A shopping bill isn’t comprised solely of food items; 11 personal hygiene products, such as toothpaste or shower gel, and 14 cleaning products, like laundry detergent or glass cleaner, could add up to €117.52 to a family’s shopping bill, according to calculations by DECO PROteste.
“A basket containing 25 personal hygiene and cleaning products may cost €117.52, as per DECO PROteste’s calculations. If, while stocking up on essential food items, a family also needs to buy a basket with products like shower gel, toothpaste, or toilet paper, the total supermarket bill may reach €359.49, over a third of the national minimum wage,” the consumer advocacy organization calculates.
Hygiene and Cleaning Basket Price Increased by €14.59 in Four Years
DECO PROteste reveals that between January 5, 2022, when it began tracking the prices of these products, and October 1 of this year, the basic basket of hygiene and cleaning products has already increased by €14.59 (14.2%).
“In the first week of 2022, consumers paid €102.94 for the same products. One year later, on January 4, 2023, this amount had already increased to €115.61, which is €1.91 below the current price,” according to the organization’s website.
Furthermore, “the highest recorded value was in the first week of May this year, when the basket with 25 hygiene and cleaning products reached €124.49, which is €21.55 (20.9%) more than it cost at the beginning of 2022.”
“Nevertheless, the rise in prices of hygiene and cleaning products was not as significant as that of essential food items, which increased by more than €51 (27.3%) in the same period,” the consumer defense organization explains.
Which Prices Increased the Most?
- Hygiene Products
According to DECO PROteste, “eleven personal hygiene products, including shower gel, toilet paper, toothpaste, or spray deodorant, may represent an expense of €61.01”.
“At the beginning of 2025, this expense would average €59.99, €1.02 less (1.7%). Comparing these product prices to those from almost four years ago, on January 5, 2022, the increase was €9.52 (18.5%),” it explains.
Moreover, “daily pads, day cream, and liquid soap, in particular, saw the highest price increases this year“, with “price rises of 17%, 12.8%, and 2.8% respectively between January 1 and October 1 of 2025“.
“Conversely, most products analyzed in this period saw their prices decrease, notably sanitary pads, shaving gel, and toothpaste, with decreases between 5.7% and 4.8%,” according to the organization’s website.
- Cleaning Products
A “basket with 14 cleaning products now costs €56.51. At the beginning of this year, on January 1, the same products cost €58.46, a difference of €1.95 (3.3%). Comparing these product prices with those from almost four years ago, on January 5, 2022, the increase was €5.07 (9.9%)”.
“In the first nine months of 2025, the products that saw the highest price increases were sanitary cleaner, glass cleaner, and liquid detergent for laundry, with increases of 13.9%, 9.2%, and 5.1%, respectively. Six cleaning products, on the other hand, became cheaper during this period,” according to the DECO PROteste website.
