Tesco increases the price of a meal deal from £3 to £3.50 but you can beat the price hike if you are a Clubcard member – here's how to sign up

The price rise of the meal deal, which includes a sandwich, snack and a drink, will take effect from Monday 28 February. We've asked Tesco why it's increasing the price for non-Clubcard holders but it declined to comment.

Tesco told us that regular Costa hot and cold drinks can be included as part of a meal deal for a period of 12 weeks from Monday 28 February. See our Reclaim and boost Tesco vouchers guide for full help and info on how to get the most from the Clubcard scheme.

In comparison with other supermarkets, a meal deal at Morrisons costs £3, Boots from £3.49 and a meal deal at Sainsbury's is £3.50. Asda also offers a deal where you can mix and match three items and get the cheapest free.

You can sign up to Tesco Clubcard online and it's free

It's free to sign up to Clubcard (though there's an optional paid-for membership, Clubcard Plus, which comes with extra perks). You can sign up online and print off a temporary card to scan in stores, or download the app (available for Android and iOS), which lets you sign up and scan a digital version.

You collect points each time you use your Clubcard at the till and each point is worth 1p to spend in Tesco in vouchers, so 500 points equals a £5 voucher to spend in store. You can also trade vouchers for up to three times that value (so £5 becomes £15) to spend with Tesco's Reward Partners, which include Cineworld, Disney+ and the RAC.

You'll need to earn at least 150 points to convert them into a voucher and then you can choose to wait for your statement, which comes every three months and includes your vouchers, or you can use the 'Faster Vouchers' scheme instead to get them in 24 hours.

You can spend vouchers in store, online or with Clubcard Reward Partners. To use in a store you can print Faster Vouchers at home or scan the voucher on your Clubcard app at the tills.

The vouchers will be valid for up to 21 months from the date you choose to turn your points into Faster Vouchers (less time than standard Clubcard vouchers, which don't expire for two years).