The Cost of Christmas Food & Drink 2025 And How to Cut Your Bill

Christmas isn’t just about what’s under the tree, it’s also about sitting down together for a proper festive feast.

But with prices creeping up again this year, many of us are worrying about how much Christmas dinner will actually cost in 2025 and how we can save.

Using new supermarket data, our team at NetVoucherCodes have crunched the numbers to reveal how much the average Christmas dinner will cost this year and which supermarkets are proving the cheapest for your festive shop. 

We’ve worked out which Christmas foods and drinks have gone up the most this year, and which ones are actually cheaper. We’ve also put together some practical tips to help you cut the cost of your Christmas food and drink without scrimping on the fun.

How Much Will Your Christmas Dinner Cost in 2025?

According to our latest data, the average cost of a traditional Christmas dinner in 2025 is £52.19, with enough food to feed around 6-8 people.

Depending on where you shop, your full Christmas dinner basket can range from £31.73 to £80.95.

Cost of Christmas Dinner by Supermarket (2025)

Rank	Supermarket	Cost of Christmas Dinner*
1	Aldi	£31.73
2	Lidl	£33.22
3	Asda	£39.73
4	Morrisons	£41.88
5	Tesco	£52.13
6	Iceland	£52.20
7	Sainsbury’s	£60.39
8	Waitrose	£77.50
9	M&S	£80.95

*Includes key Christmas dinner items for around 6-8 people.

This year, Aldi has come out as the cheapest place to shop, at just £31.73 for Christmas dinner essentials. A 2.5kg turkey crown at Aldi comes in at £17.19, and they also have the cheapest pigs in blankets at £2.19.

Compared to last year, an Aldi Christmas dinner is actually slightly cheaper – down by around 1% year-on-year. At the other end of the list are M&S and Waitrose, which could potentially more than double your total Christmas dinner spend compared to Aldi.

What’s Gone Up the Most This Christmas?

While you can still keep costs down by shopping smart, the overall cost of Christmas dinner has risen again. Christmas staples are up +5.52% from last year, with the average basket cost for Christmas dinner in 2024 at £127.26 and this year’s at £134.29.

The 5.52% increase is higher than the predicted inflation rate of 3.4% for 2025, which means Christmas dinner prices are rising faster than the general cost of living. So, where is your money actually going?

Some festive staples have seen big price jumps, especially meat and some classic accompaniments.

Biggest Christmas Price Rises from 2024 to 2025

Item	2024 Avg Price	2025 Avg Price	Change
Beef roasting joint (1kg)	£14.01	£19.60	+39.90%
Cranberry sauce (200g)	£0.70	£0.87	+24.58%
Mulled wine (75cl)	£3.96	£4.29	+8.12%
Irish cream liqueur (70cl)	£13.00	£14.04	+7.99%
Green beans (200g)	£1.02	£1.09	+7.04%
Pigs in blankets (12 pack)	£3.00	£3.20	+6.84%
Bucks Fizz (75cl)	£2.61	£2.75	+5.56%
Stuffing mix (170g)	£0.76	£0.80	+5.49%
Maris Piper potatoes (2.5kg)	£1.89	£1.97	+3.96%
Brussels sprouts (500g)	£0.99	£1.01	+2.02%
Turkey (4.75kg)	£32.21	£32.37	+0.52%

Beef roasting joints have seen the biggest increase, up almost 40% in just one year, while cranberry sauce has bounced back after being heavily price-matched last year, up around 25%.

Christmas veg, especially green beans, potatoes and sprouts, has crept up too, though by smaller amounts. On the other hand, turkey has only risen by 0.52%, making it better in value than alternative meats like beef.

With this in mind, if you usually serve both turkey and beef, this might be the year to skip the beef joint altogether, or go for a smaller cut and bulk out the table with cheaper sides like potatoes, carrots and red cabbage.

What’s Actually Cheaper This Year?

It’s not all bad news. Some festive favourites are cheaper than they were last year, especially desserts and a few drinks.

Item	2024 Avg Price	2025 Avg Price	Change
Christmas pudding (400g)	£3.37	£2.79	-17.44%
Mince pies (6 pack)	£1.48	£1.22	-17.06%
Champagne (75cl)	£18.91	£18.45	-2.43%
Gravy granules (300g)	£1.04	£1.02	-1.29%
Yorkshire puddings (4 pack)	£2.21	£2.19	-0.91%
Prosecco (75cl)	£5.90	£5.88	-0.48%
Vegetarian option	£3.66	£3.65	-0.32%

As you can see, Christmas pudding and mince pies are heading the savings, both down by around 17%. And, if you’re a fizz fan, you’ll be happy to hear that champagne and prosecco are slightly cheaper on average this year. Even small staples like gravy and Yorkshire puddings have nudged down in price.

