Bulk buying can save you over $1,000 a year – if you avoid the traps

Walking out of Costco with a 10-kilo tub of peanut butter may feel like a win, until half of it goes unused and ends up in the bin.

Same with that five-kilo beef mince, eight-kilo bag of rice and 200-pack of toilet rolls.

The truth is, bulk purchasing grocery items doesn’t mean automatic savings. Without a clear strategy, buying in bulk can quickly transform from a budget-saver into a sneaky money pit.

Here are the most common bulk buying mistakes people make, and simple solutions to get the most out of your mass purchases.

1. Buying bulk items that aren’t cheaper than standard size

Not all bulk purchases offer the lowest prices, Margaret Rafferty from consumer group Choice warns.

Choice recently analysed 80 bulk purchases at Costco, Amazon, Officeworks, and Woolworths Everyday Market, and found that some were more expensive than standard sizes sold at Coles and Woolies.

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This was the case with a 10-pack of Tim Tam biscuits purchased through Amazon for $69.99, which were 85 per cent more expensive than buying single packets at the supermarket, she said. This was also the case for Viva paper towels.

“You can’t trust that you’re necessarily going to get a good deal just because you’re buying lots of it,” she said.

“So you’ve really got to pay attention and unit pricing is the only way to do that. It’s as boring as all get out, unfortunately.

“And especially when you’re buying from somewhere that isn’t a conventional supermarket. You may not get the unit price displayed.

“So you need to be doing those calculations yourself, or else you are at risk of being misled.”

2. Purchasing products you won’t use

There’s no point bulk purchasing items you don’t regularly consume or use, she said.

“If you are buying an enormous tub of butter or a giant bucket of cheese from Costco, you’ve got to make sure you’re going to use it.”

That means focusing on bulk purchasing items you use regularly, and making a plan to use them up, including meal plans.

One nine.com.au reader described buying bulk beef mince packs from Costco and portioning it out before freezing it, to ensure it is stored safely and easy to use.

Rafferty also said to avoid treats you may consume too much of, including a multi-pack of Tim Tam biscuits you love to much to portion out, or that tempting bucket of M&Ms.

3. Not storing purchases correctly due to a lack of space

Purchasing in bulk requires a lot of storage, something many families don’t have much of.

“A lot of people live in smaller homes and apartments these days,” Rafferty said. “You might have got a great living on 64 rolls of toilet paper, but if you don’t have anywhere to put it, it’s just going to be a pain in the neck.”

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This challenge has been confirmed by a nine.com.au reader who told us they regularly bulk purchase items but struggle to store them.

“I get loo rolls from Who Gives A Crap and my whole bedroom cupboard is full of them. And under my bed is full of crates of Coke Zero as we order lots when we do a once a month online order.”

One reader has better luck with theirs.

“My kitchen cupboard is chock full of country ladle tin soup, I live off that stuff during winter,” they said.

“The tins are super easy to stack which makes them easy to store.”

4. The Costco caveat

The Choice analsyis found Costco prices were typically lower per unit than other retailers, but pointed out that shopping at Costco requires customers pay an annual membership, which needs to be factored into the budget.

“For many people, unless you’re buying a lot, buying bulk, if you’ve got a big family, for example, or you do a lot of entertaining, there may not be the value in having a Costco membership,” she said.

In Australia, a basic membership at Costco costs $65 per year, while Executive memberships which include a two per cent annual reward cost $130 per year.

Buying in bulk via Amazon, Officeworks, and Woolworths Everday Marketplace doesn’t require a membership, but can come with delivery fees.