Closest big cities for these shops: San Jose, Ca and Edinburgh, Scotland. Prices will vary widely based on your location and store. We chose Safeway vs Tesco for this video as we know them well and could choose the closest comparisons. When store brand items were unavailable at Safeway, price was not shown. Therefore, we would choose a name brand product and would do the same with the Tesco option. Thanks for watching!
Re. UK/SCOT Weights & measures : Beer & milk still served in pints of Imperial measure are well known (or "weel kent") - but still commonly packaged in 16 ounce/1 pound Imperial measure portions, are sausages & jam (albeit labelled as 454 grams) = Tesco British Cumberland Sausages 8 Pack 454g £1.79 / Tesco Strawberry Jam 454g £0.89. However, serving both together - even if washed down with a pint of beer or milk - is not recommended; unless the sausage happens to be a proud pound of prime Scottish haggis. Yum! = Tesco /Simon Howie Original Haggis 454g £2.75. Enjoy!
Eggs in the USA are washed to within an inch of their lives. This removes the outer natural protective layer called the cuticle which protects the contents from the outside environment, hence American eggs need to be stored in the fridge to prevent infection and British eggs do not. Hope that clears things up for you. 🙂
Thank you, I knew it was something like that, we always learn so much from the comments, thanks for taking the time to explain and thanks for watching!
And that is required because US industrial farms are allowed to keep their hens standing deep in their faeces - and it needs to be washed off. For the same reason, all US chicken carcasses have to be washed in chlorine. Their husbandry requirements are very lax.
Yes, but UK hens are vaccinated so you don’t wash the eggs. I learnt also that the standards for raising layers is very high, too, in the UK. So, the hens are in clean bedding.
@@catherinemori4496 The vaccination is against salmonella. Washing is needed in the US, because the eggs are routinely covered in faeces. In Europe, it is illegal to keep chickens in those conditions.
As a Canadian who just recently travelled to Scotland, I have to say we were amazed by the price and quality of the foods in the grocery stores in Scotland. Way less highly processed foods, and much better quality in most items. It was eye opening.
We moved from Canada 3 years ago to Scotland. Our younger son and his wife who still live in Toronto visited and were telling us about the steep increases in the price of food there. It is quite interesting to see these videos and read the various comments. We are enjoying the food here very much.
well, for you all the prices are going to be at least 50 to 60% cheaper, Canada is UNAFORDABLE now, and some want to make prices even higher ON PURPOSE????
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I enjoyed your food price comparison. Being a frequent visitor over there I am always amazed at the quality of products and produce in the UK. Looking forward to more comparison videos. Cheers.
I do believe a considerable amount of those items are not only cheaper! But are also subject to some of the highest food quality standards in the world. Making your shop not only cheaper! But far healthier for you also. A win win situation.
Thanks for this. I had no idea groceries were so expensive in the US!! Dude, the Tesco own brand tea in the blue box is killer, 80 bags for 89p! Plus it make a damn good cuppa. Twinnings, that stuff is for guests! lol
All I'm going to say is your getting real food in the UK. Cows grazing on grass better quality milk, Animal welfare on meat, no chlorinated bathed chickens,Quality free range eggs that have never taken a bath and removed the cuticle. I could carry on but the list would be so long.
"Real food" & "Stricter legislation around food in Britain"? Some context needed here maybe? = The Guardian 19/09/24 :"Revealed: Far higher pesticide residues allowed on food since Brexit" - The amount of pesticide residue allowed on scores of food types in England, Wales and Scotland has soared since Brexit, analysis reveals, with some now thousands of times higher. Changes to regulations in Great Britain mean more than 100 items are now allowed to carry more pesticides when sold to the public, ranging from potatoes to onions, grapes to avocados, and coffee to rice. For tea, the maximum residue level (MRL) was increased by 4,000 times for both the insecticide chlorantraniliprole and the fungicide boscalid. For the controversial weed killer glyphosate, classed as a “probable human carcinogen” by the World Health Organization (WHO), the MRL for beans was raised by 7.5 times. The purpose of the pesticide MRL regime is to protect public health, wildlife and the natural environment. Campaigners said the list of pesticides included reproductive toxins and carcinogens and that the weaker MRLs reduced protections for consumers in Great Britain. [End]
@@SimpleScottishLiving You used to be getting better quality, now that we're no longer in the EU you need to be checking the labels on things and the country of origin, especially with meats. Some stickers are appearing saying "Not suitable for sale in the EU"
Wow great video ! Im pleased to say i live in the uk. i didnt quite believe my sister when she said how expensive it is in the US, SHE LIVES IN FLORIDA
I saw a documentary about how farm animals are treated in American and the number of chemicals snd pharmaceuticals were permitted. It was sad to watch and very unhealthy 😢🧪⚗️👩🔬⚛️
I've been watching a lot of the coverage of the US elections. This helps to put into perspective why so many Americans are complaining about the economy and 'price gouging'.
There are several factors at play here - UK has more domestically produced food, for one. More competition between groceries as well. Labor counts, too.
@ Definitely more competition but I can’t believe more domestically produced food. US can grow so many more fruits than we can. It’s so much bigger too.
Salaries are easily double in the U.S for general office jobs and 3x more for IT from personal experience. Kinda balances out with their higher grocery prices
Hello guys 👋I think I'm going to share this link with my conservative US colleagues. They think I have lost my mind retiring with my UK fiancé to northern England. Great content, keep'em coming!!! 👍
You do have to be a little bit careful as to were you move to in the north of England as its the rougher half of the UK in terms of crime, make sure you do you research, but York and Durham and really any small village is a very good choice. The north was the old industrial heartland of England and after all the steel plants and mines should it became out Detroit. I'm not trying to scare you off but be aware that some parts have very high unemployment and the problems that come along with that.
Just wait until around 3 weeks leading up to Christmas. All the supermarkets sell their own brand seasonal vegetables to be used for the Christmas dinner at reduced prices. Last year potatoes, Brussels sprouts and carrots were on sale at 29p a bag, and cabbages and cauliflowers at 29p each. In Tesco last year, the prices were when using the Clubcard.
Hi. Wow, price comparison surprised me. Our prices in the UK have shot up over the last few years but we are still significantly cheaper than US. Great video and I'm looking forward to welcoming Americans moving to UK for "cheaper" food!!😂
Tell me about it. Pre Covid my wife and I would get a trolley full of shopping for around £40 to £70 (max). Last week, I got a hand basket of none essentials for £48!!! The dearest thing in it was a 75cl bottle of rum! edit: Oh, that was in Tesco.
What’s scary is the ingredients difference as well. I remember watching one video where they compared ingredients and there is one that is used commonly in the US that is banned in Europe due to strong links with causing cancer. Nice simple quick check look at the ingredients for Quaker Oats in the Uk and compare them to the US version.
The US food prices are shocking. On a recent visit to Toronto I was stunned at how expensive grocer shopping was. Also in the UK, there is a fair amount of choice between the Supermarkets with Aldi and Lidil being very cheap. Don't know how basic-income families in North America feed their families on those staggering prices!
That was very interesting, and it didn't (understandably), take into account the difference in quality and whether things were in season, and/ or imported, but it was a fair comparison, literally the price you pay. It was mind blowing seeing some of the variations, and to think that we complain about the increase in prices here. I don't feel quite as bad now 😊 Well presented video, welcome home enjoy being back in the UK 🙋♀️🤗
In Britain, the egg laying chicken flocks are not infected with salmonella. The protective coating does not get washed off.That is why our eggs do not have to be refrigerated. 😀😉 Excellent video by the way 👍🤙
I used to work in a supermarket and they had an internal magazine, which detailed the way any UK shop is set out. The basis is what you would require to make a meal, so fresh fruit and veg, then meat or fish and fridged goods (milk, cheese, desserts), then on to canned ingredients, baking, bread / cakes and snacks, frozen goods, with beers, wines and spirits at the end to compliment whatever you may be making. Obviously there are the things such as household cleaning, pet food and cereals, but they can fit in around the main areas. Doesn't matter which supermarket you visit or what size it is...they normally follow the above
I don’t know what the situation is in America and Canada but in the UK there’s a lot of competition in the grocery market especially with the arrival of the German supermarkets. Possibly this might account for some of the price difference.
I live in FL and I don't pay those prices. Those are CA prices indeed and FL is not known for cheap groceries either. Potatoes here are about $1.49 per pound, spaghetti at Aldi is around $1 per pound. Bananas are generally around 39 cents per pound. Of course if you go to Publix you will pay more because they are a "higher" quality service oriented grocery store. I do not buy a lot of processed foods and I read ingredients. Aldi in general has less crap in their products probably due to not reformulating their EU recipes. Now if it was only so easy to escape all the seed oils that are in EVERYTHING!
Great video 👍 Really interesting and a huge surprise to discover how much more expensive basic food items are in the US. This year, we've had a couple of days holiday in NYC in the Spring, then a weekend just recently in London, and for once, London prices didn't shock us. Now I understand why!
Thanks for the video guys. I now understand why so many Americans are kicking off about the price of their groceries. I live in wales and shop at Lidls, Asda, Tesco and Home Bargains to find the cheapest products but I would not be able to afford to live in the US especially with tips and service charges when you go out.
The only thing to level the playing field slightly is that the wages are generally higher as well. That said, we never felt like we had lots of extra money after bills were paid even with large salaries.
Well. That is what people say. The facts just don't support it though. Since 2018 UK food prices have increased by 25%. Spain 30% and Germany 34%. People do like to make up stories to fit their agenda though (not saying you, the media and politicians).
@@mr-nobody-on-youtube You would need to compare and contrast where those percentages are distributed in those countries. For the stuff I buy, it's a lot more than 25% since Covid. Bread has doubled for instance and eggs are not far off that as well.
Pay attention to what's happening in the EU and you will see it has many of the same problems as the UK, stop looking at the EU with rose-tinted glasses.
@@egbront1506 well... We have some anecdotal mixed in with a bit of cherry picking. Look ultimately there is hard objective data that the UK has seen less food prices increase than much of the western world. I am sure you won't, but take it from somebody who uses to let this kind of stuff impact my mental wellbeing. It's all manipulation. Objective hard data with a sample size of more than an egg sandwich wins every time. It's called science.
You will have noticed that many of the Tesco labels you scanned were also tagged “price match with Aldi”. The German discounters Aldi and Lidl have done much to moderate the prices of UK groceries in the mainstream supermarkets. Because they are almost ubiquitous in the UK the consumer can easily travel to them as an alternative. This may not be true in the US where distances between shops are much greater.
We have Aldi here in Florida, there are 4 Aldi's within 3 miles of my home in Port St Lucie. Aldi is cheaper in the UK because Aldi try and source locally - most of their own brands in the US are made by big agribusinesses in the US, whereas in the UK they use smaller manufacturers.In France Aldi is even cheaper and their own brand products are produced in France, almost all the produce is of French origin. Just a comment based on over a decade of living part year in France, Part of the year in the UK and the remainder in the US.
