Too Good To Go and Olio: Free and Cut-Price Food Apps

Quick summary: Olio and Too Good To Go are free apps that connect people with surplus food nearby, but they work differently. Olio is mostly free, neighbours and local businesses give away food and other items directly. Too Good To Go charges a small amount for a "Magic Bag" of unsold food from shops, cafés and restaurants, usually around a third of its normal value. Both are worth having on your phone alongside, not instead of, a food bank.

Olio: mostly free, item by item

Olio connects you with food (and other items) that neighbours or local businesses want to give away rather than throw away, a half loaf of bread, spare vegetables from a garden, food nearing its date in a local shop. You see exactly what's on offer, including a photo, before you request it.

Most listings are completely free
You know precisely what you're getting before you collect
Timing varies a lot, since it depends entirely on what people list and when
You can also list things you want to give away yourself

To download or find out more:

Olio, olioex.com

Too Good To Go: cheap, but a surprise

Too Good To Go works differently. Businesses, cafés, bakeries, supermarkets, restaurants, list unsold food at the end of the day as a "Magic Bag", usually around a third of its normal retail price. You reserve and pay through the app, then collect within a set time window. You don't find out exactly what's inside until you pick it up.

You pay a small amount, rather than getting it free
It's a genuine surprise each time, more lucky dip than shopping list
Bags at popular stores can sell out fast
Works with well-known chains as well as independent local businesses

Too Good To Go

Which one to use

Honestly, a lot of people end up using both. If you want to know exactly what you're getting and don't mind it being free rather than cheap, Olio tends to suit better. If you're happy with an element of surprise in exchange for a genuinely good discount on food that would otherwise be binned, Too Good To Go is the one built for that.

Neither is means-tested, and neither asks about your circumstances, they're simply tools for cutting food waste that happen to also cut food bills.

A few practical things to know

Both are free to download, no subscription needed to use the core features
Neither guarantees availability near you, coverage depends on how many local users and businesses have signed up in your area
With Too Good To Go, missing your collection window usually still means you're charged, so only reserve what you can genuinely collect on time
With Olio, requesting an item doesn't guarantee you get it, the person offering it chooses who to give it to

Worth using alongside

These apps work well alongside a community fridge, which shares surplus food with no app or payment involved at all: Baby Banks and Community Fridges: The Free Help Most People Don't Know About.

If you need food help today

Apps like these help stretch a budget day to day, but they're not built for an urgent, empty-cupboard situation right now. If that's where you are, search for a food bank near you by postcode or town.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to pay for Olio?

Most listings are free. Olio does offer optional paid extras and some larger businesses pay to list, but as a user browsing and requesting food, it's free.

How much does a Too Good To Go bag cost?

It varies by store, but bags are typically priced at roughly a third of the food's normal retail value.

Can I choose what's in a Too Good To Go bag?

No, that's the format, you know the type of shop and roughly the value, but not the specific contents until collection.

Do these apps work everywhere in the UK?

Coverage depends on how many local businesses and users are active in your area. Both tend to work best in towns and cities with a reasonable population, and can be patchier in very rural areas.

Is there an age limit to use these apps?

Both are intended for adult users setting up their own account, check each app's terms for the specific age requirement.

What if there's nothing available near me on a given day?

That's normal, listings depend entirely on what's donated or unsold that day. Checking at different times, especially early evening for Too Good To Go, tends to turn up more.