How Much Does Chicken Cost in Australia?
Short answer: free range chicken breast fillets read at $12.50 a kilo at Coles and $12.00 a kilo at Woolworths in the latest regular-price tracker readings (September 2026). For the catalogue week of October 14 to 20, 2026, RSPCA Approved chicken breast fillets are on special at $8.50 a kilo at Coles and $9.50 a kilo at Woolworths.
Chicken is where the Australian half-price and specials cycle does its heaviest work: the special price is 29 to 32% below the regular reading, every few weeks, at one chain or the other.
The prices we verified
Regular readings (Savings.com.au tracker, September 2026, free range fillets): Coles $12.50/kg, Woolworths $12.00/kg.
This week's specials (catalogue week 14 to 20 October 2026, from a published 132-price comparison of the two chains' specials): Coles $8.50/kg, Woolworths $9.50/kg, both Australian Fresh RSPCA Approved fillets.
A weekly index for the week of October 16, 2026 (Cuugo) listed chicken breast fillets at Coles at $15.00 and Aldi at $13.00, without stating the per-kilo basis on the page, so we quote those as published figures only and do not build on them.
What is a good deal on chicken?
Our guidance: at or below $10.00/kg is a deal on fillets, and at or below $9.00/kg it is a freezer stock-up. This week's Coles price of $8.50/kg is the best verified chicken price in Australia right now.
Never judge by the regular reading alone. In this category the catalogue is the price; the regular reading is what you pay for shopping on the wrong week.
Why chicken prices move
The ABS poultry class rose just 0.7% in the year to August 2026, the calmest protein in the basket. Feed costs have been stable and supply is reliable, which is exactly why chains can afford to promote chicken hard: it is the traffic-driving protein.
The movement shoppers feel is promotional, not inflationary. The gap between the $12.50 regular reading and the $8.50 special is a marketing cycle, and the freezer is how you arbitrage it.
How to pay less for chicken
Buy fillets on special weeks and freeze in meal-sized portions. Two kilos at $8.50 instead of $12.50 saves $8.00 in one shop.
Alternate chains by week if you can: Coles and Woolworths rarely run the chicken special in the same week at the same depth.
Check chicken against our weekly tracker and specials watch. We reprice fillets every week, catalogue included.
Chicken is the protein where timing beats loyalty. Track what you actually pay per kilo with free receipt scans, and Premium will flag when your regular chicken changes price.