Guest post from Liz of The Quick Journey blog
As a wife and mom who is trying to save money for our family, trying “off-brand” products sometimes makes me nervous.
Will the off-brand items be as good?
Will they taste the same?
Will the products hold up as well as the name brand?
Those are all questions I have when I am about to place a cheaper branded item in my shopping cart.
If you shared these same concerns, I wanted to share a few off-brand items that I feel are equal, or better than the name brand items. These are items that I will buy without hesitation because I have had such good success with them in the past. These are items that taste yummy, hold up to wear and tear, and perform really well despite the lower price tag.
1. Diapers
I am super picky about what diapers I use — I like a diaper that holds moisture well and doesn’t get saggy.
After diapering four kiddos (one is still in diapers), I will choose Target brand diapers every time. I much prefer them to the name brand diapers and the lower price point coupled with coupons and the Cartwheel app… you can’t go wrong!
2. Plastic Baggies
When I have snacks and food inside a plastic baggie and then shoved in a full diaper bag, I need those baggies to stand the test of time! There is nothing worse than cleaning smeared PB&J out of a diaper bag.
My favorite, go-to, baggies are the Boulder brand from Aldi. I have tried every version and size of their baggies and they are just as good, if not better, than the name brand.
3. Paper Towels
As I mentioned above, I have four kids, so there are a lot of messes happening in my house on a daily basis. While we like to limit our use of paper products, there are just times that require a paper towel.
I used to be a huge fan of the name brand towels that cost an arm and a leg, but I now use the Walmart Great Value brand of paper towels as I find them to be very durable and long-lasting when scrubbing yucky messes.
4. Canned Goods
I have found, after much trial and error, that canned goods, like soups, veggies, fruits, sauces, are pretty much all created equal. If you are new to off-brand buying, canned goods is a good place to start! Definitely do your pocketbook a favor and save your pennies by buying off-brand canned goods.
These are just a few of the off-brand items I but to save more at the grocery store!
What off-brand items do you buy?
Liz is a stay-at-home momma to her four kiddos. She enjoys cooking, drinking a piping hot cup of coffee, and reminiscing with her “high school sweetheart” hubby. She shares her journey through motherhood on The Quick Journey blog.
Sara says
Very funny about diapers when the kids were young. It was pampers for the boys and huggies for the girls. When it was time to potty train I used just the cheapest walmart brand then switched to cloth training pants. I will use anything from our Aldi. We have Ruler which has Kroger brands and I like those as well. Which every is less expensive
Aliesha says
I can’t think of very many things that we buy “name brand”! I’ll also vouch for Aldi zip lock bags. 🙂 We buy Cottonelle TP, but everything else is from Aldi (name brands hidden under their store label) and off brands! Great post, Liz!
Randi says
In order to reduce costs and to help the environment a bit (but honestly my motivation was my checking account) my hubby and I went to walmart and grabbed the cheapest pack of white wash clothes we could find. For a pack of 20 it was $3.88. We grabbed 3 and those are our napkins, cleaning clothes, spill-picker-uppers, dust rags, etc. The kitchen ones and household cleaning ones (dusting and others that might come in contact with a cleaner) are kept separate but all I do is wash them on hot water with a bit of bleach and done! I love that we don’t have to buy paper towels any more 🙂
Jen says
I buy 95% of my grocery and household products off-brand. Most products I buy at Aldi, and then I buy a lot of store brand products from our regional grocery store, Meijer. Medications, canned goods, cereals, pastas, baking supplies, nuts, chips, snack items…the list goes on. I don’t mind store brand paper towels, but I do buy name brand toilet paper and facial tissues when they are on a big sale. Buying off brand allows us to stick to a $55 per week grocery budget!
ann says
We prefer Publix oatmeal (old fashioned) to the name brand. It’s something I would have never thought could be different, but my husband doesn’t even want me to buy the name brand when they are on sale 🙂
Ashley says
I don’t like the Aldi ziploc. It’s really hard to get them to seal.
