The best panettone: 9 supermarkets battle this Christmas

Panettone is a classic Christmas indulgence. It's a rich, irresistible treat, suitable for the perfect festive breakfast or a snack between meals, and just a little bit fancy.

At TopCashback, we love panettone. After all, why wouldn't we? But we also love saving money for both ourselves and our readers. It's very possible to get excellent festive food without having to pay through the nose for the privilege, and that's what we want to do.

To that end, we've enlisted 14 of TopCashback's best and brightest to perform a panettone taste test, ranking classic panettone from nine different supermarkets. We've avoided any flavoured panettone, just looking at the classic. Only fruit and candied citrus peel here. No Limoncello or chocolate chips (but there's always next year!).

If you can't wait to see which supermarket has the best panettone for quality and affordability, we have a breakdown table here. If you want to see the full results, ranking them on appearance, flavour, texture, and price, you'll need to read on.

How we ranked our supermarket panettone

We had 14 top-tier taste-testers from different TopCashback departments, testing small pieces of supermarket luxury panettone ranges.

Please note that we were testing premium supermarket own-brand classic fruit panettone. While most of the products in this article were suitable for vegetarians, we were not testing vegan or free-from versions.

Our panettone taste test results

Enough about the statistics. You're here because you want to know which supermarket's traditional panettone is the best value for money. Which one you should get, whether you're enjoying a festive treat yourself or preparing breakfast for all of your loved ones. You're curious whether a cheap panettone from a budget supermarket can topple the luxury brands.

We've started from worst to best, to end the article on a note of festive cheer. If you want to skip to the praise showered on the best of the best, we wouldn't blame you.

All prices and cashback rates are accurate as of 27th October, 2025.

#9: Waitrose Christmas
Classic Panettone

This one may shock some readers. Waitrose are a beloved UK supermarket, known for their upscale, premium approach and high quality. Unfortunately, our taste-testers were almost unanimously tepid about this offering, despite its high, high price.

Many of our testers criticised the Waitrose panettone texture, with Chris going so far as to say: 'Not airy. Just fruit bread'. Others noted problems with the flavour, noting a 'strange aftertaste' and calling it 'a bit bland'.

The appearance divided the room, with some describing it as beautiful and noting its 'good glaze', and others taking issue with the distribution of fruit and the lines from the casing.

However, the high price is ultimately what held back Waitrose's panettone. It didn't perform the worst by any means, beating two other supermarkets on merit. However, our tasters didn't find it delicious enough to justify the £12 price tag.

The value for money only gets better from here.

#8: Tesco Finest
Authentic Panettone

In some ways, Tesco was a dark horse quality-wise. Many of our testers had a poor first impression. As you can see from the photos, this panettone did not hold up well after being sliced. It started to collapse, practically ending the taste test session on its side.

While this led to its appearance being roundly criticised, it did much better in the tasting. It fell just outside the top three for flavour, with some people finding it 'bland' or 'sweet rather than spicy', but it did have its defenders.

Charl noted a 'nice amount of fruit', while Sally cheered its 'heaps of flavour'.

It's in the texture that the Tesco panettone shone, however. Our testers lauded its soft and moist mouth feel, with some theorising that it collapsed because of how tender it was. As a result, it clutched our bronze medal for texture.

In the end, however, this wasn't enough to save its final score. It wasn't universally beloved in its flavour, and its appearance put off some people. With a high price tag of £10, it couldn't fight its way free of the first impression.

#7: Morrisons The Best
Classic Fruit Panettone

Our testers had plenty of praise for the flavour of this panettone, while few people had any sort of criticism for its appearance or texture. Dave went as far as describing it as 'strong across the board', with similar comments from many other testers.

A few considered it a little unremarkable, with Karen outright saying the taste was 'nothing special'. Nonetheless, it managed to beat six other brands in flavour, only falling behind two universally-adored panettone, including M&S and our winner.

Some people were also a little disappointed by the appearance, with it seeming less grand and impressive than some others. Nonetheless, where it counted, this panettone pudding held its own. Most of our volunteers considered it flavourful, light, and all around enjoyable.

Unfortunately, Morrisons' Italian Christmas panettone falls down in value for money. While few people had any problems with it, the price is £9 for something that is only above-average.

There are several beloved panettone that outperform Morrisons on both quality and price.

#6: M&S Classic Panettone

The M&S panettone is another that's a victim of its own price tag. Were we not looking at value for money, it would have cleared the field and come in first. Our testers gave it high praise on every level. However, at more than double the cost of some of its fierce competitors, it's hard to recommend it for all customers.

There wasn't an area this luxury cake didn't perform well in. As Katie noted, 'the fruit and peel are plentiful'. Dave pointed out that it 'looked great from the outside', and then added comments that it tasted just as good. Sean applauded how well its structure held up. It took gold for appearance, beating all other supermarkets.

It did the same for texture and flavour, as shoppers have come to expect from M&S food. There were barely any testers who didn't enjoy the recipe, with many applauding the buttery dough, perfect balance of dried fruit, and strong taste of candied peel. In particular, Shelly called it a 'melt in the mouth' panettone, simply adding 'Lovely!'.

Despite coming in first in every category, M&S lands this low because of its price. If you're looking for the very best this Christmas and Boxing Day, and money is no object, this is the clear choice. However, some competitors were almost as good for a fraction of the price.

What were they?

Well, you'll have to read on.

#5: Sainsbury's Italian
Classic Panettone

In many ways, Sainsbury's is the flipside of Marks and Spencer. If you're looking to save money, it's the cheapest by some margin. However, unlike some more successful entries, this affordability comes at a price. Testers struggled to find anything to recommend about Sainsbury's panettone over others.

