It's nearly impossible at the moment to have a conversation without one topic coming up: the cost of living.
High inflation, increasing mortgage rates and a recession are all wreaking havoc on Kiwis' bank accounts and people across the board are feeling it acutely.
One of the biggest concerns around increasing prices is food. Data from Statistics New Zealand show grocery prices increased a whopping 12.1 percent from May 2022 to the same month this year.
This was driven by fruit and vegetable prices which rose an extraordinary 18.4 percent in the same period.
In March a study found soaring food prices were the second biggest money concern for New Zealanders.
The Consumer New Zealand research found the number one financial concern was mortgage payments, followed by food and then rent.
Newshub has conducted a test to find out where the cheapest groceries can be found. The test involved comparing the price of staple ingredients online. The main supermarkets were included along with The Warehouse, which is making a push to sell more groceries.
All the prices were taken from supermarkets in Mangere and Papatoetoe in South Auckland.
The items compared were bread, pasta, rice, coffee, milk, mince, mandarins, toilet paper, butter, carrots and eggs. All the prices are accurate as of June 28.
Countdown
The cheapest bread was a 600-gram bag of Essentials brand sliced white bread which cost $1.30.
Next up was pasta. Essentials was once again the cheapest option with 500 grams of spaghetti costing $1.50. Essentials also had the cheapest rice with a 1kg bag of long-grain white rice costing $2.40
The cheapest coffee was a 90-gram bag of Special Blend powdered instant coffee which normally cost $3, but was on sale for $2.20.
The cheapest 1-litre bottle of milk at Countdown was its own brand standard, lite, and trim milks which were all $2.52.
The cheapest mince was 1kg of NZ beef mince for $16.90, while the cheapest mandarins were a 1kg Odd Bunch bag for $4.80. Loose mandarins, meanwhile, were $6 a kg.
The cheapest toilet paper was a 4-pack of Essentials toilet paper for $1.70. Moving on to butter, Essentials was once again the cheapest option with a 500-gram tub of margarine costing $2.20.
Meanwhile, the cheapest eggs were a 6-pack of Farmer Brown colony size 8 for $4.90.
As for carrots, a 1.5kg Odd Bunch bag was available for $2.80 while loose carrots were $3.20 a kg.
New World
The cheapest bread at New World was a 600-gram bag of Value white toast for $1.49. Value also had the cheapest pasta with 500 grams of spaghetti costing $2.09 and rice with a 1kg bag of Value white long grain rice going for $2.09. Value also had the cheapest coffee at New World with a 90-gram bag costing $2.79
Anchor Zero Lacto Blue was the cheapest 1-litre bottle of milk going for $4.75, while the cheapest mince was NZ beef prime mince for $19.99 a kg.
Mandarins meanwhile were $5.99 a kg.
The cheapest toilet paper was a 4-pack of Value white 2ply toilet paper for $1.79 and the cheapest butter was Value table spread for $1.99
The cheapest eggs were a 12-pack of Morning Harvest colony size 6 eggs and carrots cost $3.29 a kg
PAK'nSAVE
The cheapest bread at PAK'nSAVE was also Value brand with the same 600-gram bag costing just $1.19. It's worth noting PAK'nSAVE is owned by Foodstuffs which also owns New World.
Value also had the cheapest pasta and rice with a 500-gram bag of spaghetti going for $1.29 and a 1kg bag of long-grain white rice costing $1.99.
The cheapest coffee meanwhile was Pam smooth roast powered coffee with a 100-gram bag costing $1.99.
Anchor Zero Lacto Blue was also the cheapest at Pak'nSave but it cost just $3.99.
The cheapest mince was NZ beef mince which was $14.49 a kg and mandarins were $5.99 a kg.
The cheapest toilet paper was a 4-pack of Pams 3ply white toilet tissue for $1.79 and the cheapest butter was a 500-gram tub of Value table spread for $1.59
The cheapest eggs were a 12-pack of Farmer Brown fresh colony size 6 eggs for $6.98 and carrots cost $3.29 a kg
The Warehouse
The Warehouse is relatively new to the grocery sector and still only offers a limited range of products. Of the staples available the cheapest bread was a 600-gram bag of RiverMill white toast for $1.30. The cheapest pasta was 500 grams of Biondi spaghetti for $2.
Due to its limited options, the only rice available at The Warehouse is a 5kg bag of Market Kitchen long grain white rice for $10.
The cheapest coffee at the Warehouse is a 10-pack of Mokate Gold Premium Cappuccino chocolate sachets for $1.97. The cheapest bag of instant coffee is a 90-gram bag of Gregg's special blend powder coffee for $3.
The cheapest 1-litre bottle of milk is Meadow Fresh Lite for $1.97.
The warehouse didn't have 4 packs of toilet paper but a single 400-sheet roll was available for $1.50 or a 12-pack of Necessities brand toilet tissue was available for $4.
The cheapest butter at The Warehouse is 500 grams of Meadowlea margarine spread for $3.30.