There is Aldi in Pennsylvania. I realised how they keep prices low by not having any choice. One kind of mayonnaise, and in one size, I went to Weiss Markets a mile away and they have 2 varieties of own label, a regular and a budget in 4 different sizes and a low fat option, then there are the brands like Kraft so 38 different mayonnaises to choose from.
I'm unsure about the USA, but I hope you've got yourself a Tesco Club card to get even more savings! A quick note - the ham you priced-up is expensive. There are far cheaper brands in the UK. I presume you also added sales/state tax on the US prices? That would really do my head in 🤣 Great comparison though! Great video, appreciate the effort in producing it 😁 Luv to Finn 🤣 🖖
Thank you! Luckily, CA does not have sales tax on food items, so that was one less factor. We’ve tried some of the other ham, but unfortunately, our kids are obsessed with this one 😅😭 We chose a similar product from Safeway to account for it. We might have to venture out again though and see what else we can find for a replacement. Thanks so much for watching!
Nobody thinks about the sales tax in the US unless it's a really large ticket item like a car. It's just added to the end of the receipt. You don't think of every item and what it will cost with tax. Only 13 states currently add tax to food items and the percentage varies. In Illinois our food tax is only 1% but it will be eliminated by January 2026.
@@ukaly1 I agree with that and it was something I talked to Annie about. Jokingly I said that shops could add any tax they want and 99% of people would never notice! 🤣
Just click onto your vlog what a fascinating insight,we were always told America was cheaper for shopping but im amazed at your results.I have a fascination with the USA,its whole history and day to day living.Keep up the excellent work!!
I suggest that the main difference in Strawberry prices is that they are out of season in the UK. The ones you chose were from the Netherlands, and werre probably grown indoors at extra cost. Who in their right mind would buy ready sliced Cheddar cheese, do they not have knives in the USA? Where I live there are four Supermarkets within 4 minutes walk, and another 10 within 6 miles. We have real competition in the UK.
@@southernfriedkiwi7726 You're right. Many of us do live cheek by jowl with others. Yet we don't seem to mind it too much. Guess it's what you're used to. There is space in the UK, plenty of villages and smaller towns with land around them. However, like most in the world, we gravitate towards larger towns/cities for the culture, shopping choices and, of course, work opportunities.
Majority of Americans live in urban areas , look at the New York , twice as densely populated as London. Similar population but London is twice as big in area. Very few people live in the great expanses of the American west. Australia is a similar story most people live around the coast , the interior is an arid wasteland. Don't let facts get in the way of your poorly thought out pronouncements.
The difference between the UK and the US is who the supermarkets are serving. In the UK the idea is to make the prices as cheap as possible for the customer. Whereas in the US, the idea is to make the prices as expensive as possible. The UK looks after its customers, whereas the US looks after the corporate shareholders.
@@misterc5783 What is called commerce in the US is so different to the UK. Advertising in the UK is strictly controlled, Food quality is strictly controlled, consumer rights are very strictly controlled. Profit margins are controlled by taxation. All the type of controls that are missing in the US.
@@MaoZhu-j6qI would add there’s a lot more competition between the supermarkets in the uk which tends to drive the prices down, I believe the American grocery stores tend to have monopolies over the areas they’re in which means they don’t have an incentive to lower prices.
@@MaoZhu-j6q I used to work for a company that supplied Tesco and your comment about whom the supermarkets are serving is so far from the truth it's unbelievable. Tesco were absolutely the worst UK supermarket for suppliers to deal with, Sainsbury's and ASDA got worse over time (but still not as shitty as Tesco) and Waitrose were actually pretty human - at least their buyers knew about the products that they were buying, and if there was a problem Waitrose were willing to sit down and discuss it (in person if you wished) - Tesco just referred you to their office in India for anything, and everything.
You also have to consider things. If Petrol/Gas prices are cheaper in the US, why isn't the cheaper transportation costs being passed on to the consumer?
Unfortunately I lived in England during mad cow. The cost of food at Tesco was a bit expensive but I loved shopping there. Since we were military we did most of our shopping there. I do miss lots of English foods. Enjoyed your video!!
I found that in our larger stores in Indiana, most prices are comparable to the UK. I have found that prices vary quite a bit in the US, a this weeks grocery shop the prices were even lower than normal. Yay, me! Thanks for the video!
Thanks so much for sharing! Yes, prices will vary hugely across the U.S. and even across the UK. We were in expensive areas in both countries, so that somewhat levels the playing field. You’re completely right though. I would’ve loved to have my mom do a similar shop in GA, but they don’t have Safeway unfortunately.
Thanks for this comparison. A bit of an eye opener. I'm fortunate in that I have access to both Lidl and Aldi. It would be interesting to perform this comparison with these two rather than Tesco.
Oh wow! Thanks guys. A lot of food has gotten more expensive in Scotland in recent years so I’m so surprised to find we are cheaper on a number of products. The difference on various things is also very interesting! ❤
Remember, the UK are now reducing regulations, now we are no longer in the EU. So quality is going to get worse. Look at how much dairy is in soft scoop ice cream (clue - can be none).
@@kevinwoods4724 It's not BS - it is happening. Go and look up what is now defined as 'soft-serve' ice cream. It was one of the reasons given for leaving, we would control our own food regulation. It only can't change if we want to sell into the EU - which has got a lot harder. The fact that you deny it suggests you voted leave...
I'm surprised that any products were less in the US than in the UK these days . I moved from New York City to California 26 years ago and was stunned by the food prices in CA then. And of course it is even worse here now with grocery stores getting away with ripping off customers. Enjoyed the video.
I have been using the hand scanner for several years at the Giant brand grocery store here in Virginia, US. It is so nice to the scan groceries and put them straight into my reusable shopping bags before going to the self serve checkout registers. It has really sped up my grocery shopping trips.
It looks like everyone has the same thoughts as me but I will comment anyway! IMO the food is not only less expensive, but it's much better quality in Scotland than in the US where I live. The cheeses are amazing (and inexpensive), and fruit and veg have so much flavor, and chocolates are creamy, not waxy (MALTESERS!!!!). But, my favorite? Tesco's white farmhouse loaf which costs next to nothing - white bread is always allowed on holiday :) Keep up the great vlogs - I really enjoy them and clearly many others do too. Idea for another video - since I love to go hacking when I visit, maybe you could try riding lessons then head out for a hack! There are so many great places to ride in Scotland!
I actually find Tesco more expensive than the other stores - even Sainsburys. And of course, the Tesco 'standard' prices are inflated in order to force everyone onto using the Tesco clubcard, to get more appropriate prices ... and so Tesco can sell your data.
@@RoyCousins I find Sainsburys, and its Nectar card, far superior. Sainsburys seems to be a better shopping experience on average - wider aisles, better selection of produce AND better offers. And in general, I find them just that wee bit cheaper than Tesco. The Nectar card/app provides THREE benefits - 1) points which translate to pounds that you can spend, not just in Sainburys, but in Argos and other retailers. 2) Nectar Prices - similar to Tesco clubcard where you get discount on a range of items, but tailored to your own shopping habits. 3) Smartshop discounts - a extra exclusive range of Nectar Prices (again tailored to your own shopping habits), when you choose to use the smartshop app to make your purchases And the good thing is, many items appear on all categories, so you get bonus points AND discount prices on the same items. Most of the mobile phones and tablets I have had over the last decade, have come from Nectar points gained by shopping in Sainsburys, and spent in Argos.
Hi great video. My wife and I have just returned from a 2 month holiday in western US. We were very surprised on how expensive food was in the US. We spend most of our holiday camping, so we were looking for fresh fruit and veg, rice/pastas. items you could cook on a camping stove. So a lot of the items you had on your list we also had. We did not do the math, but your examples and conclusion felt about right. My personnel view is that supermarkets in the US feel they can keep prices high. In the UK with the introduction of budget supermarkets like Aldi, prices are kept competitive. It's just a thought!
That makes sense! I wish we knew the reason. It would also be interesting to do a comparison between the same store not only between Scotland and CA but also with throwing England and another state like Georgia into the mix. Maybe we’ll do Costco!
Yes, from our experience and what we’ve heard from others, U.S. wages are at least 30% if not up to 60% more. So affordability may be more on par between the countries.
@@SimpleScottishLiving But of course expenses are also different. Health insurance etc there, all the extra holidays and petrol costs etc here. It's the comparison of disposable income that would be interesting.
Theres wages and theres take home. Less tax for many people in the US, but this is more than outweighed by health insurance and other local taxes that are included at source in the UK, as well as need for a car per adult in most households, so available money is not too different (a study I saw had take home for a single man higher in the US than a similar job in the UK, similar for a couple, less for a couple with multiple children. Add to that the longer working hours of the US and lack of paid time off, the take home per hour worked is generally higher in the UK.
Good point! We would have mentioned this, but I didn’t have actual statistics to back it up. Didn’t want people coming for us in the comments asking for the data 😅 generally speaking, most people believe this point, and we saw it first hand across many family/friends with their respective titles and wages.
I'm puzzled by this argument. Whatever the statistical difference in earnings between the UK and the US should have no reflection on food prices. You should pay more because you earn more?
In the UK we have been unable to feed our population from just our own farms since about 1865 so we turned first to our empire, then the Commonwealth and then Europe and as such we have a lot less food import tariffs than the Americans do to protect their own farmers. Our farmers do receive subsidies and also their produce usually sells under premium brands. For example I'm 60 and I don't think I've ever had (certainly never bought) UK bred lamb (favourite red meat), it's always been New Zealand and lately Australian lamb that has been more affordable.
I noticed that when the UK was more expensive it was based on the more pricy brands, Twining's Tea is super expensive. Tesco do very decent own brand generic stuff that's much cheaper. I think that if you do an own brands comparison the UK will be even cheaper. Also, our food quality is generally better with a lot less chemical/artificial ingredients. With meat animal welfare is a lot more important here, look for the red tractor on the packaging, it's an official stamp of approval for well raised livestock. Growth hormones are illegal and antibiotic use is monitored and restricted.
Thanks so much! Twinnings was one of the brands that was also in the U.S like Tropicana. As much as we could, we’d do Safeway’s own and Tesco’s store brand, but we did want to throw a few name brand items in the mix, which we could find the exact same one in both countries. Thanks so much for watching! ❤️
just watched your recent video I ken you were trying to do a like for like we use Tesco but get it delivered but we also use Aldi as well which i can recommend Haddington has a good Aldi 😊
all the banned chemicals and processed foods that are only legal in America still cost more then real-food counter parts in the uk and across the world, even the bread in north America is not technically real bread.
This myth is wild. Like America is the only country in the world processing stuff and putting garbage in them. And we left the eu to free ourselves from what regulation there is. Brits have a misperception about the quality of their own produce.
