Do Tesco Express and Metro have to show nappy unit price?

What does the Price Marking Order actually require?

In Great Britain, the Price Marking Order 2004 (as amended) sits behind the shelf ticket. GOV.UK guidance — written for the Order as it applies from 6 April 2026 — says traders must show the selling price. They must also show a unit price where the Order requires it.

• Selling price: the final price for that pack, including VAT.
• Unit price for goods sold by number: the final price for one item. On a nappy bag that is £/each or pence each.
• Northern Ireland: a separate Price Marking Order (Northern Ireland) 2004 applies. This page is the Great Britain rule.

Article 5(3)(d) is the line that matches a nappy bag: the unit-price duty does not apply to a product that is pre-packaged in a constant quantity and is for sale in a small shop (or by an itinerant trader, or from a vending machine). A sealed 44-pack or 84-pack of nappies is a constant quantity — the count does not change at the till.

Business Companion (Chartered Trading Standards Institute) states the same rule in plain language: small shops with a retail area of less than 280 m² do not need to display a unit price, and packaged goods from a shop whose floor area does not exceed 280 m² are on the list of cases that do not require a unit price. The selling price still has to be given in writing.

What counts as a small shop — is every Express or Metro one?

The Order defines a small shop as any shop whose relevant floor area does not exceed 280 square metres. Relevant floor area is the internal floor area excluding space not used for retail sale or for displaying products for retail sale (stockrooms and staff-only areas drop out of the measure).

Express and Metro are Tesco format names. They are not a floor-area certificate. Some convenience shops sit under 280 m²; some high-street formats sit over it. The duty turns on the measured shop, not on whether parents call it “the little Tesco”. Tesco Extra and a large supermarket are the shops where £/each on nappies is the normal expectation.

How do I get pence per nappy if the ticket only shows the pack price?

The exemption is about display. It does not stop you working the same number the big shop prints.

1. 1
   Read the selling price That figure still has to be on the ticket, the pack, or a price list you can see without asking. If two prices are shown (standard and Clubcard), both selling prices should be set out with the condition for the lower price.
2. 2
   Read the nappy count on the pack Essential, mid and Jumbo+ bags in the same size do not share a count. Use the number on the bag in your hand.
3. 3
   Divide pack price by count £11.00 ÷ 44 = 25p. £5.50 ÷ 50 = 11p. That is the unit price the Order would have required in a larger shop.
4. 4
   Compare with a large-shop ticket only after that sum A missing £/each is not proof the Express pack is dearer — small packs often print a higher pence even in Extra. Work both sides.

What must Tesco still show on a small-shop nappy bay?

The small-shop exemption is narrow. It does not switch off price marking altogether.

• Selling price in writing, clearly legible, unambiguous, in sterling, inclusive of VAT — Business Companion and the Order both keep this on.
• Clubcard versus standard: if there is more than one selling price, each price and the condition must be shown close to the goods.
• Online Tesco groceries: distance sales are not “inside a small shop”. Catalogues and sites that invite you to conclude a distance contract are required to show selling and unit prices where the Order applies.
• Promotions in a large shop: GOV.UK says traders should endeavour to show a unit price on promotional and multi-buy lines as well as the selling price, even where some exemptions exist.

Does the same exemption cover Tesco Metro as well as Express?

The Order never names Tesco formats. If a Metro (or any other fascia) has a relevant floor area over 280 m², article 5 applies and a nappy bag should show £/each. If that shop’s measured area is 280 m² or less, the constant-quantity exemption can apply. Parents cannot read the legal floor area off the fascia. The practical test is the ticket: pack price present; £/each present or missing.

A complaint about a missing selling price, or a missing unit price in a shop that is clearly a large supermarket, is a Trading Standards matter. Citizens Advice Consumer Service is the consumer route in England; Business Companion points traders to the local council team.

In short, can Express skip the nappy unit price?

In shortYes — if that shop is a small shop (relevant floor area not over 280 m²) and the nappies are pre-packed in a fixed count. The Price Marking Order and Business Companion both keep the selling price on. Express and Metro are not automatic exemptions. When £/each is missing, pack price ÷ nappy count is the comparison number.