Passover Cleaning: A National Ritual That Crosses Every Boundary
Between Purim and Passover, one of the most significant waves of consumption in Israel’s cleaning products market takes place. The Israeli consumer cleans their home, car, workplace, and surroundings with a level of thoroughness that has few parallels. It is a distinctly Israeli culture that does not belong to any specific religion or nationality. Jews, Arabs, ultra-Orthodox and secular Israelis – everyone washes, scrubs and polishes. The hamantaschen have already been eaten, the matzah is already on its way, and now it is time to stand in front of the cleaning products shelves and ask: Where should you shop?
The Institute for Retail Research conducted, using the Pricez system for collecting price data, a comprehensive survey of 26 cleaning and related products from leading brands across 12 major retail chains throughout the country. The basket included products from categories such as general cleaning, bleach, toilet and bathroom cleaning, fabric softeners, laundry powders and gels, stain removers, microfiber cloths, window cleaners, dishwasher cleaning products and more. The results point to significant price gaps that are difficult to ignore.
The Cheapest Basket: Rami Levy, Osher Ad and Yohananof Lead
When examining the total cost of a basket containing 26 products, three chains consistently stood out for having the lowest price: Rami Levy, Osher Ad and Yohananof. All three finished with a basket below NIS 415. Rami Levy was the cheapest with a basket costing NIS 408.65, followed by Osher Ad with NIS 410 and Yohananof with NIS 413. The gap between these three chains is negligible – less than NIS 5 – and in practice they present a very similar pricing policy.
Next in the ranking are Mahsanei Hashuk with a basket costing NIS 427.45 and Neto Hissachon with NIS 437.60. Further down the list are Victory with NIS 442.50, Shefa Birkat Hashem with NIS 462.90 and Carrefour Hyper with NIS 473.30. Universe reaches a total of NIS 507.80.
At the expensive end of the scale are Shufersal Deal with NIS 528.80, Fresh Market with NIS 533.90, and Tiv Ta’am – the most expensive chain in the survey – with a basket costing NIS 553.70.
The gap between the cheapest chain and the most expensive one stands at about NIS 145, which is roughly 35.5% for the same shopping list. In other words, a consumer who purchases the exact same products at Tiv Ta’am will pay about one third more than someone who chooses to shop at Rami Levy. Such a difference at the very least justifies a price comparison, especially during the Passover period when the cleaning basket grows significantly.
Record Gaps: Persil, Anti-Kalk and Bleach
Beyond the overall basket, the survey identified specific products where the price differences between chains are particularly extreme. One prominent example is Persil green laundry gel in a 2.5-liter bottle. The lowest price found was NIS 14.90, while the highest price reached NIS 40.30. This represents a gap of NIS 25.40 – about 170% – for exactly the same product. At times one chain focuses on discounting a particular brand, while another focuses on a different product or brand, which is why such unusual gaps are created.
Another significant gap was found in the Sano Anti-Kalk limescale and rust remover spray in a one-liter bottle. At Mahsanei Hashuk it was sold for only NIS 7.95, while at Fresh Market the price reached NIS 21.90 – a difference of almost NIS 14, about 175%, the largest gap found in the survey. Scented bleach in a 4-liter bottle also shows an unusual gap: In the cheaper chains it was sold for just NIS 6.90, while at Shufersal Deal and Universe the price reached NIS 16.90 – a gap of about 145%.
Sano Clear cleaning and polishing spray in a one-liter bottle was sold at Mahsanei Hashuk for NIS 4.95, while at Tiv Ta’am its price reached NIS 11.45 – a gap of about 131%. Sano Maxima fabric softener in a one-liter bottle was sold for NIS 9.90 at Rami Levy and Osher Ad, but reached NIS 18.90 at Shufersal Deal and Universe – a difference of about 91%.
A gap was also found in Badin Extra fabric softener in a 960 ml bottle: NIS 9.90 at Shefa Birkat Hashem compared to NIS 17.10 at Carrefour Hyper – a gap of about 73%. However, in every chain it is also possible to find private-label alternatives at lower prices, sometimes up to about 50% less than the price of a well-known brand.
What Do Israelis Buy Before Passover?
The basket examined reflects the classic Israeli cleaning basket ahead of Passover: Laundry gels and powders, bleach in various versions, toilet and bathroom cleaning sprays, stain removers, fabric softeners, microfiber cloths, limescale removers for faucets and surfaces, general disinfectants and mold cleaners. Each product represents a real need for households preparing for the holiday and striving for their home to shine more than at any other time of the year.
The company Sano stands out as a leading presence in this basket, with broad representation in toilet cleaning, laundry products, bleach and stain removers. Alongside it operate companies such as Jakobi, Unilever, Diplomat, Kimberly-Clark with Nicol, Henkel and Unilever with the brand Badin – all international companies competing for their place in the Israeli cleaning basket.
The Survey’s Recommendations for Israeli Consumers
The gap between the cheapest cleaning basket and the most expensive one reaches about 35%. At a time when demand for cleaning products peaks, such a gap has considerable financial significance. However, it is important to understand that the prices we see before Passover are not necessarily the fixed prices throughout the year. Sometimes these are unusual promotions, and at times even loss-leading prices intended to attract consumers to a particular chain so that they will complete all of their holiday shopping there.
In other words, the dramatic discount on a gallon of bleach may be a marketing tool designed to encourage the consumer to fill their entire shopping basket – including food products, meat and sweets – at the same chain.
For that reason, precisely during this period it is recommended to carry out an organized price comparison. It is advisable to use price-comparison websites such as Pricez, which allow consumers to check the price of each product before going shopping and to prepare an organized list in advance. It is important to examine the entire shopping basket, and not only the products that display a prominent discount.
Another practical rule: If there are products you purchase regularly and you identify a price gap of 25% or more compared to the usual price, it may be worth considering buying a larger quantity for the following month as well. Saving about 30% on a product that you would buy anyway is a real saving.
Ultimately, the chain that offers the biggest discount on a single product is not necessarily the cheapest chain for the entire basket. Anyone who truly wants to save needs to examine the full picture.
The survey was conducted at the beginning of March 2026 by the Institute for Retail Research using the Pricez system. It included 26 products from 12 retail chains. The determining price is the price after a valid promotion, if one exists.