The 12p chocolate bar we'll be stocking up on after…

The 12p chocolate bar we'll be stocking up on after trying Aldi and Lidl versions of Mars, Snickers, Twix, Aero and Milky Way

If there's one thing that's not an essential when times are hard it's chocolate.

With prices rising across the board it's the sweet stuff that can often be ditched from people's shopping lists.

But nobody wants to deny themselves completely, especially when the little ones want a treat.

So why not think about swapping what you buy for cheaper versions.

We decided to try Lidl and Aldi's dupes of some branded favourites to see how they compare on quality and cost.

We bought Mars, Snickers, Milky Way, Aero and Twix to judge them against Lidl's Mister CHOC range and Aldi's Dairyfine products.

For a start the difference in price is stark. Although the size of packs and individual bars is different from the branded versions, we worked out the equivalent to get a fair comparison. And although we could only get hold of a pack of larger Milky Way bars to taste, we used a pack of fun size bars for the price comparison too.

We tried Aldi and Lidl versions of Mars, Snickers, Twix, Aero and Milky Way (Manchester Family / MEN)

Aldi and Lidl are almost exactly the same on size and cost, except for their versions of Milky Way - with Lidl's Candy Creme Bars coming in at 4p cheaper than Aldi's Dreemy bars.

I could tell from the flavour and appearance which one was the genuine Mars, but my children thought all the Aldi versions were the real deal, except for their Bubbly Mint. I think the shape of it gave that away more than anything though, as Nestle's version has the rounded edges, but they also preferred the taste and texture of Aero.

But it was Aldi's version of Twix, the Jive bar, that quickly became the stand out favourite and both were convinced it wasn't one of the 'rip-offs' as they call them at school.

I'm certainly not complaining though, as it could well save me a small fortune. When it works out at just over 12p for a 42g Jive bar, compared with 22p for a 40g branded Twix (multipack price that is), I know which one I'll be choosing.

When they can't tell the difference between most of the branded and non-branded versions, I'll go with the budget buy every time.

Aldi's version of a Twix (the Jive bar) was a particular hit (Manchester Family / MEN)

Do you buy branded chocolate or shop's own versions? Can you or your family tell the difference? If you haven't would you consider swapping to save money? Let us know in the comments here.