Cheapest stores in New York for back-to-school supplies: Study
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NEW YORK (PIX11) -- With back-to-school season in full swing, parents are looking for budget-friendly deals on essentials.
To help families with their back-to-school shopping, a team at CashNetUSA compiled a list of the most affordable stores in New York for purchasing essential supplies.
The team manually gathered prices for 52 essential school supplies for elementary, middle, and high school students from 26 national and regional retailers. They then calculated the total cost of supplies for each age group at each store.
Here are the cheapest stores for back-to-school supplies, according to the study:
| Store | Elementary school supplies cost | Middle school supplies cost | High school supplies cost |
| Walmart | $40.23 | $35.59 | $30.07 |
| Dollar General | $44.58 | $45.75 | $39.42 |
| Target | $51.41 | $47.45 | $39.19 |
| Office Depot | $63.50 | $66.05 | $56.39 |
| Staples | $87.83 | $77.12 | $57.22 |
| ACME | $138.18 | $157.80 | $140.12 |
The team also found the stores with the best prices for essential items.
| Supplies | Cheapest store | Best price |
| 3-ring binders x3 | Walmart | $11.64 |
| Backpack | Dollar General | $5 |
| 24-pack colored pencils | Dollar General | $2 |
| Scissors | Walmart | $1.96 |
| Pack of graph paper | Meijer | $1.79 |
| Dividers | Target | $1.42 |
| Compass | Many stores | $1.29 |
| Basic calculator | Walmart | $1.12 |
| Blue or black pens | Dollar General | $1 |
| Glue sticks | Dollar General | $1 |
| Highlighters | Dollar General | $1 |
| Protractor | Many stores | $0.99 |
| Spiral notebook | Walmart | $0.97 |
| Scissors | Target | $0.75 |
| Erasers | Meijer | $0.74 |
| Loose leaf notebook paper | Target | $0.74 |
| Index cards | Walmart | $0.72 |
| Pencil box | Walmart | $0.57 |
| 24-pack crayons | Dollar General | $0.50 |
| Two-pocket folders | Office Depot | $0.50 |
| Ruler | Staples | $0.46 |
| #2 pencils x10 | Target | $0.41 |
The first day of the 2025-2026 school year will be Sept. 4. Click here for the full school calendar.