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Supermarket fuel is 3.7p a litre cheaper, but not always the cheapest
Britain's 2,150 supermarket forecourts charge an average of 165.4p a litre for unleaded. The other 5,189 charge 169.1p. That is 3.7p a litre, or £2.04 on a 55-litre tank. On diesel the gap is 3.6p. The advice to use a supermarket is sound on average, and wrong often enough to be worth checking.
Which chain is cheapest
Supermarket forecourts are not one price. These are the chains with at least twenty sites currently reporting, cheapest first, with the range across their own forecourts.
| Chain | Forecourts | Average | Cheapest site | Dearest site | Own spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SOLO | 23 | 156.8p | 144.9p | 164.9p | 20.0p |
| MAXOL | 78 | 158.7p | 149.9p | 164.9p | 15.0p |
| TEXACO | 127 | 163.4p | 145.9p | 175.9p | 30.0p |
| BP | 86 | 164.1p | 149.6p | 179.9p | 30.3p |
| ASDA | 302 | 165.4p | 150.7p | 172.9p | 22.2p |
| MORRISONS | 340 | 166.1p | 159.7p | 173.9p | 14.2p |
| ESSO | 38 | 166.1p | 156.5p | 175.9p | 19.4p |
| TESCO | 484 | 166.6p | 152.9p | 171.9p | 19.0p |
| SAINSBURYS | 266 | 166.8p | 155.9p | 174.9p | 19.0p |
| JET | 42 | 167.1p | 160.9p | 175.9p | 15.0p |
| SHELL | 25 | 167.3p | 159.9p | 175.9p | 16.0p |
| MURCO | 28 | 167.3p | 158.9p | 176.9p | 18.0p |
| Unbranded | 20 | 168.3p | 159.9p | 176.9p | 17.0p |
| GULF | 27 | 169.9p | 148.9p | 197.9p | 49.0p |
The last column is the one worth dwelling on. Across all supermarket forecourts the difference between the cheapest and the dearest is 53.0p a litre. A chain does not charge one national price, so knowing which supermarket is cheapest nationally tells you less than knowing which forecourt is cheapest where you are.
Where an independent beats every supermarket in town
Of the 440 towns that have at least one supermarket forecourt and enough others to compare, a supermarket is the cheapest in 248 of them. In the remaining 192 an ordinary forecourt undercuts every supermarket in the town. These are the widest cases.
| Town | Cheapest forecourt | Its price | Best supermarket | Beaten by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Craven Arms | GRIFFITHS GARAGE | 149.9p | 173.9p | 24.0p |
| Chelmsford | GULF MAYLAND | 149.9p | 167.7p | 17.8p |
| Caernarfon | TEXACO | 149.9p | 166.7p | 16.8p |
| Scunthorpe | KIRKS KORNER LTD | 154.9p | 168.9p | 14.0p |
| Shrewsbury | TEXACO | 152.9p | 165.9p | 13.0p |
| Chester | COSTCO WHOLESALE | 153.9p | 165.9p | 12.0p |
| Buckley | RHYDYMWYN SERVICE STATION | 161.5p | 171.9p | 10.4p |
| Kirriemuir | BP | 159.9p | 169.9p | 10.0p |
| Hitchin | ESSO | 167.9p | 176.9p | 9.0p |
| Skegness | GULF | 159.9p | 168.7p | 8.8p |
Why the gap exists
A supermarket does not need to make its money on the fuel. The forecourt brings people to the car park, and the margin is recovered inside the shop. An independent forecourt has no shop to recover it in, pays more for its fuel because it buys less of it, and often serves a location where nothing cheaper is within reach. None of that is hidden, and it is why the gap is persistent rather than a promotion.
How this is measured
Unleaded E10 unless stated, across the 7,339 forecourts currently reporting it. Supermarket status is the flag in the statutory data, which covers 2,150 sites. Forecourts whose prices have not moved in 14 days are excluded, as are prices more than 25% from the national median. Towns need at least four reporting forecourts to appear. Data as at 2026-11-10.
Source: the government Fuel Finder scheme, run by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, which retailers are legally required to submit to. Figures recalculated on every build.