The Price Marking Order 2004 covers goods you sell to consumers, in a shop, from a stall or online. It does not cover services, sales by auction, or works of art and antiques. A hairdresser does not price the shampoo used in a wash, but does price the products on the shelf.
Show the selling price
Whenever you indicate that a product is or may be for sale to a consumer, you must show its selling price: the final price for the product or quantity, including VAT and all other taxes, but not including any deposit under a deposit return scheme. You need not show a selling price for goods sold from bulk, which are not pre-packaged and are weighed or measured at the customer's request, or in an advertisement.
The price must be in sterling. If you also accept foreign currency, you must show the price in that currency or the conversion rate, together with any commission.
Every price indication must be unambiguous, easily identifiable and clearly legible. Customers must be able to find it near the product, or near its description if you sell at a distance or advertise, without asking staff. You can mark the goods themselves or use a ticket or notice on or near them. Only jewellery, precious metal items and watches over £3,000 displayed in a window are exempt from the proximity requirement.
Charges for freight, delivery or postage, including any tax on them, must be just as unambiguous, easily identifiable and clearly legible.
Show the unit price where it applies
A unit price lets customers compare products sold in different sizes. You must show one for goods sold from bulk, and for pre-packaged goods that weights and measures or food information law requires to be marked with a quantity or made up in a set quantity. In practice that covers most packaged food, drink and household goods.
The unit price is the final price including all taxes, but not deposits, for one item if the product is sold by number. Otherwise it is the price for one kilogram, one litre, one metre, one square metre or one cubic metre, as appropriate. Where a product may be sold by weight or by volume, use whichever the label shows. For food in a liquid medium, the unit price refers to the drained net weight. If you also give a price per imperial quantity, the unit price must be more prominent.
Express a unit price below £1 to the nearest 0.1p. Above £1, round to the nearest 1p or 0.1p.
You need not show a unit price when it is identical to the selling price, when a reduced product is damaged or close to going off, or for goods in an advertisement on television, at the cinema, purely aural or inside a small shop. Neither do you need one for some mixed packs and multi-buy offers where the items differ in price, weight or volume. A small shop has a relevant floor area of 280 square metres or less. A small shop, an itinerant trader or a vending machine need not show a unit price for pre-packaged goods in a constant quantity, or for bread in a prescribed quantity. That exemption never applies to goods sold from bulk.
Show every price if you offer more than one
From 6 April 2026, if you sell the same product at more than one price, such as a standard price and a loyalty-card price, you must show each selling price and each unit price. You must also display the conditions for each price, close to the product and where customers can see them without asking for help.
Advertise reductions across many products
When you cut the price of many products at once, you may use a general notice instead of repricing each product, but only if it is not reasonably practicable to show the reduced selling and unit prices on each one. Government guidance treats that as a high threshold: inconvenience alone does not meet it. The notice must display the details of the reduction prominently, unambiguously and legibly. A short, planned offer on a few named products can usually be repriced.
Know what changed on 6 April 2026
The Price Marking (Amendment) Order 2024 brought in the clear-font requirement, the deposit exclusion and the rules above on multiple prices and general reductions.
Include every charge in the price you advertise
Separately from the Order, an invitation to purchase must show the total price, including every fee, tax and charge the customer must pay.
Know who enforces the rules
Contravening the Order is a criminal offence under the Prices Act 1974, and only Trading Standards can prosecute. The Order is also enforceable under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024: Trading Standards or the Competition and Markets Authority can bring civil proceedings, and the Authority can act directly, imposing a monetary penalty of up to £300,000 or, if higher, 10% of the trader's turnover.
Legal basis
Primary legislation and key regulations