Every quarter, CheckoutSmart analyses how the UK's largest FMCG manufacturers are performing when it comes to online shopper reputation across major supermarket retailers.
Our latest Top 150 ranking compares performance between January and April 2026, highlighting which manufacturers have maintained strong review standards, which have improved significantly, and which have seen more of their portfolios slip out of standard.
At the heart of the ranking is a simple measure: the percentage of SKUs needing new reviews. The lower that percentage, the stronger the review position of the portfolio.
As shoppers continue to rely on reviews when researching products, both online and in-store, maintaining review quality has become an increasingly important part of brand management. This is no longer simply an eCommerce issue. Reviews influence trust, product discovery, brand perception and, increasingly, how products are surfaced in AI-driven search and recommendation environments.
The “To Standard” methodology in one minute
A SKU is classified as needing new reviews if it fails any of three key criteria:
- It has fewer than 30 reviews
- One of the Top 3 visible reviews is more than six months old
- One of the Top 3 visible reviews differs by more than 1.5 stars from the product’s average rating
These criteria are designed to ensure that shoppers see a review picture that is current, representative and credible.
The April results show that while some manufacturers have maintained strong review standards across their portfolios, others have experienced significant movement in just three months.
The Medal Winners and Top 10
This period’s leaders demonstrate the value of consistency. Several of the highest-performing manufacturers retained their positions from January, suggesting that strong review performance is often the result of ongoing management rather than one-off interventions.
| Category | Manufacturer | Apr '26 Rank | Rank change |
| Dairy | Muller Dairy | 1 | 0 |
| Dairy | Flora Food Group | 2 | 0 |
| Dairy | Lactalis McLelland | 3 | 0 |
| Tins & Jars | Mutti | 4 | 0 |
| Cold Drinks | Tropicana | 5 | 0 |
| Household | Church & Dwight | 6 | 4 |
| Dairy | Arla Foods | 7 | 4 |
| Food Cupboard | Mars Food | 8 | 4 |
| Beer Lager Ale and Cider | Heineken | 9 | -3 |
| Health & Beauty | Essity | 10 | 3 |
The stability at the very top of the table is one of the most striking features of this report. Muller Dairy, Flora Food Group, Lactalis McLelland, Mutti and Tropicana all retained their positions from January, reinforcing the idea that strong review performance is built through consistency.
Church & Dwight moved into 6th place, climbing four places while reducing the proportion of SKUs needing new reviews by 3.6 percentage points. Arla Foods also delivered one of the strongest performances within the Top 10, climbing four places to rank 7 while reducing the proportion of SKUs needing new reviews by 4.8 percentage points. That combination of improved ranking and improved review health demonstrates how quickly portfolios can move when review standards are actively managed.
Biggest risers and fallers
While the top of the table remained remarkably stable, some of the most interesting movements happened further down the rankings.
Biggest risers
Several manufacturers made significant gains since January by reducing the proportion of SKUs needing new reviews and improving review standards across their portfolios.
- LF Beauty climbed 88 places to rank 55, reducing the share of SKUs needing new reviews by 6.9 percentage points.
- Kao climbed 87 places to rank 16, recording the strongest improvement in the report with an 18.2 point reduction.
- Heinz climbed 51 places to rank 60, improving by 4.5 points.
- Off Piste Wines climbed 49 places to rank 61, also improving by 4.5 points.
- Princes climbed 47 places to rank 87, improving by 3.3 points.
- Starbucks climbed 42 places to rank 26, improving by 7.4 points.
- McCormick also delivered a standout performance, moving up 32 places to rank 13 while reducing the proportion of SKUs needing new reviews by 12.0 points.
These gains demonstrate how quickly portfolios can move when review management is treated as a portfolio-wide discipline rather than a series of isolated SKU fixes. When review freshness and visibility are actively managed, rankings can improve rapidly.
Biggest fallers
The report also highlights several manufacturers whose portfolios have seen a growing proportion of SKUs fall out of standard since January.
