If you haven’t seen the many ads from Kmart, Big W and Officeworks urging you to buy your back-to-school essentials from them, you’re doing better than us.
And it’s no surprise that retailers want your money, since back-to-school is big business, with parents spending about $590 to get each child ready for the start of the year.
Every second TV ad, online banner and print ad we’ve seen in the past week seems to be telling us that the best and biggest savings can be had at one particular retailer or another.
But which retailer really is the cheapest?
We put together a list of 17 stationery and back-to-school essentials and checked the prices at three stores to work out which one would help kids head back to school stocked up, with some canteen money to spare.
The store with the cheapest basket is… Officeworks
This year’s cheapest shop for school supplies was found at Officeworks. Its basket cost $21.37, which is $4.03 cheaper than the most expensive basket.
Our basket of 17 items cost:
- Officeworks: $21.37
- Big W: $22.50
- Kmart: $25.40.
This price comparison includes the various specials available on the day of our mystery shop.
Off Target?
You might be wondering why we didn’t include Target in our comparison. The reason is that Target just didn’t have the range on offer for us to source products for the entire list. That’s also why we’ve not included any supermarkets in our comparison.
Who has the cheapest back-to-school supplies?
Officeworks: $21.37
Big W: $22.50
Kmart: $25.40
Depending on when you shop, you might not get the same specials we got, so we’ve also compared the total cost of each basket, based on each item’s non-sale price.
Officeworks still had the cheapest basket at $21.37.
Kmart was about $4 more expensive at $25.40, while our Big W basket was nearly $15 more expensive than Officeworks, totalling $36.08.
But even if the same specials we found don’t apply, it’s likely that some items will be on sale at these retailers and you won’t pay full price.
What’s in the basket?
We created a standard list of school essentials that would suit most students. It comprised:
- 5-pack HB pencils
- 12-pack coloured pencils
- 2 pencil sharpeners (with receptacle to hold shavings)
- 10-pack ballpoint pens
- 10-pack colouring pens
- Pencil case – the kind where you cut out letters to slip into the slots
- 4-pack highlighter pens
- Eraser (large)
- 2-pack glue sticks
- A4 exercise book (64 pages)
- Roll of adhesive book covering (2m)
- A4 spiral-bound notebook (120 pages)
- 2-ring binder (25mm)
- Water bottle (BPA free, 550mL or closest)
- Scissors
- Ruler (30cm)
- Correction tape.
We didn’t include a backpack or lunch box in the list because there was too much variation in quality to make a fair comparison.
Ordering online?
If you prefer to shop online rather than instore, you can choose whether to collect your order or have it delivered.
Big W and Officeworks both have free pick-up. Kmart charges $3 for orders that cost less than $20.
For delivery, Big W and Kmart will charge depending on your location – fees start from $7.90 for Big W and $10 for Kmart. At Officeworks, delivery costs $5.95 or is free to metropolitan areas if you spend more than $55.
How we did our price spot-check
We shopped at Kmart, Big W and Officeworks stores in Sydney on the same day in mid-January. We noted prices instore and then double-checked prices online. Wherever possible, we priced name-brand items rather than the stores’ own brands for a fairer comparison.
This year’s cheapest shop for school supplies was found at Officeworks. Their basket cost $26.87, more than $2 cheaper than the next in line, Big W. Kmart’s basket cost us $30.
Our basket of 17 items cost:
- Officeworks: $26.87
- Big W: $29.69
- Kmart: $30
If you’re familiar with the results of 2019’s back to school survey you might be wondering why Target was included last year but left out in 2020.
Unfortunately, even though we visited two of their stores, they just didn’t have the range on offer for us to source products for the entire list. That’s also why we’ve not included any supermarkets in our comparison.
What’s in the basket?
