When September fills up with school runs, work and forgotten shopping lists, the takeaway app can look like the obvious answer.

But for four people in Peterborough, the headline price is only half the story.

A home-cooked beef-and-tomato pasta dinner came to about £7 in ingredients when checked on 7 September 2026.

That works out at roughly £1.75 each, before cooking energy and cupboard basics such as oil, onion and herbs.

Use a realistic portion of pasta and there may be leftovers for lunch, too.

The supermarket shortcut sits in the middle.

 Tesco listed several 400g own-label ready meals at £3.75 each, putting four dinners at £15.

Sainsbury's also had selected 400g meals at £3 with Nectar pricing, a discount for members of the supermarket's loyalty scheme.

That is quicker than cooking, but check the small print: loyalty prices, portion sizes and the chance that someone will still want toast afterwards all change the calculation.

Takeaway is where the gap opens.

Jamaican Delights listed chicken meals from £14, making four meals £56 before drinks or extras.

Just Munch had kebab and chicken options from about £8.49 to £9.49, or roughly £34 to £38 for four.

 At the time of the check, Just Munch was collection-only, while Jamaican Delights warned that nearby couriers were busy.

So is cooking always the winner?

On cash price, this comparison says yes.

On a chaotic Tuesday, not necessarily.

A takeaway can look less extravagant if it replaces a supermarket trip, prevents unused ingredients being binned or saves a tired household an hour of cooking and washing up.

Delivery charges, service fees and small-order fees can widen the gap, but they depend on the postcode and the order, so there is no honest single Peterborough delivery total here.

Compare the cost of the whole dinner.

Count four portions, delivery or collection, drinks, leftovers and anything you will need to buy again tomorrow.

If you cook ahead, cool leftovers promptly, refrigerate them and reheat until steaming hot throughout.

Follow the Food Standards Agency's current storage and reheating advice.

Takeaway businesses must provide information about ingredients that can cause allergic reactions before purchase and at delivery.

Rice needs extra care and should only be reheated once.

These are starting points, not a citywide winner.

Which Peterborough takeaway gives you the best four-person value, and what does it cost once the extras are included?