…to a reasonable degree, at least.
A lot of basic foods, for instance: tuna, Pop Tarts(toaster pastries), Frozen Veg, Dry Pasta.
The store brands are so much cheaper and often higher quality.
Malt-O-Meal cereal is often better than the name brand and even comes in a resealable bag.
Don’t know about the rest but canned tuna has an enormous taste difference. Try a good 10 USD can!
There’s also ethical concerns regarding sustainable fishing practices.
It’s depressing that most responses ITT ignore sustainable or compostable products that can cost a bit more. Also super depressing that people are going with the cheapest ultra-processed food options. Seriously people, you’ve got to take better care of yourselves.
We would if we could afford to
The stores I go to do not even sell $10 cans of tuna. Rich people really do live completely different lives huh.
Disagree on tuna and especially for Pasta.
For pasta if you want to have a bite to it (al-dente) and not become soft you need to get a good quality one. Doesn’t need to be a lot expensive, but typically Italian ones are safer in this front. Better ones are bronze extruded as it leaves the surface that is porous. If that is not important to you, then ignore:)
Removed by mod
As an asexual I agree.
Wrapping paper and bows/ribbons. THey’re just gonna get torn up anyway, no reason to spent a ton of money to make it fancy
Gotta love the wrapping paper so thin you can see the gift under it
My grandfather used to wrap our presents in the comics pages from newspapers when I was a kid. I loved it.
Same for me. It was easy for him to spot which gifts were from him when bringing them to our house and putting them together with the other gifts too, so that was another win in his book :)
I had some older relatives who would use the Sunday comics as wrapping paper, and I’d open the gifts carefully so I could read the comics when I was done.
I had a friend wrapping gifts in the free maps you could grab at the post office and library. Those always looked cool.
I just use brown kraft paper and some basic ribbon in a color appropriate for the occasion. I think maybe $15 in materials has given me a solid decade of gift wrapping and I haven’t even gone through half of it yet. Costs basically nothing on a per gift basis, and I get way more compliments on my wrap jobs than I did before I switched to using brown paper.
Lotion. I have eczema, and when my doctor diagnosed me she said to “just get the biggest, cheapest bottle they have. All the same stuff.”
I envy y’all with more versatile skin. Mine would turn to rash on the wrong brand.
You might be sensitive to lanolin, it’s in many skin products
pets.
When people ask which breed my cats are, I respond with the truth: Purebred neighborhood conglomerate. They’re both healthy, happy, and awesome.
Just make sure you don’t cheap out in their medical care - sterilization and any necessary vaccinations.
God’s perfect killing machine is the pinnacle of cat “breeds”. It’s heartbreaking seeing people do to cats what we’ve done to dogs with selective breeding for purely cosmetic traits.
There was a book I read called “Domesticated” that permanently changed my view on pets. The book had chapters broken out by animal and also had before/after pictures of certain animals from a century ago vs what we have now, after the influencer puppymills and such got their hands on them/inbred them to shit.
We have hideously deformed some animals that used to look much, much different a century ago, and those animals now pay a steep price in pain and life expectancy.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/617uIoOR97L._AC_UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg
Neighborhood kitty is still cute kitty!!! But they gotta be healthy kitty.
If you are looking for a companion, definitely. If you are looking for an animal bred for a specific purpose, find a reputable breeder.
You should just stop spending money in general if you can. So many responses are like “buy literal garbage like disposable decorations at the dollar store,” do not do that. Stop spending money on garbage. Every dollar you spend is damage to the environment and more power for the wealthy, just stop it. Stop spending.
Don’t buy entertainment, use archive dot org. Read more. When you like something culture you consumed, give it to somebody else so they don’t try to buy it. Pass entertainment around to your friends.
When you have to spend on things like haircuts, repairs, etc, keep the money in your social network. If you don’t cook, learn. If you aren’t a part of your local grocery distro, join it.Avoid giving corpos money whenever you can and you’ll save lots of money.
Power tools. If you are not a professional and need to buy a tool (if you can’t borrow one), but the cheap one.
I used a $30 Ryobi drill for over a decade and it was fine.
I wouldn’t even call Ryobi the cheap one, they are good quality and cost more than many others. Harbor Freight is what I’d call cheap - my rule of thumb is that very simple hand tools from HF are OK but anything complex is probably not
We needed a router for one job. My boss got a router from Harbor Freight. Burned through the brushes halfway through (same day). Swapped brushes. Finished the job.
His alternate plan (if we burned through the second set): return it as dysfunctional. As it would be same day, replacement would be natural.
I think he ended up taking it back for a refund after the job was done.
I bought a cylinder head pressure gauge from HF and took it home, didn’t work at all. When I looked at it closely I could see that it was completely missing the core valve that is supposed to be in the bottom. It was just a hole instead of a valve. Took it back for a refund next day.
This is solid advice. If you buy a cheap one and use it so much it breaks, you’ll know you use it enough to warrant a nicer one.
