Best Times for Yellow Sticker Shopping: UK Supermarket Reduction Guide
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If you love yellow sticker shopping, this post will help you find the best times to pick up reduced food at UK supermarkets, including Sainsbury’s, Aldi, Lidl, Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Waitrose and Co-op.
There’s no exact universal time for reductions, but most supermarkets follow a fairly predictable pattern throughout the day.
Below I’ve shared the typical reduction windows and a few tips to help you get the best bargains without wasting a trip.
Supermarket Reduction Times At A Glance
Most supermarkets do reductions in stages, with the biggest markdowns usually happening later in the day and into the evening. Exact times vary by store, so use this guide as a starting point.
| Supermarket | Typical reduction times | Best time to try |
|---|---|---|
| Tesco | Late afternoon and evening | Close to store closing |
| Sainsbury’s | Afternoon and evening | 5pm to 8pm |
| Asda | Mid-morning, then evening | After 7pm |
| Morrisons | Morning for fruit/veg, bakery around lunchtime, meat/fish by mid-afternoon | After 5pm |
| Aldi | 30% throughout the day, sometimes 50–70% if stock remains | Later in the day |
| Lidl | 30% during the day, bigger reductions from 3pm | From 3pm onwards |
| Waitrose | Throughout the day, biggest discounts after 6pm | After 6pm |
| Co-op | 10–30% throughout the day, bigger reductions from 5pm | From 5pm onwards |
| Marks & Spencer | 20–30% during the day, final reductions 1 hour before closing | About 1 hour before closing |
| Iceland / Food Warehouse | Chilled/frozen items reduced throughout the day, biggest discounts mid-afternoon to early evening | Mid-afternoon to early evening |
Why Try Yellow Sticker Shopping?
Yellow sticker shopping is one of the easiest ways to cut the cost of your food shop. It can help you save money, reduce food waste, and stock up your freezer for less. It’s also a great way to try foods you might not usually buy.
If you’re new to it, these posts might help:
How Supermarket Reductions Usually Work
Most supermarkets follow a similar pattern when reducing food, although exact times vary by store and how much stock they have. It often looks something like this:
-
10% to 30% reductions in the morning (around 10am to 12pm)
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30% to 50% reductions from mid-afternoon (around 2pm to 4pm)
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50% or more later in the day (often from around 5pm onwards)
That said, recently I’ve noticed a lot more variation in the supermarkets I use most (Morrisons, Lidl and Sainsbury’s), so it’s always worth checking at different times if you can.
UK Supermarket Reduction Times
Morrisons Reduction Times
Best time: After 5pm for the biggest bargains
At Morrisons, reductions on fruit and vegetables often start from 10am, while bakery items are usually marked down around lunchtime and heavily reduced by 3pm.
Meat and fish tend to be reduced by 20–50% by mid-afternoon, but for the biggest bargains it’s worth checking after 5pm.
Personally, I’ve found that between Christmas and New Year some items, like King Prawns and scallops, can drop as low as 10p.
Top tip: Check at different times during the day — you never know when a bargain will appear.
Sainsbury’s Reduction Times
Best time: 5pm to 8pm for largest discounts
Sainsbury’s usually has reductions available from around midday, often starting at about 25% off. Larger reductions appear later in the evening, from around 5pm to 8pm, and can sometimes reach as much as 75% off.
Fresh meat and fish are often reduced in rounds, so popping in at different times increases your chances of snagging the best deals.
Top tip: If you can’t get there late, check the midday reductions, there are usually some decent bargains too.
Tesco Reduction Times
Best time: Close to store closing
Tesco reduction times vary by store, so it’s always worth checking whenever you shop. Like most supermarkets, the biggest reductions tend to be later in the day, close to closing time.
Some stores mark down bakery or fruit and vegetables earlier, but the best strategy is to check your local store and keep an eye on the reduced section throughout the day.
Top tip: Ask staff when the store usually starts marking items down, it can save a lot of wandering around.
Asda Reduction Times
Best time: After 7pm
At Asda, reductions usually start mid-morning between 10am and 12pm, often beginning with fresh fruit and vegetables. Other items are added throughout the day, but the best yellow sticker bargains are generally found after 7pm.