- Accolade Wines fell 59 places to rank 84, with a 12.5 point increase.
- Pilgrim's Europe fell 59 places to rank 91, with an 11.0 point increase.
- Carlsberg fell 54 places to rank 62, with a 24.7 point increase in SKUs needing new reviews.
- Armitage Pet Care fell 45 places to rank 102, with a 5.0 point increase.
- BrewDog fell 43 places to rank 127, with a 4.0 point increase.
- Seven Seas fell 43 places to rank 129, with a 3.8 point increase.
- Diageo fell 27 places to rank 58, with a 7.5 point increase.
The lesson is straightforward. Even well-known brands can lose ground quickly when review freshness declines, review volumes fall below standard, or the most visible reviews no longer reflect the wider shopper experience.
Category snapshots vs January 2026
Dairy
Dairy continues to set the standard at the top of the rankings. Muller Dairy, Flora Food Group and Lactalis McLelland retained the first three positions overall, demonstrating the value of maintaining review standards consistently over time.
Arla Foods was one of the category’s strongest performers, climbing four places while reducing the proportion of SKUs needing new reviews by 4.8 percentage points. Danone moved in the opposite direction, falling eight places following a 4.3 point increase in SKUs requiring review support.
Health, Beauty & Household
Health & Beauty delivered some of the most dramatic movements in the entire report.
Kao climbed 87 places with an 18.2 percentage point improvement, making it one of the standout performers across all categories.
L'Oreal moved up 27 places with a 4.3 point improvement, while LF Beauty climbed 88 places with a 6.9 point improvement. Essity maintained its strong position, remaining in the Top 10 and ranking 10th overall.
Food Cupboard
Food Cupboard produced several strong performers.
McCormick stood out by climbing 32 places and improving by 12.0 percentage points. Nestlé moved up 18 places while improving by 2.6 points, and Heinz gained 51 places with a 4.5 point improvement.
Mars Food continued to perform strongly, retaining a Top 10 position and ranking 8th overall.
Beer, Lager, Ale and Cider
This was a more challenging period for some of the category’s biggest manufacturers.
Heineken remained in the Top 10 overall but fell three places, with an 11.5 percentage point increase in SKUs needing new reviews. Carlsberg experienced one of the largest declines in the report, falling 54 places following a 24.7 point increase.
BrewDog also moved lower, falling 43 places with a 4.0 point increase in SKUs requiring attention.
Snacks
The Snacks category produced a mixed picture.
KP Snacks ranked 20th and worsened by 2.2 points. Pladis moved up 1 place but worsened by 2.0 points.
Lotus Bakeries improved, moving up 15 places with a 1.0 point reduction. Mars Snacking moved up 28 places with a 1.7 point improvement, while Fox’s Biscuits fell 31 places.
Cold Drinks
Tropicana remains the clear category leader, holding 5th overall and continuing to perform strongly.
Nestlé Waters improved, moving up 14 places with a 1.7 point reduction in SKUs needing new reviews. PepsiCo fell four places and worsened by 2.0 points, while Coca-Cola fell five places and worsened by 1.0 point.
What changed since January 2026 and why it matters
The April results reinforce a familiar lesson: review freshness is a moving target.
Reaching 30 reviews is not enough on its own. If the Top 3 visible reviews become more than six months old, or no longer fairly represent the wider rating picture, shoppers can be left with an inaccurate impression of the product.
This is precisely why an Always On approach matters. It helps brands maintain review quality between reporting periods rather than allowing products to drift slowly out of standard.
How to climb the table before the next cut
The results point to several practical actions for manufacturers looking to improve their position before the next ranking.
First, put the Top 3 visible reviews on a schedule. These are the reviews shoppers are most likely to read, making freshness a critical factor in shopper confidence.
Second, manage review performance across groups of products rather than treating each SKU in isolation. The biggest ranking improvements in this report came from manufacturers improving review standards across portfolios, not individual products.
