BUYING supermarket own brand can save you cash, with 64% of us recently switching to cheaper products to reduce grocery bills.
But one item many of us still pay top price for is the humble kitchen towel as many cheaper varieties just aren’t up to the job.
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Plenty claims to be 50% more absorbent than rivals and boasts you only need one sheet.
But how do own brand rolls match up to the popular brand? Lynsey Hope finds out:
Sainsbury’s Super Absorbent Kitchen Towel
- £2.50 for 2 rolls
- £1.25 per 100 sheet roll
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Lynsey says: “The Sainsbury’s rolls were my best buy.
“Not only were these paper towels strong but they were also super absorbent, managing to clear up lots of mess before I had to tear off a new sheet.
“They came off the roll well and remained pretty robust.
“They did get a bit flimsy when they got wet, as you’d expect, but I managed to use one sheet five or six times and it still remained intact.
“Top effort from Sainsbury’s. Great value option.”
Efficiency: 5/5
Value: 5/5
Overall score: 10/10
Tesco Kitchen Rolls
- £2.50 for 2 rolls
- £1.25 per 100 sheet roll
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Lynsey says: “Tesco has shrunk the size of the cardboard tubes in their rolls so you get the same number of sheets, but they are not as bulky to store.
“That’s quite a handy innovation if you are short on cupboard space.
“This towel did a great job of cleaning up food mess such as jam and peanut butter and it was reasonably durable though not as tough as some others in this test.
“It felt quite thin and flimsy and wasn’t great at absorbing liquids which is why I had to knock the score down.”
Efficiency: 3/5
Value: 3/5
Overall score: 6/10
Plenty Original Kitchen Roll
- £5 for 2 rolls
- £2.50 per 100 sheet roll
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Lynsey says: “A really robust and absorbent kitchen towel.
“It easily wiped away spilt food and liquids, without any seeping through to hands.
“It absorbed lots of water and strength-wise, it fared really well never tearing during a test.
“Even though it’s only two-ply, it seemed tough, absorbent and the roll seemed to go a long way, lasting better than many of the own brands.
“Plenty claims ‘one sheet does plenty’ and I agree.
“The plastic packaging is made of 55% recycled plastic.
“The only downside is the price as you are paying double the price for this – but it will do the job and it will last longer.”
Efficiency: 5/5
Value: 4/5
Overall score: 9/10
Morrisons Ultra Towels
- £3 for 2 rolls
- £1.50 per 100 sheet roll
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Lynsey says: “Reasonably tough towels from Morrisons which were triple layered and so one of the best when it came to strength.
“This made them a little difficult to tear off the roll but once you got one, it did a great job of absorbing liquids and tackling difficult food mess.
“The packaging is made of 50% recycled materials.
“More expensive than most, even Waitrose, but they lasted well so I thought the value for money was reasonable.”
Efficiency: 4/5
Value: 3/5
Overall score: 7/10
M&S Absorbent Kitchen Towels
- £2.70
- £1.35 per 100 sheet roll
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Lynsey says: “When I opened these up, the towels felt thick, soft and durable, exactly as you’d hope from a high end supermarket.
“My hopes were high, as they also claim to be triple-layered for strength.
“Sadly though as I tried to mop up some spilled water, I found they were actually pretty useless.
“The water didn’t absorb, soaked through to my hands and my clothes.
“I ended up in more of a mess than I started in.
“They weren’t much better when it came to food stains, such as jam or peanut butter, either, simply tearing on the second wipe.
“Hard to get off the roll each time, too. Shame.”
Efficiency: 2/5
Value: 2/5
Total score: 4/10
Essential Waitrose Kitchen Rolls
- £2.70 for 2
- £1.35 per 100 sheet roll
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Lynsey says: “A very strong towel that held up against a reasonable amount of force before finally ripping.
“It wasn’t as good as absorbing liquids though when it came to popping up liquid mess and when I used it to clean up some jam, it all soaked through on to my hands.
“Not a terrible price, but there are better budget options.”
