Buying in Bulk Could Save Shoppers 27% on Average, but Most Bulk Buyers Waste Products

Between tariffs and inflation, grocery prices are steep, and cutting costs is more important than ever. Bulk buying is one strategy shoppers can use to save money. In fact, our analysis found that consumers could save 27% on average by buying in bulk.

Here’s a closer look.

Key findings

• Across 44 common products, buying in bulk could save shoppers 27% compared to buying in lower quantities. That’s the same as when we conducted this study in 2023 and up from 25% in 2021.
• Ring Pops, paper towels and batteries are the best products to buy in bulk and give you the biggest bang for your buck. When shopping for Ring Pop variety packs, Bounty paper towels and Duracell AA batteries, buying in bulk could save shoppers 82%, 65% and 60%, respectively, over the nonbulk alternatives.
• Most Americans consider themselves bulk buyers, but waste is an issue. In a separate survey, 89% say they’ve shopped in bulk at least once, with 24% doing so often. Among bulk buyers, the primary motivations are money (60%) and saving time by reducing store trips (27%). However, only 24% of bulk shoppers say they never waste food or products, while 38% admit they often or occasionally throw away bulk purchases.
• 41% of bulk shoppers estimate they save $25 to $50 a month by buying in bulk. Over a year, that adds up to $300 to $600 in savings. To put that in perspective, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that households spend an average of $6,053 a year on food at home, according to 2023 data (the latest available). That means bulk shopping could reduce annual food-at-home spending by about 5% to 10%.

Buying in bulk could save shoppers 27%

We analyzed 44 common products from Costco, Walmart and Whole Foods, ranging from candy and snacks to cleaning products and paper goods. Across the products we analyzed, bulk buyers could save an average of 27% compared to buying in lower quantities. While that figure is the same as when we conducted this study in 2023, it’s up from 25% in 2021.

Matt Schulz — LendingTree chief consumer finance analyst and author of “Ask Questions, Save Money, Make More: How to Take Control of Your Financial Life” — says that can be significant for consumers.

“Any time you can cut the cost of anything by 27%, it’s worth considering, especially for staple items,” he says. “That’s money that’s freed up to go toward emergency funds, retirement investments, credit card debt payments or maybe even a little bit of fun. It can be a big deal.”

Shoppers could save up to 82% depending on the product

When it comes to the products that offer the most savings (among those we analyzed), Ring Pops rank first. When buying a 1.4-ounce variety pack at Walmart with four Ring Pops (as of Aug. 19), consumers spend $7.01, or $5.01 an ounce. However, buying a 20-ounce variety pack at Costco with 40 Ring Pops costs $17.99, meaning consumers spend just 90 cents per ounce.

That means buying in bulk could save shoppers 82%.

Paper towels are next on our list. While a pack of two rolls of Bounty paper towels (196 sheets) costs $14.96 at Walmart, consumers can buy a Bounty 12-pack (1,236 sheets) at Costco for $32.99. Per sheet, consumers are paying 8 cents for the nonbulk pack and 3 cents for the bulk pack, meaning they could save 65% by buying in bulk.

Duracell AA batteries also offer significant bulk savings. While an eight-count pack of Duracell AA batteries costs $9.99 at Walmart, a 40-count pack costs $19.99 at Costco. With the cost per battery boiling down to $1.25 for the nonbulk option and 50 cents for the bulk option, that means buying in bulk could save shoppers 60%.

Conversely, one product we analyzed didn’t offer any bulk savings. There was no price difference per unit between buying a 40-ounce or 24-ounce bottle of Fischer’s Honey raw and unfiltered at Walmart. Similarly, buying Head & Shoulders 2-in-1 dandruff shampoo and conditioner in bulk at Costco saves only 2% on average compared with Walmart’s nonbulk alternative. Centrum adult multivitamins (3%, with the bulk item from Costco and the nonbulk item from Walmart) had the next smallest savings.

Full comparison: Bulk vs. nonbulk pricing

Source: LendingTree analysis of Walmart, Costco and Whole Foods websites, with prices pulled on Aug. 19. Note: We pulled prices for the following areas: Bayonne, N.J., for Walmart (07002 ZIP code), Brooklyn, N.Y., for Costco (11232) and Brooklyn for Whole Foods (11238).