@ …. No misconception, come and read every label of every food product being sold in every uk supermarket, and for fun and giggles, go online and look at every single American counter part. Just do it then come back
Self scan is common in the larger supermarket chains in Switzerland. We also have a mobile app that does the scanning and you can also pay with it. There can be spot checks by staff to make sure you have scanned everything. All the best, Rob in Switzerland PS. it would be REALLY interesting to do this comparison for many other countries!
As a country that has always had “an empire” we have built relationships throughout the world and more importantly set up strong efficient supply chains which helps keep prices down. US insular policies don’t allow this to happen. Brexit has badly damaged European Supply chains and prices have increased accordingly. Maybe we will come to our senses one day 🤷🏻♂️ Great video well presented and researched by Anniestein.
Have prices not increased across europe too and around the world? That aside,its maybe a good idea to start growing more of our own veg here again.I heard recently that about 30% of our veg comes from Spain
Even stores that are close have a huge price difference, our small town has 1 store(Albertson’s) their prices are outrageous! Right at 11.00 for one gallon of ACV! Across the border in Oregon at Waremart(Winco) the price was 5.50. Oregon doesn’t have a sales tax. I grow as much as possible for myself and friends. I eat whole food plant based so avoid the high meat prices. I love your channel,you two are so much fun to watch and a part of my Sunday! Thank You.
Thanks so much for watching! You’re so right about prices varying drastically. I’d love to have my mom do the same shop but at a Kroger or Publix in GA!
Winco is an amazing store! It is owned by the workers. Great selection of food and they aren't trying to price gouge people. I wish there was one in my area. I do stop there when I can when visiting friends.
You know there's something seriously wrong when the same (American) company's breakfast cereal is on sale in the USA for 55% more than in the UK. I think it's manufactured in both countries. In the UK their workers by law have a minimum of 28 days paid leave. You would expect manufacturing costs to be higher here. The UK price also includes a 20% tax (Value Added Tax known as VAT) to make the comparison even worse.
Energy costs in the USA are way lower than in the UK. However, US telecom services, including mobile is way more expensive. I think water costs vary hugely across the USA, so difficult to generalise.
Yes, it was a surprise to us too! Utility costs are tricky, at least for us for a number of reasons. Appliances and houses are usually larger in the US, the US typically has AC etc, having said that it would be an interesting comparison...I'll see if Annie is ready for another maths challenge! Thanks for watching.
One thing about utilities in the US was when I moved there I was blown away by the fact you have to pay deposits for things like electric and gas and when I got Cable tv I have to pay $200 deposit for service. A friend recently told me paying up to $500 deposit is not uncommon now, I guess things have gone up since I moved there in 2007. Mobile phones are outrageously expensive in the US. Most people are paying over $100 per month there where as the equivalent here would be £5- £10
Pretty astounded at these figures. Lived in the US in the mid 1990s and in general food costs (along with most other costs) were much lower in the US than in Scotland. It was never really uniform across all products (similar to this video) but it was clearly cheaper. How things have changed.
I live in Texas there’s plenty of grocery stores with varied prices and quality. The higher the prices are usually better “quality” aka organic. These prices must be Cali prices because I don’t pay anywhere that much. You can get straight raw milk and eggs if you know where to look. Small farms usually would sell their stuff on Friday or Saturday on side of roads.
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Fresh food and veg to look out for when they are at their very best in season- Potatoes; Jersey Royals April-May and are fantastic, other waxy salad potatoes June-August. Asparagus- British asparagus is THE BEST- late April to Late June. Strawberries- May-July. Raspberries- (Scottish are the best)- June to October. Apples (best are the smaller, rough skinned varieties)- August to October. Purple sprouting (better than normal broccoli) December - March. Baby carrots- July to September.
@@SimpleScottishLiving Scottish soft fruit are the best in the World and why Dundee is the centre of the jam making industry.The cold and windy weather means there are less insect pests and the plants like the wet weather. Also early Summer lamb. I know lamb is not eaten much in the US, but try new season Scottish or Welsh lamb.
Could I suggest sticking with seasonal food, strawberries are not in season in November, one of my bugbears out of season food and drink. The cheese we wouldn't buy sliced or grated that's why we have graters and knives, nor slices of ham. Plus our food isn't full of chemicals. The same foods in farm shops would be a lot cheaper as you only buy the amount you want and not huge bags, plus some of our prices will have increased because of the wettest year we've had with 12 named storms in that year which in my lifetime I've never experienced nor has my Aunt who's 96, oh and we come from the farming and hospitality background for myself five decades of experience as a chef, so you'll see why it's a bugbear, so the Maths on everything will be different from what we'd consider normal years of crops
Thanks for making some of these points. Good suggestions, which we’ll keep in mind if we do this again, but the maths was enough for a while 😅 We appreciate you watching and taking the time to comment. It’s nice hearing from people with direct experience/knowledge to share.
oh yeah the quality of the food in proper farm shops is next level compared to what you get in the supermarkets in the UK...lets take eggs as an example. proper farm food shops you will pay about 15-20% more than the supermarkets,but you can quite literally meet the chickens that produced your eggs.you can speak to the farmer and ask about their feed/exercise/habitation and see it for yourself....and boy does it show in the quality of the produce.Theres a big difference in yolk colour,consistency and taste when the bird is roaming around right by your legs and pecking worms and carrion from the field you're in,compared to some "fortified" laced feed with extra vitamin b to turn everything yellow including your pee
@@bigmacntings7451 and we have paper bags something I remember from my childhood, I think it's how we're bought up and generally grew our own, and with grandparents one set farmers, grandad started with some of his family on the tenant farm and they went into the first war, unfortunately not everyone returned, and he carried on from 1920 after he was officially demobbed and married my Nan, they and the other set lived through rationing yet never went hungry, and apart from one grandmother they all lived until 90, which when they passed was considered old, so they must've been doing something right back then, eating all which would be considered wrong these days, fried breakfast, but then no machinery on the farm? fresh meat which they'd slaughter themselves and preserve without fridges, everything in season made into jams, marmalade, pickled etc for the winter months, no chemicals in the ground, I have one aunt 96 who was in the Land Army still very much independently living and cooking her own food. I can certainly taste the difference in food and even some drinks, even our late Queen drank unpasteurised milk, as did her husband and family, so that obviously didn't do this family any harm either
Yes, there are many factors that go into the affordability of life in both countries. You do also have to take health care, for example, our of that number of the US. Thanks for the comment.
@@helenag.9386God you really are STUPID aren’t you..? You have literally NO CLUE as to how ordinary farmers are struggling…those idiots in the Home Counties aren’t farmers they’re ex stockbrokers who are playing at it..,. thick b##ch 🤬
Self-scanning as you go is becoming a thing in Syd, Aus, where I live, and I love it. I was in Scotland last year, and everything was so expensive compared to AUS. I thought we were expensive but I was shocked.
@SimpleScottishLiving I'm sure I've seen videos on here about the price difference since leaving EU.its shocking how much everything has gone up.great video thankyou!
I believe that in the USA eggs must be washed before sale. This means that they wash off the natural protective coating, making refrigeration essential.
You should let everyone know that Northern California is a very expensive place to live, generally speaking. The price comparison to other locations in the USA could be wildly different and more in line with your suburban Edinburgh location. Even comparing your local Tesco with a similar suburban London Tesco would likely show a significant difference of prices. Thanks for spending the time on the comparisons.
Maybe it's nice to mention that in Europe/UK you don't often have to use your car to do your shopping compared to the mega distances you have in North America, since there is usually a shop IN the village/town....so you don't have fuel costs either....at least not often.
Britain pretends to use metric but not really. Strawberries, 227 grams - that's a weird number, not a round number. That's because 227 grams is half a pound. Milk, 568 ml - another unusual number - oh, it's a pint.
Very interesting video and love the channel. We’ve just returned from a 3 week trip to visit our daughter and son in law who moved in the opposite direction 8 years ago. They now live happily in Connecticut but do notice the difference in prices when they come back to the UK. One thing that made us laugh on our recent visit was the price of a regular sized bottle of HP sauce we found in a supermarket in Stowe, Vermont on sale for $89!
You can find HP sauce in most grocery stores in the US. in sizes ranging from 9 oz. bottles to 15 oz. bottles ranging in price from $6.89 to $9.99, depending on the store.
Great work guys. My only theory for such big differences (especially on local produce) is cos of the vast distances in US regarding logistics? Astounding that the staple bread is so expensive, yet US & Canada are the major suppliers of grain to the world. I feel summit not right. Anyways I will sign off, cos Annie needs to get some sleep before her Degree in Higher Mathmatics exam tomorrow. Gulp!
You also have to take into account the quality of the food. In the UK, meat quality is extremely high. There is no chlorinated chicken, hormones are not allowed to be injected into animals and generally food is less processed. In addition, the amount of corn syrup in food is restricted and its quality - I am told - is better. Golden syrup, made from refined sugar, is more common in the UK.
I love comparison shows like this! So interesting to see prices in different places. However, comparing California prices is not indicative of the United States as a whole. My cousin lives there and anytime she tells me how much something cost, I am astonished. I live in Georgia and I shop at Food Lion. It would be great if you could do the math for me as I am too lazy to convert it to kilograms and pence, this is what I bought recently there: avocado 79 cents each (much less than that if buying a whole bag of them) Chicken quarters (Leg and thigh) normally 89cents a pound, on sale for 49 cents a pound. Potatoes at 60 cents per pound 100% juice, 64 ounces for $1.99 I’d be interested in knowing how that compares to UK prices
Yes, 100% the food prices you’ve shared are much cheaper than our CA Safeway shop. My parents live in GA, and we’d love for them to send us their next price shop to even see how different the prices in the U.S. are regionally. To be fair, we also shopped in a quite expensive area of Scotland, so we were hoping that could help equalize this slightly.
@jojons6484, Thanks for the prices from Georgia. I live in SoCal, and I am fortunate to have some lower priced grocery stores near me. What you pay is what I pay in my local stores. I know this doesn't reflect all of SoCal but where there are stores like Winco, Grocery Outlet and Aldis, prices are significantly lower . Cheers.
Really enjoying your adventures 🙂 The only thing I don't like about cost comparisons, is that it's only done on a dollar/pound amount. The real question is: what percentage of the average salary/wage is used to buy those same items in the respective country/state?
That would be very interesting, I'm not sure if Annie is up for another maths puzzle yet. Hopefully from the information provided and average salary information online that information should now be more accessible. 🤞
We didn’t include that factor because it varies so widely between states, countries, and people/occupations. With U.S. wages typically being significantly higher, I’d imagine for many it could be close as to which country gives you more bang for your buck. Too many variables for that!
The timing of this and several of your previous videos have been super helpful as were smack in the process of moving to the Inverness area. I’ve got questions 🤪 I’ll email you! Thank you for doing these invaluable videos! Xoxoxoxoxxoxo
Yes, that is certainly a factor as US wages can more than 20% higher than the UK, however the US possibly has more costs, such as healthcare, that play into the wage number. It would be interesting to do a deep dive on wages though, thanks.