[email protected] says
I, too, loved the Target brand diapers for my two boys!! I pretty much only grocery shop at Aldi and love their products!! Favorite name brands Kraft Mac n Cheese and Dean’s french onion dip! 🙂
Ryan says
PEANUT BUTTER:
I love Target’s market pantry natural peanut butter, it is just peanuts and salt. It used to be sold as Shurfine at my local grocer, but they stopped selling it there and I thought I’d never eat peanut butter again.
Marshmallows:
I also like Shurfine marshmallows better than name brand, they seem denser to me. This is great for people that toast them, peel the toasted part, eat the peel, and toast the leftovers again.
White chocolate:
Aldi’s sells white chocolate bars that actually have cocoa butter in them instead of palm oil. This makes a big difference in taste to me and all the name brands stopped using chocolate.
Rootbeer:
I like big K rootbeer from Kroger better than name brands, except A&W 10.
Theresa L says
I buy so much off brand stuff. I love almost anything from Aldi brand! I buy condiments off brand. We go through so much ketchup and my kids don’t care if it’s Heinz or not, as long as it’s red! LOL
Nate @ Frugal Soldier says
I love this list of off-brand items. I especially agree with the paper towels. I use off brand paper towels all of the time and cannot see any difference. I also do the same thing for trash bags and so far so good. Thanks for sharing these awesome ideas.
Jennifer says
I have found that I prefer store-brand items over name brand, especially for things like peanutbutter, graham crackers, juice, cheese, rice and bacon. However, the one name brand I always buy is Fiber One cereal. It’s the only high fiber cereal I don’t have to choke down. And it packs a nutritional wallop-14 grams of fiber per half cup, zero sugar and 60 calories.
Also soy sauce I always buy name brand-Kikkoman is the best. The store brands don’t have the same rich flavor and often have significantly more sodium.
karen b says
first I didn’t read the other comments….so I’m sorry if a repeat……I use a lot of Kroger brand stuff & really like them, but some of the new psst brand my family doesn’t care for at all………..we do not have an Aldi close by so don’t shop there……..we do use other off brand items from other stores also & most you can’t tell a difference.
A word of caution on diapers…….be very careful if your children start to break out STOP use right away….very, very dangerous. We could not use off brand diapers & only one brand of name brand…….our children were highly allergic to most of them. We learned the hard way on this….& very scary. I am not willing to share the brand because others may have struggled w/ that one 🙂 I will say our children are now all teenagers & survived the uncomfortable bottoms that they endured by their parents trial & error 🙂
Leigh says
We too had problems with all brands of diapers but one name brand. My oldest has a lot of allergies and the diaper reactions started from birth. When my second child reacted to diapers in the hospital, we switched right away to what worked for out oldest and haven’t looked back.
Ramona says
I have a few products at Aldi that I like. I buy the Baker’s Choice Baking mix. I think it tastes just like Bisquick. The Savoritz buttery round crackers taste just like Ritz crackers and the Casa Mamita chunky salsa is preferred over all the other brand name salsas I have tried. I have Wegmans near me and all these products are much cheaper at Aldi.
L says
I used cloth diapers, too, for two of my children but I did use Luvs during the day for one of my children (found lots of coupons for them at that time) and either Pampers or Huggies at night. I do think the store brand diapers have come a long way since my children were little.
I always buy store brand medicine and children’s vitamins without noticing any difference …. except the price.
I also buy store brand paper products, toilet paper, paper towels, etc.
I do buy some store brand canned goods depending on what it is…but certain cereals and ketchup the family seems picky about.
Tessa says
I am an off brand girl but my mom gave me some good advice of the three things she never bought generic of: tampons, tuna, and toilet paper. I still laugh when I think about it.
Diana says
We have had pretty good success with “Everyday Essentials” which is the store brand for two of our local major super markets.
Lana says
If you have Ingles Stores their Laura Lynn brand is very good. Anything from their dairy line is excellent. Most anything Aldi is good but I do not like their ziplocs. I watch for sales and coupons and buy name brand ziplocs.
