A jar of Rimi bruschetta costs €0.99 in Vilnius. Drive 600km north to Tallinn, walk into another Rimi, and pick up the same jar — €2.35. Same retailer. Same private-label product. Same euros. 138% more expensive.
What the data shows
Across 3,249 products sold in all three Baltic states, Estonia's median price is 3% above Lithuania's. That sounds small — and usually is. But behind that headline are some dramatic product-level gaps.
| Country | Median price (matched products) |
|---|---|
| Lithuania | €2.99 |
| Latvia | €2.99 |
| Estonia | €3.09 |
Latvia typically sits in the middle. Estonia is the most expensive in 40% of matched products; Lithuania the cheapest in 34%. Water is the starkest category gap — Estonian water costs 53% more than Lithuanian water. Personal care brands vary by 100–120%.
And Rimi's own-label lines — sold under the same brand, in the same chain — can differ by 100–138% across the border:
| Product | LT | LV | EE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rimi bruschetta 150g | €0.99 | €1.49 | €2.35 |
| Rimi frozen fries 1kg | €1.69 | €3.29 | €3.69 |
| Rimi sea salt 500g | €0.65 | €0.75 | €1.35 |
Rimi own-label products — LT vs LV vs EE (€)
Source: Sivix, March 2026, via Wolt delivery
Why this happens
All three countries share the euro, but not the same cost structure. Estonia has higher wages and operating costs. VAT rates differ slightly. Rimi, like most retailers, sets prices by market — not by what is consistent across borders.
The private-label anomaly is harder to explain. Rimi sources its own-brand products centrally, yet prices them locally. The margin difference goes back to Rimi, not a supplier.
What it means for you
A Lithuanian shopping basket full of water, personal care products, and Rimi own-brand staples would cost roughly 15–20% less than the same basket filled in Estonia. On household essentials — the things you buy every week without thinking — the gap is consistently in Lithuania's favour.
The Baltic single market runs on one currency. It does not run on one price list.
Data source: 408,307 EUR price records across EE, LT and LV via Wolt delivery, single-week scrape, March 2026. 3,249 matched products with records in all three markets.