Interesting video. 2 points you should have made.1. The UK meat is ethically rased, not flooded with hormones or antibiotics. The vegetables are not GM. 2. As an example of wages, the average hourly pay for a McDonald's worker in the US is $13.11, in the UK it's $16.66.
Im an American who raises beef cattle. No hormones or antibiotics are used on my cattle. You people in the UK have a lot of biased opinions of how we do things here. There are plenty of options in our grocery stores to buy meat with no hormones and antibiotics used.
Very interesting comparison but what would be most interesting to me and maybe many others is the DIY prices, I’m pretty sure America would win hands down on most hand tools and specially wood (lumber to you guys). Thanks
Yes, that would be interesting. After COVID the lumber prices in the US (or California at least) noticeably increased. I do miss the selection available in their DIY stores (Home Depot and Lowes) and I agree this would make a good comparison, thanks!
I guess some of the differences are to cover the 'extra' ingredients in a lot of US foods (additives and extra sugar) but there is a big difference on some items! Of course, as a percentage of a person's salary in the US, the groceries may in fact work out cheaper....we are generally paid less over here. Thanks for all the detailed work - that's a lot of maths!
Thank you and great point! We know that generally agreed upon knowledge, but we didn’t mention it as we didn’t have the stats to back it up and didn’t want the masses coming for us in the comments 🤣😅 It definitely levels the playing field though!
I have to add that we stayed in Edinburgh for a week in September. For me, it was a sentimental journey back to the motherland! I’d left when a wee girl. It’s a horrendously expensive city for a tourist! However, although the restaurants and hotels are astronomically overpriced, groceries were such a bargain. I was greeted with disbelief when I told my friends that Marks and Sparks had delicious, topnotch and cheap groceries (Princes Street location). Strawberries, cheeses, breads, butters, eggs, bacon…everything SO delicious. Had to go back and buy greengages because a wee man in the queue had two boxes’ worth! It was his second go round on that. And he raved about them! Again, sweet, ready to eat, just like the strawberries. And they were marking down the berries because they were “expiring” in a day! Still exquisite condition. We don’t have this variety of super good food in Vancouver. But we also have no competition and a small population. By small population, I mean we don’t have 100million people in a radius of, let’s say 200km. Europe is a cornucopia. And before people start the Brexit theme, the UK is actually part of Europe! 😂😍🥴. The landmass didn’t float away! But, in any case, so many producers with cool foods. So glad we had an aparthotel!
It's great to hear you enjoyed your trip back home! We’ve had the same experience with the food here and are absolutely loving it. Are you planning your next trip back yet? 😉 Thanks for watching and for your thoughtful comment.
@ ah! So beautiful but too expensive! We headed straight to Madrid afterwards and it’s so much better value for money. And warmer! From 14 degrees to 28! 😂. A glass of wine 4€ not 7£!
My husband and I were in Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland back in the beginning of October for a business and pleasure trip. While he was at a client's working, I walked over to the shopping center to look around. Just out of curiosity, I compared some prices on groceries and I noticed that overall, prices were cheaper in the UK.
Good video 👍. However, the average US salary is considerably higher than in the UK, so it probably balances out that way. Having said that, on several trips to the US, 10 to 20 years ago, I always felt most things were cheaper than in Britain, so this is surprising.
Closest big cities for these shops: San Jose, Ca and Edinburgh, Scotland. Prices will vary widely based on your location and store. We chose Safeway vs Tesco for this video as we know them well and could choose the closest comparisons. When store brand items were unavailable at Safeway, price was not shown. Therefore, we would choose a name brand product and would do the same with the Tesco option. Thanks for watching!
@@SimpleScottishLiving I am from Northern California as well ❤️🩹 I found this video very enjoyable and interesting. I have subscribed.
@@nanasinthekitchen6016 Thanks for joining us! If you are interested in Scotland at all, you should check out our recent trip to the Highlands ❤️
totally loved this and I live really close to San Jose, CA Safeway is so interesting, but will follow for more adventures
Re. UK/SCOT Weights & measures : Beer & milk still served in pints of Imperial measure are well known (or "weel kent") - but still commonly packaged in 16 ounce/1 pound Imperial measure portions, are sausages & jam (albeit labelled as 454 grams) = Tesco British Cumberland Sausages 8 Pack 454g £1.79 / Tesco Strawberry Jam 454g £0.89. However, serving both together - even if washed down with a pint of beer or milk - is not recommended; unless the sausage happens to be a proud pound of prime Scottish haggis. Yum! = Tesco /Simon Howie Original Haggis 454g £2.75. Enjoy!
@@nanasinthekitchen6016 Am never sure what the tax situation is when looking at American prices.
Eggs in the USA are washed to within an inch of their lives. This removes the outer natural protective layer called the cuticle which protects the contents from the outside environment, hence American eggs need to be stored in the fridge to prevent infection and British eggs do not.
Hope that clears things up for you. 🙂
Thank you, I knew it was something like that, we always learn so much from the comments, thanks for taking the time to explain and thanks for watching!
MuckDonalds says is all about America.
And that is required because US industrial farms are allowed to keep their hens standing deep in their faeces - and it needs to be washed off. For the same reason, all US chicken carcasses have to be washed in chlorine. Their husbandry requirements are very lax.
Yes, but UK hens are vaccinated so you don’t wash the eggs. I learnt also that the standards for raising layers is very high, too, in the UK. So, the hens are in clean bedding.
@@catherinemori4496 The vaccination is against salmonella.
Washing is needed in the US, because the eggs are routinely covered in faeces. In Europe, it is illegal to keep chickens in those conditions.
As a Canadian who just recently travelled to Scotland, I have to say we were amazed by the price and quality of the foods in the grocery stores in Scotland. Way less highly processed foods, and much better quality in most items. It was eye opening.
@@aragood7301 We were surprised as well. We also felt a lot less bloated initially!
Cheers, Pal.
We moved from Canada 3 years ago to Scotland. Our younger son and his wife who still live in Toronto visited and were telling us about the steep increases in the price of food there. It is quite interesting to see these videos and read the various comments. We are enjoying the food here very much.
@@aragood7301 I'd say the majority of food in British Supermarket food is processed, pretty much only meat, fish, fruit and veg isn't.
@@sandersson2813 Is all processed food bad for us?
My wifes watching intently,we are leaving Canada n headed for Scotland in the spring,like yourself I was born in Scotland.Great channel guys❤❤
Thank you so much, good luck with your move! Let us know if you have any questions we might be able to help with!
well, for you all the prices are going to be at least 50 to 60% cheaper, Canada is UNAFORDABLE now, and some want to make prices even higher ON PURPOSE????
But let me tell you that I love you, that I think about you all the time
Caledonia, you're calling me, and now I'm going home
But if I should become a stranger you know that it would make me more than sad
Caledonia's been everything I've ever had
@@NotYourKindOfPeople-z6m These lines that you have said probably could be turned into a song .
You will love it and get healthy
Added UK bonus - no high fructose corn syrup (in anything)
That is a bonus! They’re trying to do away with that in the States, but it’s still there at times.
Yes, excellent news. In America the fructose industry is big and powerful 😢🤒🤢
I enjoyed your food price comparison. Being a frequent visitor over there I am always amazed at the quality of products and produce in the UK. Looking forward to more comparison videos. Cheers.
Thank you so much for watching. We're glad you enjoyed it!
Some of the American prices are crazy 😮. And that's in comparison to UK prices which have skyrocketed in recent years.
Yes, much of this was surprising to us as well! Thanks for watching.
Everyone's prices skyrocketed in recent years. The Covid effect has never really gone away.
Incomes in the US are significantly higher than the UK
They are going UK prices vs California prices, not all 50 US state prices.
Actually, it’s Scottish prices versus Californian. 🥴
I do believe a considerable amount of those items are not only cheaper! But are also subject to some of the highest food quality standards in the world. Making your shop not only cheaper! But far healthier for you also. A win win situation.
Thanks for this. I had no idea groceries were so expensive in the US!! Dude, the Tesco own brand tea in the blue box is killer, 80 bags for 89p! Plus it make a damn good cuppa. Twinnings, that stuff is for guests! lol
Ooh good to know! We’ll be trying that out then!
Twining tea is icky as is Liptons. Yorkshire Tea every time! Supermarkets own blends are good too.
@@undiniaCo-ops own tea 👍.
Yes, use the basic tea usually, but bung the good stuff out for guests.
Something to point out. The quality of food (at least in Ireland) is SO MUCH BETTER. Less preservatives and fresher all around in my experience.
Thanks for sharing your experience and thanks for watching.
I’ve lived in the uk my whole life but in 2015 to 2016 I lived near Waterford.
The quality of meat from Ireland was so. Much better than in the uk
All I'm going to say is your getting real food in the UK. Cows grazing on grass better quality milk, Animal welfare on meat, no chlorinated bathed chickens,Quality free range eggs that have never taken a bath and removed the cuticle. I could carry on but the list would be so long.
We do appreciate the stricter legislation around food here! Thankful for the opportunity to live here ❤️
"Real food" & "Stricter legislation around food in Britain"? Some context needed here maybe? = The Guardian 19/09/24 :"Revealed: Far higher pesticide residues allowed on food since Brexit" - The amount of pesticide residue allowed on scores of food types in England, Wales and Scotland has soared since Brexit, analysis reveals, with some now thousands of times higher. Changes to regulations in Great Britain mean more than 100 items are now allowed to carry more pesticides when sold to the public, ranging from potatoes to onions, grapes to avocados, and coffee to rice. For tea, the maximum residue level (MRL) was increased by 4,000 times for both the insecticide chlorantraniliprole and the fungicide boscalid. For the controversial weed killer glyphosate, classed as a “probable human carcinogen” by the World Health Organization (WHO), the MRL for beans was raised by 7.5 times.
The purpose of the pesticide MRL regime is to protect public health, wildlife and the natural environment. Campaigners said the list of pesticides included reproductive toxins and carcinogens and that the weaker MRLs reduced protections for consumers in Great Britain. [End]
What about Mad Cow Disease?!?!?
@@SimpleScottishLiving You used to be getting better quality, now that we're no longer in the EU you need to be checking the labels on things and the country of origin, especially with meats. Some stickers are appearing saying "Not suitable for sale in the EU"
@@etinarcadiaego2259 I was just mentioning that we're no longer in the EU and bound to EU standards. I've seen grey meat in supermarkets.
Wow great video ! Im pleased to say i live in the uk. i didnt quite believe my sister when she said how expensive it is in the US, SHE LIVES IN FLORIDA
Thanks for sharing! Yep, groceries have skyrocketed in the past couple of years, but I’m hearing that’s the case across many countries as well.
