Back to School Bargains

Every child has a list, but the return to class doesn’t come cheap, and finding the best prices can be a tough assignment. So nbc 4 producer Lauren Dunn and reporter Liz Crenshaw did some of the homework for you.

We put together a list of 15 items for a typical grade schooler, everything from pens and glue to folders and filler paper. Then we grabbed our shopping cart and hit a discount store.

We chose Target, an office supply store, Staples, and a drug store….we picked Walgreens.

We were looking for bargains and so were the shoppers we met.

“right now we are finding a lot of sales and going to different places,“ said one.

At each store, we shopped for similar supplies in similar sizes. In some cases we even found the identical product.

After checking out, we did some checking out of our own.

Take a look at some of the differences in prices with similar products.

Elmers glue, same size…99 cents at Walgreens. Seventy-nine cents at Staples. Only twenty-five cents at Target.

24 Crayola crayons: $1.99 at Walgreens. Eighty nine cents at Staples. Twenty-five cents at Target.

Child scissors: $2.99 at Walgreens. $1.99 at Staples. Eighty-two cents at Target.

Elmers glue sticks: $1.99 at Walgreens. $1.49 at Staples. Twenty five cents at Target.

Overall, when we added up our fifteen item basket, Walgreens totaled 28.26. Staples totaled 24.76. And Target…15.43.

About half what we paid for the same market basket at Walgreens.

So comparison shop, and don’t forget to keep in mind what is on your child’s mind.

The majority we talked to said they were looking forward to seeing their friends, but not the homework in the upcoming school year.

The National Retail Federation estimates back to school shopping will top 47-billion dollars this year.