Meat is where a supermarket bill gets away on you, and where the same cut swings the most between stores. This page ranks the common cuts by price per kilo, shows which chain has each one cheapest, and points out the cuts that are genuinely good value rather than just cheap per pack.
The cheapest cuts, per kilo, in three cities
Everything here is a shelf price per kilogram, which is the only fair way to compare a 480 g tray with a 1.2 kg one. For each cut we take the cheapest of PAK'nSAVE, New World and Woolworths at that city's nearest stores. PAK'nSAVE prices its stores individually, so the Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch figures can differ; New World and Woolworths price by island.
Cheapest supermarket price per kilo for 16 everyday cuts, at each city's nearest PAK'nSAVE, New World and Woolworths, sorted by the middle of the three. Chain shown is the one with that price.
| Cut | Auckland | Wellington | Christchurch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken Wings | $6.20 | $6.20 | $6.20 |
| Chicken Drumsticks | $7.29 | $6.29 | $6.49 |
| Chicken Thighs (Bone-In) | $7.99 | $8.99 | $12.70 |
| Chicken Nibbles | $7.99 | $9.99 | $9.67 |
| Skinless Chicken Breast | $13.99 | $12.99 | $15.79 |
| Pork Loin Chops | $9.99 | $15.49 | $14.99 |
| Pork Mince | $15.99 | $15.99 | $18.49 |
| Chicken Thigh Fillets (Boneless Skinless) | $17.99 | $17.99 | $26.79 |
| Streaky Bacon | $17.99 | $17.99 | $17.99 |
| Beef Mince (standard 18%) | $18.99 | $17.99 | $21.99 |
| Diced Chicken | $19.53 | $19.53 | $22.99 |
| Lamb Shoulder Chops | $19.99 | $19.99 | $19.49 |
| Pork Sausages | $20.00 | $20.00 | $20.00 |
| Beef Mince (premium, lean 13%) | $23.40 | $23.40 | $27.49 |
| Beef Rump Steak | $27.99 | $27.99 | $25.99 |
| Beef Schnitzel | $27.99 | $27.99 | $26.49 |
Shelf prices per kg on 9 Sept 2026, specials included, Woolworths at non-member prices. Set your own location on the meat map for your stores and the nearest Mad Butcher.
Value cuts: cheap per kilo and worth cooking
Cheap per kilo is not the same as cheap to eat. Bone-in chicken loses roughly a third of its weight to bone, so drumsticks and thighs need to be well under breast price to beat it on the plate. Mince and shoulder chops are the honest bargains: no bone, no waste, and they carry a slow-cooked meal a long way. The cuts below are the cheapest per kilo across the three cities; treat anything bone-in as costing about a third more per edible kilo than the number shown.
The 8 cheapest cuts per kilo across the three cities today, cheapest first.
| Cut | Type | Cheapest city price | Typical across cities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken Wings | Chicken | $6.20 Auckland, Woolworths | $6.20 |
| Chicken Drumsticks | Chicken | $6.29 Wellington, PAK'nSAVE | $6.49 |
| Whole Chicken | Chicken | $6.79 Auckland, Woolworths | $6.79 |
| Whole Chicken Legs | Chicken | $7.49 Auckland, PAK'nSAVE | $7.49 |
| Precooked BBQ Sausages | Sausages | $8.49 Auckland, PAK'nSAVE | $8.49 |
| Chicken Thighs (Bone-In) | Chicken | $7.99 Auckland, PAK'nSAVE | $8.99 |
| Chicken Nibbles | Chicken | $7.99 Auckland, PAK'nSAVE | $9.67 |
| Pork Leg Roast | Pork | $8.99 Wellington, PAK'nSAVE | $9.99 |
Every core cut at Auckland prices, chain by chain
The full comparison at one location, so you can see where each chain is strong. Specials move these numbers weekly, and a cut that is cheapest this week at one chain is often not next week, which is exactly why the live tool re-prices at your own stores every night.
PAK'nSAVE has the lowest price on 9 of the 14 lines below where at least two chains stock the product (Woolworths 4, New World 1), at Auckland CBD prices.
| Cut | Mad Butcher | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken Wings | $10.49 | – | $6.20 | $10.99 |
| Chicken Drumsticks | $7.29 | $8.49 | $8.30 | $8.00 |
| Chicken Thighs (Bone-In) | $7.99 | $12.79 | $12.70 | $9.99 |
| Chicken Nibbles | $7.99 | $13.69 | $13.60 | $13.99 |
| Pork Loin Chops | $9.99 | $19.99 | $19.99 | $18.99 |
| Skinless Chicken Breast | $13.99 | $15.69 | $15.40 | $18.99 |
| Pork Mince | $16.99 | $15.99 | $19.50 | $16.99 |
| Chicken Thigh Fillets (Boneless Skinless) | $24.99 | $17.99 | $17.99 | $22.99 |
| Streaky Bacon | $23.96 | $23.96 | $17.99 | $10.99 beats the supermarkets |
| Beef Mince (standard 18%) | $18.99 | $27.91 | $21.99 | – |
| Diced Chicken | $19.53 | $19.98 | $20.00 | $19.99 |
| Lamb Shoulder Chops | $19.99 | $24.99 | $23.95 | – |
| Pork Sausages | – | – | $20.00 | $20.99 |
| Beef Mince (premium, lean 13%) | $27.99 | $30.99 | $23.40 | – |
| Beef Rump Steak | $29.99 | $36.99 | $27.99 | $23.99 beats the supermarkets |
| Beef Schnitzel | $27.99 | $29.99 | $29.99 | – |
Per kg at Auckland CBD on 9 Sept 2026; Mad Butcher column is Mad Butcher Mt Roskill, its weekly specials refresh on Sundays. Bold is the cheapest supermarket for that cut.
Questions people ask
Which supermarket is cheapest for meat in NZ?
It changes cut by cut and week by week. On a per-kilo basis one chain usually has the most cheapest cuts on any given day, but no chain wins every cut, and specials reshuffle the order weekly. The tables on this page are recomputed every night from the retailers' own shelf prices, and the summary sentence above each table says who is ahead today.
What is the cheapest cut of meat to buy?
Per kilo, chicken drumsticks, bone-in thighs, sausages and standard beef mince are consistently the cheapest lines. Allow for bone: a bone-in cut costs about a third more per edible kilo than its shelf price per kilo suggests. For a slow cooker, beef blade, bolar roast and lamb shoulder chops are the value cuts.
Is the butcher cheaper than the supermarket?
Sometimes, on their weekly specials, especially chicken and mince. Not on every cut, and only if the drive is short. The meat map prices your cuts at your nearest PAK'nSAVE, New World, Woolworths and Mad Butcher and adds the return drive, so you can see the all-in answer for where you live.
How are these meat prices worked out?
They are the per-kilogram shelf prices each retailer shows on its own public website, read every night. Where a store shows a special, the special price is used. Woolworths prices are shown at non-member prices. Nothing is estimated or surveyed.
Where to next
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