Christine says
My husband loves the Food Lion brand for lots of items. He once was looking for a certain flavor ice cream (from Pet brand I think). And the guy at the frozen food helping us said that their generic was actually the same as Pet. We bought some and it tasted exactly the same!
Kathy says
We buy off brand for lots of things if we need something now and can’t wait to pair a sale with a coupon. That being said there are a few things that I will pay for name brand every time. Velveeta is not good in generic. Name brand only in this house.
Emily says
I prefer Sam’s Club toilet paper and trash can bags to name brands. Especially the trash can bags – they fit much tighter than say Glad. I also like the local supermarket brands on a lot of things.
Chris says
Sam’s Club has the best toilet paper, trash can bags and cleaners. The only exception is their dishwashing soap. I have to use 3x as much as I would Dawn, so I think I’ll just go back to Dawn and water it down a bit.
Misty Nicole Overstreet-Roberts (The Lady Prefers To Save) says
I generally buy off bands when app or coupons deals are not available, as generally I can find better deals couponing, than just buying off brand products. I would however like to offer that I created several weeks of weekly menus on my blog, using all off-brands from my Dollar Tree, and was able to cook, and even freezer cook a weeks worth of meals for four, for under $30.00, and for that reason, I love buying off brands at the Dollar Tree.
Kimberly says
I usually don’t have a problem buying generic brand. Right now I’m really loving walmarts brand of pull-ups and sams toilet paper! I’ve heard good things about targets pull-ups and diapers but haven’t used them yet. I used and loved huggies diapers for the early newborn days and bought generic after that. Saying that, there are things I have to buy name brand though. No compromises on hefty trash bags, bounty paper towels, glad or ziplock freezer bags, and pampers sensitive wipes! I’ve have leaky bags, torn and ripped trash bags, too thin paper towels, and I’m a wipe snob. It’s worth it to me to buy those things name brand and save on everything else!
Kristie says
I have to admit that I am picky about toilet paper and diapers too. We also love Charmin basic. I hate toilet paper that balls up when you wipe, personal pet peeve, and Charmin seems to be the best for not doing it. We get it cheap by buying it in bulk from Staples when they have great coupons and a sale. Diapers are different story…we use Target but….we have a lot of night time leak throughs so I’m not entirely happy with them. If price was no issue we would be a Pampers family. They work best on my kids.
Anya says
Target now carries their own line of nighttime diapers. They work just as well as Huggies overnights in my opinion.
Need A Nap2 says
You might use Target during the day and the special “overnight” diapers at night. 🙂
Amber Fowler says
We often buy Fisher Price brand overnight diapers in bulk, off of Amazon. They are priced competitively, for overnights, and they work sooo well! I started using them when we were having repeated leaks, with Huggies Overnights. 🙂
Rose says
My sons would always leak through overnight diapers, no matter the brand, until I put them in a larger size diaper at bedtime, regular diaper not overnight. I used Pampers for newborn and into size 1. Then switched to Target brand and Sam’s Club (these start at size 3).
I buy a lot of off brand items, except ketchup, orange juice, hotdogs, and dish soap.
Ashton says
I buy mostly Kroger brands such as: Kroger, Psst, Private Selections, and Simple Truth. I love Kroger brand sliced cheese, and Private Selections bread. Psst is really cheap stuff, I liked the tomato sauce, but the canned biscuits exploded in the fridge. lol. The Simple Truth brand is really good, and makes it more affordable to buy organic products. I did really dislike Kroger’s version of Club crackers. They taste like cardboard. For certain items I like the name brand better, and usually try to combine a sale with coupons for those items. I like Dawn dish detergent, Tide detergent, Snuggle fabric softener sheets, Fage yogurt, and Diet Coke with Splenda.
Amanda says
One thing I hate to buy generic is Ritz crackers. My picky kiddo won’t eat broken ones and the generic one seem to break more easily. So I think it’s more cost effective for me to buy the name brand!
Amanda says
I love the Target and Walgreens brand diapers!
