Where to shop to save money on school supplies

Believe it or not, summer is quickly coming to an end, and a new school year is just around the corner. While back to school is an exciting time, it can also be a busy, time-consuming and expensive time.

Thankfully, the Passionate Penny Pincher has created a helpful guide for where to get the best deals on school supplies. The cheat sheet compares school supplies prices at Walmart, Target, Staples and Office Depot. The handy sheet gives you a quick glance at where to find the lowest prices on everything you are looking for.

Overall? Walmart tends to have consistently lower prices than the rest. However, that’s not always the case! Check out part of the chart below and head to PPP to download your own printable version.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the cheat sheet, compiled to help make school supply shopping an affordable breeze.

1. Walmart Wins

Walmart seems to be living up to its reputation as the low price leader.

Let’s take a pack of 10 Crayola washable markers for instance. Walmart’s price was $2.77, while Target’s price was $3.99. At Staples you’d pay $3 and at Office Depot, you’d pay $5.

2. Don’t Forget Store Brands

Target, Staples and Office Depot have in-house store-brand items that are significantly cheaper than brand-name items.

It’s important to note that the cheat sheet focused mostly on well-known school supply brands, such as Crayola and Elmer’s, which skewed the results just a bit. Search for the in-house store-brand items when shopping at these stores.

3. What About Amazon?

Don’t worry, Amazon, we didn’t forget about you! The cheat sheet also doesn’t cover Amazon, but our sister site Don’t Waste Your Money did a search and found you should buy these 10 back-to-school items from Amazon in order to get the best price.

Plus, time is money, so if you don’t have to leave your house to buy school supplies (although your kids might protest!), Amazon can help with that too. Got Amazon Prime? Even better. That free two-day shipping is a lifesaver

4. Dollar Stores

While dollar stores like Dollar Tree and Dollar General were not included in this back-to-school cheat sheet, be sure to check out dollar stores, as you can get many school supplies at discount stores for a lower price.

5. Coupons

Also, don’t forget to factor coupons into the price! A few good coupons could change where you’ll get the best deals entirely.

Head over to PassionatePennyPincher.com to download the full cheat sheet today. Simply sign up for the the blog’s email list, then you’ll receive a link in your inbox that takes you to the cheat sheet. You can print out this sheet to take along with you on your school supply shopping trip.

Prices may vary depending on your location and weekly sales, but this chart will give you a general overview of where you can find the lowest prices.

Happy shopping!