Save money at dollar stores

Dollar stores are everywhere, so how can you save even more money by shopping at them.  Last year Family Dollar and Dollar Tree added almost a 1000 stores for a total of over 30,000 stores.  By the way both stores are owned by the same company. This is big business and they have a lot of purchasing power.  There costs can be lower than typical grocery or big box stores on many items.   Here are some tips to save money and make sure you're getting comparable goods.

Check the ingredients 

Read the ingredient labels on foods, make sure the dollar store foods have the same ingredients and nutrition as the name brands.

Do the size math

Package size varies so make sure you calculate the unit math and compare.  For example one package may be 12 oz the other might be 16 oz.  The first package is $1.00 while the second is $1.50.  $1.00/12 = $.083 per oz and 16/$1.50 = $10.7 so clearly the 12 oz package at the dollar store would be the better deal.

Use coupons

You can use in store and manufacturer coupons at both dollar stores so make sure you check their websites before shopping.

Try the no brand or store brand product

You many find that the store brand products work just as good as the name brand.  These might be half the price of the name brand.

Check expiration dates

With any shopping exercise caution and make sure the products you are buying haven't expired.

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