Is it really cheaper to buy in duty free?
Many travelers resort to airport duty free shops on their trips for practical reasons, to make last-minute purchases or because they believe they will find cheaper products. But is it really cheaper to shop at these duty-free stores?
In order to dispel this doubt, Skyscanner has conducted a study in which it has analyzed both the prices of these duty free stores and those of stores outside airports.
It has also compared the prices of Spanish and international airports. The conclusion: it is not always convenient to shop there, as in many cases the stores offer more competitive prices.
To reach this conclusion, the comparator has analyzed the prices of certain products within the categories alcohol, tobacco, perfume and sweets, in ten international airports and three Spanish airports, and has compared them, in turn, with prices of the same products in Spanish stores such as supermarkets, tobacconists and perfumeries.
The savings for travelers can vary depending on the type of establishment and country. Buying a bottle of Martini Bianco is cheaper at the duty free in Berlin, but a bottle of Jack Daniels Black Label is cheaper at New York's JFK airport.
Tourists with a sweet tooth will also notice a big difference if they compare Ferrero Rocher or Toblerone prices in a supermarket versus at an airport, domestic or international, and can save up to 56%.
Also, the price of one of the star products of the duty free, perfumes, also varies significantly. A copy of My Burberry is cheaper in Spanish airport duty-free stores than in international or perfumeries.
DUTY FREE ESPAÑOLES vs COMERCIOS
Skyscanner has analyzed the price of a series of products in Spanish airports versus the price of the same in stores. According to the analysis, buying a perfume (My Burberry) at the duty free shop can save 18.42% compared with the price at the perfume shop or supermarket.
By contrast, buying tobacco at Madrid and Barcelona airports is 13.08% more expensive than buying it at a tobacconist's shop. However, there are exceptions such as Lanzarote airport, where travelers can get a pack of Marlboro Gold for only 29 € compared to 48.50 € at a tobacconist's, which represents a savings of 40.21%.
Buying one of the most sought-after duty free sweets, the Toblerone, in a supermarket is 35.3% cheaper than doing so at a Spanish airport. Likewise, it is 20.09% cheaper to buy a box of Ferrero Rocher in a supermarket than at the airport in Barcelona or Madrid. However, the most economical option is available to those travelers passing through Lanzarote airport, who can buy a box of Ferrero Rocher sweets 12.4% cheaper than in a supermarket.
With regard to the price of alcohol, the results are mixed: while buying a bottle of Martini is 8.94% cheaper in a supermarket, the price of a bottle of Jack Daniels is almost 3% higher in these establishments.
THOSE DUTY FREE ESPAÑOLES, THE CHEAPEST
The Skyscanner study also shows that the prices of alcohol, tobacco perfume and sweets are, on average a 13.91% cheaper in the duty free Spanish than in the international airports analyzed. On the other side of the scale,París Charles de Gaulle is the airport with the highest prices, with its products almost 30% more expensive than the average for Spanish airports.
Those wishing to buy a bottle of Martini Bianco will find it in Berlin at half the price of Dublin (7.7 € versus 15 €). Similarly, the difference between the most expensive and the cheapest bottle of Jack Daniels amounts to 48.9%, depending on whether it is purchased in Dublin (45 €) or New York-JFK (23 €).
The most remarkable difference (58.57%) is the one that can reach the price of tobacco between national and international airports, as it is up to 41 euros cheaper to buy it in Lanzarote airport (29 €) than in Paris, the most expensive airport (70 €).
With regard to the perfume, the difference between the most expensive and the cheapest option is 34.5 euros, being the Spanish airports the cheapest to purchase the copy of My Burberry (79.95 €), and Geneva the most expensive (114.45 €).