Australians are expected to buy 3000 tonnes of chocolate this Easter - and that's just at Coles.
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At Woolworths, Easter chocolate spending is up 5 per cent from last year, amid expectations that 13 million chocolates will sell, while Haigh's Chocolate plans to sell 4.5 million Easter eggs and 50,000 Easter Bilbies.
Australia Post estimates Australians on average will spend more than $72 each buying sweet treats online.
Australia's three major supermarkets have been responding to Australia's increasing appetite for chocolate this year, with aggressive discounts hitting shelves well in advance of the Easter weekend.
"I'm a bit of a bargain hunter," said mother-of-two Elizabeth Post, who estimated she will spend $100 on chocolate this Easter.
"I've already bought some eggs and I bought them because they were 25 per cent off at Woollies. Now I've got the next couple of days to check out the prices at Aldi."
A consumer survey by ME Bank last year found around 48 per cent of Australians planned to spend up to $50 on Easter eggs, while almost 20 per cent planned to spend double that amount.
Australian annual sales of "seasonal chocolate" (Easter and Christmas holiday seasons) forecast to increase from 5800 tonnes in 2016, to 6700 tonnes by 2021.
Mrs Post said she usually did her Easter chocolate shopping in stages so it did not "look so scary".
"We really don't go overboard ... We usually have an egg hunt in the morning with the kids and then another in the afternoon with our extended family," she said, adding that it was hard to avoid in-store marketing for chocolates at the supermarket.
"It is frustrating when you are at the register and the kids can see [eggs] right there in front of them. But I guess it's good marketing."
This year Woolworths estimates it will sell more than 13 million Easter chocolates, up more than 5 per cent on 2016.
"NSW is expected to be the biggest chocolate shopper in 2017, after purchasing around a third of the total Easter chocolate sold last year," a Woolworths spokesman said.
Among the best value offering at Woolworths is the 100-gram Cadbury Dairy Milk hollow egg for $3, and the 250-gram Cadbury Dairy Milk bunny for $4.
German discount chain Aldi is offering a range of exclusive chocolate brands as well as other mass-market labels.
From its exclusive range, Aldi's 125-gram Dairy Fine chocolate bunny is 99?? (79?? per 100 grams).
Alternatively Aldi is also offering a 175-gram Mars gift box for $8.99 ($5.14 per 100 grams).
At Coles shoppers are opting for larger packs over individual eggs.
The best value options at Coles include the 500-gram bag of Coles-brand solid milk chocolate eggs for $5 ($1 per 100 grams), and the Cadbury Crunchie egg gift box, which is 205 grams and retails for $8 ($3.90 per 100 grams.)
Shoppers seeking the best value for money on chocolates this Easter may be best served shopping around.
While a 500-gram bag of mini eggs at Aldi costs $5.39, the same product under the Coles-brand is a slightly better deal at $5.
However those after chocolate bunnies will be better served at Aldi, where the 125-gram Dairy Fine bunny is 79?? per 100 grams, half the price of that offered at Woolworths and almost 40 per cent cheaper than the Red Tulip Elegant Rabbit at Coles, which is $6 ($2 per 100 grams).
