Don’t let the title of this post fool you, I LOVE Amazon. I’m a strong advocate for their subscribe and save program, I would argue that Prime originals are currently better than Netflix or Hulu originals, and as a mom, it has saved me more times than I can count.
That being said, just like with every retailer, there are some things that are worth it to always buy at Amazon and then there are the things that, well, aren’t. And, that’s what we’re going to focus on today because, friends, I don’t want you spending more money on things you don’t need to.
Paper Goods:
Particularly paper towels and toilet paper. More often than not, you’re going to spend more to get these things delivered than to pick them up locally. For example, I use Viva paper towels. Yes, I have a favorite paper towel, it’s a sure sign of adulthood friends. You’ll get a better price on these things at Walmart or even Target.
Dog Food:
Before we even talk about price – let me just tell you when my sweet Zoe was still alive we setup subscribe and save for her food because during my pregnancy I was on modified bed rest and couldn’t go pick it up at the store due to its heavyweight. So, the convenience of delivery was amazing. But I quickly realized it wasn’t for me. Not only would they take the bag and put it in this BIG HUGE cardboard box (so now every month we had a big HUGE box to break down and recycle which started to make this feel less convenient.) But, also when searching around, I found Amazon just wasn’t the best price when it came to dog food. You can make out better on price shopping locally or shopping on sites like Chewy.com
Name Brand Clothing
Now don’t mistake this with clothing in general because I’ve gotten some of my fav fav fav clothing items on Amazon. But what I’m talking about is name brand clothing like Polo. You’re going to continue to get the best prices on these by shopping department stores.
Like I mentioned I have some of my FAV fashion pieces from Amazon and a lot of the Amazon brand clothing like Daily Ritual and Amazon basics are total winners and a great price.
My TOP Amazon Fashion Finds:
Cosmetics
The main reason I add this to my list is that there has been a SLEW of fake and knock offs of best belling cosmetics sold on Amazon and it’s honestly just really hard to weed those out. I actually had a friend recently tell me she bought her fav it c concealer on Amazon and couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t working as well until she returned to the listing and read reviews of people saying this was a knock off. You’re going to get a better price buying these from your local Ulta or Sephora. And, this way you know you’re getting what you’re paying for and not some knock off.
Kitchen Appliances.
Next up is Kitchen Appliances. Don’t get me wrong, buying kitchen appliances on Amazon is easy. It’s great to look at all the makes and models and compare prices and features and read all the useful reviews. But, at the end of the day, you’re VERY often going to get a better price on these things at Target, Walmart, or other department stores. So maybe do your research on Amazon but make sure to check other stores for the best prices.
No Name Electronics:
So, what I’m talking about here is things like off-brand cellphone chargers, off-brand camera batteries, etc. Often these are very cheap knockoffs and not worth your money. There’s actually a lawsuit from 2016 from Apple claiming that 90% of the iPhone chargers that were shown as “authentic” on Amazon were actually fakes and could catch on fire or even shock you. So the best advice when it comes to electronics is stick to name brands that are sold BY the name brand.
Google and Apple Products
And, on that note, another thing it’s best to avoid buying on Amazon is Google or Apple products. In general, you’re probably still going to be able to get those cheaper from a designated Apple/Google retailer. Remember Amazon has its own products that are competitors to these, so they tend to try to offer the best prices on their OWN products
School Supplies:
Amazon just can’t compete with places like Walmart or even the Dollar Tree for school supplies. The prices at Amazon can be marked up as much as 300%, not to mention, the trickiest thing about getting school supplies on Amazon is they vary widely on price. Even from day to day, the price can change by quite a few dollars. Things like notebooks can be anywhere from $4 to $12. So, while on occasion you MIGHT find a cheaper price on Amazon it really varies. And, the majority of the time the price IN-STORE is best.
Power Tools:
Last on my list is power tools. Amazon can’t compete with Home Depot, Lowes, and the other home improvement box stores that have exclusive deals with a lot of the main manufactures of power tools. Again, like kitchen appliances, Amazon can be a great place to read reviews and compare features, but when it comes time to buy consider going into a home improvement store.
And, don’t forget to check out my post on how to save money on Amazon.