Top tip: If you’re after big reductions, visit your local store later in the evening and check both the fresh and chilled sections.
Aldi Reduction Times
Best time: Later in the day if stock remains
Aldi reductions are usually around 30% and can be found at various times during the day. Occasionally, as the day goes on and stock remains, some items are reduced to 50% or even 70% off.
Top tip: Keep your eyes open as you shop — Aldi doesn’t have a specific reduced shelf, so check items across the store.
Lidl Reduction Times
Best time: From 3pm onwards
Lidl tends to mark down items by 30% during the day, with larger reductions appearing from around 3pm.
hese bigger reductions can be sporadic, so you might need to pop in at different times to find the best deals. Packs of meat are often reduced to fixed prices, like 90p, rather than by percentages.
Top tip: Look for reduced items around the store rather than only in the dedicated section, sometimes bargains appear elsewhere, such as £2 fruit and veg boxes near the tills.
Waitrose Reduction Times
Best time: After 6pm
Waitrose reductions are added throughout the day, but the largest discounts typically appear after 6pm and continue until about half an hour before closing. Smaller Waitrose stores often offer better reductions than larger ones.
Top tip: Check the fruit and veg section closely, they often place reduced items in baskets or spread them across the counters.
Co-op Reduction Times
Best time: From 5pm onwards
At Co-op, reductions of 10–30% can appear at any point during the day, with the best discounts usually from 5pm onwards. Smaller stores and franchise locations tend to be quieter and sometimes have bigger reductions than larger branches.
Top tip: If you’re aiming for bigger discounts, try visiting smaller Co-op stores, they’re often less busy and better stocked with reduced items.
Marks & Spencer Reduction Times
Best time: About an hour before closing
In M&S Food Halls, reductions are usually around 20–30% during the day, with final reductions added approximately an hour before closing. Most M&S stores close at either 8pm or 9pm.
Top tip: Check your local store’s closing times and aim to shop about an hour beforehand for the deepest reductions.
Iceland / Food Warehouse Reduction Times
Best time: Mid-afternoon to early evening
At Iceland and Food Warehouse, reductions are usually added throughout the day, but the biggest discounts often appear from mid-afternoon onwards.
Bakery goods are frequently marked down along with fresh fruit and vegetables.
Stock levels vary a lot between stores, it’s worth checking both the dedicated reduced section and the shelves for clearance items.
Top tip: Frozen items often get marked down too – this can be because they are end of line, have damaged packaging, or are now out of season (you’ll find lots of frozen bargains right after Christmas!)
Tips for Yellow Sticker Shopping
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with buying reduced food. Most items are safe to eat for a few days after the use-by date, provided they’ve been stored properly in the fridge. If you’re worried about food deteriorating, cook or freeze it on the day of purchase to be safe.
Even in supermarkets with dedicated reduced sections, not all discounted items end up there straight away — you can often find bargains scattered throughout the store. And it’s not just fresh produce that gets reduced; deleted lines or changes in packaging often mean non-perishables get discounts too.
I always check the reduced section whenever I shop, no matter the supermarket or time of day. If you find a big haul of reduced food, feel free to stock up — just make sure you have enough space to store or freeze it at home.
Reduced Food at Christmas (and other holidays!)
During Christmas, New Year, Easter, and Bank Holidays, supermarkets sometimes close for a day, which often leads to lots of reduced bargains the day before.
On days when stores close earlier, reductions can also start sooner than usual.
If you’re looking specifically for festive bargains, I wrote a whole post on finding reduced food on Christmas Eve it’s a great guide if you want to make the most of seasonal reductions.
Reduced Christmas Food Shopping (Yellow Stickers At Christmas)
Final Thoughts
Yellow sticker shopping is a simple way to save money, reduce food waste, and discover bargains you might not normally buy.
Remember, the best deals often come from checking at different times and keeping an eye out for both fresh and non-perishable items.
Whether you’re stocking your freezer, trying something new, or just saving a few pounds on your weekly shop, yellow sticker shopping is well worth the effort.
So next time you head to the supermarket, take a look around, and enjoy the thrill of picking up those bargains – your wallet (and the planet) will thank you!
I am always on the reduced part of the aisle, but everybody have the same idea lol,