Checkers Sixty60 gives a great online shopping experience with affordable prices, but Pick n Pay Bottles is a worthy competitor which offers an excellent range of products.

Staff Writer | My Broadband

This was the finding of a recent MyBroadband test of Checkers and Pick n Pay’s online shopping app services.

To conduct this test, MyBroadband asked an experienced online shopper to compare Checkers Sixty60 and Bottles by Pick n Pay.

As part of the test, she installed the apps, purchased 14 everyday items, paid for the items, and tracked the delivery process.

She also compared the availability and prices of the items and rated the ease of use of the platform.

The installation process for both apps were a breeze. “The installation and registration process for both apps were seamless,” she said.

It was time to shop using the two apps, and this is where Checkers Sixty60 excelled.

Online shopping experience

“Checkers clearly focused on making their app easy to use. Even people who are new to online shopping will find the app intuitive,” she said.

Checkers Sixty60’s search functionality was particularly impressive. “Even when I misspelt words, the app suggestions were what I was looking for,” she said.

Pick n Pay’s search functionality, in comparison, is not as good. The app often gave an error page when you misspelled an item, which means you must be precise.

“Their search functionality is not great. Don’t think you can use incorrect spelling and expect the app to fix it — this isn’t Google,” she said.

Pricing and product selection

When it came to pricing, Checkers provides fewer items, but at a good price. “If you want value for money, this is the place,” she said.

Checkers is, however, more expensive when it comes to luxury items.

Pick n Pay also seems to have a wider choice — especially for luxury brands. “Their Lindt chocolate selection, for example, was superb,” she said.

“Pick n Pay seems to focus on luxury brands and list these items first when searching a certain category.”

Payment process

When it was time to pay, Checkers Sixty60 was a clear winner. The payment process was very smooth without any hiccups.

Pick n Pay, in comparison, had a few glitches. Payment had to be authorised via FNB’s app, and then again through another FNB page sitting on top of the Bottles app.

“It is this second step that created problems. It is an entirely unnatural thing to have to do — you think you have paid, and then have to authorise the payment again,” she said.

When it came to delivery, Checkers did not perform as well as expected.

Checkers Sixty60 is known for its excellent delivery, but this time around the products arrived later than expected.

Pick n Pay, in comparison, surprised with their excellent delivery which was well ahead of time.

“They were so fast that by the time I saw their email for me to select alternatives for some of the items they could not supply, they had already packed the bags and it was with the driver,” she said.

“It is impressive that Pick n Pay can offer a wide range of items and still ensure you receive these items quickly,” she said.

“The logistics behind Pick n Pay Bottles is truly impressive. Of the 14 items we ordered only one item – the cheese – did not arrive.”

Quick delivery is an area where Checkers Sixty60 is the leader, but they clearly have a strong competitor in Pick n Pay Bottles.

“What stood out most about this test is how far Checkers and Pick n Pay have come to embrace online shopping,” she said.

“The installation and registration process for both apps were exceptional. They rate in the top 5 of app registrations for me.”

Checkers and Pick n Pay also removed unnecessary steps to limit the number of clicks needed to buy an item. “They clearly focused on removing friction for online shoppers,” she said.

Checkers versus Pick n Pay

The table below provides a rating of each component of the online shopping experience using Checkers Sixty60 and Pick n Pay Bottles.

Pricing comparison

The table below provides an overview of the pricing for a basket of items on Checkers Sixty60 and Pick n Pay Bottles. Some of the items which were purchased, but could not be accurately compared, were not listed in the table.