- etoro analysis finds smaller formats of 15 everyday food and drink products cost more per gram, litre or item
- Walkers crisps cost 239% more per kilogram in the small bag, Heinz ketchup 75% more and Weetabix 27% more
05 September 2026: Britons buying smaller packages of everyday food and drink are paying a median 24% more for each gram, litre or item, according to new analysis from trading and investing platform etoro.
The analysis comes as GLP-1 use continues to reshape food-buying habits with the latest research showing 12% of UK households now include a GLP-1 user, with users buying 6.1% fewer impulse products such as snacks and confectionery.
etoro compared the regular listed prices of smaller and larger formats of 15 familiar branded products sold by the same UK online supermarket. Every smaller format was more expensive when measured by weight, volume or individual item.
The difference was particularly pronounced among convenience formats. A 32.5g bag of Walkers Ready Salted crisps cost 238.5% more per kilogram than a 150g sharing bag, while four 330ml Coca-Cola cans cost 117.6% more per litre than a 1.75-litre bottle. A 40g pot of Pringles carried an 89.7% premium compared with a 165g sharing pack.
But the premium was not limited to snacks and soft drinks. A 342g bottle of Heinz Tomato Ketchup cost £3, compared with £4.55 for a 910g bottle, making the smaller format 75.4% more expensive per kilogram. A smaller can of Heinz Baked Beans carried a 48.2% premium, while a 24-pack of Weetabix cost 27.3% more per biscuit than a 48-pack.
In 14 of the 15 comparisons the smaller pack was cheaper at the till. Shoppers paid less upfront, but more for what they got. Coca-Cola was the exception, costing more either way.
Sam North, Market Analyst at etoro, said: “Supermarket pricing has traditionally rewarded people for buying more. Larger packs benefit from economies of scale and are often priced to encourage shoppers to trade up. That means the smallest format can be cheaper at the till, but significantly more expensive per gram, litre or item. That distinction becomes more relevant as GLP-1 use changes eating habits and reduces impulse purchasing. A smaller pack may offer a more manageable upfront price, but it does not necessarily offer better value. Consumers need to look beyond the shelf price and check what they are paying for each gram, litre or item.”
Mondelēz International, owner of Cadbury, Oreo and Toblerone, provides a recent example. The company reported organic revenue growth of 2.2% in the second quarter of 2026, with 1.5 percentage points coming from pricing and 0.7 points from volume and mix. It said package downsizing took around 0.5 percentage points off volume and mix, which would otherwise have been about 1.2 points.
Sam North added: “For food companies, smaller formats can serve a clear commercial purpose: they keep the upfront price within reach while increasing the price paid per unit, helping to support revenue and margins. But they can also make underlying demand harder to interpret. Revenue may hold up through pricing and pack changes even when households are buying fewer items. With GLP-1 use associated with weaker impulse purchasing, investors need to look at pricing, volumes, mix and pack sizes together to understand what is really driving growth. A business may be generating higher revenue, but that does not necessarily mean it is selling more product.”
The etoro Portion Premium Basket
| Product | Smaller format | Price | Larger format | Price | Smaller-format premium |
| Walkers Ready Salted Crisps | 32.5g | £1.10 | 150g | £1.50 | 238% |
| Coca-Cola Original Taste | 4 × 330ml | £4.35 | 1.75L | £2.65 | 118% |
| Pringles Original | 40g | £1.15 | 165g | £2.50 | 90% |
| Heinz Tomato Ketchup | 342g | £3.00 | 910g | £4.55 | 75% |
| Heinz Baked Beans | 200g | £1.00 | 415g | £1.40 | 48% |
| Ambrosia Devon Custard | 150g | £1.00 | 400g | £2.00 | 33% |
| Weetabix Original | 24 pack | £3.50 | 48 pack | £5.50 | 27% |
| Kellogg’s Corn Flakes | 670g | £3.50 | 1kg | £4.20 | 24% |
| Nutella | 350g | £3.00 | 1kg | £6.95 | 23% |
| Philadelphia Original | 165g | £2.25 | 280g | £3.25 | 17% |
| Yeo Valley Organic Natural Yoghurt | 450g | £2.00 | 950g | £3.75 | 13% |
| Heinz Salad Cream | 285g | £2.30 | 425g | £3.30 | 4% |
| Heinz Cream of Tomato Soup | 300g | £1.30 | 400g | £1.70 | 2% |
| Hellmann’s Real Mayonnaise | 600g | £3.95 | 800g | £5.20 | 1% |
| Cathedral City Mature Cheddar | 350g | £3.50 | 550g | £5.45 | 1% |
| Median | 24 % | ||||
Methodology
- etoro compared the regular listed prices of a smaller and a larger format of 15 branded food and drink products on Ocado on 14 September 2026, excluding promotions. Each price was converted into a cost per kilogram, litre or item.
- The headline figure is the median difference. The median is used because a few convenience formats carry unusually large premiums, which push the mean up to 47.7%.
- This is a snapshot of selected products, not a measure of UK food prices overall.
- GLP-1 figures are from IGD and NIQ research published on 22 July 2026. Mondelēz figures are from its second-quarter 2026 results, published on 28 July 2026.
- The analysis does not suggest that GLP-1 use caused the price differences or the performance of any company mentioned.
ENDS
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