Bulk buying is common, but so is waste

Most Americans consider themselves bulk buyers, but many also toss what they don’t use. In a separately conducted survey, 89% of respondents say they’ve shopped in bulk at least once. Almost a quarter (24%) do so often.

Those with children younger than 18 (40%), six-figure earners (36%) and millennials ages 29 to 44 (35%) are the most likely to often buy in bulk.

Among bulk buyers, 60% cite money as the primary motivation for bulk buying — the most common response. Saving time by reducing store trips (27%) and preparing for emergencies (8%) follow.

Schulz says it’s understandable that money is the biggest motivator.

“There’s no question that people have gotten more cost-conscious, and this is yet another example,” he says. “Life is incredibly expensive in 2025 and only seems to be getting more so, so it makes all the sense in the world for people to look for ways to save money. Whether it’s shopping around, using low-interest tools like buy now, pay later (BNPL) loans, buying in bulk or any other tactic, finding new ways to save a little bit of money is never bad.”

Still, shoppers’ eyes may be bigger than their stomachs. Just 24% of bulk shoppers say they never waste food or products, while 38% admit they often or occasionally throw away bulk purchases. That rises to 51% among Gen Zers ages 18 to 28 and parents with children younger than 18.

Schulz believes waste is a very real concern when it comes to bulk buying.

“If you throw out half of your bulk purchase, that great deal wasn’t that great of a deal after all,” he says. “With that in mind, it’s important to understand how much of an item you need and how much you’ll use. Taking the time to think that through can help you ensure that your bulk-buy bargain doesn’t turn into a bust. That’s the last thing anyone needs today.”

Many bulk shoppers estimate they save $300 to $600 a year

When it comes down to it, 41% of bulk shoppers estimate they save $25 to $50 a month by buying in bulk. Over a year, that’s around $300 to $600 in savings.

For context, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that households spend an average of $6,053 a year on food at home, according to 2023 data (the latest available). Based on those reported savings, switching to bulk shopping could potentially lower yearly food-at-home expenses by about 5% to 10%.

Schulz says that could be significant, even if you struggle with the upfront costs of bulk buying.

“Bulk buying requires higher upfront costs, but it can be manageable with some forethought and planning,” he says. “One of the best ways to do that is to spread out your bulk buying over multiple weeks or paychecks. Instead of getting slammed with one huge bulk-buying bill, you can have multiple smaller ones, which should create less of a burden.”

Balancing savings with wastefulness: Top bulk-buying tips

Bulk buying can offer great savings, but only if it’s done intentionally. To ensure you maximize your budget while limiting waste, we offer the following advice:

• Use the right credit card. “A wisely used rewards credit card can increase the savings you get from that bulk buy,” Schulz says. “It might be a cobranded card from a big box store, a simple cash-back card or something else, but it can help extend your shopping budget even further.”
• Make a list. “Impulse buying can be an issue whenever you’re shopping, but it can be particularly troublesome because of the high cost and the possibility of waste associated with bulk buying,” he says. “The good news is that the simple act of making a list can make you less likely to impulse buy.”
• Share with others. If an item is a great deal but more than your household can reasonably use, consider splitting the purchase with friends or family. Pooling resources lets you capture the savings of bulk buying without taking on the risk of waste yourself.

Methodology

LendingTree researchers first compiled a list of 44 products to compare bulk and nonbulk costs:

Researchers analyzed the websites of Walmart, Costco and Whole Foods to make comparisons. To ensure we were pulling prices from the same area, we used the ZIP code 07002 (Bayonne, N.J.) for Walmart, 11232 (Brooklyn, N.Y.) for Costco and 11238 (Brooklyn) for Whole Foods. All prices were accurate as of Aug. 19, 2025.

Analysts compared the prices of the two products on a per-item or per-weight basis, calculating how much a nonbulk shopper would save by purchasing a product in bulk.

Separately, LendingTree commissioned QuestionPro to conduct an online survey of 2,000 U.S. consumers ages 18 to 79 from Aug. 4 to 7, 2025. The survey used a nonprobability-based sample with quotas to ensure representation of the overall population. All responses underwent quality control review by researchers.

We defined generations as the following ages in 2025:

• Generation Z: 18 to 28
• Millennial: 29 to 44
• Generation X: 45 to 60
• Baby boomer: 61 to 79