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With grocery prices up 3.5% year over year (April 2026, Statistics Canada), food inflation remains one of the top concerns for Canadian consumers. To better understand how this pressure is felt day to day, the Milesopedia editorial team surveyed a portion of its community between June 1 and 8, 2026.
Our survey covers two areas. First, perceptions of rising prices and their impact on household budgets. Second, the use of rewards programs as a strategy to offset these costs. To compare the options mentioned below, you can also consult our page on the best credit cards and our selection of the best cards for groceries. Here are the key findings.
The finding is widely shared: nearly all respondents feel the rise in grocery prices. Its impact on budgets is often considered manageable, but it is very real in everyday life.
Perceptions of the increase are almost unanimous over the past 12 months. Six out of ten respondents (60.5%) believe the cost of their basket has increased a lot, while 36% say it has increased a little. In total, more than 96% therefore report an increase. Conversely, only 1.5% find their basket stable, and 2% are unsure.
While the increase is nearly universal, its impact on finances varies from one household to another. Half of respondents (50.2%) describe a moderate impact: they notice the increase but adjust without too much difficulty. However, 33% feel the effects each month on their budget (responses “significant” and “very significant” combined). At the other end, only 16.7% report little or no impact.
In other words, the situation is not yet forcing most households into difficult choices. Nevertheless, pressure from grocery costs remains very present and widely felt.
In the face of rising prices, consumers do not just observe: they also adapt their behaviour. More than seven out of ten respondents (70.1%) have changed their shopping habits, including 10.7% in a significant way. The majority (59.4%) describe small adjustments, a sign that adaptation is happening in small steps rather than through radical changes. Conversely, nearly three out of ten (29.9%) have not really changed their habits.
As for the strategies adopted, respondents primarily favour those that optimize their shopping without turning everything upside down. Comparing prices between retailers comes out well ahead (71.1%). Next are store brands (39.1%), then coupons and discount apps (34%). More restrictive approaches remain in the minority: 24.4% cut back in certain categories, and only 9.6% changed their preferred retailer.
Beyond the increase already observed, it is above all the future trend that worries people. More than three quarters of respondents (77.6%) say they are fairly or very concerned about another increase in the coming months, including 23.5% who are very concerned. Conversely, fewer than one in four (22.5%) say they are little or not at all worried. Food inflation is therefore not seen as a temporary phenomenon, but as a lasting concern.
First, let us recall that members of the Milesopedia community are more familiar than average with rewards programs, credit cards, and optimization strategies. The data that follow therefore reflect the views of already experienced users, not those of the Canadian population. That is precisely what makes their findings revealing.
Grocery store programs are widely known among our respondents: more than nine out of ten (93.9%) say they know them very well or fairly well, including 51.8% very well. Yet despite this familiarity, they remain skeptical about these programs’ ability to offset the increase. Nearly half (49.5%) believe they help very little or not at all, and only 7.1% feel they reduce the bill significantly. These programs are therefore seen as a useful supplement rather than a real solution to inflation.
Contrary to some common beliefs, complexity or lack of trust are not the main barriers. The majority (64.5%) report no particular obstacle and believe they already use these programs well. Among those who do point to a barrier, the main criticism concerns the value of rewards: nearly a quarter (27.4%) consider the gains too small to make a real difference. Time required and complexity come far behind.
So the real issue is not adoption, but the return. And that is precisely where a strategy changes everything.
Let us be clear: earning points does not lower the shelf price. But that is not the right way to measure their value. A point is deferred value: earned well and redeemed well, it comes back as grocery discounts, travel credit, or cash back. The real question is not “do points erase inflation?”, but “am I leaving money on the table every week?”. Here are the five levers that make the difference between passive use and a real strategy.
The issue raised by our respondents—“the gains are too small”—therefore mainly describes passive use. When activated, these five levers turn anecdotal points into tangible, redeemable value.
The most effective strategy is to combine the retailer’s loyalty program with a credit card that matches your shopping habits: the right card in the right place.
Not all programs are equal, and their effectiveness often depends on the retailer you shop at. By pairing a retailer’s loyalty program with a credit card suited to it, you maximize your rewards and recover a meaningful share of your spending. Here is an overview of the best combinations.
In practical terms, a family that spends about $800 per month on groceries, or $9,600 per year, can recover between $400 and $575 per year in rewards with a card suited to its main retailer, without changing what is in the basket. These gains do not fully offset the increase, but they do reduce part of it in a concrete and lasting way.
Two rules frame this strategy:
That is the difference between collecting points and getting real value from them.
This survey aims to document perceptions of food inflation among consumers already familiar with rewards programs, and to measure to what extent they use them as a mitigation tool. Data were collected between June 1 and 8, 2026.
Our survey shows it clearly: food inflation is felt by almost everyone, and concern is mainly about what comes next. Even the most experienced consumers consider rewards programs insufficient on their own. However, the issue lies less with the programs than with how they are used.
By stacking rewards, choosing the right card for your retailer, and redeeming points methodically, a household can recover several hundred dollars per year. To go further, compare the best cards for groceries and explore loyalty programs suited to your habits. And to receive our analyses every week, subscribe to our newsletter.
Discover all our tips for saving on groceries in these articles:
Finally, to discover the best credit cards for groceries, consult our regularly updated ranking to help you make an informed choice:
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