Third, monitor fairness as well as freshness. A small number of highly visible reviews can influence perception disproportionately if they do not accurately reflect the wider shopper experience.
Finally, do not wait for the next report. The manufacturers making the biggest gains are typically the ones taking action before review issues become obvious.
Stay out of the danger zone
CheckoutSmart can provide your exact April 2026 cut, highlighting which SKUs need attention across Tesco, ASDA, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Ocado.
We can also build a tailored Always On plan designed to help your brand remain in the safe zone, improve review performance and outperform competitors before the next ranking.
For information beyond the Top 150 ranking, or to discuss competitor performance, contact: help@checkoutsmart.com
| Category | Manufacturer | Apr '26 Rank | Rank change | Apr '26 Percent SKUs needing New Reviews | Percent Change | |
| Dairy | Muller Dairy | 1 | 0 | 22.9% | 🟢 | -6.2% |
| Dairy | Flora Food Group | 2 | 0 | 42.0% | 🟢 | -4.2% |
| Dairy | Lactalis McLelland | 3 | 0 | 51.4% | 🔴 | 1.7% |
| Tins & Jars | Mutti | 4 | 0 | 54.8% | 🔴 | 0.7% |
| Cold Drinks | Tropicana | 5 | 0 | 60.2% | 🔴 | 2.1% |
| Household | Church & Dwight | 6 | 4 | 66.9% | 🟢 | -3.6% |
| Dairy | Arla Foods | 7 | 4 | 67.5% | 🟢 | -4.8% |
| Food Cupboard | Mars Food | 8 | 4 | 72.9% | 🔴 | 0.1% |
| Beer Lager Ale and Cider | Heineken | 9 | -3 | 73.1% | 🔴 | 11.5% |
| Health & Beauty | Essity | 10 | 3 | 74.2% | 🔴 | 0.5% |
| Cereals | Weetabix | 11 | -4 | 75.8% | 🔴 | 9.9% |
| Fresh | Gu | 12 | 2 | 77.2% | 🔴 | 1.9% |
| Food Cupboard | McCormick | 13 | 32 | 77.3% | 🟢 | -12.0% |
| Health & Beauty | Johnson & Johnson | 14 | 3 | 78.7% | 🟢 | -0.5% |
| Health & Beauty | Coty | 15 | 0 | 79.0% | 🔴 | 1.9% |
| Cleaning | Kao | 16 | 87 | 79.0% | 🟢 | -18.2% |
| Frozen | Procordia Food | 17 | -8 | 80.8% | 🔴 | 11.9% |
| Health & Beauty | Wilkinson Sword | 18 | * | 81.3% | * | |
| Bakery | Hovis | 19 | -1 | 82.1% | 🔴 | 1.7% |
| Snacks | KP Snacks | 20 | -1 | 83.6% | 🔴 | 2.2% |
| Cleaning | Method | 21 | 12 | 84.8% | 🟢 | -1.4% |
| Fresh | Charlie Bigham's | 22 | 0 | 85.0% | 🔴 | 2.2% |
| Snacks | Pladis | 23 | 1 | 85.0% | 🔴 | 2.0% |
| Frozen | Picard | 24 | -3 | 85.5% | 🔴 | 3.2% |
| Bakery | Warburtons | 25 | 14 | 85.9% | 🟢 | -1.7% |
| Hot Drinks | Starbucks | 26 | 42 | 86.6% | 🟢 | -7.4% |
| Food Cupboard | Dr. Oetker | 27 | 2 | 86.7% | 🔴 | 1.6% |
| Food Cupboard | Bonne Maman | 28 | -5 | 86.8% | 🔴 | 3.9% |
| Food Cupboard | Nestle | 29 | 18 | 87.1% | 🟢 | -2.6% |
