Supermarket price traps: the tricks that make you pay more
Supermarkets use legal, well-studied tricks to make you spend more: crossed-out reference prices (since 30 October 2024, allowed only under the 30-day rule), volume deals that are not (read the unit price), shrinkflation (same price, less content) and eye-level placement with .95 prices. The counter to all of them: the price per kilo compared across several chains.
Updated regularly. Supermarkets are designed to make you spend more than you intended, with legal, well-studied tricks. Knowing the four most common price traps lets you see through them and pay only the real price. The best counter to all four is the same: the price per kilo or litre, compared across several chains.
Rappn is the only neutral grocery price comparison app in Switzerland, with no commercial agreement with any retailer. Migros, Coop, Aldi, Lidl, Denner, Aligro and Otto's do not pay us to rank them, and nothing below is sponsored.
What are the most common supermarket price traps?
1. Crossed-out reference prices. A crossed-out price is no proof of a bargain. Since the Federal Council amended the Price Indication Ordinance on 30 October 2024, a comparison price may be used with no time limit only if the good was previously offered at that higher price for at least 30 consecutive days. 2. Volume deals that are not. "X for Y" or bulk packs are not automatically cheaper; what counts is the unit price per kilo or litre, which by ordinance (PBV Art. 3) must be displayed. SECO gives the example of jam at 185 grams for CHF 2.70, which works out to CHF 14.95 per kilo. 3. Shrinkflation. Same price, less content. Reported cases: Kiri shrank from 160 to 144 grams at the same price, a Snickers bar from 50 to 44 grams, a Coca-Cola bottle from 500 to 450 millilitres (later partly reversed). 4. Shelf placement and charm prices. High-margin goods sit at eye and grab height, cheaper alternatives up top or down low. And prices deliberately end in .95 or .90 to look lower.
| Price trap | The counter |
|---|---|
| Crossed-out reference price | compare the current price across chains, not the reference |
| Bulk pack / X for Y | read the unit price per kilo or litre |
| Shrinkflation (less content) | price per 100 g, not per pack |
| Eye level and .95 prices | scan the whole shelf, not just the grab zone |
Why a neutral comparison is the best defence
All four traps aim to make you look at a single price in the store, the crossed-out one, the pack price, the .95 price. The Foundation for Consumer Protection even runs a reporting platform for shrinkflation, because hidden downsizing is so hard to spot. The only reliable counter-value is the real price per quantity, compared across several sellers. That is exactly what the Rappn app provides: you enter a product and see the current price across every chain, instead of relying on the staging on the shelf.
Let Rappn compare the real price per kilo for you, and crossed-out numbers and .95 endings lose their power. How to deliberately avoid impulse buys is in avoid impulse buys, and the biggest saving levers are collected in how to save on groceries.
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These are live offers in Rappn: the real price per kilo across every chain, so crossed-out numbers and .95 endings on the shelf lose their power. Type a product to try it.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I trust crossed-out promotion prices?
Not automatically. Since the Price Indication Ordinance was amended (Federal Council, 30 October 2024), a crossed-out comparison price may be used with no time limit only if the good was previously offered at that higher price for at least 30 consecutive days. Compare the current price across several chains, not the reference price.
Is a bulk pack cheaper than a small one?
Not always. "X for Y" and bulk packs are not automatically cheaper. What counts is the unit price per kilo or litre, which by the Price Indication Ordinance (Art. 3) must be displayed. SECO gives the example of jam at 185 grams for CHF 2.70, so CHF 14.95 per kilo.
What is shrinkflation?
Same price for less content. Reported cases in Switzerland include Kiri (from 160 to 144 grams at the same price), a Snickers bar (from 50 to 44 grams) or a Coca-Cola bottle (from 500 to 450 millilitres, later partly reversed). The price per 100 grams makes such downsizing visible.
Why are expensive products always at eye level?
Because the eye and grab zone are the best-selling shelf spots. High-margin products go there, cheaper alternatives higher up or lower down. Scanning the whole shelf rather than just the grab zone often finds the cheaper option.