Supermarkets seem to be competing hard on classic Christmas desserts and party favourites, so make sure you keep an eye out for offers, deals and prize freezers when festive food shopping.

How to Save on Christmas Food & Drink in 2025

With all this in mind, we’ve put together some practical, data-backed ways to help you cut the cost of your Christmas shop this year and ensure you’re only buying the most value-for-money festive goodies.

1. Choose Your Supermarket Strategically

With prices ranging from £31.73 to £80.95 for a similar Christmas dinner basket, where you shop makes a huge difference.

We suggest doing your main Christmas dinner shop at a budget supermarket like Aldi or Lidl, where the total basket is lowest. You can then top up with any special branded items from your usual supermarket, or use NetVoucherCodes to grab discount codes for stores like Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda.

Even switching just part of your shop could save you £20–£40, so it’s important that you compare prices and plan your shop instead of jumping in and overspending unnecessarily.

2. Rethink your Meat Centrepiece

With beef up nearly 40%, a full beef joint on top of turkey is an expensive luxury this year.

To save money, we recommend sticking to turkey only, especially as its price rise has been minimal. If your family loves beef, you could always serve a smaller joint, slice it thinly and pad things out with hearty sides like potatoes, stuffing and veg.

You could also consider a vegetarian or vegan main for some guests, as meat-free options have actually dropped slightly in price.

3. Let the Supermarkets Handle Dessert

With Christmas pudding and mince pies both around 17% cheaper year-on-year, the supermarkets are doing the heavy lifting on dessert prices.

Make sure you look out for multi-buy offers on mince pies, puddings and trifles and stock up when you see a good price, as most of these desserts keep well until Christmas.

If you were planning a big home-baking session, it might even be cheaper to buy a few showstoppers and bake just one or two favourites instead.

4. Be Smart With Festive Drinks

Not all drinks have gone up equally this year. For instance, mulled wine, Irish cream and Bucks Fizz are all notably more expensive in 2025. Meanwhile, prosecco and champagne have actually dipped slightly in price.

To save without compromising on the festive fun, we suggest swapping pricey pre-mixed mulled wine for a cheaper bottle of red plus your own spices and orange slices.

If Irish cream has gone up too much, look for own-brand alternatives as these are often much cheaper and taste very similar. The Ballycastle collection at Aldi includes loads of delicious flavours and is a much cheaper alternative.

Make sure you also watch for case discounts and multi-buys on wine and fizz, and stack them with discount codes from NetVoucherCodes where possible.

5. Don’t Overspend on Veg

Veg prices have risen only slightly in 2025, but it’s still easy to overbuy. Green beans, potatoes and sprouts have seen small increases, but they’re still relatively cheap per portion. 

Therefore, we suggest sticking to a core selection of veg you know will get eaten, instead of buying every option “just in case”. Consider frozen veg for extras as it’s often better value, less wasteful and just as tasty when cooked right.

6. Mix Own-Brands with Luxury Brands

You don’t have to go budget-friendly on everything – it is Christmas after all. So, if you still want to push the boat out and enjoy a few treats, just make sure you’re selective.

Use supermarket own-brands for things like gravy, stuffing mix, cranberry sauce, Yorkshire puddings and basic veg and save your money for the items where taste really matters to you, like your favourite fizz, cheeses or chocolates.

Combine this with discount codes and clubcard offers, and your basket price will drop quickly.

7. Use Discount Codes and Loyalty Schemes Together

To squeeze the most value out of your Christmas food and drink shop, use loyalty schemes like Clubcard, Nectar and Asda Rewards to access member prices and earn points on your big shop.

Before you check out, head to NetVoucherCodes and search for discount codes for your chosen supermarket or drinks retailer and combine online grocery offers, in-store promotions and voucher codes wherever possible. 

Even small savings like £5 here and £10 there add up fast when you’re doing a big Christmas shop, so it’s well worth cutting costs wherever you can.Make sure you also take advantage of our money-saving blogs that give expert advice on how to save money every Christmas.