Amie says
I have no problem with generic brands, but I find that when stacking coupons with sales, a lot of brand name items are usually cheaper for me. I do keep a small stock pile so I can wait for sales. I usually get Huggies at CVS for less than $4 per jumbo pack and by shopping grocery stores I get Campbell’s soup for $.29-.59, Hefty bags for $.49, etc. I don’t hesitate to buy store brands when they’re a better deal. One of the only items that I won’t buy is CVS diapers. We had way too many leaks.
Anna @ Feminine Adventures says
I agree! Most items you’re just paying more without getting a better product. I buy most things store-brand or make them myself. (Some things are worth paying extra for though!)
Make it myself items: yogurt, soda, body creams, desserts, muffins, breads, and yes, even tortillas (just because we love them so much!)
Store brand items (mostly Aldi): Tomato products, olives (sadly, even Lindsay has some soggy ones!), oatmeal, eggs, oils, sugar, diapers, produce, salsa, most chips, nuts, etc….
Name brand times: Coffee, toilet paper, Huggies thick wet wipes, non-homogenized milk, Daisy sour cream (it’s the only regular one I’ve found without tons of added ingredients), some chips, and NUTELLA! 🙂
Stevi says
We don’t have an Aldi or Kroger near me =( But the Family Dollar brand diapers aren’t bad (called Kidgets). I usually get all off brand stuff but a few things like Cereal (we LOVE cinnamon toast crunch!), and toilet paper. I haven’t found an off brand that is enjoyable yet =)
Jennifer B. says
Love your humor! Regarding toilet paper, have you tried the Charmin Basic brand? With sales and their coupons, I can normally buy it for a decent price per square foot and/or roll (depending on how you price match).
We used to be regular Charmin snobs (back in the days when there weren’t 14 varieties) and find the Basic to be “kind to the behind.” =)
Need A Nap2 says
The White Cloud soft isn’t bad (Wal-Mart).
Liz says
I’m with ya on the toilet paper!!! I will only use Cottonelle.
Becki @Running with Team Hogan says
I buy off-brand medicines almost all the time – allergy, cold, pain relievers, etc. That saves us a ton. I especially like to buy the kirkland (costco) brand of medicines. I have never noticed a difference in the off-brand medicines versus name brand (and often they are labeled gluten free which we need in our home).
Lots of off-brand products aren’t labeled as well for their gluten-free status, but I love it when an off-brand is labeled well. 🙂
I personally have never had success with off-brand diapers, but I think every child is different in what they need.
Guest says
We use off-brand medications also. Great way to save money!! Often the Dollar General brand is about half the name brand price.
Diana says
My kids prefer the kirkland’s version of zyrtec over the name brand. They gag on the name brand! lol
Stephanie says
Target diapers really are the best! And the target sensitive skin wipes are great too.
I buy tin foil at dollar tree. Works great and is 1/3 the price.
Krista says
That is the exact diaper/wipe combo that we use! We LOVE LOVE LOVE them!!!!
Nicole says
I love off-brands and usually don’t buy the name brand. I shop at Aldi for everything except meats and produce (it doesn’t last but a day or so every time I buy produce there). At other grocery stores I usually buy their brand no question on meats and other things. I cloth diaper but usually have my son in a regular disposable at night (too wet for the cloth!) and love Wal-Mart’s brand – they are nice and structured and fit really well. I found Target to be too small and flimsy for my son, although I know other mamas that love them best (like you!). I think each kid’s bum is different. But off-brand definitely works!
Liz says
That is sooo true, isn’t it? Every kiddo is different. I cannot stand “saggy britches” and I think Target is the best at preventing that for my kids. My sister preferred the Wal-Mart brand diaper for her two children. I cloth diaper, too, so we use disposables when we go out-and-about and at night time. Thank you for your comment!!! 🙂
Maria says
One time we had a Kroger brand of canned corn, and the can was 2/3 full and only about 1/2 the can had corn in it. I’ve noticed IGA brand frozen veggies (and some off brand canned) will have stems or end pieces in them. Hubs thinks the cheaper brands of canned tomatoes and their products taste more acidic. With instant oatmeal, the oats are noticeably bigger in the name brands than the generic. Food-wise, we generally stick with generic brands, but if there’s a sale and it’s only a difference of a few pennies, I’ll get name brand. Laundry detergent and liquid dish soap it’s always generic; everything seems to clean the same for us (no matter what brand, I have to pour detergent directly onto my skillets to get the grease out every time). With both kids, we got Parent’s Choice newborn diapers at their births, and every diaper felt like there were pebbles in them when they got wet. I can’t ever recommend those. TP and paper towels we order giant boxes from the same company my husband orders from for his work. The TP is great; the paper towels, I could take-or-leave.
