Our Frugal Happy Life: Buy Price Series: Part 4

If you missed the beginning of this series about buy prices, be sure to catch up:

And one last friendly reminder:

1. These are my buy prices!

2. Your buy prices will be different!

3. Buy prices are constantly evolving.

The final part in this series will look at my buy prices for health and beauty products.

Health Products

::Eye products

Contact solution: I honestly have no idea. I haven’t bought contact solution in a year or two due to stocking up at drugstores. I also get sample bottles quite often. I have used Target’s brand of contact solution in the past and it worked just fine, for less than half the cost of name brand solution.
Eye drops: For regular contact rewetting drops, I aim for 1.00-2.00 per bottle. Allergy eye drops are more like 4.00-4.50 (I very rarely see deals on this kind of eye drop).

::Medicine

Allergy medicine: We use Zyrtec and I usually aim for 0.10 or less per pill. I have no problem using store brand (in fact, I’ve never used name brand!).
Vitamins: I think 0.05 or less per pill is a good goal. We almost always use store brand vitamins, too.
Pain relievers: Right now, we won’t need pain relievers for a long time because of all the Excedrin offers! Otherwise, I usually buy the huge bottle (like 500 ct.) of store brand acetaminophen or ibuprofen for around 10.00.
Antacids: I used to be able to get Rolaids for next to nothing, but since all of the recalls, that hasn’t happened. Now, we’ve just been buying store brand.
Here’s our theme for medicine: store brand!

::Oral Care

Toothpaste: Free – 0.25 for Colgate (what I use). 1.00 or less for Crest with Scope (what my husband has to have… J).
Toothbrushes: 0.50-0.75 for a basic manual toothbrush.
Toothbrush replacement heads: 20.00 for the 3 pack of Oral B heads.
Mouthwash: We are Listerine snobs! I usually watch for rock-bottom sales or clearance on it. 2.00-3.00 for the average size bottle is probably a good goal. I used a Groupon back in September to score a great deal on Listerine and Head & Shoulders (also an expensive but necessary product!)

Beauty Products

::Body wash and lotion

Body wash: If you play the drugstore game, body wash is “free” almost every week! If you don’t play the drugstore game (like me), it will cost more. I’d say 1.00-2.00 for regular size of most kinds of body wash is fine.
Lotion: 1.00-3.00 for the average size bottle. It really depends what kind you need or want.

::Deodorant

Men’s: 0.50-1.00 (usually Right Guard).
Women’s: 0.50-1.00 (Sure or Ban). I will pay more for Soft ‘n Dri, because it works better.

::Facial products

Cleanser: free to 1.00. (I haven’t bought cleanser in a long time!)
Moisturizer: 2.00-3.00. (I very rarely use moisturizer, so one bottle lasts a long time.)
Make-up: 4.00-5.00 for liquid foundation or loose powder. 2.00-3.00 for mascara. I’m extremely minimal when it comes to make-up.

::Feminine products

Tampons: 1.00-2.00 for 36 ct. package (any brand). I stocked up with drugstore deals last year.
Pantiliners: less than 1.00. Walgreens usually has good deals about every other week.

::Hair products

Shampoo & conditioner: 1.00-2.00 for name brand shampoo (for me); 2.00-3.00 for Head & Shoulders (for my husband). Again, if you do the drugstore game, shampoo is “free” quite often. If you don’t, watch for sale and coupons. I’m not brand loyal – I just use whatever. If I get desperate, I’ll buy basic Suave for 1.00 at most stores.
Styling products: 0.50-1.00 for hairspray; 1.00 for mousse or gel.

::Shaving

Men’s and women’s razors: I try to watch for rebate deals. Most of the time, it’s cheaper to get a whole razor, rather than replacement blades, depending on how the deals run.
Men’s and women’s razorblades: See notes on razors above. If you do buy replacement blades, I recommend watching for a Buy One, Get One Free sale, and combining that with coupons.
Shaving cream: 1.00-2.00 for any brand.

Are there any items I missed in this series? How do your buy prices compare to mine?