To ask your suggestions what it's ok to cheap out on?

[lettymoo]

I recently saw a thread about things it's worth spending more on to get better quality, but I was hoping to start a discussion about what things it makes absolutely no difference at all with and the lowest priced versions are just as good.

Some of the things I'll buy the cheapest/value version of include:
painkillers
medications
tortilla chips
cleaning products (although I'm starting to wonder about this)
printer paper
disposable razors
cotton wool pads

Would love to hear your suggestions!

I always ad some proper brown sugar to things like spag bol or meatballs to sweeten it. I do but cheap chopped tomatoes to make the sauce though. Tried real tomatoes and no one liked it!

Washing powder, painkillers and mayonnaise have to be branded, anything else I’m happy to buy own brand.

In the 30 years I’ve suffered migraine, if anything is capable of staving one off enough for an hour so I can get home or get something urgent done... before I retreat to the dark room with my industrial meds; it’s Anadin Extra - nothing else comes close.

@NormaNameChange do you mind asking me what industrial meds you have that work for migraine? Are they Triptans?

I buy 90p for 500ml shampoo from Wilkos, the bottle doesn’t look too bad and it smells ok, I just don’t see the point in paying loads for shampoo, I’ve got frizzy hair so I spend a bit more on conditioner though. I don’t buy shower gel, I just use shampoo, I reckon it’s the same stuff in a different bottle.

Waitrose Essentials baked beans taste just like Heinz to me.

Pasta is the same whether it’s 39p a bag from home bargains or £1.50 from Waitrose.

I always buy the 19p paracetamol and ibuprofen from home bargains.

I buy felt backed carpet off the internet, it doesn’t need to be stretched like traditional carpet so you can lay it yourself without much bother at all, saved myself about £900 on our living room and I’m not too bothered if it gets stained as I can afford to replace it cheaply.

But norman, why does it matter what whether you buy branded paracetamol or generic? Ditto ibuprofen and nurofen

Little tip re cleaning products star drops ( the brand) are by far the best and they are £1!!!! Been around for years

I would buy unbranded for most items, although for most I would choose supermarket normal brand rather than their basics brand.

Branded products

Coffee
Diet Pepsi / Pepsi Max
Toothpaste
Some cereals

Currently using amazon subscription service for dog and cat food, loo roll, kitchen roll, tissues, dishwasher tablets, washing powder etc. We have 15% off and use their own brand stuff. So far very pleased.

Also sanitary products like someone else mentioned always used always tried Sainsbury's own and ALDI own and no difference except the price!

Re tinned tomatoes. I get them fresh off the market when they're slightly over and in season. Loads of trays for very little. I freeze them as they are and just stick them frozen into whatever. If you dip them in boiling water the skin comes off easily.

• agree on canned tomatoes (fine for me)
• don't get canned beans/chickpeas - buy them dried and soak overnight. much much cheaper (and tastier)
• cleaning products
• mooncup instead of sanitary towels
• generic medicines
• hand soap/shower gel/shampoo
• toilet roll (cheap does for me)

Dishwasher tablets
Cereal

There is equivalent to Anadin Extra in Tesco that are exactly the same ingredients and so much cheaper! It’s madness to buy the branded one. It is EXACTLY the same medicine!

I think there is a difference in chopped tomatoes too, the Pizza Express branded ones are sooo sweet and lovely.

I always buy decent kitchen roll otherwise I end up using more and it’s a false economy, same with foil.

Always buy cheap tortilla chips (but only the plain ones). Sainsbury’s Basics grates mozerella is really good too.

These are all great ideas but I’m at using shampoo instead of shower gel. They’re not the same at all and there’s a reason why we’re advised to scrub after washing our hair. The ingredients in shampoo are not kind to the skin. Generic thrush tablets are a godsend. £4 instead of £13 for canesten. Generic paracetamol and cleaning products from savers are my best cheap buys. Also highly recommend daddies ketchup. Best I’ve ever tried but I’ve never heard anyone else talk about it

dementedma I grew up somewhere where the tap water was lovely, piped directly from Wales. I moved to the East Mids and it’s awful. Full of limescale, have to Descale the kettle frequently! I’m going to get a water filter jug that can live in the fridge.

Funny thing about baked beans, DD (5yo) loves beans. I always bought Heinz..she ate own brand beans at my sister’s and said she preferred them and could we have them at home from now on!

I can’t cheap out on shower gel, I have sensitive skin. But I agree about medicines, as a general rule it’s all the same stuff and you’re paying for a brand name. Strangely though my GP practice switched from Cerazette to Cerelle, should be the same but I found the had far worse side effects on the Cerelle and had to come off it.

@pollypockett I’ve been using shampoo as shower gel for about 20 years and I’ve honestly never had a problem with my skin, I never even thought anything of it until a friend stayed over and asked for some shower gel and was a bit horrified, I had to open a bar of soap I’d been keeping in my knicker drawer to make it smell nice for her

“Guineapiglet345” that’s fair enough then! The knicker drawer soap made me

Pasta
Tinned food (beans, tomatoes, soup)
Kitchen towel
Bathroom soap

@Snuffalo I'd be careful with the lemon fairy, I know a few friends who are allergic to it (and no other soap or washing liquid).

Pretty much everything food wise.

Kids toys from aldi are great. The wooden kitchen we got DD for Christmas was half the price of even the ikea one and its great.

Also all their kitchen products have been really good. We have a blender and slow cooker from there which work perfectly

I will go cheep on
Rice
Pasta
flour
Tinned whole tomatoes ( never buy chopped )
Tomato puree
Frozen peas & corn
Some cleaning product but intend to change over to Splosh as soon as my current stock has run out.
Bottled fizzy water
Eggs ( as long as they are FR )
Fruit juice
Toilet roll but tend to go for mid ish Price range rather than v cheep

The only thing I absolutely will not go cheap on is coffee, I buy beans from Witards and grind them as and when I want a brew

oh and will go cheap on pain killers , cough medicine but not on san pro

I don't find own brand cleaning products great so I tend to buy the branded stuff but in Poundland.
Aldi dishwasher tablets used to be great but they changed them last year and everything was coming out of the dishwasher with a chalky feel to it so I buy a giant box of Finish now in Poundland instead.

I try and get cheaper everything except meat and eggs, purely becasue I've seen how battery hens are kept and and it should be banned (besides local farm eggs are generally not that much more expensive) soaps shampoo and conditioner any cheap one without silicones (they are all made of the same stuff most of the time the only difference being the bottle and the perfume)

Drogosnextwife it’s this one www.sainsburys.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/gb/groceries/sainsburys-classic-clean-anti-dandruff-s-p-300ml?langId=44&storeId=10151&krypto=YdLe2jMbhGcGs8TWWsmsixBD%2Fw8hMetU67MWgqCfLd8e1gbl17Fs5ZYMV7sV97Z4a7RbNKTBjtP6Khj2UShv0BW0Hl3Ldkevn%2BtNQObDBXxCxfUlIUUgzcOJs6dpoZA3IhNFaULa%2BrBSFDCSgb0GOOGerjXHkpVhVlzBSmmisfs%3D&ddkey=https%3Agb%2Fgroceries%2Fsainsburys-classic-clean-anti-dandruff-s-p-300ml