One of the concepts that seem surprising to new coupon users is that coupon shoppers often find lower-priced deals on smaller packages of items, with coupons, versus using those same coupons on larger-sized items.
As shoppers, we tend to assume that buying larger sizes saves us money in the long run.
Buying in bulk, whether it’s a bale-sized package of paper towels or a family-sized box of cereal, often gives us the illusion that we’re saving money, simply because we are buying a large quantity at once.
When I shop, I take a moment to compare the item I plan to buy with other sizes of the same brand.
For example, a name-brand of laundry detergent often offers coupons for its product. The 32-load bottle is on sale for $2.99, while the 66-load bottle sells for $5.99.
When you see the containers side-by-side on the shelf, the 66-load bottle looks much larger.
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If you do some quick in-the-aisle math, you’re getting 32 loads for about $3, or 66 loads for about $6 – that’s two additional loads over buying two small bottles at the same price.
However, add a coupon to the equation, and things start to get interesting. With a $2 coupon, the 32-load bottle is now about a dollar or about three cents per load.
The same coupon used on the 66-load bottle drops it to $3.99, or about six cents per load. The coupon’s value removes a larger portion of the price of the smaller container, which also drops the per-load price to half of the larger bottle’s per-load price.
I could list similar examples for everything from cereal to packaged cheeses! While it’s a guideline and not always a hard rule, I always check to make sure I am getting the most product for my money.
Many of my readers have spotted some glaring price inconsistencies in the stores lately, proving that it’s always important to pay attention to per-pound and per-unit pricing when shopping.
Sometimes a coupon is a factor that makes a deal even sweeter on a smaller size, while on other occasions, the larger-sized product is just more expensive – even if its size makes it appear to be a better buy.
“Dear Jill,
I have something to share about the pricing of grocery items.
A supermarket newspaper ad offered 18 eggs for 99 cents. I received a mail ad from the same store in the same week with a coupon for 12 eggs for 49 cents, limit two. That equals 24 eggs for 98 cents.
Sometimes I wonder whether the right hand knows what the left hand is doing.
Ken K.”
“Dear Jill,
I had to laugh when I saw this happen at my supermarket. They had store-brand loaves of wheat bread on sale for 99 cents with a coupon from the weekly circular.
Right next to the store-brand bread on the shelf was a name brand of the same kind of wheat bread, and it was an in-store special for 69 cents a loaf. What a deal! Yet, the shelf was nearly empty of the 99 cent store-brand bread. Being that they are the same size and kind of loaf, I happily bought two of the 69 cents loaves and wondered why more people weren’t doing the same.
Trevor P.
“Dear Jill,
I plan shopping trips by what is in the weekly ad, but when I get to the store, I see items also on sale that were unadvertised.
On more than one occasion, I find a deal on sale that is better than what was advertised. For example, a 30-ounce jar of grape jelly was advertised at $8.99. The 12-ounce jars are $2.99. Now you might think that the big jar is the better buy.
Surely if you don’t like buying jelly as often, that would be true. But let’s do the math: The $2.99 jar is about 25 cents per ounce. The $8.99 jar is about 30 cents an ounce. You may go to the store less often for jelly, but you are paying more for each bite.
Phillie W.”