Wow! So much effort and so appreciated you guys! Have a great week 💛💛💛
Thank you so much! Another labour of love for Annie, although I worked hard on my 007 impression with the scanner in Tesco! 🤣
Thank you for this! Mind blowing! Likely higher quality food in the UK as well.
Yes, definitely! It was a big difference.
I saw a documentary about how farm animals are treated in American and the number of chemicals snd pharmaceuticals were permitted. It was sad to watch and very unhealthy 😢🧪⚗️👩🔬⚛️
I've been watching a lot of the coverage of the US elections. This helps to put into perspective why so many Americans are complaining about the economy and 'price gouging'.
Except their economy is doing so much better than ours. It just hasn’t shown yet I guess.
There are several factors at play here - UK has more domestically produced food, for one. More competition between groceries as well. Labor counts, too.
@ Definitely more competition but I can’t believe more domestically produced food. US can grow so many more fruits than we can. It’s so much bigger too.
Salaries are easily double in the U.S for general office jobs and 3x more for IT from personal experience. Kinda balances out with their higher grocery prices
@ but then health insurance.
Hello guys 👋I think I'm going to share this link with my conservative US colleagues. They think I have lost my mind retiring with my UK fiancé to northern England. Great content, keep'em coming!!! 👍
Haha glad we could help make the case for a move to the UK! 😊
Warmest people in the country. You’ll be one laughing when you don’t have health insurance and co pay to pay for .
You do have to be a little bit careful as to were you move to in the north of England as its the rougher half of the UK in terms of crime, make sure you do you research, but York and Durham and really any small village is a very good choice. The north was the old industrial heartland of England and after all the steel plants and mines should it became out Detroit. I'm not trying to scare you off but be aware that some parts have very high unemployment and the problems that come along with that.
@ Sweeping statement I think. Northumberland is great. Rather be there than say Essex, any day of the week.
@@alistairbolden6340 yes, in the North of the UK we still practice cannibalism and witch burning. Beware.
Just wait until around 3 weeks leading up to Christmas. All the supermarkets sell their own brand seasonal vegetables to be used for the Christmas dinner at reduced prices. Last year potatoes, Brussels sprouts and carrots were on sale at 29p a bag, and cabbages and cauliflowers at 29p each. In Tesco last year, the prices were when using the Clubcard.
That’s so interesting! Looking forward to seeing this in action!
Even cheaper I saw them at 9p...at other supermarkets..I like how Lidl do a fruit and veg box for £1.50...anyone can take one ....
Tubs of chocolates right after christmas are cheap
Hi. Wow, price comparison surprised me. Our prices in the UK have shot up over the last few years but we are still significantly cheaper than US. Great video and I'm looking forward to welcoming Americans moving to UK for "cheaper" food!!😂
Tell me about it. Pre Covid my wife and I would get a trolley full of shopping for around £40 to £70 (max). Last week, I got a hand basket of none essentials for £48!!! The dearest thing in it was a 75cl bottle of rum! edit: Oh, that was in Tesco.
Thank you for watching, yes a number of the comparisons surprised us as well!
But we are more expensive than France and Spain, plus TAX and VAT in the UK is sky high compared to most EU Countries.
Yes but wages are much lower in the UK as well. Have you ever taken that in to consideration?
@@raystewart3648Exactly. I saw a video that showed UK to be one of the most expensive costs of living in the whole of Europe
Such a well presented vid. Great content from you both.
Thank you! 😊 ❤️
What’s scary is the ingredients difference as well. I remember watching one video where they compared ingredients and there is one that is used commonly in the US that is banned in Europe due to strong links with causing cancer. Nice simple quick check look at the ingredients for Quaker Oats in the Uk and compare them to the US version.
Which is why processed food in the US are so much more expensive -- They have to charge customers while they are still alive!
It’s mind blowing to see some of the differences! How is it allowed?
@@SimpleScottishLiving The food lobbies in both countries are pretty strong. There are some things doctors would like to see the back of here as well.
The US food prices are shocking. On a recent visit to Toronto I was stunned at how expensive grocer shopping was. Also in the UK, there is a fair amount of choice between the Supermarkets with Aldi and Lidil being very cheap. Don't know how basic-income families in North America feed their families on those staggering prices!
The US also has Aldi. Walmart also sells groceries, and you can find many cheaper options there. Thanks for taking the time to comment!
Aldi and Lidl are no longer very cheap, but they’re better value with better produce than most of the big supermarkets.
Since when is Canada in the US
That was very interesting, and it didn't (understandably), take into account the difference in quality and whether things were in season, and/ or imported, but it was a fair comparison, literally the price you pay. It was mind blowing seeing some of the variations, and to think that we complain about the increase in prices here. I don't feel quite as bad now 😊
Well presented video, welcome home enjoy being back in the UK 🙋♀️🤗
Thank you so much for watching and for taking the time to comment. Glad you enjoyed! We were also surprised.
I binged your whole channel - what a great couple! Lucky I watched your video dismissing Jafa Cakes last as I may have written you off 🤣
Welcome aboard! Hahaha, I knew I was going to get some backlash for that one!
🤣🤣 Thanks for watching!!! Please forgive the Jaffa cakes
In Britain, the egg laying chicken flocks are not infected with salmonella. The protective coating does not get washed off.That is why our eggs do not have to be refrigerated. 😀😉 Excellent video by the way 👍🤙
Thanks for watching! Yes, it’s so interesting finding out the ‘why’ behind some of the differences.
They are it's not recommended that people eat undercooked eggs in UK
I used to work in a supermarket and they had an internal magazine, which detailed the way any UK shop is set out. The basis is what you would require to make a meal, so fresh fruit and veg, then meat or fish and fridged goods (milk, cheese, desserts), then on to canned ingredients, baking, bread / cakes and snacks, frozen goods, with beers, wines and spirits at the end to compliment whatever you may be making. Obviously there are the things such as household cleaning, pet food and cereals, but they can fit in around the main areas.
Doesn't matter which supermarket you visit or what size it is...they normally follow the above
That’s so interesting! Thank you for taking the time to share
I don't understand this post.
I worked at Tesco for six years and the shelves weren't arranged that way at all.
I don’t know what the situation is in America and Canada but in the UK there’s a lot of competition in the grocery market especially with the arrival of the German supermarkets. Possibly this might account for some of the price difference.
Thanks for sharing. That's a good point!
I live in FL and I don't pay those prices. Those are CA prices indeed and FL is not known for cheap groceries either. Potatoes here are about $1.49 per pound, spaghetti at Aldi is around $1 per pound. Bananas are generally around 39 cents per pound. Of course if you go to Publix you will pay more because they are a "higher" quality service oriented grocery store. I do not buy a lot of processed foods and I read ingredients. Aldi in general has less crap in their products probably due to not reformulating their EU recipes. Now if it was only so easy to escape all the seed oils that are in EVERYTHING!
Great video 👍 Really interesting and a huge surprise to discover how much more expensive basic food items are in the US. This year, we've had a couple of days holiday in NYC in the Spring, then a weekend just recently in London, and for once, London prices didn't shock us. Now I understand why!
Exactly! NY and CA are notorious for outrageous prices though.
You're back in Scotland. You went for the messages.
I love this term! Zach’s parents use it, but Zach and all his friends typically say food shop.
Same as in Ireland
One of you should explain
This was so helpful! Have you thought about doing a comparison for clothes as well? Just the basics like socks, t-shirts, sweaters, etc.
Thank you! Yes, there are lots of other comparisons we would like to do. Thank you for the suggestion!
Great video I couldn’t believe the price difference, but the prices have gone up lot in UK have a good week 😊
Thank you! You too!
Thanks for the video guys. I now understand why so many Americans are kicking off about the price of their groceries. I live in wales and shop at Lidls, Asda, Tesco and Home Bargains to find the cheapest products but I would not be able to afford to live in the US especially with tips and service charges when you go out.
The only thing to level the playing field slightly is that the wages are generally higher as well. That said, we never felt like we had lots of extra money after bills were paid even with large salaries.
It seems USA has high food prices compared to Uk very interesting to see that good video as always and thanks Annie for doing the maths ❤
Yes, many of the items were surprising to us. Thank you for watching and I will pass on your thanks to Annie! 😁
An astonishing price difference. More so considering many prices have risen significantly in the UK since leaving the EU a few years ago.
Agreed!
Well. That is what people say. The facts just don't support it though. Since 2018 UK food prices have increased by 25%. Spain 30% and Germany 34%. People do like to make up stories to fit their agenda though (not saying you, the media and politicians).
@@mr-nobody-on-youtube You would need to compare and contrast where those percentages are distributed in those countries. For the stuff I buy, it's a lot more than 25% since Covid. Bread has doubled for instance and eggs are not far off that as well.
Pay attention to what's happening in the EU and you will see it has many of the same problems as the UK, stop looking at the EU with rose-tinted glasses.
@@egbront1506 well... We have some anecdotal mixed in with a bit of cherry picking. Look ultimately there is hard objective data that the UK has seen less food prices increase than much of the western world. I am sure you won't, but take it from somebody who uses to let this kind of stuff impact my mental wellbeing. It's all manipulation. Objective hard data with a sample size of more than an egg sandwich wins every time. It's called science.
You will have noticed that many of the Tesco labels you scanned were also tagged “price match with Aldi”. The German discounters Aldi and Lidl have done much to moderate the prices of UK groceries in the mainstream supermarkets. Because they are almost ubiquitous in the UK the consumer can easily travel to them as an alternative. This may not be true in the US where distances between shops are much greater.
That makes sense! We've definitely seen price matching in the States too. Thankfully, that has saved us quite a bit in the past.
We have Aldi here in Florida, there are 4 Aldi's within 3 miles of my home in Port St Lucie. Aldi is cheaper in the UK because Aldi try and source locally - most of their own brands in the US are made by big agribusinesses in the US, whereas in the UK they use smaller manufacturers.In France Aldi is even cheaper and their own brand products are produced in France, almost all the produce is of French origin. Just a comment based on over a decade of living part year in France, Part of the year in the UK and the remainder in the US.
There is Aldi in Pennsylvania. I realised how they keep prices low by not having any choice. One kind of mayonnaise, and in one size, I went to Weiss Markets a mile away and they have 2 varieties of own label, a regular and a budget in 4 different sizes and a low fat option, then there are the brands like Kraft so 38 different mayonnaises to choose from.
@@glen1555 That is a very interesting factor, thank you for sharing that!
A lot of the price differences are striking to say the least!
Agreed!
I'm unsure about the USA, but I hope you've got yourself a Tesco Club card to get even more savings! A quick note - the ham you priced-up is expensive. There are far cheaper brands in the UK. I presume you also added sales/state tax on the US prices? That would really do my head in 🤣
Great comparison though!