Sainsbury's came in last for appearance, texture, and flavour out of all nine cakes tested. Only one participant gave it above a 6 for its appearance, while some went as low as 2. In particular, Fran was disappointed by its 'burnt edge', while Mike said it 'lacked shape'.

Things didn't get much better once our volunteers started eating. Karen criticised a 'slightly odd taste from the fruit', while Sunita found it 'bitter'. Many of our testers pointed out that it lacked the classic panettone smell they enjoyed with all of the others.

The redeeming feature of the Sainsbury's panettone is its impressively low cost. This helps elevate it over the most expensive, being a third of the price of some. Even if you are money-conscious, however, some options are barely more expensive while being far, far more enjoyable.

#4: Exceptional by Asda
Classic Panettone

When it comes to value for money, the Asda panettone is tied neck-and-neck with Sainsbury's. However, it's been saved by our taste-testers, who almost universally enjoyed it more. It's not taking the top spot in any category, but it consistently outscored Sainsbury's.

In appearance, flavour, and texture, Asda usually hovered around the lower-average area, slipping into the bottom three on appearance. Testers enjoyed qualities like its 'slight shine' and 'good colour', but also found it 'dry' and 'more like bread'.

Chris even noted 'I would be disappointed to have this'. Asda can be proud to equal Waitrose in their flavour score while costing far less, but that wasn't enough to elevate it to more than average levels in our volunteers' eyes.

#3: Lidl Panettone Classico

We’re in the final three, and these are all the cream of the crop for panettone. Our tasters enjoyed everything from their aroma to their texture. If any of these supermarkets are your local store, you're in for a good Christmas treat.

In Lidl's case, it was a panettone that looked excellent and fell only slightly short in flavour. It makes for an impressive centrepiece to any table. It came second on appearance, prompting comments like 'Enter the beast!' from Shelly. In particular, the height was something almost all of our testers applauded.

The texture didn't get the same praise, attracting several comments of 'dry'. The flavour wasn't top of the leaderboard by any means, but it got plenty of compliments. Fran went as far as to applaud its 'fruit ratio' of raisins to candied citrus fruit.

It comes in at a reasonable price point for its reasonable prospects. If its texture had been a little more spongy, its appearance might have even carried it to first or second position.

#2: Co-op Irresistible
Classic Panettone

Co-op quietly slid into silver position through all-around competence at a reasonable price. Its only other top position was for appearance, where it was ranked third-best. However, it lacks any glaring weaknesses, including a strong price tag.

Dave was full of praise for every aspect of this panettone, from its 'light colour' and 'springy sponge' to its 'sweet taste'. While not everybody was as enthusiastic, few had any overt criticisms. Most people had at least something nice to say about this panettone.

In some ways, Co-op's offering is somewhat unremarkable. However, a consistently above-average score in every area, coupled with a reasonable price point, all make for a very good Christmas food cupboard filler. If you want a safe choice that's great value for money, you could do far worse.

#1: Aldi Specially Selected
Classic Panettone

Our final panettone, the Christmas champion, was almost universally adored by our volunteers. It didn't just get high scores; it came in second in almost every category of the taste test. Aldi had the second-best flavour and the second-best texture of all the panettone we tried, and was the second-best overall. It was only beaten by M&S in all three.

Appearance was the only thing that let this panettone down. Even then, it wasn't poor; it simply lacked some of the grandeur of the other options. It landed a hair outside the top three, but still well in the top half.

In every other regard, it was just on the heels of M&S, sometimes by less than a fifth of a point. Sunita thought it was a 'tasty treat', Chris thought it was 'sweet and tangy', and Karen loved its 'light texture'.

So, if it's slightly behind M&S in every category, why is it so many places ahead?

The price. This Aldi panettone manages to be within a hair's breadth of premium quality while being from one of Britain's most beloved budget supermarkets. It's significantly less than half the price of its nearest rival, with barely any drop in how enjoyable it is.

Our verdict on the best supermarket panettone 2025

Before we hand out the crown formally, we have to acknowledge a worthy contender when discussing quality. The Marks and Spencer panettone is expensive, but we can't deny our taste-testers enjoyed it immensely. Many seemed willing to accept the higher price for its sheer excellence.

However, at TopCashback, we believe that saving money and getting great products are not mutually exclusive. To that end, we have to crown Aldi as the best supermarket panettone this year.

Beautiful, butter-infused bread, delicious sweetness, and the perfect amount of fruit make it a Christmas dessert or breakfast worth buying. This all comes at one of the most affordable prices of any shop.

Whether you're shopping on a budget or just don't want to break the bank on a treat, it's hard to overstate how excellent a choice Aldi is.

Don't just go off our scores. When we were handing out leftovers after our taste test, the Aldi was swiped up almost before we realised!

Of course, there are other panettone out there. Chocolate versions, almond-topped, coffee-infused, and plenty more. All we've done this year is help you decide on the best classic version to buy – and maybe enjoy alongside some mince pies while you're here.

A simple trick for panettone Christmas savings

Did you know that you can do more to get value for money on almost all of your Christmas food, including your favourite supermarket panettone?

With TopCashback, you don’t need to pay full prices at many of the UK’s most famous supermarkets. Our passion is saving our members money, and there’s no better time for that than Christmas.

We’re partnered with many of the supermarkets in this guide, offering you part of your online shopping spend back. You can even browse supermarket gift cards at TopGiftCards to get even more cashback.

If you’re not yet a TopCashback member, we even have a little gift for you, perfect for Christmas. Sign up to TopCashback for free using the green button below and get £15 on us. How’s that for festive cheer?