How to Buy Webkinz Without Spending a Lot of Money

If you're a parent to a school age child, I'm sure you've heard of Webkinz. They are popular among children of all ages and even adults! If you're not aware of what Webkinz are, let me give you a brief description. Webkinz are plush animals made by a Canadian company called, Ganz. The plushes come with a tag that contains a code that you enter online. The code gives you access to the Webkinz virtual world! There's games and lots of other fun things for you or your child to do!

The problem is with Webkinz, is that they can become very expensive! Once you get one, you'll end up wanting another. Each kind of pet comes with it's own special item, called a "Pet Specific Item" and a special food, made just for them, called a "Pet Specific Food". A lot of Webkinz addicts look forward to new pets that are constantly being introduced. You'll soon realize that you or your child's hobby is becoming rather expensive!

Most Webkinz retail in the United States at $14.99 and up! That's for the full size Webkinz, there are smaller animals available called "Lil Kinz", but they're smaller as plushes and online. These are slightly cheaper, but not all full size Webkinz come as Lil Kinz and vice versa. Here I will tell you how you can get Webkinz inexpensively, that way you can continue to have fun without going broke!

One way to find them for cheaper than retail, like at such stores as Hallmark and Limited Too, is flea markets! I've seen a lot of Webkinz being sold at flea markets for $12. A lot of times they even carry the new ones and sometimes even retired ones! Another great thing about buying them at flea markets other than the price is asking the vendor when they get new ones in and if they'd ever consider selling you the ones that don't sell cheaper.

If you're not too picky about which Webkinz pet you'd like, take a stop by a Walgreens drug store! Walgreens now carry Webkinz for only $6.99! Not only do you get a plush, plus a virtual code, but you also get a special tag called a "Webkinz Cares tag"! These are red tags also attached to the plush with a special code that you enter online in Webkinz World. With this code, you get a special Cares gift that contains items you can only get with the special red tag.

You also get to play a game once a day for 5 days that awards you a small gift! An added bonus is that Walgreens will often have coupons that you can use for one day online. Sometimes they're $10 off $40 and the like and you can use them to buy your Webkinz! Buy a bunch with the coupon and keep them for rainy days or for an inexpensive gift for a birthda party!

Ebay is always a great place to find things for less and this is also true for buying Webkinz! There's lots and lots of people selling Webkinz on Ebay. You do need to be careful though because with some auctions you might end up paying more than retail once you factor in shipping. However, you do have the option of buying just the codes! A lot of people like to do this because they find their house is becoming over run with the cute plushies and don't have anymore space! Some sellers will also email you the code so you don't have to pay for shipping! Another plus about buying on Ebay is some sellers also donate the plush to charities. You do need to be careful when buying Webkinz on ebay and carefully read the description, you might accidentally buy just the plush and not the actual code.

If you've only got a few dollars and feel like taking a chance, go ahead and buy a pack of Webkinz trading cards! They retail for about $2-$3 a pack and contain some trading cards along with a feature code card. You might get lucky and get a pack that contains a free online pet code card! You just enter the code online and you get a free pet, along with a feature code and some trading cards. The odds are 1 in 36 packs.

For an even cheaper way to buy Webkinz, you can go on the hunt for claw machines! Claw machines are everywhere - supermarkets, malls, etc! When you're out and about, keep your eye out for claw machines that have Webkinz! Usually it's only $.50 to play and you might win a Webkinz out of it! These do come with the plush and code as well. I've seen some claw machines that also carry the seasonal pets such as the Black Cat and Reindeer. For only $.50 they're definitely worth a try!