Great video, appreciate the effort in producing it 😁
Luv to Finn 🤣 🖖
Thank you! Luckily, CA does not have sales tax on food items, so that was one less factor. We’ve tried some of the other ham, but unfortunately, our kids are obsessed with this one 😅😭 We chose a similar product from Safeway to account for it. We might have to venture out again though and see what else we can find for a replacement. Thanks so much for watching!
Nobody thinks about the sales tax in the US unless it's a really large ticket item like a car. It's just added to the end of the receipt. You don't think of every item and what it will cost with tax. Only 13 states currently add tax to food items and the percentage varies. In Illinois our food tax is only 1% but it will be eliminated by January 2026.
@@ukaly1 I agree with that and it was something I talked to Annie about. Jokingly I said that shops could add any tax they want and 99% of people would never notice! 🤣
@@SimpleScottishLiving oh we'd notice! 😂
There is no sales tax on food in Florida but there is on everything else.
Just click onto your vlog what a fascinating insight,we were always told America was cheaper for shopping but im amazed at your results.I have a fascination with the USA,its whole history and day to day living.Keep up the excellent work!!
Thank you for watching! We were quite surprised as well.
Fascinated? Why?!!
I suggest that the main difference in Strawberry prices is that they are out of season in the UK. The ones you chose were from the Netherlands, and werre probably grown indoors at extra cost.
Who in their right mind would buy ready sliced Cheddar cheese, do they not have knives in the USA?
Where I live there are four Supermarkets within 4 minutes walk, and another 10 within 6 miles. We have real competition in the UK.
Thanks for watching and for sharing! Hah you’d be surprised what those 4 seconds of cutting are when packing 3 lunches in the morning 🤣🤣
You're also packed in, like sardines. UK population density is 279 per square Km vs 38 per square Km in the U.S.
@@southernfriedkiwi7726 You're right. Many of us do live cheek by jowl with others. Yet we don't seem to mind it too much. Guess it's what you're used to. There is space in the UK, plenty of villages and smaller towns with land around them. However, like most in the world, we gravitate towards larger towns/cities for the culture, shopping choices and, of course, work opportunities.
Majority of Americans live in urban areas , look at the New York , twice as densely populated as London. Similar population but London is twice as big in area. Very few people live in the great expanses of the American west. Australia is a similar story most people live around the coast , the interior is an arid wasteland. Don't let facts get in the way of your poorly thought out pronouncements.
@@southernfriedkiwi7726Ooh a triggered yank..how utterly delicious..😦😂
The difference between the UK and the US is who the supermarkets are serving. In the UK the idea is to make the prices as cheap as possible for the customer. Whereas in the US, the idea is to make the prices as expensive as possible. The UK looks after its customers, whereas the US looks after the corporate shareholders.
Commerce is commerce.
This isn’t at all the idea.
That's an interesting viewpoint, thank you for taking the time to watch and share. 😁
@@misterc5783 What is called commerce in the US is so different to the UK. Advertising in the UK is strictly controlled, Food quality is strictly controlled, consumer rights are very strictly controlled. Profit margins are controlled by taxation. All the type of controls that are missing in the US.
@@MaoZhu-j6qI would add there’s a lot more competition between the supermarkets in the uk which tends to drive the prices down, I believe the American grocery stores tend to have monopolies over the areas they’re in which means they don’t have an incentive to lower prices.
@@MaoZhu-j6q I used to work for a company that supplied Tesco and your comment about whom the supermarkets are serving is so far from the truth it's unbelievable. Tesco were absolutely the worst UK supermarket for suppliers to deal with, Sainsbury's and ASDA got worse over time (but still not as shitty as Tesco) and Waitrose were actually pretty human - at least their buyers knew about the products that they were buying, and if there was a problem Waitrose were willing to sit down and discuss it (in person if you wished) - Tesco just referred you to their office in India for anything, and everything.
wow that opened my eyes. Though I'd hedge a bet that the gas/petrol is much cheaper in the US then the UK
But we ain’t go nowhere to go compared to US so it’s not a problem lol
Yes, many of the price differences were a surprise to us too!
You also have to consider things. If Petrol/Gas prices are cheaper in the US, why isn't the cheaper transportation costs being passed on to the consumer?
Unfortunately I lived in England during mad cow. The cost of food at Tesco was a bit expensive but I loved shopping there. Since we were military we did most of our shopping there. I do miss lots of English foods. Enjoyed your video!!
Thank you for watching and for sharing! Yes, there are definitely cheaper places to shop, but we like Tesco as well!
I found that in our larger stores in Indiana, most prices are comparable to the UK. I have found that prices vary quite a bit in the US, a this weeks grocery shop the prices were even lower than normal. Yay, me! Thanks for the video!
Thanks so much for sharing! Yes, prices will vary hugely across the U.S. and even across the UK. We were in expensive areas in both countries, so that somewhat levels the playing field. You’re completely right though. I would’ve loved to have my mom do a similar shop in GA, but they don’t have Safeway unfortunately.
Thanks for this comparison. A bit of an eye opener. I'm fortunate in that I have access to both Lidl and Aldi. It would be interesting to perform this comparison with these two rather than Tesco.
Agreed! We’d also like to see Costco across CA, Georgia, and two stores in Britain.
Problem with food in America is it has to be heavily processed to prevent it from spoiling as its transported long distances.
That’s an interesting point!
We manage long distances in Australia without putting chemicals in the food
Oh wow! Thanks guys. A lot of food has gotten more expensive in Scotland in recent years so I’m so surprised to find we are cheaper on a number of products. The difference on various things is also very interesting! ❤
We agree!
Apart from the price, the quality of the food is so much better.
Remember, the UK are now reducing regulations, now we are no longer in the EU. So quality is going to get worse. Look at how much dairy is in soft scoop ice cream (clue - can be none).
This is interesting and sad to hear. Thank you for sharing.
The quality isn't better that's just plain English arrogance
@@wessexdruid7598😂😂😂 That's bs.Our regulations were there before the EUs so it won't change because we've left.Did you vote remain by any chance 🙈🙉🙈
@@kevinwoods4724 It's not BS - it is happening. Go and look up what is now defined as 'soft-serve' ice cream.
It was one of the reasons given for leaving, we would control our own food regulation. It only can't change if we want to sell into the EU - which has got a lot harder.
The fact that you deny it suggests you voted leave...
I'm surprised that any products were less in the US than in the UK these days . I moved from New York City to California 26 years ago and was stunned by the food prices in CA then. And of course it is even worse here now with grocery stores getting away with ripping off customers. Enjoyed the video.
Thanks for watching! CA is exceptionally bad when it comes to food pricing. We definitely noticed it when we moved from GA.
Astonishing differences!
@@cathythompson6872 Agreed!
America is a corporate rip off.
Stop and Shop in the Northeast U.S. has hand held scanners. They also have a mobile app that can be used to scan items as you shop.
Thanks for sharing! I wonder if that’s becoming more common.
Strawberries out of season. Much better value in season
Agreed! Our kids love them regardless, so we’re stuck regardless 😅
And much tastier too. I never buy imported strawberries only ever Scottish.
@@markshrimpton3138English Strawberries Scottish Raspberries… ☺️
I have been using the hand scanner for several years at the Giant brand grocery store here in Virginia, US. It is so nice to the scan groceries and put them straight into my reusable shopping bags before going to the self serve checkout registers. It has really sped up my grocery shopping trips.
It’s the best! I wish we had them at Safeway in CA. It makes shopping with the kids 1000x better, and they like to be the helpers.
Waitrose have self scanners.
1st difference we don't generally call it a grocery store.
Hahahaha, yes indeed 😁
🤣🤣
@@SimpleScottishLiving or in the Scottish vernacular: "gan oot tae get the messages"
It looks like everyone has the same thoughts as me but I will comment anyway! IMO the food is not only less expensive, but it's much better quality in Scotland than in the US where I live. The cheeses are amazing (and inexpensive), and fruit and veg have so much flavor, and chocolates are creamy, not waxy (MALTESERS!!!!). But, my favorite? Tesco's white farmhouse loaf which costs next to nothing - white bread is always allowed on holiday :) Keep up the great vlogs - I really enjoy them and clearly many others do too. Idea for another video - since I love to go hacking when I visit, maybe you could try riding lessons then head out for a hack! There are so many great places to ride in Scotland!
I used to ride horses as a hobby when growing up in East Lothian, I'm sure the kids would love it, great idea, thanks!
I actually find Tesco more expensive than the other stores - even Sainsburys. And of course, the Tesco 'standard' prices are inflated in order to force everyone onto using the Tesco clubcard, to get more appropriate prices ... and so Tesco can sell your data.
We had no idea about Sainsburys! We’ll definitely try them out if prices are better. Thanks for the tip!
Both Sainsbury's (Nectar card) and Morrisons (More card) have moved to the Tesco clubcard model.
@@RoyCousins I find Sainsburys, and its Nectar card, far superior.
Sainsburys seems to be a better shopping experience on average - wider aisles, better selection of produce AND better offers. And in general, I find them just that wee bit cheaper than Tesco.
The Nectar card/app provides THREE benefits -
1) points which translate to pounds that you can spend, not just in Sainburys, but in Argos and other retailers.
2) Nectar Prices - similar to Tesco clubcard where you get discount on a range of items, but tailored to your own shopping habits.
3) Smartshop discounts - a extra exclusive range of Nectar Prices (again tailored to your own shopping habits), when you choose to use the smartshop app to make your purchases
And the good thing is, many items appear on all categories, so you get bonus points AND discount prices on the same items.
Most of the mobile phones and tablets I have had over the last decade, have come from Nectar points gained by shopping in Sainsburys, and spent in Argos.
No way is Tescos more expensive than Sainsburys unless maybe you just buy named brands, which I don't!
I have both Tesco and M&S almost next door in my high street and it's not unusual to find M&S is cheaper.
Hi great video. My wife and I have just returned from a 2 month holiday in western US. We were very surprised on how expensive food was in the US. We spend most of our holiday camping, so we were looking for fresh fruit and veg, rice/pastas. items you could cook on a camping stove. So a lot of the items you had on your list we also had. We did not do the math, but your examples and conclusion felt about right. My personnel view is that supermarkets in the US feel they can keep prices high. In the UK with the introduction of budget supermarkets like Aldi, prices are kept competitive. It's just a thought!
That makes sense! I wish we knew the reason. It would also be interesting to do a comparison between the same store not only between Scotland and CA but also with throwing England and another state like Georgia into the mix. Maybe we’ll do Costco!
Can you also say something about the differences in wages/incomes? Difference in grocery prices is clear, but maybe Americans earn more.
Yes, from our experience and what we’ve heard from others, U.S. wages are at least 30% if not up to 60% more. So affordability may be more on par between the countries.
@@SimpleScottishLiving But of course expenses are also different. Health insurance etc there, all the extra holidays and petrol costs etc here. It's the comparison of disposable income that would be interesting.
@@ScottsScotland Yes, there are lots of factors to consider and ways to look at it.
