Screwfix vs B&Q vs Wickes: which is cheapest?
They are not three versions of the same shop, and the cheapest depends on what you are buying.
They serve different jobs
Screwfix is built around trade collection: a narrow, deep range of tools and fixings, ordered ahead and picked up from a counter. B&Q is a full retail shed with garden, kitchens and decorating alongside the tools. Wickes sits between the two, with a strong trade and building-materials leaning.
That shapes the pricing more than any general "which is cheapest" answer could. Each is keenest in the category it is built around.
Where each tends to be keenest
- Screwfix: power tools, fixings and consumables, particularly bare tools and trade multipacks.
- B&Q: decorating, garden and anything own-brand, where the range is widest and the own-label pricing is aggressive.
- Wickes: building materials and kitchens, plus timber, where the trade leaning shows.
- All three: clearance, which is genuinely unpredictable and worth checking before assuming.
Trade accounts and multipacks change the answer
All three run trade pricing that is not visible in a straight retail comparison, and all three price multipacks well below unit price. On consumables — screws, fixings, blades, paint — buying the right pack size frequently beats choosing the right shop.
Before you buy
- Check all three, not just the one nearest you.
- Convert to price per unit on anything sold in packs.
- On cordless tools, confirm whether the listing is a bare tool or a kit.
- Factor collection — all three do it, and it removes delivery entirely.