WHEN it comes to a shopping basket typically made up of some of our everyday staple foods there is a £1.83 difference between the most expensive and the cheapest among the big four supermarkets.

Might not sound much but if that saving was made just once a week you could save yourself £95.16 a year.

For those who really want to maximise their savings it's worth shopping around as all of the big four are cheapest on one item or another.

During The Daily Echo's shopping basket survey we tried to compare the main four supermarkets' own brands, where possible going for the mid-range own product. Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury's all had the same priced wholemeal sliced loaf, Weetabix, tin of chopped tomatoes, strawberry jam and digestive biscuits.

While Waitrose was more expensive on most items it was the cheapest for two pints of semiskimmed milk and a 500g packet of mince than both Tesco and Asda. Our shopping basket survey did not take account of any special offers and comes as households face soaring food bills.

According to the Office of National Statistics food prices have climbed 6.6 per cent over the past 12 months.