Back-to-school season is here, and for parents, that means shopping carts full of supplies and a big hit to the wallet.
We all know that every dollar counts, so where can you get the most bang for your buck?
I hit the aisles -- and the internet -- comparing prices at Walmart, Amazon and Target to find out which store really gives you the best deal this year.
I used the same supply lists from two local schools -- one for third grade and one for sixth grade -- at all three retailers to find out which came out the cheapest.
Clearly, I haven’t been school supply shopping in a really long time, because some of the prices shocked me.
And so did some of the specific brand-name requests from teachers. (I’m not hating. I know the difference between a Crayola crayon and an off-brand.)
At Target, our total came out to $85.29 for the third-grade supply list and $99.30 for the sixth-grade supply list.
Then we headed to Walmart to shop for the exact same items so we could compare prices.
Our third-grade supplies came in at $93.19, about $8 more expensive at Walmart, but the sixth-grade list was $84.91, cheaper by a little more than $14.
That’s something families can keep in mind, depending on whether they have students in elementary or middle school.
It just goes to show, prices can vary depending on what you need. That’s why it pays to shop around before checking everything off your list.
We also checked out the prices for you on Amazon using the same school supply lists that I shopped with, and there was a notable difference in price.
For Amazon, the third-grade list topped out at $131.61, and the sixth-grade list came in at $122.55.
So, unless you really want the convenience of online shopping, it’s best for your wallet to hit the stores in person. And you can also consider using order pickup or delivery options at Walmart or Target, if you want to avoid shopping in-store.