| Frozen | McCain Foods | 30 | 6 | 87.2% | 🔴 | 0.1% |
| Health & Beauty | Colgate | 31 | -11 | 87.5% | 🔴 | 5.8% |
| Beer Lager Ale and Cider | Molson Coors | 32 | 3 | 87.8% | 🔴 | 1.0% |
| Spirits | Brown-Forman | 33 | -3 | 88.0% | 🔴 | 2.4% |
| Household | Unilever | 34 | 4 | 88.8% | 🔴 | 1.4% |
| Dairy | Danone | 35 | -8 | 88.9% | 🔴 | 4.3% |
| Frozen | Nomad Foods | 36 | -2 | 89.0% | 🔴 | 2.6% |
| Frozen | Crosta & Mollica | 37 | 7 | 89.1% | 🟢 | -0.2% |
| Household | Procter & Gamble | 38 | 10 | 89.2% | 🟢 | -0.8% |
| Fresh | Natoora | 39 | -2 | 89.4% | 🔴 | 2.1% |
| Spirits | The Suntory Group | 40 | 6 | 89.7% | 🔴 | 0.1% |
| Dairy | Yeo Valley | 41 | -15 | 89.7% | 🔴 | 5.2% |
| Food Cupboard | General Mills | 42 | -14 | 89.8% | 🔴 | 4.8% |
| Health & Beauty | L'Oreal | 43 | 27 | 89.9% | 🟢 | -4.3% |
| Cold Drinks | PepsiCo | 44 | -4 | 90.3% | 🔴 | 2.0% |
| Cold Drinks | Nestle Waters | 45 | 14 | 91.2% | 🟢 | -1.7% |
| Tins & Jars | Mizkan | 46 | -5 | 92.0% | 🔴 | 3.6% |
| Food Cupboard | Premier Foods | 47 | 4 | 92.4% | 🔴 | 1.3% |
| Snacks | Lotus Bakeries | 48 | 15 | 92.5% | 🟢 | -1.0% |
| Cereals | Kellogg's | 49 | 23 | 92.5% | 🟢 | -1.8% |
| Spirits | Bacardi | 50 | 5 | 92.8% | 🔴 | 1.0% |
| Dairy | Saputo | 51 | -2 | 92.8% | 🔴 | 2.1% |
| Dairy | LNCD | 52 | 12 | 92.8% | 🟢 | -0.9% |
| Food to go | Higgidy | 53 | 35 | 92.9% | 🟢 | -2.7% |
| Health & Beauty | Beiersdorf | 54 | -11 | 92.9% | 🔴 | 4.0% |
| Health & Beauty | LF Beauty | 55 | 88 | 93.1% | 🟢 | -6.9% |
| Hot Drinks | Jacobs Douwe Egberts | 56 | -3 | 93.2% | 🔴 | 1.8% |
| Wine | E & J Gallo | 57 | 4 | 93.2% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Spirits | Diageo | 58 | -27 | 93.3% | 🔴 | 7.5% |
| Bakery | Allied Bakeries | 59 | -9 | 93.3% | 🔴 | 2.6% |
| Food Cupboard | Heinz | 60 | 51 | 93.3% | 🟢 | -4.5% |
| Wine | Off Piste Wines | 61 | 49 | 93.3% | 🟢 | -4.5% |
| Beer Lager Ale and Cider | Carlsberg | 62 | -54 | 93.4% | 🔴 | 24.7% |
| Pizza & Garlic Bread | Pizza Express | 63 | -9 | 93.8% | 🔴 | 2.1% |
| Health & Beauty | Haleon | 64 | 13 | 94.0% | 🟢 | -0.7% |
| Cold Drinks | Coca Cola | 65 | -5 | 94.0% | 🔴 | 1.0% |
| Health & Beauty | Revlon | 66 | 1 | 94.2% | 🔴 | 0.3% |
| Tins & Jars | The Organic Family | 67 | -25 | 94.4% | 🔴 | 5.6% |
| Beer Lager Ale and Cider | AB InBev | 68 | 5 | 94.5% | 🔴 | 0.1% |
| Household | Kimberly Clark | 69 | -17 | 94.5% | 🔴 | 3.4% |
| Spirits | Pernod-Ricard | 70 | -8 | 94.7% | 🔴 | 1.5% |
| Cold Drinks | Red Bull | 71 | * | 94.7% | * | |
| Vegetarian | Ecotone | 72 | 13 | 94.9% | 🟢 | -0.3% |
