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Tesco is selling a two-day head start on Christmas delivery slots that it can't guarantee. Pass holders get in at 6am on 3 November; everyone else can book from 6am on 5 November. If you need a supermarket delivery or collection in the days before Christmas, a slot reserves the time for your food. Those bookings can sell out, which makes the head start tempting. I think the question is whether it's worth buying months of a pass for one December shop.
Most of the other supermarkets opened their Christmas bookings in September or October. A pass bought now won't put you ahead there, and at Ocado it won't even cover the usual delivery charge in Christmas week. Tesco is the remaining choice between paying for priority and trying the public booking morning, provided you buy the right plan in time.
Which slots are still to open?
The booking dates tell you where waiting still costs you a first pick. Tesco has two mornings ahead; the other public windows have already opened or, in Ocado's case, were expected to open in stages in late October.
| Supermarket | Pass holders | Everyone | Christmas deliveries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tesco | 6am, Tue 3 Nov (Anytime and Click+Collect plans) | 6am, Thu 5 Nov | Sun 20 to Thu 24 Dec |
| Asda | Tue 13 Oct | Tue 20 Oct | Mon 21 to Wed 23 Dec |
| Sainsbury's | Fri 16 Oct | Fri 23 Oct | From Fri 18 Dec |
| Morrisons | Wed 30 Sep | Wed 7 Oct | Fri 18 to Thu 31 Dec |
| Waitrose | Passes bought before 1 Sep | Wed 30 Sep | 20 to 24 Dec |
| Ocado | Smart Pass signed up on or before 1 Sep | Staggered, expected late Oct | 20 to 24 Dec |
Christmas Eve at Sainsbury's needs more care than that row suggests. MoneySavingExpert lists deliveries through Thursday 24 December, but a general FAQ on Sainsbury's pass page says its online delivery service "is not available between 24th-26th December". I wouldn't plan around a Christmas Eve delivery there until a slot appears in your account. Tesco rules out deliveries and collections on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
What does Tesco priority buy?
On Tesco's Christmas booking mornings, Anytime Delivery Saver customers can choose any slot from 6am on 3 November. Click+Collect Delivery Saver customers can choose a collection slot then. Deliveries and Click+Collect open to everyone at 6am on 5 November. There will be a waiting room, and Tesco warns availability "is limited and cannot be guaranteed".
More capacity doesn't remove the queue. There are 60,000 more Christmas delivery slots this year than last, while a queue of over 275,000 people had formed by 6am when the pass holders' booking morning opened in 2022. Tesco calls priority "the best opportunity to book the slot you want". I'd read that as a better chance, not a reserved Christmas dinner.
Tesco publishes no deadline for buying a qualifying pass. MoneySavingExpert says buying an Anytime plan by 11.59pm on Monday 2 November secures priority; Which? gives midnight on 2 November. Both point to Monday evening as the sensible limit, with more room for error if you buy earlier. The Delivery Saver terms give Anytime plans priority for Christmas and Easter delivery slots and Click+Collect plans priority for collection slots only. The cheaper Off Peak plan "will not have priority access to Christmas or Easter slots".
There's a separate deadline if you're ordering Tesco Festive Food to Order: checkout closes at 11.45pm on 14 December for delivery or collection between 20 and 24 December. Priority for a slot doesn't extend that food-order deadline.
Is the head start worth the contract?
None of Tesco's Delivery Saver plans is a one-month commitment. These were the plan prices in October 2026, so the full commitment matters more than the monthly number:
- 6-month Anytime: £7.99 a month, £47.94 in total
- 12-month Anytime: £6.99 a month, £83.88 in total
- 6-month Click+Collect: £2.49 a month, £14.94 in total, with priority on collection slots only
For someone who orders from Tesco most weeks, Anytime has a reason to exist beyond Christmas. In October 2026, Tesco put the saving on a 12-month Anytime plan at £176 compared with paying for one £5 slot every week. For one Christmas delivery, though, at least £47.94 buys a two-day advantage, not the slot itself. If collection suits you, I'd favour the £14.94 Click+Collect plan over paying for Anytime solely for Christmas. Neither plan removes Tesco's £5 charge on home deliveries under £50 or Click+Collect orders under £25. The full Delivery Saver price list makes the longer contracts easier to compare.
That leaves a judgement a price list can't make for you: what is two days' priority worth when the slot still might go? This poll is about that choice.
And if you change your mind?
