PosoKanei: Digital platform allows consumers in Greece to compare supermarkets prices

A new digital platform introduced on Wednesday allows consumers in Greece to detect the cheaper prices of products in supermarkets. Platform “PosoKanei” – How much does it cost – is available on mobile phones and desktops and in Greek only.

The platform offers real-time comparison of prices in Greece and abroad, and this particularly concerns multinational companies.

“The platform will enable the consumer to see if an offer is real or misleading,” Development Minister Takis Theodorikaos said during the representation.

There is no need for registration in order to use the platform and consumers can search also individual products.

PosoKanei key features

According to the government, key features of the application posoKanei are:

* Citizens can view and compare prices between different supermarket chains, track price history, and organize their purchases through lists.

* Access is available via the website posokanei.gov.gr and via mobile applications for Android and iOS.

* Initially, the platform includes approximately 10,000 product codes.

* The platform aggregates daily prices from the chains Galaxias, Sklavenitis, Halkiadakis, SYNKA, Masoutis, My Market, AB Vassilopoulos, Kritikos, Market In and Lidl.

* Through price history, users can track the price evolution of products over time.

* Searches can be conducted either by product name or barcode via mobile devices.

* When the same product is identified in European retail chains, corresponding prices from abroad are also displayed. Countries currently covered include Italy, France, Belgium, Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Spain.

* Users can create product lists and view the total cost of selected items across available stores. Each user can create up to five lists, with up to 50 products per list.

* Users can set quantities for each product so that the actual total cost of their shopping is calculated.

The application also suggests cheaper alternative products within the same category, helping users reduce the overall cost of their basket.

“PosoKanei” replaces a previous platform e-katanalotis (e-consumer) set up a few years ago.

PM Mitsotakis: “Weapon in the fight against inflation”

“The Greek consumer is acquiring another ‘weapon’ in the fight against inflation and the rising cost of living,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said during the presentation of the ‘PosoKanei’ application for tracking retail prices.

He also stressed that unjustified high prices in Greece compared with European Union markets cannot be easily tolerated, adding that the fight against inflation continues and will only be won through realistic actions, real solutions, and not with easy words and uncosted promises.

The Prime Minister expressed hope that the platform will put pressure on supermarkets to decrease prices and make real offers.

Inflation reached 5% in May, while wages and pensions have been stagnating for years and Greeks no longer “buy” the government narrative that inflation is imported blaming the war in Ukraine, the war in the Middle East or the Straight of Hormuz crisis.

PS On social media Greeks have already reacted to the platform with some noting that what’s the point of comparing supermarket prices in a radius of several km and they would need several days and a high cost in fuel in order to make their weekly shopping targeting the best offers

Others noted that in some products the price difference is just a few cents of the range of 1 to 3 or 4, expressing suspicion that supermarkets set up prices and there is no competition to benefit consumers.