Supermarket Shopping guide, and to really take the savings to the max see if you can save £100s with Extreme Couponing.