Ironically, it didn’t break, but when I was on the road and needed a power drill to fix something, I didn’t feel bad about dropping $500 on a new Milwaukee from Ace hardware.
But don’t cheap out on drill bits, nor should you try and use the same drill bit for like a decade without sharpening it.
Think of drill bits like a good, sharp knife. Knives cut far better and far easier when they sharp, exactly the same with drill bits. If you trying to cut something you would normally pick the right type of knife to do the job, exactly the same with drill bits.
If you driving screws or other fasteners with your drill consider better quality driver bits if you have a lot of them to drive, such as building a deck. Good quality driver bits cam out far far less and will take more torque so be faster/go in better. Using cheap driver bits is probably worse than using cheap drill bits.
Is there a sharpener you recommend? Drill Doctor?
Never tried sharpening them myself, always used a service as standard jobber bits are less than a pound to get done for you. I normally save up a bunch of stuff including saw blades and get them done at once to save on shipping at hit the low volume discounts.
However, its only worth doing on quality components, I wouldn’t pay a pound or waste my own time to get a cheap ass drill bit sharpened, I would just replace it.
My saw blades start at like £70 so paying £12 to get it sharpened is good value, but a £30 blade is not really worth it, not least for which it won’t cut anywhere near as much material before getting blunt between sharpens. Same logic for drill bills, some of my SDS ones are over £30 each, my augur bits can be over £50 each, so those are worth looking after, not going to bother for a set of 10 bits for £20.
Toothbrush. Anything you’ll use comfortably will do the job.
I have to disagree. A good electric toothbrush makes a big difference, personally.
It can, yes, but even a cheap toothbrush used properly will do the job. No need to buy brand name when the store brand will do.
This is a miopic viewpoint. It may be good enough for you but not everyone’s gums/teeth are the same. Some people are predisposed to gum disease and using a good electric toothbrush helps immensely.
Electric toothbrushes with the rotating head collect germs behind the brush head. Enjoy your tasty germ colonies…
I always clean my brush after use. Take off the top rinse and completely dry whole brush
Sonicare might be expensive but it leaves my teeth feeling cleaner. It’s like having that perfectly smooth clean feeling after a dentist visit every day. No way I’ll ever go back to manual scrubbing like some sort of troglodyte.
My dentists visits improved dramatically after getting a sonicaire
Same goes for toothpaste, apparently. I asked my dentist once, and according to her the type or brand doesn’t matter that much as long as it has fluoride in it.
as long as it has fluoride in it.
that’s the standard dentist answer for that question, except when you ask the 10th one
I thought it was 4 out of 5? 😆
We’ve been brainwashed by advertising to think that the paste and mouthwash are what matter. They help, yes, but brushing is what matters most. The toothbrush is not just an applicator.
That said, I personally find Sensodyne to work better than other brand’s product for sensitive teeth.
Air filters. For car, HVAC, etc. Branded or OEM stuff is usually overpriced.
One exception: I wouldn’t buy a noname filter claiming to e.g. be a hepa filter or haning high MERV rating - I wouldn’t trust a brand that might not be around long enough to be penalized for false advertising
Yeah, agreed. If I needed a filter for allergens I wouldn’t trust noname brand too
Wine - it is full of marketing gimmick and usually the mid range is best. The same is with whisky, rums and other alcohol.
On the other hand, at least here, is better to pay premium for craft beer.
If you like the taste, why pay more?
Depends on the country you’re in.
I think there are some really good Bourbons in the USA, but idk how they compare to expensive whiskeys.
More expensive bourbon tends to be more interesting but not necessarily more pleasant to drink. In my case it quickly becomes too fancy for my taste buds around 2-3x the price of the cheapest one. Whiskey is a bit more complicated.
For wine it is universal, but yes I can’t get decent cider without paying premium, I think that in UK it is different.
I’m in the UK and there’s definitely better cider if you’re willing to pay £5+ for a single bottle but there used to be a really cheap South African cider that was way better than the big UK brands. IDK what happened but you only seem to be able to get it online at a way higher cost now.
Cloths, headphones, handbags. Anything that’s just buying the brand.
I don’t get why I should want these high end brands when the only thing I can afford from them is plastered with their logo.
I’ve seen the Gucci tracksuit, the Jordans, the Beats, everything and I’m not impressed. Even though luxury things are luxury I don’t even agree with the luxuriousness of many of these products. For example, if I’m going to wear a Gucci tracksuit covered in the Gucci logo and using Gucci colors then it’s gotta look good first and foremost. If I’m going to hold a Hermes bag that’s not comfortable, or durable, or robust but is just supposed to look cool, then it’s gotta actually look cool! Not like something Shien could design.
And yes I am aware of the concept of buying a store of value: diamonds, expensive watches, actually rare and valued handbags. But most of the famous luxuries I see in public are not that. They’re literally a poor man’s status symbol IMO.
Why are you talking about Beats like they’re real headphones?
