Lidl has launched a new feature in its app where shoppers can see the quietest time in their local store.
It means customers can avoid the crowds by choosing times when their shop is less busy.
The new “best time to shop” feature is now at the top of the Lidl Plus homepage, which you’ll see when you open the app.
In order for it to work, you first need to tell the app where your nearest store is.
Once you’ve assigned your shop, the app will then show you in real time how busy that branch is through a bar chart.
You can also change the day of the week to see how busy that store is typically on other days.
The graph shows the quietest times to shop in green and peak times in blue.
The new feature is similar to “popular times” on Google, where the search engine uses real time data to tell you how busy stores are.
To use the tool, start off by Googling the specific shop you want to visit in the "maps" section of the search engine.
Scroll down past the opening hours and you'll see the "popular times" graph.
It comes as other retailers have introduced measures to control crowds following the coronavirus crisis.
For example, Aldi, Home Bargains and Tesco have all installed traffic lights at their stores which stop customers going in once a branch has reached capacity.
Sainsbury’s and Asda have trialled virtual queuing systems through apps so customers can wait in their car until it is their turn to go inside a store - eliminating any need of waiting in cold weather.
Lidl launched its loyalty scheme app last autumn, giving users weekly discount coupons with up to 20% off selected products.
Lidl Plus members will also get a coupon to activate for a free bakery cookie on their birthday.
