economie

I took my kids shopping for school supplies at Walmart and Target. I found way better clearance deals at the latter.

August 26, 20240
The back-to-school section at my local Target was mostly gone by the last week of August.

Terri Peters

Many kids in my county went back to school a week ago, so my local Target’s back-to-school section was starting to be dismantled, presumably to make room for Halloween items.

Because of this, the shelves that weren’t completely bare were filled with half-off merchandise like backpacks, pens, and notebooks.

This included cute Barbie and “The Mandalorian” licensed merchandise and school supplies from big name brands like Elmer’s and Ticonderoga.

I spotted a few clearance sales at Walmart, too.
I found a lot of school supplies for cheap prices at Target.

Terri Peters

At Target, the back-to-school inventory was greatly reduced, but I still saw plenty of essential items, all marked at 50% off.

From PaperMate pencils to Elmer’s glue, I found many reliable, tried-and-true brands available to stock up on at an impressive price.

The PaperMate mechanical pencils, for example, retail for just under $10, but were only $5 as part of the half-off sale. I found 4-ounce bottles of Elmer’s glue that are usually $1 but were marked down to 50 cents.

My local Walmart’s back-to-school section had, for the most part, been set up for Halloween.
Some supplies aren’t essentials but are nice for students to have.

Terri Peters

My teens love personalizing their school supplies and backpacks, so I grabbed a few iron-on initial decals and tech accessories, like phone wrist straps, for them at Target.

These items would cost way more during the school year, but the 50% discount applied to them as well since they were in Target’s back-to-school section.

Finding little gems like this that would ordinarily be an additional expense (not a must-have school supply) felt like a great deal and a nice back-to-school treat for my teens.

Walmart seemed to have more supplies geared toward teachers and their classrooms.
Target (left) had prices similar to Walmart (right).

Terri Peters

Most of the items I checked, like an eight-pack of Expo dry erase markers ($10), were priced similarly at both stores.

A 10-pack of my daughter’s favorite PaperMate InkJoy pens were around $12 at both stores. Staples like filler paper ($1), plastic pencil boxes ($1), and 12-packs of glue sticks ($6) were all priced the same at Target and Walmart.

I’d have expected Target to be a more expensive place to shop for school supplies since Walmart is famous for discounts. But Target held its own — I saw no huge difference between prices at the two chains.

I recommend visiting Target during its back-to-school clearance if you can — it’s a great time to stock up.
My Target had some school supplies on clearance in late August.

Terri Peters

Prices and availability can certainly vary, but on my trip, Target held the biggest savings due to the 50%-off clearance deals on its back-to-school section.

Although the end of August is a bit late for many back-to-school shoppers, these supplies are rarely purchased once and often need to be replaced or restocked.

So, I recommend taking advantage of end-of-season deals — especially the ones at Target — to stock up on essentials your kids will need throughout the year, from notebooks to pencils.

Based on my experience, the best time to find these clearance deals at Target might be about a week after school starts in your area.

Just move quickly because spooky season is rapidly taking over at both chains, making back-to-school sections obsolete until next year.