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  • The Whale

Best Buys - Make that money work!

I love shopping and finding the best deals. Everyone does!

But it is a real life skill to squeeze the most out of your money, and sometimes things are not what they seem.

Take this example: Two different packs of Claritin. Because... allergies.

Claritin - 30 tablets

Claritin - 50 tablets

The pack with 30 tablets is cheaper, but is it a good deal?

Amazon is kind enough to answer this for us: right next to the price, they give you the COUNT value. That is, how much each pill costs!

When you look at it that way, you see that the 50 pack is a much better deal, since the amount per pill is much less.

​But many things we buy don't make the single count obvious!

This is the SINGLE most important thing for you to do when buying groceries -- figuring out the single count of something (or, in case of liquids, figuring out how much is 50 ml or 100 ml of the liquid!)

Now, you do it!

Go on a field trip to Safeway. Select six different types of product to analyze.

One must have many units inside (such as toilet paper)
One must have liquids inside (such as the different sizes of milk)
One must be premium brands versus generic
One must have an item on promotion/special/have a coupon


And the other two are your choice.

Now, make a list of five items in each category.

You should have thirty prices in the end.

Let's compare the prices together! Answer these questions for every item:


  • How much more is each brand, if you make the units/mililiters/grams equal?
  • Which brand is the best deal?
  • Which brand is the worst deal? 
  • What is the percentage increase from the lowest to the highest? 
  • If there is a promotion or a coupon code, what is the percentage decrease on the price, and does this make you want to buy the item?

Now, go on another field trip.

You will have ten actual real bucks to spend on bulk candy. You need to buy the most candy with the money. 

What was your choice, and why? 

Enjoy your candy! :)



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