We created a standard list of school essentials that would suit most students. Our list included:
- 5-pack HB pencils
- 12-pack coloured pencils
- Pencil sharpener with receptacle to hold shavings
- 10-pack ballpoint pens
- 10 pack colouring pens
- Pencil case – the kind where you cut out letters to slip into the slots
- 4-pack highlighter pens
- 2-pack erasers
- 2 glue sticks
- 64-page exercise book
- Roll of adhesive book covering (2m)
- A4 spiral-bound notebook (120 pages)
- 2-ring binder (25mm)
- Water bottle (stainless steel)
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Correction tape
We didn’t include a backpack or lunch box in the list because there was too much variation in quality to make a fair comparison.
How we conducted our price spot-check
We shopped at Kmart, Big W and Officeworks stores in Sydney on the same day in mid-January. We noted prices in-store and then double-checked prices online. Wherever possible, we priced name-brand items rather than the stores’ own brands for a fairer comparison.
Shopping in-store meant we also noticed which store had the best customer service on the floor. If you want help finding specific items, you’re more likely to find staff to assist you at Officeworks – in both Big W and Kmart we were very much on our own.
Big W was the cheapest – their basket cost just $24.82, $13.03 cheaper than the most expensive store in our comparison.
A basket of 15 items cost:
- Big W: $24.82
- Officeworks: $25.44
- Kmart: $26.35
- Target: $37.85
What’s in the basket?
- 5-pack HB pencils
- 12-pack coloured pencils
- Pencil sharpener
- 10-pack ballpoint pens
- 10 or 12-pack colouring pens
- Pencil case
- 4-pack highlighter pens
- Eraser
- Glue stick
- 64-page exercise book
- Roll of adhesive book covering
- A4 spiral-bound notebook
- 2-ring binder
- Water bottle
- Lunch box
How we conducted our price spot-check
We created our shopping list of 15 items based on a variety of school requirements, taking into account availability on the day we shopped. We then compared the cheapest of each of the items across the four stores, doing our best to compare like-for-like.
We got prices online where possible, but looked in Sydney stores for the few items we couldn’t find online. We didn’t take delivery fees into account, but we did note that these sites all offer free ‘click and collect’ (some with a minimum spend of $20/$25) or delivery for between $6 and $10 in metro areas.
This year’s cheapest shop for school supplies was found at Officeworks. Their basket cost $26.87, more than $2 cheaper than the next in line, Big W. Kmart’s basket cost us $30.
Our basket of 17 items cost:
- Officeworks: $26.87
- Big W: $29.69
- Kmart: $30
If you’re familiar with the results of 2019’s back to school survey you might be wondering why Target was included last year but left out in 2020.
Unfortunately, even though we visited two of their stores, they just didn’t have the range on offer for us to source products for the entire list. That’s also why we’ve not included any supermarkets in our comparison.
What’s in the basket?
We created a standard list of school essentials that would suit most students. Our list included:
- 5-pack HB pencils
- 12-pack coloured pencils
- Pencil sharpener with receptacle to hold shavings
- 10-pack ballpoint pens
- 10 pack colouring pens
- Pencil case – the kind where you cut out letters to slip into the slots
- 4-pack highlighter pens
- 2-pack erasers
- 2 glue sticks
- 64-page exercise book
- Roll of adhesive book covering (2m)
- A4 spiral-bound notebook (120 pages)
- 2-ring binder (25mm)
- Water bottle (stainless steel)
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Correction tape
We didn’t include a backpack or lunch box in the list because there was too much variation in quality to make a fair comparison.
How we conducted our price spot-check
We shopped at Kmart, Big W and Officeworks stores in Sydney on the same day in mid-January. We noted prices in-store and then double-checked prices online. Wherever possible, we priced name-brand items rather than the stores’ own brands for a fairer comparison.
Shopping in-store meant we also noticed which store had the best customer service on the floor. If you want help finding specific items, you’re more likely to find staff to assist you at Officeworks – in both Big W and Kmart we were very much on our own.
