Dollar Tree is known for its budget-friendly prices, but many shoppers assume the low cost means low quality. Dollar Tree shelves are actually stocked with many private-label products that are of the same quality as well-known brands. In some cases, the formulations and materials are pretty much identical. It’s just the packaging and label that differ. That means smart shoppers can get name-brand quality for just $1.25. Below are four Dollar Tree finds that are essentially the same as the pricey versions you’d see in bigger stores.
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LA’s Totally Awesome Multi-Surface Cleaner
- Price: $1.50
Shoppers and bloggers (like Penny Pinchin’ Mom) have tested Dollar Tree’s LA’s Totally Awesome cleaner against popular name-brand products like Formula 409 and found that it cleans grease, grime and soap scum just as effectively. They also found that the active cleaning agents in LA’s Totally Awesome are nearly identical to those in well-known multi-surface sprays.
Name-brand cleaners can cost anywhere from $4 to $6 a bottle at the grocery store, whereas LA’s Totally Awesome costs only $1.50 at Dollar Tree. The only difference is that LA’s Totally Awesome is a concentrated formula, so you’ll have to dilute it yourself with water.
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Ibuprofen
- Price: $1.25
Pain relief is one area where you don’t need to pay extra for brand names. Dollar Tree’s private-label ibuprofen contains the exact same active ingredient and dosage as Advil and Motrin.
This is because, by law, the FDA requires generic and store-brand medications to meet the same quality and efficacy standards as their branded counterparts. If you do a side-by-side comparison, you’ll see that Dollar Tree ibuprofen has the same inactive ingredients and pill coating as Advil, only the packaging is different.
A bottle of store-brand ibuprofen from Dollar Tree costs just $1.25, which works out to about 4 cents per pill, compared to 14 cents per pill for Advil. That’s three times more affordable.
Aluminum Foil
- Price: $1.75
What many shoppers don’t realize is that Reynolds Consumer Products, the company behind Reynolds Wrap, is also a major store-brand supplier in the same category. According to the company’s investor site, Reynolds manufactures private-label items alongside its flagship Reynolds Wrap brand.
In other words, some private-label foils, including the ones at Dollar Tree, may be manufactured by the same company that makes the nation’s best-known brand. That means you can often get Reynolds-level strength and durability at a lower price, just with different packaging.
Salt
- Price: 79 cents
Table salt is simply sodium chloride and whether you buy a national brand like Morton or a private-label version from Dollar Tree, the chemical makeup is the same. In other words, Dollar Tree’s one-pound boxes of iodized salt are functionally identical to Morton’s table salt. The only difference is the branding and sometimes the packaging design.
Dollar Tree Doesn’t Mean Low Quality
Dollar Tree’s shelves hide more value than many shoppers realize. Products like LA’s Totally Awesome cleaner, store-brand ibuprofen, salt and aluminum foil show that sometimes the difference between generic and brand name is just the packaging.
Editor’s note: Pricing and availability may vary depending on location.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 4 Dollar Tree Items That Are Actually Name Brand
