Maths when shopping

Quite often, I find that larger items, for example tubs of spread, work out more expensive than buying two smaller of the same item that together add up to the same weight as the larger one. I’m always working things out in my head for the best value.

Different story, but your title made me think of my late MIL. She would go around the supermarket with me and the children, chatting away, and then get to the cashier with the exact money ready in her hand- to the amazement of all. Even in her 70s, and until the beginning of Alzheimers.

Fleurpepper, my mum too, and my grandmother. Amazing when you think of the different coins used

Not quite the same,but today in our local Tesco, I spotted a mum and her young son, (about 6 years old) counting a pack of 12 eggs as an educational aid. Great!

To make matters more complicated, we have a mixture of systems. I just looked up onions on-line at my local shop. 3 lb bags are $4.49, loose are .44c per 100 grams. So some extra calculating to do! Usually at the store there are small labels with the cost per 100/gr, but you need good eyes to read them.

I noticed raspberries are sold in pints, but are from the US, who's imperial measurements are different from ours.

Fun!

My eye automatically goes to the ‘per 100g’ price on shelves and packets etc, and I calculate the best value from that whenever possible.
Different manufacturers make similar products in different sizes and shaped packets making it difficult to judge the actual contents.

Constantly do comparisons. This week a buy 3 - 300 ml shampoos for £10. Next to them 1 - 500 ml for £4.50 therefore buy two x 500 = 1000ml for £9.00. The 3 for £10 was supposed to be a bargain.

We always read the price per 100g on the shelf ( tiny writing under the price )
You sometimes see the larger size on offer , but when you read the cost per 100g it's no cheaper than the other size .

Oh yes, I always check, the price for the weight.

Unfortunately NotAGran55 the calculations are quite often wrong on the shelf!
It drives me bonkers!

I also hate the six tomatoes for x with no weights!

I ordered a 300ml bottle of Molten Brown shower gel for £25 for my SILs birthday. A few days later I saw 3 x 100ml bottles for £18! 😟

This isn’t maths, it’s arithmetic.
And yes I do do it.
In Sainsburys, its own brand peanut butter is cheaper in small size for the same amount in one big jar. What a waste of glass and metal.

pce612

This isn’t maths, it’s arithmetic.
And yes I do do it.
In Sainsburys, its own brand peanut butter is cheaper in small size for the same amount in one big jar. What a waste of glass and metal.

Well, if we're going to be pedantic, technically arithmetics is a branch of maths!

I am fortunate, as I live in a country where all goods are clearly marked with the price for the quantity you are considering buying and the price per kilo or per litre as appropriate,

This makes comparing prices simpler.

Hellsbelles

We always read the price per 100g on the shelf ( tiny writing under the price )
You sometimes see the larger size on offer , but when you read the cost per 100g it's no cheaper than the other size .

Yes, same here although I have had to educate MrA who was of the opinion that 'biggest is best' - not always the case - always look at the price per gr/ml!

Yesterday late afternoon I was in a town where I don’t live. The bakery was selling off cakes for 50p each. I ended up with 3 scones, 3 cheese scones, 2 cream cakes, a doughnut, 3 pasties of different types plus a pack of cheese straws - all for £8. Bargain! I came home feeling very smug. I probably won’t feel as smug once I get on the bathroom scales!

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This morning it was really confusing. I wanted some mini choc bars.
They were 4 for £2, or £1.50 Nectar price.
Next to them was a pack of 9 minibars for £3.
No brainer I thought, but then , looking at the multipacks (4 or 10) of Twirls I noticed a discrepancy.
Can you see what I mean? Did you know about it already?

Obviously the bar sizes are quite different here.
The 9 pack is a 10 pack on the label though...

NotSpaghetti

Obviously the bar sizes are quite different here.
The 9 pack is a 10 pack on the label though...

You’re right about the bar sizes. , but it doesn’t mention that, does it.
In the 4pack, each bar is 136/4grams or 34g each
In the 10 pack (there are 10 Twirls) each bar is 215/10 grams or 21.5g each.
What a cheat!

In only look at price per 100 grams .

The price per 100g isn't always right though.
I was looking at something similar last week regarding small chocolate bars like these. They had three different sizes of the same bars in different packets (say 10, 9 and 6) all different prices per 100g.

Logically if there's more/less chocolate to biscuit ratio that can explain some of it but...

I always compare unit prices. It's well worth it especially with expensive items like dishwasher tablets. Be careful though because sometimes the unit price is led kg and sometimes per 100g. With tissues and toilet rolls it's per 100...

per kg...

I don't understand that last comment. Howdon you know the unit prices shown were incorrect?