Easter egg chocolate is being hit by a double whammy of rising prices and shrinking sizes, according to new Which? analysis.
This phenomenon is known as ‘shrinkflation’, and we can reveal this hard-to-spot pricing tactic is being used on a string of popular Easter eggs from big-name brands, including Cadbury, Galaxy and Toblerone.
Our research also reveals which popular Easter food and drink is going up the most in price, as well as how everyday groceries are being affected by inflation.
Read on to find out if your favourite Easter treat has been hit, plus expert tips for saving money at the supermarket.
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Is your favourite Easter egg shrinking?
Which?’s latest supermarket food inflation tracker found that, while overall annual food and drink inflation at the supermarket slowed to 3.9% last month, the cost of chocolate – driven by ongoing global supply issues – surged by 9.7%.
This has led to many popular Easter eggs shrinking in size. Here are some of the worst examples we found with how much the price per 100g has risen:
- Galaxy Milk Chocolate Extra Large Easter Egg at Asda went from £4.98 for 252g in 2025 to £5.97 for 210g in 2026 – up 44%
- M&M’s Crispy Easter Egg at Asda went from £3.48 for 192g last year to £3.97 for 156g this year – up 40%
- Galaxy Milk Chocolate Extra Large Easter Egg at Tesco, went from £6 for 252g last year to £7 for 210g this year – up 40%
- Maltesers Milk Chocolate Easter Egg at Tesco went from 231g to 194g and also rose in price from £6 to £7 – up 39%
- Cadbury Mini Eggs Milk Chocolate Easter Egg at Morrisons went from £4 for 193.5g last year to £5 for 181g this year – up 34%
- Toblerone The Edgy Egg Milk Chocolate Easter Egg With Truffles at Morrisons was £14 for 298g last year and £15 for 256g this year – up 25%
- Cadbury Mini Eggs Orange Chocolate Eggs Bag at Tesco dropped from 80g to 74g but went from £1.85 to £2 – up 17%
Some chocolate treats didn’t shrink, but the price increased significantly.
For example, at Ocado, the Cadbury Assortment Minis Mix Easter Egg Sharing Bag (232g) went from £4.20 on average in February 2025 to £6.79 in February 2026 – an increase of 62%.
And at Morrisons, we found the M&M’s Crispy Milk Chocolate Easter Mini Eggs (72g) went from £1.50 in Feb last year to £2.30 on average in Feb this year – an increase of 53%.
- Find out more: trending Easter eggs and the cheapest places to buy them
The Easter food going up the most in price
It’s not just chocolate where shoppers are being hit by far higher prices. Soaring inflation has hit a range of other groceries, including some popular Easter food and drink, such as lamb, fish and fresh veg.
Here are some of the worst examples we found:
- Castle MacLellan Smoked Salmon Pâté (100g) at Asda, from £1.50 to £3.48 – up 132%
- Just Essentials 10 Mild Cheddar Cheese Slices (200g) at Asda, from 65p to £1.39 – up 114%
- Paterson’s Shortbread & Biscuit Assortment (400g) at Sainsbury’s, from £2 to £3.75 – up 88%
- Sound Seafood Mackerel Fillets (180g) at Ocado, from £2.75 to £4.69 – up 71%
- Tesco Finest Barrel Aged Feta (250g) from £2.62 to £4.40 – up 68%
- Tesco Peeled Potatoes (750g) from £1.29 to £1.85 – up 43%
- Asda Golden 2 Breaded Haddock Fillets (300g) from £2.98 to £4.22 – up 42%
- Waitrose Slow Cooked Lamb Shoulder with Garlic & Herbs (770g) from £12.50 to £16 – up 28%
It’s not all bad news; most of the Easter simnel cakes in our analysis had stayed the same price as last year.
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What’s happening to food inflation?
Our supermarket food inflation tracker looks at the prices of around 25,000 products across eight major UK supermarkets to reveal a detailed, year-on-year look at how grocery prices are changing.
By comparing average costs across 20 product categories, we can reveal how supermarkets, product ranges and specific items compare when it comes to inflation.
Not only did the price of chocolate jump by 9.7% in February, but fish was also another category hit by soaring inflation, up 9.3% year-on-year.
Meanwhile, supermarket own-label premium products had the highest rates of inflation at 6.7% That’s more than budget own-brand items (4%) or branded items (2.8%).
And when it came to individual retailers, Waitrose had the highest rate of inflation at 4.7% in February, while Aldi had the lowest at 2.9%.
- Find out more: Which? supermarket food inflation tracker
How to save money on groceries
Shrinkflation is pretty difficult to spot – unless you have a brilliant memory for size and weights.
But there are things you can do to avoid overpaying for your groceries.
One way is to look out for anything labelled ‘new’. This can mean a new size or a new formulation, but it’s unlikely to mean better value. If you shop online, this might be easier to spot as the product listing will have changed and may have dropped out of your favourites list.
You can also keep an eye on the unit price (the price per 100g or 100ml) to see if anything has changed.
Finally, it may be worth considering switching supermarkets to help lower your costs. Our cheapest supermarket analysis regularly finds that Aldi and Lidl are the cheapest supermarkets overall.
- Find out more: how to spend less at the supermarket
What do the supermarkets say?
We approached all the supermarkets mentioned to ask if they wanted to comment on the pricing of the specific examples we’ve mentioned.
We also approached the manufacturers of the products that have shrunk in size.
Sainsbury’s said: ‘We know Easter is a time many come together, which is why we are focused on giving customers brilliant value with trusted quality. Our delicious By Sainsbury’s Hot Cross Buns in our Aldi Price Match scheme are just 95p – over 12% cheaper than last year.
‘We’re continuing fantastic offers as the Easter break approaches with Nectar Prices, including 25% off our extra-large Taste the Difference Easter Eggs and half price or better on By Sainsbury’s Whole Leg of Lamb, By Sainsbury’s Beef Joint and By Sainsbury’s Side of Salmon.’
Mars Wrigley, which owns the Galaxy, M&Ms and Maltesers brands, said: ‘We always aim to absorb rising costs wherever possible, however, ongoing pressures, including the well-documented rises in the cost of cocoa, mean we have had to make carefully considered changes to ensure shoppers can continue to enjoy their favourite Easter treats without any compromise on the quality or taste they expect from Mars. As with all our products, final pricing remains at the discretion of individual retailers.’