| Household | Spectrum Brands | 73 | 22 | 95.0% | 🟢 | -1.7% |
| Spirits | William Grant and Sons | 74 | -3 | 95.1% | 🔴 | 0.9% |
| Pet | Mars Petcare | 75 | -10 | 95.1% | 🔴 | 1.3% |
| Frozen | Young's Seafood | 76 | 11 | 95.1% | 🟢 | -0.3% |
| Household | Henkel | 77 | 23 | 95.2% | 🟢 | -1.9% |
| Cold Drinks | SHS Drinks | 78 | -20 | 95.4% | 🔴 | 2.5% |
| Snacks | Jordans & Ryvita | 79 | -13 | 95.5% | 🔴 | 1.7% |
| Cold Drinks | Belvoir Fruit Farms | 80 | * | 95.6% | * | |
| Food to go | Leathams | 81 | 10 | 95.7% | 🟢 | -0.6% |
| Hot Drinks | Bettys & Taylors Of Harrogate | 82 | 1 | 95.8% | 🔴 | 0.8% |
| Tins & Jars | John West | 83 | 30 | 95.9% | 🟢 | -2.0% |
| Wine | Accolade Wines | 84 | -59 | 95.9% | 🔴 | 12.5% |
| Food Cupboard | Daylesford Organic | 85 | 16 | 96.1% | 🟢 | -1.0% |
| Cold Drinks | Britvic | 86 | -8 | 96.2% | 🔴 | 1.5% |
| Tins & Jars | Princes | 87 | 47 | 96.2% | 🟢 | -3.3% |
| OTC Medicines | Bayer | 88 | 9 | 96.3% | 🟢 | -0.6% |
| Laundry | Ecover | 89 | 23 | 96.6% | 🟢 | -1.3% |
| Snacks | Mars Snacking | 90 | 28 | 96.7% | 🟢 | -1.7% |
| Fresh | Pilgrim's Europe | 91 | -59 | 96.8% | 🔴 | 11.0% |
| Health & Beauty | Wella | 92 | 41 | 96.9% | 🟢 | -2.5% |
| Vegetarian | Marlow Foods | 93 | -17 | 97.0% | 🔴 | 2.3% |
| Snacks | Lindt & Sprungli | 94 | -4 | 97.0% | 🔴 | 1.1% |
| Snacks | Proper | 95 | -21 | 97.1% | 🔴 | 2.7% |
| OTC Medicines | INEOS | 96 | -16 | 97.3% | 🔴 | 2.5% |
| Wine | Concha y Toro | 97 | -4 | 97.3% | 🔴 | 0.8% |
| Fresh Pasta | Pastificio Rana | 98 | -29 | 97.4% | 🔴 | 3.4% |
| Wine | Australian Vintage | 99 | -24 | 97.4% | 🔴 | 2.8% |
| Snacks | Nairn's | 100 | -21 | 97.4% | 🔴 | 2.6% |
| Health & Beauty | PZ Cussons | 101 | -5 | 97.4% | 🔴 | 0.6% |
| Pet | Armitage Pet Care | 102 | -45 | 97.7% | 🔴 | 5.0% |
| Cereals | FUEL 10K | 103 | -22 | 97.7% | 🔴 | 2.9% |
| Wine | Treasury Wine Estates | 104 | -5 | 97.8% | 🔴 | 0.8% |
| Food Cupboard | Dr Schar | 105 | 14 | 97.9% | 🟢 | -0.5% |
| Food Cupboard | Petty Wood & Co | 106 | -8 | 97.9% | 🔴 | 1.0% |
| Cleaning | SC Johnson | 107 | 17 | 98.0% | 🟢 | -0.6% |
| Pet | MPM | 108 | 6 | 98.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Snacks | Mondelez | 109 | 0 | 98.0% | 🔴 | 0.2% |
| Pasta Rice & Noodles | Tilda | 110 | -2 | 98.2% | 🔴 | 0.5% |
| Food Cupboard | Windmill Organics | 111 | 14 | 98.2% | 🟢 | -0.5% |
| Food to go | Ginsters | 112 | -7 | 98.3% | 🔴 | 1.0% |
| Tins & Jars | Belazu | 113 | -9 | 98.3% | 🔴 | 1.0% |
| Baby Food | HiPP | 114 | -32 | 98.4% | 🔴 | 3.4% |
| Cleaning | Reckitt | 115 | 6 | 98.4% | 🟢 | -0.1% |
| Cold Drinks | A G Barr | 116 | 10 | 98.4% | 🟢 | -0.4% |