They are categorized as headphones
For headphones, DEFINITELY not true in my experience. There’s cheap and gimmicky (like Skullcandy), there’s perceived “luxury” brands like Beats (which aren’t actually worth their money) but then there’s brands that actually offer significantly better quality and longevity for the price, like Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, Audio-Technica and Sony to name a few.
You forgot Bose their ANC is insanely good. Sennheiser aren’t impressive to match their high price at least not the model I tried speakers are good but fitment and feel they put all the money into drivers and sound rather than comfort wait for gen 2 or 3. I tried the newest Sony 1000xm5 earbuds and headphones and they didn’t hold a candle to jabra, crapple, Bose. Only kind I tried and didn’t like was the JBL (mid brand), and Samsung buds.
I bought some $50 open back headphones a while back and they a just worlds better than anything I’d had before. Is there a step up from there that’d similarly rock my world?
My mic is pretty similar. $100 got me an SM58 and it’s wonderful. You have to basically eat it and I can peak it if I’m loud. But it sounds so much nicer than most things. I know there’s a few steps up from there. But I don’t sing so think I’m fine.
And still, Koss rocks hard with their same for twenty years headphones
Lol, Koss! I think I have a pair from 1978 floating around
Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, Audio-Technica and Sony aren’t famous luxury brands in the same way that Beats are.
huh… in hindsight I didn’t think about my position about headphones all the way through, I was just mad about the existance of beats.
sry
Generally, medications. It’s pretty rare you have some sort of specific metabolic issue which calls for the branded version; the generic is usually just as good. I have a note in my medical records to NOT give me the branded version of my meds because there’s something in the expensive ones that gives me horrific reflux, while the others don’t.
Former chef: Knives. My most expensive knife is $80 with a lifetime warrantee. Most are $10-$20. Instead, learn how to use and take care of a knife.
In my experience the vast majority of cheap knives can’t hold an edge at all. The super budget stainless used is just too soft. At the same time I can find many in the $70-100 range that do considerably better in that regard - I sharpen them 3-4 times less frequently.
I prefer to spend a little more on the 1-2 that get the most use.
I think you should get expensive knives as a convenience, or you are pushing the limits of the steel. I cook a lot, and do lots and lots of chopping to cook food for the family. There have been times I’ve fine diced 10lbs of onions in one go, on top of cabbage, tomatoes, peppers etc.
With that much chopping, anything that can’t shave like a razor is dull. That’s why I use a really nice knife, thinned, sharpened and tuned it to my preferences.
TLDR most people are fine to use any generic knife (if you lack self respect) but if those aren’t cutting it for you, get something better. No pun intended
I work in a restaurant and 10 lbs of onions lasts 36 hours. We buy the shittiest chef knife Ed Don has to offer and it’s fine. I like nice knives on a hobby level, but they’re not necessary on a personal or professional level.
Good advice but I wouldnt really call that ‘cheaping out’. You can buy kitchen knives for 2$ which you definitely shouldnt do
Disagree. My favourite paring knife came from a discount bin at a dollar store in a pack of five. You can find decent knives at a dump if to you look hard enough, depending on your definition of cheap.
If the handle falls apart then the average person cant do shit about it even if blade quality is the same as a nice one.
I have hope for the average person.
Yup. I learnt that the price tag doesn’t make much of a difference. Sharpening tools do.
I’ve been sharpening my knives for a year or so now, but last week i bought this piece of plastic with the angles for different knives on them and it leveled up my sharpening game significantly
You’ve been sharpening your knives for a year? Is there anything left of them?
Got a picture?
Knife handles are important. If you buy a cheap knife where the handle snaps while you’re using it, you’re going to get cut.
I can pay a little more for a nice forged knife, folded steel, but anything you buy at walmart or amazon is the same quality regardless of price.
Handles make a huge difference but they rarely impact price.
I refuse to get a forged knife, I demand the real thing.
Great Grampa was supposed to be buried with that joke.
Sandwich baggies. They’re dispose anyway, no need to go for the name brand when there’s usually a cromulent generic at the store.
Uhhh actually you wanna stick with ziplock brand on those:
https://www.globalfoodconsumers.org/news/toxic-pfas-in-sandwich-baggies/
Notably, previous instances have occurred where regulators permitted high levels of PFAS in packaging, only to later discover adverse health effects on consumers. Brands such as Boulder, Complete Home, Great Value, If You Care, Lunchskins, Meijer, Target, and Walgreens were among those found to contain PFAS, while Ziploc emerged as the only brand without detectable levels of the chemicals.
TIL
Video games. Unless it’s a game I play with friends I typically wait for it to drop in price significantly.
Waits and waits but Nintendo won’t budge.
Also, if you’re not going to play it this week, think twice! And, if you’re not going to play it this month, think a third time!
Also good to wait until all the bugs are worked out. Been playing Cyberpunk recently and it performs really well!
Yup. My strategy has long been:
- Put game in wishlist.
- Wait for it to drop to under 20$ (or close)
- Profit. Well maybe not profit, but save money.
