If you want to save money, don’t buy these things from the Dollar Store!
Buying things from dollar stores seems like the best way to get all the things you want without paying too much. While some items are worth purchasing from there since they’re affordable and of good quality, you might want to stick to regular grocery stores for other necessities.
First of all, the “dollar” word that’s part of the name of many stores, like Dollar Tree, Dollar General, and Family Dollar, is typically just that: a name that sounds good. Some dollar stores offer items that cost more than $1.00, and they can go as high as $5.00 each.
Believe it or not, even at 99 Cents Only Stores, you could find plenty of products that cost more than $1.00. If you want to go shopping and don’t know what items you should get from regular grocery stores like Costco, Walmart, Target, and Aldi instead of the dollar stores, keep reading to find out!
1. Pet food
If you have a fluffy cat at home and love eating Purina Kit & Kaboodle Dry Cat Food, you might want to get it from Target because you’ll find a 16-pound bag that costs $11.99, compared to Dollar Tree, which offers nine pounds of this cat food for $15.00. That’s a pretty huge difference!
We have something for your cute dog, too. A bag of 12 pounds of Purina Beneful Healthy Weight Chicken Flavored Dog Food from Dollar Tree costs at least $5 more than at Target, so you’d better avoid buying pet food from the dollar store.
2. Toothpaste
Toothpaste is another item you should purchase from regular grocery stores instead of Dollar Tree because you can get more and pay less if you follow this tip.
A 5-ounce tube of Colgate Cavity Protection, for instance, is going to cost less than $2 at Dollar Tree, compared to a 3-pack of the same toothpaste that is 6-ounce each and costs less than $6 at Walmart. Sometimes it’s worth checking the prices before adding something to your cart, right?
3. Name-brand cereal
Do you crave a bowl of Lucky Charms with some delicious milk? Then don’t go to Dollar Tree, because you’ll pay more for a box of cereal than you’ll do in other stores.
Getting a 3.1-oz bag of your favorite cereal from a dollar store is going to cost you around $1.50, but a 29.1-oz box from Walmart will be around $6.
Purchasing cereals from the dollar store is going to satisfy your cravings, but if you plan on having more for other breakfasts or your family members, you’d better get them from Walmart.
4. Travel-sized items
If you plan on going on a trip and want to pick up some travel-sized items, you should know that getting them from the dollar store is going to be a tad more expensive than at other retailers.
For instance, a 0.5-ounce size of Old Spice Swagger costs $1 at Walmart and $0.25 more at Dollar Tree. While that’s not that big of a difference, if you plan on getting multiple things, those cents will quickly add on.
Have you ever purchased travel-sized items for the dollar store? Were you content with your purchase?
5. Macaroni & cheese
If you think about getting some mac & cheese from the dollar store, you’d better not. A box of this delicious cheesy pasta is going to cost more than $1 for 7.25 ounces, and for the same box, you can pay $1.00 if you take it from Walmart.
Can you name any other items that are better to buy from Target or Walmart than from the dollar store? Leave them in the comments, because your tips might be helpful for someone else!
6. Aspirin
Next time you have a terrible headache, don’t go to the dollar stores because you won’t save any money if you get an aspiring from them. Speaking of pills and retailers, Valuhealth, a brand owned by Dollar Tree, sells a bottle containing forty low-dose aspirin tablets for no less than $1.25.
However, if you need more of them, visit Target, because they sell 100 extra-strength aspirin tablets with acetaminophen for $2.19 when you buy the Up & Up brand. A little bit more money, but you get greater strength and medication.
7. Alka-Seltzer
An issue with the Dollar Store that drives many people crazy is the fact that you can’t buy things in packs. For example, a box of four Alka-Seltzer tablets is going to cost less than $1.50, but if you plan on getting more than that, you should go to a different retailer, or you could buy more packs of 4.
However, if you go to Target and get three packs of 36 Alka-Seltzer tablets, which means a total of 108 tablets, you’ll pay around $15, which is a pretty big deal, if you ask me.
8. Dry pasta
Generic pasta is typically not that expensive in any of the grocery stores you might do your shopping from, and if you’re lucky to find this item on sale, you’ll get more for less.
Speaking of that, generic brand pasta is often on sale for two for $1, which makes it half the price of dollar store brands, so with this one, you can go to the store that is closest to your home.
If you want some delicious pasta that isn’t generic and is the same brand Italians use when they cook their delicious pasta at home, I recommend you check this offer out, because Barilla has some of the most amazing products ever!
9. Canned goods
Need to stock those canned goods for your pantry? Whether you want beans, chickpeas, corn, tomato, or tuna, you can find everything you need at your regular grocery store or at the dollar store too.
If you go to Dollar Tree, you might spend $1.25 on a can of tuna, but if you go to Walmart, for instance, and get the generic brand, you might get the same product for a bit less than that.
10. Chewing gum
I love having chewing gum in my purse or car, so I can freshen up my breath on the go. Considering that I only chew this product until the sweet or minty flavors disappear, I don’t care whether they’re name-brand or not. What about you?
Well, what I’ve learned from my experience with purchasing chewing gum is that getting it in bulk at the shop still gets you a better value, even if the difference is just one cent.
Even though dollar stores say that they sell four packs of gum for a bit more than $1, each pack only has five pieces! Getting the bigger packs of gum at any other store would be worthwhile if you could have a larger pack (typically 18 pieces) instead of carrying four at a time, so that’s why I make sure I get my chewing gum from Walmart or Target.
Do you agree with any of these things you should get from regular grocery stores because they’re more affordable there? Whether you agree with these or not, leave a comment below and let us know what you think.
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