Summer is finally here, bringing long, warm evenings, the unmistakable smell of sizzling food on the BBQ, and planning outdoor meals with friends and family. 

With parts of the UK predicted to hit 30 degrees this weekend, many people will be planning to make the most of the warm weather by firing up the grill.

Fortunately, hosting a fantastic summer get-together doesn’t have to burn your budget. Capital One UK has launched a comprehensive cost analysis of the UK’s favourite BBQ staples, pinpointing exactly where shoppers can unlock the biggest bargains this summer. 

From budget-friendly burgers to super savings on sausages, here’s the ultimate guide for a full summer spread without the premium price tag. 

Capital One UK has gone aisle-by-aisle and compared gram-by-gram to find the best value option for a range of crowd-pleasing essentials. The results show how to comfortably feed a party of four for less than a fiver (£4.75) per person¹.

*All items in each category were standardised by weight to make a fair comparison, see full table in notes to editors

The best way to save on burgers this summer is to go veggie. Vegetarian soya burgers (£2.81 for 8) and bean burgers (£3.02 for 8) are the most affordable options according to our analysis, and offer a significant saving compared to traditional meat burgers. If you’re a meat lover, then turkey burgers (£4.30 for 8) offer a slim saving compared to the classic beef burger (£4.48 or 8).

When choosing sausages, classic pork is the most cost-effective choice (£1.79 for 8). Vegetarian sausages are roughly £1 more expensive for the same amount (£2.81 for 8), but still cheaper than other meat options of chicken (8 for £2.98) and turkey (8 for £3.44).

If you want to slice your bread budget in half, our analysis reveals a surprising contender: pitta bread. At just £1.15 for a pack of 6, it’s about the same price as hot dog buns (£1.11 for 6) but more versatile - and easily undercuts burger buns (£2.63 for 6) and premium brioche buns (£3.03 for 6). It might be an unconventional vessel for your burger, but it’s a brilliant cost-cutting hack when you’ve got a crowd to feed!

No BBQ is complete without vegetable skewers, and there are plenty of affordable and tasty options to choose from. Brown onions (£0.99 for 1kg) come in as the cheapest, offering great value and a solid base for any skewer. Courgettes (£1.31 for 3) are another budget-friendly pick, adding a mild, slightly sweet flavour to balance out the other veggies. Finally, a pack of closed-cup mushrooms (£1.34 for 400g) brings an earthy, rich flavour and makes for a cheap and cheerful trio. 

While classic sides like coleslaw, potato salad or a bag of salad are usually the first things we grab to bulk out a summer spread, couscous is actually one of the best value side options. Costing just £1.26 for 500g (£2.52 per kg), couscous is significantly more affordable than a bag of salad at £2.20 for 240g (£9.15 per kg), and less than half the price per kilo than coleslaw and potato salad (both at £1.79 for 300g or £5.96 per kg). 

A BBQ spread can quickly get expensive once steaks, ribs and kebabs are added to the basket, but the data shows there are still ways shoppers could keep costs down. Chicken drumsticks could be the best-value buy overall, with a full 1kg pack costing £2.92, making them a strong option for feeding a bigger group without pushing up the basket price.

When it comes to cheeses for grilling, there’s really only two contenders - halloumi versus paneer. For a smaller BBQ, paneer is the cheaper choice costing £2.10 for 200g, compared to £2.21 for 250g of halloumi. However, shoppers hosting a bigger BBQ or buying in larger quantities may get better value from halloumi, as it works out cheaper by weight at £8.84 per kg, compared to £10.50 per kg for paneer. So, while paneer can keep the upfront cost slightly lower, halloumi could be the better-value option for feeding more guests.

UK Google searches for “pork belly bbq” have reached over 14,000 in the past 30 days, up 378% compared to the previous month². It’s easy to see why they’re one of the UK’s most in-demand BBQ trends - they cook quickly, are easy to share, and still deliver that crispy, caramelised outside that people love. Better still, this trending BBQ buy comes in at just £3.36 for 500g.

Food is only one part of the cost of a summer BBQ; the grill itself can also add up. While a disposable BBQ might seem like the cheaper option at £3.25 each, a family or party of four would likely need two per meal, bringing the cost to £6.50 per BBQ before you’ve even bought a single burger³. By comparison, our analysis showed that a mid-tier reusable charcoal BBQ costs around £69.87 upfront. 

This means disposable BBQs may be best for a one-off picnic, if you plan to grill regularly, the reusable option pays for itself after just 11 BBQs.

Image credit: Unsplash

1. We compiled a family-of-four shopping basket looking at common BBQ foods, calculating one average price per item based on an average of own-brand/mid-tier lines from Asda, Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s (not premium “finest/extra special”, no discounters). Where exact like-for-like products differ (e.g., weight/serves), we standardised sizes and averaged across the four where live listings were available. All data is correct as of 13/05/26.

2. Google search data was collected from Google Trends on 26th May 2026 using Glimpse, comparing UK searches for ‘pork belly bbq’ over the last 30 days to the 30 days prior. There were 2,954 Google searches for ‘pork belly bbq' from March 27th to April 25th 2026 and 14,123 searches from April 26th to May 25th 2026.

3. Prices for disposable and mid-tier reusable charcoal BBQs were based on an average of own-brand / mid-tier lines from Asda, Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s. 

If you are a journalist looking for more information on the methodology, please contact our UK media relations team.