Theres wages and theres take home. Less tax for many people in the US, but this is more than outweighed by health insurance and other local taxes that are included at source in the UK, as well as need for a car per adult in most households, so available money is not too different (a study I saw had take home for a single man higher in the US than a similar job in the UK, similar for a couple, less for a couple with multiple children. Add to that the longer working hours of the US and lack of paid time off, the take home per hour worked is generally higher in the UK.
Very interesting comparison video, but keep in mind as Annie mentioned in a previous video, salaries are lower in the uk compared to the USA.
Good point! We would have mentioned this, but I didn’t have actual statistics to back it up. Didn’t want people coming for us in the comments asking for the data 😅 generally speaking, most people believe this point, and we saw it first hand across many family/friends with their respective titles and wages.
I'm puzzled by this argument. Whatever the statistical difference in earnings between the UK and the US should have no reflection on food prices. You should pay more because you earn more?
Yes but we don’t have to pay hundreds of pounds a month for health insurance.
We also don't have to kill ourselves every week to earn our wage.
@@2eleven48 Yes , of course . Prices are fixed to what people are willing to pay . A poor African country couldn't charge UK. prices .
In the UK we have been unable to feed our population from just our own farms since about 1865 so we turned first to our empire, then the Commonwealth and then Europe and as such we have a lot less food import tariffs than the Americans do to protect their own farmers. Our farmers do receive subsidies and also their produce usually sells under premium brands. For example I'm 60 and I don't think I've ever had (certainly never bought) UK bred lamb (favourite red meat), it's always been New Zealand and lately Australian lamb that has been more affordable.
Haven't you ever bought Welsh lamb?
That's crazy considering the amount of sheep in the UK.
@ukaly1 there are hardly any sheep in the UK mate, haven't been since the industrial revolution.
@jennyk488 no, my comment covered UK produced lamb, Wales forms part of the UK.
Anyone claiming to live int the UK for 60 years and has never had Welsh lamb is a damn liar.
Great video! Thank you from a Briton.
Our pleasure! Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment!
I noticed that when the UK was more expensive it was based on the more pricy brands, Twining's Tea is super expensive. Tesco do very decent own brand generic stuff that's much cheaper. I think that if you do an own brands comparison the UK will be even cheaper.
Also, our food quality is generally better with a lot less chemical/artificial ingredients. With meat animal welfare is a lot more important here, look for the red tractor on the packaging, it's an official stamp of approval for well raised livestock. Growth hormones are illegal and antibiotic use is monitored and restricted.
Thanks so much! Twinnings was one of the brands that was also in the U.S like Tropicana. As much as we could, we’d do Safeway’s own and Tesco’s store brand, but we did want to throw a few name brand items in the mix, which we could find the exact same one in both countries. Thanks so much for watching! ❤️
just watched your recent video I ken you were trying to do a like for like we use Tesco but get it delivered but we also use Aldi as well which i can recommend Haddington has a good Aldi 😊
I enjoy watching your videos. Very interesting to see the comparison on food shopping.
We're glad you enjoyed it!
all the banned chemicals and processed foods that are only legal in America still cost more then real-food counter parts in the uk and across the world, even the bread in north America is not technically real bread.
This myth is wild. Like America is the only country in the world processing stuff and putting garbage in them. And we left the eu to free ourselves from what regulation there is.
Brits have a misperception about the quality of their own produce.
@ …. No misconception, come and read every label of every food product being sold in every uk supermarket, and for fun and giggles, go online and look at every single American counter part. Just do it then come back
@ Your food isn’t clean. I don’t need to look
@ 🤣🤣 typical moron, ok don’t look at the facts, you continue believing everything your brilliant brain can think of, I’m proud of you!
@@mannitov2644 u made the mistake of asking him to read
Self scan is common in the larger supermarket chains in Switzerland. We also have a mobile app that does the scanning and you can also pay with it. There can be spot checks by staff to make sure you have scanned everything. All the best, Rob in Switzerland
PS. it would be REALLY interesting to do this comparison for many other countries!
That's really interesting! Thanks for the tip!
As a country that has always had “an empire” we have built relationships throughout the world and more importantly set up strong efficient supply chains which helps keep prices down. US insular policies don’t allow this to happen. Brexit has badly damaged European Supply chains and prices have increased accordingly. Maybe we will come to our senses one day 🤷🏻♂️
Great video well presented and researched by Anniestein.
Have prices not increased across europe too and around the world? That aside,its maybe a good idea to start growing more of our own veg here again.I heard recently that about 30% of our veg comes from Spain
Thank you for watching and sharing your opinion, we learn so much from the comments. It would be interesting to compare prices pre and post Brexit.
Even stores that are close have a huge price difference, our small town has 1 store(Albertson’s) their prices are outrageous! Right at 11.00 for one gallon of ACV! Across the border in Oregon at Waremart(Winco) the price was 5.50. Oregon doesn’t have a sales tax. I grow as much as possible for myself and friends. I eat whole food plant based so avoid the high meat prices.
I love your channel,you two are so much fun to watch and a part of my Sunday! Thank You.
Thanks so much for watching! You’re so right about prices varying drastically. I’d love to have my mom do the same shop but at a Kroger or Publix in GA!
Winco is an amazing store! It is owned by the workers. Great selection of food and they aren't trying to price gouge people. I wish there was one in my area. I do stop there when I can when visiting friends.
You know there's something seriously wrong when the same (American) company's breakfast cereal is on sale in the USA for 55% more than in the UK. I think it's manufactured in both countries. In the UK their workers by law have a minimum of 28 days paid leave. You would expect manufacturing costs to be higher here. The UK price also includes a 20% tax (Value Added Tax known as VAT) to make the comparison even worse.
Blimey that is a difference! It does make me wonder how utility costs are different from the US to the UK. Great enjoyable video.
Energy costs in the USA are way lower than in the UK. However, US telecom services, including mobile is way more expensive. I think water costs vary hugely across the USA, so difficult to generalise.
Yes, it was a surprise to us too! Utility costs are tricky, at least for us for a number of reasons. Appliances and houses are usually larger in the US, the US typically has AC etc, having said that it would be an interesting comparison...I'll see if Annie is ready for another maths challenge! Thanks for watching.
Yes, I think you may be right and I agree it could be a tricky comparison to generalise.
One thing about utilities in the US was when I moved there I was blown away by the fact you have to pay deposits for things like electric and gas and when I got Cable tv I have to pay $200 deposit for service. A friend recently told me paying up to $500 deposit is not uncommon now, I guess things have gone up since I moved there in 2007. Mobile phones are outrageously expensive in the US. Most people are paying over $100 per month there where as the equivalent here would be £5- £10
@@llamagirl2679 Blimey!!! Deposits for gas and electric!
Pretty astounded at these figures. Lived in the US in the mid 1990s and in general food costs (along with most other costs) were much lower in the US than in Scotland. It was never really uniform across all products (similar to this video) but it was clearly cheaper. How things have changed.
Yes, many of the price differences surprised us as well! Thanks for watching.
Mince beef in Waitrose is only around £2.75 for 500g.
Also you can get regular ham slices for quite a bit less than the Tesco finest ham.
Thanks for sharing! We had to go with the Tesco Finest because it was the closest match to the product we used at Safeway.
I live in Texas there’s plenty of grocery stores with varied prices and quality. The higher the prices are usually better “quality” aka organic. These prices must be Cali prices because I don’t pay anywhere that much. You can get straight raw milk and eggs if you know where to look. Small farms usually would sell their stuff on Friday or Saturday on side of roads.
Yes, these are CA prices. We hope to do a Costco comparison between CA, GA, England, and Scotland. That would be quite telling!
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Great video guys! Love how you interact, glad you’re enjoying your return to Scotland 😊
It’s been lovely being back! Thank you ❤️
Fresh food and veg to look out for when they are at their very best in season- Potatoes; Jersey Royals April-May and are fantastic, other waxy salad potatoes June-August. Asparagus- British asparagus is THE BEST- late April to Late June. Strawberries- May-July. Raspberries- (Scottish are the best)- June to October. Apples (best are the smaller, rough skinned varieties)- August to October. Purple sprouting (better than normal broccoli) December - March. Baby carrots- July to September.
Thanks for the tips! This is actually helpful!
@@SimpleScottishLiving Scottish soft fruit are the best in the World and why Dundee is the centre of the jam making industry.The cold and windy weather means there are less insect pests and the plants like the wet weather. Also early Summer lamb. I know lamb is not eaten much in the US, but try new season Scottish or Welsh lamb.
@@charlieunderwood1311Actually the best Strawberries are ENGLISH..the Scottish Raspberries are the best though.🙂
Could I suggest sticking with seasonal food, strawberries are not in season in November, one of my bugbears out of season food and drink. The cheese we wouldn't buy sliced or grated that's why we have graters and knives, nor slices of ham. Plus our food isn't full of chemicals. The same foods in farm shops would be a lot cheaper as you only buy the amount you want and not huge bags, plus some of our prices will have increased because of the wettest year we've had with 12 named storms in that year which in my lifetime I've never experienced nor has my Aunt who's 96, oh and we come from the farming and hospitality background for myself five decades of experience as a chef, so you'll see why it's a bugbear, so the Maths on everything will be different from what we'd consider normal years of crops
Thanks for making some of these points. Good suggestions, which we’ll keep in mind if we do this again, but the maths was enough for a while 😅 We appreciate you watching and taking the time to comment. It’s nice hearing from people with direct experience/knowledge to share.
oh yeah the quality of the food in proper farm shops is next level compared to what you get in the supermarkets in the UK...lets take eggs as an example.
proper farm food shops you will pay about 15-20% more than the supermarkets,but you can quite literally meet the chickens that produced your eggs.you can speak to the farmer and ask about their feed/exercise/habitation and see it for yourself....and boy does it show in the quality of the produce.Theres a big difference in yolk colour,consistency and taste when the bird is roaming around right by your legs and pecking worms and carrion from the field you're in,compared to some "fortified" laced feed with extra vitamin b to turn everything yellow including your pee
@@bigmacntings7451 and we have paper bags something I remember from my childhood, I think it's how we're bought up and generally grew our own, and with grandparents one set farmers, grandad started with some of his family on the tenant farm and they went into the first war, unfortunately not everyone returned, and he carried on from 1920 after he was officially demobbed and married my Nan, they and the other set lived through rationing yet never went hungry, and apart from one grandmother they all lived until 90, which when they passed was considered old, so they must've been doing something right back then, eating all which would be considered wrong these days, fried breakfast, but then no machinery on the farm? fresh meat which they'd slaughter themselves and preserve without fridges, everything in season made into jams, marmalade, pickled etc for the winter months, no chemicals in the ground, I have one aunt 96 who was in the Land Army still very much independently living and cooking her own food. I can certainly taste the difference in food and even some drinks, even our late Queen drank unpasteurised milk, as did her husband and family, so that obviously didn't do this family any harm either
Now US average salary is 59k us dolars UK average salary is 43.6k us dolars. So there is your around 30% difference.
