3 Reasons Shopping at the Dollar Store May Not Save You Any Money

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Think you’ll save big at the dollar store? Here’s why you may want to think again. [[{“value”:”

These days, inflation is still wreaking havoc on consumers’ budgets. The Consumer Price Index, which measures changes in the cost of consumer goods and services, was up 3.5% on an annual basis in March. And so not shockingly, a lot of people are trying to do what they can to lower their spending and save money wherever possible.

You may be inclined to turn to your local dollar store as a means of saving on everything from grocery items to household essentials. But here’s why shopping at the dollar store may not actually end up saving you much or any money.

1. You may not actually get the lowest price

When you walk into a store where pretty much everything costs $1, or somewhere in that vicinity (some dollar stores have raised their base price to $1.25), it’s easy to assume that you’re getting the best price available on a given item. But that’s not always true.

First of all, if you’re buying a large quantity of a single item, you may end up with a lower price if you purchase it in bulk at a store like Costco, or even online via Amazon. Also, sometimes supermarkets run promotions that put the cost of canned or boxed goods lower than $1, making that the better bet.

Another thing you really need to be careful with at the dollar store is knowing how much product you’re getting. It may be that your local dollar store has your favorite hand soap available for $1, whereas at the supermarket, it’s $1.99. But if your dollar store is charging you $1 for six ounces and your supermarket is charging $1.99 for 13 ounces, the latter is actually the better deal. So when comparing prices, always pay attention to how many ounces of product you’re getting as applicable.

2. You may not get the highest quality items

Your local dollar store can be a great place to pick up small items, like toys for your kids as a reward for rocking a test or meeting a certain milestone (say, completing their first dance recital). But while you might spend a lot less money overall at the dollar store, you may not get the highest quality items.

In fact, let’s say you buy your child a toy robot figure for $1 as a congratulatory gift for participating in their first softball game. What may happen is that the toy breaks later that same day, forcing you to buy a higher quality replacement at Target or Walmart for $7. So at that point, you’ve basically thrown out the money that you spent at the dollar store.

3. You may be tempted to buy more than you need because of the low price point

When you’re in a store where everything costs about $1, it can be tempting to add extra items to your cart. After all, even if you make 10 impulse purchases in a single shopping trip, that’s still just $10 extra.

But that’s a trap that might really harm your finances if money is tight and you’re trying to conserve funds to pay off debt. So if you have a tendency to buy extra items at the dollar store, you may want to steer clear — either that, or go in knowing exactly what you need to buy and bring just enough cash for the item(s) in question.

It’s more than possible to save money by shopping at the dollar store. But you’ll need to be really careful with your approach to pull that off.

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The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Maurie Backman has positions in Amazon and Target. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Costco Wholesale, Target, and Walmart. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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