Great Buys on Back to School Supplies

Doing a search on discount school supplies on the internet will nab you countless websites advertising inexpensive back to school necessities and cheap school supplies for your student. Unfortunately, in most cases, these search results will lead you on a wild goose chase through overpriced products and websites selling everything from baby supplies to home school curriculum. So where do you find the best discount school supplies? Here are some tried and true places I've found:

Just Another Day At the Office

One of the best places I've found for school supplies is Office Max. They always seem to have a great sale on post-it notes, highlighter pens and they carry my favorite pencils, the Ticonderoga Tri-Conderoga (if you've never tried these sleek black #2 pencils, I highly recommend them). Office Max also has some great sales going on, right now, where you buy 2 and get 1 free on many of their back to school supplies. Another bonus is that they have some great additional coupons for Payless shoe stores (because your children are bound to need new shoes too). If your state is eligible, they also offer a tax break on back to school supplies. Tax breaks are always a great thing.

Not one to shake a stick at, Office Depot is also having their own back to school sales right now - and they have a great bonus incentive. If you buy at least $10 in school supplies... you get a free backpack! Now that's something you don't see every day - backpacks are often one of the priciest back to school basics your child will need.

More Than Just Groceries

I'm always caught off guard by some of the great sales you can find on school supplies - right at your local grocery store. In the past, I've found deals where I could pick up 20 spiral notebooks for $5, composition notebooks for only 50 cents each, and paper subject folders for as little as 10 cents each. Be sure to check those weekly fliers for your local grocery stores (drug stores too). You'd be surprised at some of the great buys you can get there.

Resale Shops, Consignment Stores and Thrift Shops

While you aren't likely to be able to find reams of paper or Bic pens here, these are often great places to pick up needed school supplies like backpacks, compasses, protractors and their ilk. If you don't have the money for a computer right now, you can usually find inexpensive typewriters here as well. You'd be surprised what all can be found, just browsing around through these stores - many people will purchase things, never use them and donate them even though they've never been opened. Another great find at thrift stores? Dictionaries and other important school books. Just the other day, I found a great thesaurus, several nice hardbound dictionaries, and a complete reference guide to American History - all of them priced at $1 or less.

There are a lot of discounts to be had, if you're willing to shop around. This time of year, I usually avoid the big name discount stores and, instead, favor places like dollar stores and less-frequently traveled supply stores for some great sales. Give it a try - your pocketbook will thank you!