Yes, there are many factors that go into the affordability of life in both countries. You do also have to take health care, for example, our of that number of the US. Thanks for the comment.
I’m afraid the cost will change soon as this Labour gov has decided to penalise flour farmers with inheritance tax. This will force a lot to sell up.
That’s unfortunate to hear
I think your statement has lots of holes. Why should billionaires be subsidised?
@@helenag.9386God you really are STUPID aren’t you..? You have literally NO CLUE as to how ordinary farmers are struggling…those idiots in the Home Counties aren’t farmers they’re ex stockbrokers who are playing at it..,. thick b##ch 🤬
What evidence do you have to justify your comment .Why should farmers be exempt from I H T ?
Self-scanning as you go is becoming a thing in Syd, Aus, where I live, and I love it. I was in Scotland last year, and everything was so expensive compared to AUS. I thought we were expensive but I was shocked.
Wow, that is surprising, thanks for sharing!
You have to be joking right ? I was just in Perth and I've already left because the prices are the most crazy thing I've experienced.
What would’ve boiled yer noggins is if this comparison was done if we were still in the EU.
I only wish we had access to those numbers! I’d love to see the comparison.
@SimpleScottishLiving I'm sure I've seen videos on here about the price difference since leaving EU.its shocking how much everything has gone up.great video thankyou!
Except it has gone up everywhere. I don't think inflation is exclusive to the UK this last few years
Would have been worth it for control of our borders but the wef sabotaged it .
I believe that in the USA eggs must be washed before sale. This means that they wash off the natural protective coating, making refrigeration essential.
I am so happy that we are able to support the Mallwart family with all the extra money we pay for groceries. 😛
😬
You should let everyone know that Northern California is a very expensive place to live, generally speaking. The price comparison to other locations in the USA could be wildly different and more in line with your suburban Edinburgh location. Even comparing your local Tesco with a similar suburban London Tesco would likely show a significant difference of prices.
Thanks for spending the time on the comparisons.
Yes, you are right - location can have a huge impact on prices!
Are your US prices with or without tax? Good video on price comparison.
No tax! Most US states don’t have tax on food items including CA, but they do tax non essentials like gum and toiletries.
Really interesting and surprising, I was convinced the US would be cheaper. Best wishes Christine x
Yes, many of the price differences and 'winners' were a surprise to us too! Thank you for watching!
Maybe it's nice to mention that in Europe/UK you don't often have to use your car to do your shopping compared to the mega distances you have in North America, since there is usually a shop IN the village/town....so you don't have fuel costs either....at least not often.
So very true and one of our favourite things about living here!!
Britain pretends to use metric but not really. Strawberries, 227 grams - that's a weird number, not a round number. That's because 227 grams is half a pound. Milk, 568 ml - another unusual number - oh, it's a pint.
Wow, I did wonder about that! Thank you for the info!
Very interesting video and love the channel. We’ve just returned from a 3 week trip to visit our daughter and son in law who moved in the opposite direction 8 years ago. They now live happily in Connecticut but do notice the difference in prices when they come back to the UK. One thing that made us laugh on our recent visit was the price of a regular sized bottle of HP sauce we found in a supermarket in Stowe, Vermont on sale for $89!
You can find HP sauce in most grocery stores in the US. in sizes ranging from 9 oz. bottles to 15 oz. bottles ranging in price from $6.89 to $9.99, depending on the store.
That's mind boggling!!!! haha $89
Thank you for taking the time to share!
Good to know! We love HP sauce. I never had tried it or heard of it before visiting Scotland.
Yeah.......
Don't bother trying to get UK brands in America as those are speciality shops with huge markups.
@@fabianmckenna8197 I’m sure it could be found a lot cheaper elsewhere, much as I love HP I have no idea who’d buy at those prices.
Great work guys. My only theory for such big differences (especially on local produce) is cos of the vast distances in US regarding logistics? Astounding that the staple bread is so expensive, yet US & Canada are the major suppliers of grain to the world. I feel summit not right. Anyways I will sign off, cos Annie needs to get some sleep before her Degree in Higher Mathmatics exam tomorrow. Gulp!
Vast distances? You just said yourself in the UK we have to import our grain vast distances from America! Back to the blackboard with you.
@@Simonsvids Good point, so why then?
@@Simonsvids Good point. Whats your shot?
Hahaha thank you. Yes, seems like there are numerous contributing factors in both countries.
You also have to take into account the quality of the food. In the UK, meat quality is extremely high. There is no chlorinated chicken, hormones are not allowed to be injected into animals and generally food is less processed. In addition, the amount of corn syrup in food is restricted and its quality - I am told - is better. Golden syrup, made from refined sugar, is more common in the UK.
I love comparison shows like this! So interesting to see prices in different places. However, comparing California prices is not indicative of the United States as a whole. My cousin lives there and anytime she tells me how much something cost, I am astonished. I live in Georgia and I shop at Food Lion. It would be great if you could do the math for me as I am too lazy to convert it to kilograms and pence, this is what I bought recently there: avocado 79 cents each (much less than that if buying a whole bag of them)
Chicken quarters (Leg and thigh) normally 89cents a pound, on sale for 49 cents a pound.
Potatoes at 60 cents per pound
100% juice, 64 ounces for $1.99
I’d be interested in knowing how that compares to UK prices
Yes, 100% the food prices you’ve shared are much cheaper than our CA Safeway shop. My parents live in GA, and we’d love for them to send us their next price shop to even see how different the prices in the U.S. are regionally. To be fair, we also shopped in a quite expensive area of Scotland, so we were hoping that could help equalize this slightly.
@jojons6484, Thanks for the prices from Georgia. I live in SoCal, and I am fortunate to have some lower priced grocery stores near me. What you pay is what I pay in my local stores. I know this doesn't reflect all of SoCal but where there are stores like Winco, Grocery Outlet and Aldis, prices are significantly lower . Cheers.
Really enjoying your adventures 🙂
The only thing I don't like about cost comparisons, is that it's only done on a dollar/pound amount. The real question is: what percentage of the average salary/wage is used to buy those same items in the respective country/state?
That would be very interesting, I'm not sure if Annie is up for another maths puzzle yet. Hopefully from the information provided and average salary information online that information should now be more accessible. 🤞
We didn’t include that factor because it varies so widely between states, countries, and people/occupations. With U.S. wages typically being significantly higher, I’d imagine for many it could be close as to which country gives you more bang for your buck. Too many variables for that!
The timing of this and several of your previous videos have been super helpful as were smack in the process of moving to the Inverness area. I’ve got questions 🤪 I’ll email you! Thank you for doing these invaluable videos! Xoxoxoxoxxoxo
We’re so glad they were helpful! We’re here to help if you have any questions.
The bit you don’t calculate in is the difference in wages to find out who really is cheaper.
Yes, can you imagine having a US paycheck coming in & living over there!
Yes, that is certainly a factor as US wages can more than 20% higher than the UK, however the US possibly has more costs, such as healthcare, that play into the wage number. It would be interesting to do a deep dive on wages though, thanks.
Love you guys. You make doing shopping interesting…..Also….you made the right decision coming to the UK and in particular bonny Scotland.
We agree! ❤️🏴
Interesting video. 2 points you should have made.1. The UK meat is ethically rased, not flooded with hormones or antibiotics. The vegetables are not GM. 2. As an example of wages, the average hourly pay for a McDonald's worker in the US is $13.11, in the UK it's $16.66.
Good points! Thank you for sharing!
Im an American who raises beef cattle. No hormones or antibiotics are used on my cattle. You people in the UK have a lot of biased opinions of how we do things here. There are plenty of options in our grocery stores to buy meat with no hormones and antibiotics used.
@@scottowensbyable Thank you for your comment, I'm sure you are correct and we appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment!
Very interesting comparison but what would be most interesting to me and maybe many others is the DIY prices, I’m pretty sure America would win hands down on most hand tools and specially wood (lumber to you guys). Thanks
Yes, that would be interesting. After COVID the lumber prices in the US (or California at least) noticeably increased. I do miss the selection available in their DIY stores (Home Depot and Lowes) and I agree this would make a good comparison, thanks!
Well done
And thanks
I think I would have guessed this
But thanks for laying it out so clearly for us
Thank you!
I guess some of the differences are to cover the 'extra' ingredients in a lot of US foods (additives and extra sugar) but there is a big difference on some items!
Of course, as a percentage of a person's salary in the US, the groceries may in fact work out cheaper....we are generally paid less over here.
Thanks for all the detailed work - that's a lot of maths!
Thank you and great point! We know that generally agreed upon knowledge, but we didn’t mention it as we didn’t have the stats to back it up and didn’t want the masses coming for us in the comments 🤣😅 It definitely levels the playing field though!
I have to add that we stayed in Edinburgh for a week in September. For me, it was a sentimental journey back to the motherland! I’d left when a wee girl. It’s a horrendously expensive city for a tourist! However, although the restaurants and hotels are astronomically overpriced, groceries were such a bargain. I was greeted with disbelief when I told my friends that Marks and Sparks had delicious, topnotch and cheap groceries (Princes Street location). Strawberries, cheeses, breads, butters, eggs, bacon…everything SO delicious. Had to go back and buy greengages because a wee man in the queue had two boxes’ worth! It was his second go round on that. And he raved about them! Again, sweet, ready to eat, just like the strawberries. And they were marking down the berries because they were “expiring” in a day! Still exquisite condition. We don’t have this variety of super good food in Vancouver. But we also have no competition and a small population. By small population, I mean we don’t have 100million people in a radius of, let’s say 200km. Europe is a cornucopia. And before people start the Brexit theme, the UK is actually part of Europe! 😂😍🥴. The landmass didn’t float away! But, in any case, so many producers with cool foods. So glad we had an aparthotel!
It's great to hear you enjoyed your trip back home! We’ve had the same experience with the food here and are absolutely loving it. Are you planning your next trip back yet? 😉 Thanks for watching and for your thoughtful comment.
@ ah! So beautiful but too expensive! We headed straight to Madrid afterwards and it’s so much better value for money. And warmer! From 14 degrees to 28! 😂. A glass of wine 4€ not 7£!
My husband and I were in Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland back in the beginning of October for a business and pleasure trip. While he was at a client's working, I walked over to the shopping center to look around. Just out of curiosity, I compared some prices on groceries and I noticed that overall, prices were cheaper in the UK.
Thank you for sharing your experience, it's interesting to hear that you found grocery prices to be lower in the UK!
Good video 👍. However, the average US salary is considerably higher than in the UK, so it probably balances out that way. Having said that, on several trips to the US, 10 to 20 years ago, I always felt most things were cheaper than in Britain, so this is surprising.
Fascinating! Though, Walkers and Lays are the same. Why compare to Ruffles?
We couldn’t get the Safeway price due to it being out of stock. You’re right though!