The first 14 days of a Tesco plan matter if you bought it for Christmas and regret it. You can cancel within 14 days of the contract period starting. Before any Delivery Saver delivery or collection, Tesco refunds the full fee; after one, it refunds the fee "less the full price of the delivery/Click+Collect slot(s) used". After that fortnight, cancellation is only offered if the terms change materially.
Stopping renewal is different from ending the current contract. You can turn it off any time through "Cancel renewal" on the My Plan page, or by calling 0800 323 4040 (free from BT landlines) or 0330 123 4048. The plan runs until its contract ends, so a six-month plan bought on 2 November carries into May. If membership ends before a later delivery or collection, the delivery charge applies to that order. Our Tesco Delivery Saver cancellation guide has the steps when renewal comes round.
If your supermarket is already open
At Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrisons, the priority advantage is gone. A pass bought now covers the delivery charge on a Christmas slot you can already book rather than giving you first pick, so I'd compare its cost with that charge before committing.
Asda's Christmas bookings opened to pass holders on Tuesday 13 October and everyone on Tuesday 20 October. Sainsbury's Christmas slots followed on Friday 16 and Friday 23 October. Morrisons opened for Delivery Pass customers on Wednesday 30 September and everyone on Wednesday 7 October.
Sainsbury's delivery costs from £1 to £9.50. Its Anytime Monthly Delivery Pass was £7.50 in October 2026, with free delivery from a £50 spend. The terms say you "may not cancel your Delivery Pass membership more than 14 days after purchase". You can turn off renewal in My Passes whenever you like and keep the time you've paid for. The Sainsbury's pass prices and renewal steps help if the delivery charge makes a pass look worthwhile.
Asda's Anytime pass cost £6.95 a month over 12 months or £7.95 a month over six in October 2026, with a £40 minimum spend. If you cancel a monthly pass after the first 14 days, there are no further payments, although you lose the Savings Guarantee. That exit is simpler than Sainsbury's for someone unsure about future orders; the Asda pass prices and cancellation steps give the detail.
Morrisons' Anytime Monthly pass was £8 in October 2026. Its Christmas terms allow at most two free deliveries from 20 to 24 December, with no more than one on 23 or 24 December. That limit matters if you're hoping a single pass will cover several last-minute orders.
The September cut-off
Ocado and Waitrose make the decision shorter: their priority is tied to when you joined, so a new pass doesn't move you forward. Ocado gives early access to Smart Pass customers signed up on or before 1 September; slots for everyone else are released in stages and were expected in late October. Waitrose limits early access to passes bought before 1 September, and bookings opened at midnight on 30 September.
Ocado is the clearest pass to skip for a new Christmas-only customer. Its Smart Pass terms say delivery charges "apply as normal during Christmas week, when the Smart Pass delivery benefits are suspended". Anytime members who signed up before 1 September 2026 get one free Christmas-week delivery by voucher; a new member doesn't. Christmas orders need a spend of at least £90. The Monthly Anytime Smart Pass was £9.99 in October 2026, and the terms allow a refund for an unused pass cancelled within 14 days on 0345 656 1234. If you already have one, our Smart Pass prices and cancellation guide are useful; joining now for Christmas-week delivery savings isn't.
What if you skip passes altogether?
A supermarket pass isn't the only route to Christmas food. In October 2026, Iceland offered free delivery on orders over £40, with "no delivery pass required". Its usual ordering window is up to six days. MoneySavingExpert puts Christmas bookings 28 calendar days ahead, which by my count would put Christmas Eve on sale around 26 November; Iceland's own pages don't give that Christmas window, so I'd treat the date as a prompt to look rather than a promise of a slot.
At 
M&SMarks & SpencerMarks & Spencer sells clothing, home, beauty and flowers online, alongside its stores across the UK. Any live codes are listed here, and M&S has its own ways to save too: Sparks re4 current offers · View store →, Christmas Food to Order is collection only. Its £50 minimum is paid as a deposit at checkout, with the balance due when you collect between 22 and 24 December 2026. The Co-op has a £15 minimum and delivery from £1.99 in October 2026; it doesn't run specific Christmas bookings.
Food you're sending to someone else is a different problem. Christmas hampers judged by what's inside and letterbox gifts avoid the supermarket slot, while In time for Christmas lists shops' order-by dates and carriers' last posting dates for parcels.
For my own decision, I'd pay Tesco for Anytime only if I expected to use it beyond Christmas, and I'd consider its collection plan if that is how I want the shop. Otherwise, I'd take my chances on the public booking morning, or book now where slots are already open, rather than pay for a head start.
BallparkA daily price game
Higher or lower?
Eleven things from UK shops, the same for everyone today. Does each cost more or less than the one before? Ten quick calls.