Efficiency: 4/5
Value: 3/5
Total: 7/10
Aldi Saxon Ultra Kitchen Towels
- £2.55
- £1.28 per 100 sheets
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Lynsey says: “Aldi’s kitchen roll was just as good as Plenty when it came to soaking up liquids and durability.
“It’s three-ply and it was probably the toughest we tried.
“If it absorbs a lot of liquid, you could wring it out and use it again without the risk of it ripping.
“It cleaned up food spills well, too, only leaving the odd smear behind.
“Only 30% of the packaging was made from recycled plastic, which was lower than most, but otherwise felt these were budget friendly and a solid buy.”
Efficiency: 4/5
Value: 5/5
Total: 9/10
Asda Shades Everyday Kitchen Rolls
- £2.54 for 2
- £1.27 per 100 sheet roll
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Lynsey says: “Surprisingly strong for the price, this two-ply towel didn’t tear easily at all.
“But sadly, that’s about it for the positives.
“It wasn’t great at soaking up liquid or mopping up spills and I had to use quite a lot of it to clean up mess, so whilst it might appear reasonable value, you need to use quite a lot of it to get the job done.
“The packaging is made with 55% recycled plastic.”
Efficiency: 2/5
Value: 2/5
Total: 4/10
Ocado Kitchen Towel
- £2.50 for 2
- £1.25 per 100 sheet roll
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Lynsey says: “Although these are a good price, I thought the paper felt quite thin and flimsy compared to other own brands.
“The mess tended to leak off them when I wiped it up too.
“The sheets also came up quite small so most of the time I had to use at least two of them to get the job done, so I’m not sure they are great value for money either.”
Efficiency: 2/5
Value: 3/5
Total: 5/10
Lidl Floralys Kitchen Towel
- £2.99 for 4 rolls
- 74p per 60 sheet roll or £1.23 per 100 sheets
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Lynsey says: “Lidl’s rolls were small with just 60 sheets per roll but you do get four for a good price.
“Wet or dry they could handle an impressive amount of force before ripping and they did a great job of soaking up liquid.
“They were pretty decent at clearing up food mess too, though I did end up with some of it on my hands where it soaked through.
“Shame they come in plastic packaging as overall, these two-ply paper rolls were a great budget option.”
Efficiency: 4/5
Value: 5/5
Total: 9/10
Who Gives A Crap
- £2.65 for 1
- £2.65 per 120 sheet roll or £2.20 per 100 sheets
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Lynsey says: “This kitchen roll did a good job of absorbing spilt liquids, but it wasn’t as good as either Aldi or Plenty – and they are mega expensive.
“Sadly they were also among the weaker rolls in our test, tearing easily when you tried to mop up food mess.
“While it is an environmentally-friendly option with recyclable packaging, I didn’t feel they were good value or as efficient as some of the other rolls we tried.
“For added points, 50% of the firm’s profits are donated to sanitation projects across the world.”
Efficiency: 3/5
Value: 3/5
Total: 6/10
How to bag a bargain
SUN Savers Editor Lana Clements explains how to find a cut-price item and bag a bargain…
Sign up to loyalty schemes of the brands that you regularly shop with.
Big names regularly offer discounts or special lower prices for members, among other perks.
Sales are when you can pick up a real steal.
Retailers usually have periodic promotions that tie into payday at the end of the month or Bank Holiday weekends, so keep a lookout and shop when these deals are on.
Sign up to mailing lists and you’ll also be first to know of special offers. It can be worth following retailers on social media too.
When buying online, always do a search for money off codes or vouchers that you can use vouchercodes.co.uk and myvouchercodes.co.uk are just two sites that round up promotions by retailer.
Scanner apps are useful to have on your phone. Trolley.co.uk app has a scanner that you can use to compare prices on branded items when out shopping.
Bargain hunters can also use B&M’s scanner in the app to find discounts in-store before staff have marked them out.
And always check if you can get cashback before paying which in effect means you’ll get some of your money back or a discount on the item.