This year’s cheapest shop for school supplies was found at Officeworks. Their basket cost $26.87, more than $2 cheaper than the next in line, Big W. Kmart’s basket cost us $30.
Our basket of 17 items cost:
- Officeworks: $26.87
- Big W: $29.69
- Kmart: $30
If you’re familiar with the results of 2019’s back to school survey you might be wondering why Target was included last year but left out in 2020.
Unfortunately, even though we visited two of their stores, they just didn’t have the range on offer for us to source products for the entire list. That’s also why we’ve not included any supermarkets in our comparison.
What’s in the basket?
We created a standard list of school essentials that would suit most students. Our list included:
- 5-pack HB pencils
- 12-pack coloured pencils
- Pencil sharpener with receptacle to hold shavings
- 10-pack ballpoint pens
- 10 pack colouring pens
- Pencil case – the kind where you cut out letters to slip into the slots
- 4-pack highlighter pens
- 2-pack erasers
- 2 glue sticks
- 64-page exercise book
- Roll of adhesive book covering (2m)
- A4 spiral-bound notebook (120 pages)
- 2-ring binder (25mm)
- Water bottle (stainless steel)
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Correction tape
We didn’t include a backpack or lunch box in the list because there was too much variation in quality to make a fair comparison.
How we conducted our price spot-check
We shopped at Kmart, Big W and Officeworks stores in Sydney on the same day in mid-January. We noted prices in-store and then double-checked prices online. Wherever possible, we priced name-brand items rather than the stores’ own brands for a fairer comparison.
Shopping in-store meant we also noticed which store had the best customer service on the floor. If you want help finding specific items, you’re more likely to find staff to assist you at Officeworks – in both Big W and Kmart we were very much on our own.
Big W was the cheapest – their basket cost just $24.82, $13.03 cheaper than the most expensive store in our comparison.
A basket of 15 items cost:
- Big W: $24.82
- Officeworks: $25.44
- Kmart: $26.35
- Target: $37.85
What’s in the basket?
- 5-pack HB pencils
- 12-pack coloured pencils
- Pencil sharpener
- 10-pack ballpoint pens
- 10 or 12-pack colouring pens
- Pencil case
- 4-pack highlighter pens
- Eraser
- Glue stick
- 64-page exercise book
- Roll of adhesive book covering
- A4 spiral-bound notebook
- 2-ring binder
- Water bottle
- Lunch box
How we conducted our price spot-check
We created our shopping list of 15 items based on a variety of school requirements, taking into account availability on the day we shopped. We then compared the cheapest of each of the items across the four stores, doing our best to compare like-for-like.
We got prices online where possible, but looked in Sydney stores for the few items we couldn’t find online. We didn’t take delivery fees into account, but we did note that these sites all offer free ‘click and collect’ (some with a minimum spend of $20/$25) or delivery for between $6 and $10 in metro areas.
Big W was the cheapest – their basket cost just $24.82, $13.03 cheaper than the most expensive store in our comparison.
A basket of 15 items cost:
- Big W: $24.82
- Officeworks: $25.44
- Kmart: $26.35
- Target: $37.85
What’s in the basket?
- 5-pack HB pencils
- 12-pack coloured pencils
- Pencil sharpener
- 10-pack ballpoint pens
- 10 or 12-pack colouring pens
- Pencil case
- 4-pack highlighter pens
- Eraser
- Glue stick
- 64-page exercise book
- Roll of adhesive book covering
- A4 spiral-bound notebook
- 2-ring binder
- Water bottle
- Lunch box
How we conducted our price spot-check
We created our shopping list of 15 items based on a variety of school requirements, taking into account availability on the day we shopped. We then compared the cheapest of each of the items across the four stores, doing our best to compare like-for-like.
We got prices online where possible, but looked in Sydney stores for the few items we couldn’t find online. We didn’t take delivery fees into account, but we did note that these sites all offer free ‘click and collect’ (some with a minimum spend of $20/$25) or delivery for between $6 and $10 in metro areas.