Diane says
I prefer CVS brand garbage bags. They are very durable and less expensive than name brand, especially when they have a BOGO sale or % off coupons.
Liz says
Good to know!!! Thanks, Diane!
angie says
I love dollar general cleaning products work great for us, and we did clothe diapers at home and Luvs on the go!
Sarah says
Aldi zip-lock bags are fine for regular storage, but my experience with the freezer bags is that they pop open in the freezer or refuse to seal–back to Great Value brand for those.
Liz says
I have never had trouble with Aldi bags doing that, but I will have to keep my eye on it! I would hate to have a mess on my hands from a bad seal. 🙂 Thanks!
The Coupon "High" says
Don’t forget that many stores offer Store Brand Guarantees if the quality and taste don’t meet your expectations. I know that Aldis and Giant Eagle do.
Liz says
YES! I forgot to mention that! Thank you.
Margaret says
Funny because in Texas, two of those items are items I specifically won’t buy off brands. Diapers I have but almost always regret it. Have had and currently have kids in diapers. Three of them. Tried every generic and ok with cvs brand but still not great compared to huggies and especially pampers. Will never buy luvs or kroger brand. Etc.
The other is paper towels and despite trying multiple brands, it is one of the few things I only buy name brand. Bounty is head and shoulders tougher (but still soft) than the others.
Otherwise I think I am generics almost all the way.
Margaret says
Oh and oj. Minute maid is the only one that tastes fresh and not bitter.
Liz says
I love how soft pampers are, but they seem to get saggy on my kiddos really quickly. Maybe my kiddos are heavy wetters?!?! I do love pampers for the first few months, though. 🙂 I used to be a Bounty girl, all the way, but I find the Great Value brand works great for us. Thank you so much for your thoughts and for helping the other “grocery shoppers” out!! 🙂
Need A Nap2 says
Which Great Value? There seem to be different ones and I’m afraid to pick b/c I’m afraid I’ll waste my money since I love Bounty.
Liz says
I use the “strong and absorbent” paper towels. They might not feel as thick as Bounty, but they are strong and I don’t feel like I need to use more than I regularly would. I was a firm Bounty buyer, as well, so give these a try and see what you think! 🙂
priya says
Did you try pampers cruisers? They perform much better than swaddlers when it comes to soaking and sagging. Also, they are a little cheaper than swaddlers. I love cruisers.
Heather says
My mom recently switched to Home 360 (found at Food Lion) brand paper towels and says she won’t go back to the big “B” brands.
Becky says
I have found that Kroger brands are very good.
Tammy C says
I love Kroger brands.
Liz says
We don’t have Kroger brands where I’m from. Bummer. Thanks for sharing, though. 🙂
karen says
Same here. When I shop Kroger, I find my cart filled with more store brand items than anything else.
ann says
I used to work for Kroger. If you try a Kroger brand and don’t like it, you can take the unused portion back to the store and get the name brand for free! I think that’s a no-risk way to try a good store brand!
Barbara says
A word of caution: some years ago, Consumer Reports did a survey of off-brands, and found some regional variation. Specifically, they said that off-brands in the Northeast were less likely to be of the same quality as brand-names. My own experience in New Jersey is that Shoprite’s own label is often very poor quality, and A&P/Pathmark brand varies a lot, but I love Stop & Shop’s own brand which is as good as or better than brand name.
Crystal Paine says
Such great information! Thanks for sharing!
Liz says
That is good to know! I had no idea, so thanks for sharing!!