| Ready Meals | itsu | 117 | -23 | 98.4% | 🔴 | 1.9% |
| Tins & Jars | Baxters Food Group | 118 | -11 | 98.5% | 🔴 | 0.8% |
| Pasta Rice & Noodles | Surya Foods | 119 | -13 | 98.5% | 🔴 | 1.1% |
| Hot Drinks | Lavazza | 120 | 2 | 98.6% | 🔴 | 0.1% |
| Food Cupboard | Associated British Foods | 121 | -4 | 98.6% | 🔴 | 0.4% |
| Cold Drinks | Fever-Tree | 122 | -7 | 98.6% | 🔴 | 0.6% |
| Snacks | Fox's Biscuits | 123 | -31 | 98.6% | 🔴 | 2.1% |
| Pet | Pets Choice | 124 | 3 | 98.9% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Pet | Inspired Pet Nutrition | 125 | 13 | 99.0% | 🟢 | -1.0% |
| Household | Newell Brands | 126 | -37 | 99.1% | 🔴 | 3.3% |
| Beer Lager Ale and Cider | BrewDog | 127 | -43 | 99.1% | 🔴 | 4.0% |
| Health & Beauty | Hero | 128 | -8 | 99.2% | 🔴 | 0.8% |
| Vitamins | Seven Seas | 129 | -43 | 99.2% | 🔴 | 3.8% |
| Beer Lager Ale and Cider | Cider of Sweden | 130 | 17 | 99.3% | 🟢 | -0.7% |
| Food Cupboard | KTC Edibles | 131 | -2 | 99.3% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Food Cupboard | The Hain Celestial Group | 132 | -9 | 99.3% | 🔴 | 0.8% |
| Snacks | Ferrero | 133 | -2 | 99.4% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Spirits | Gruppo Campari | 134 | -2 | 99.4% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Food Cupboard | Fresh Marketing | 135 | -33 | 99.4% | 🔴 | 2.3% |
| Snacks | Cofresh | 136 | 4 | 99.5% | 🟢 | -0.5% |
| Tins & Jars | Grace Foods | 137 | -9 | 99.6% | 🔴 | 0.4% |
| Hot Drinks | Twinings | 138 | -3 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Baby Food | Ella's Kitchen | 139 | -3 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Pet | Lily's Kitchen | 140 | -3 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Health & Beauty | Baylis and Harding | 141 | -2 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Baby Food | Piccolo Foods | 142 | 0 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Snacks | Haribo | 143 | -2 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Snacks | Whitworths | 144 | -14 | 100.0% | 🔴 | 0.6% |
| Food Cupboard | The Bart Ingredients Co. | 145 | 0 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Health & Beauty | Neal's Yard Remedies | 146 | 0 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Food Cupboard | Regal Food Products Group | 147 | 1 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| OTC Medicines | Perrigo | 148 | 1 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
| Food Cupboard | Salov | 149 | -33 | 100.0% | 🔴 | 1.8% |
| Vitamins | Vitabiotics | 150 | -6 | 100.0% | 🟡 | 0.0% |
