# How Do You Find the Cheapest Toilet Paper? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 13, 2013, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789 "2013-11-13T04:46:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/21 "2013-11-13T14:12:02Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > You graph your poo? No graphing needed - the 12 pack of puppies lasted under a month, the Scott considerably more! I didn’t have to get too, uh, anal, about it for it to be obvious. 😃 I can laugh about it now, but yes, there was a point when this was actually a pressing concern, and we really needed to know what was cheapest for us. Food stamps don’t pay for toilet paper. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/22 "2013-11-13T14:31:55Z")
Square area is misleading if you’re comparing the grocery store’s “Made in China from recycled industrial abrasive sacks” paper with Charmin Ultra-Soft. However, square area generally works for toilet papers within the same general price point like Charmin Ultra Soft vs. Charmin Ultra-Strong vs. Cottonelle’s top of the line. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/23 "2013-11-13T15:32:49Z")
> [@Antigen](#): > > I think I love you. Seriously, she’s always so freaking smart I can’t even. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/24 "2013-11-13T15:37:46Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > What’s the point of showing the square footage? Would a roll of 4 gigantic sheets, each 40 square feet, be a bargain compared to to a 120 square foot 1,000 sheet roll? > > Hard to see from the way we use toilet paper in Australia. You compare apples to apples, i.e., a the total square footage of a six-pack of Charmin v. the total square footage of a six-pack of Northern. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/25 "2013-11-13T15:43:08Z")
> [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](#): > > I just use the flushable wipes made by the TP companies. I’m surprised when I read message boards that more people don’t. I only use 1 for #2 and buy the refill packs in bulk. So it’s pretty cheap. I think the right combination of dry and wet paper can be a way to economize- saves on water and/or excessive dry sheets. The flushable wipes are TINY. Personally I like my whole hand to be covered when I’m messing around Down There.\* Try the baby wipes… I think you won’t go back. \*Possibly TMI: With the baby wipes you can make one pass then fold it in half and make another pass, and if necessary, fold in half again for a final cursory pass. Adult wipees are too small for that. And the Huggies Once and Done are thick. Trust me on this and try for yourself-- this is the Voice of Experience talkin’ here. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/26 "2013-11-13T15:45:28Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > Feel the roll between the tube and the outside edge. If you can compress it a lot, the roll will be mostly fluff and air and won’t last long. > > I use mostly Scott brand or the store brand that is similar to Scott if it meets the compression test and has a lot of paper. I don’t want to spend a lot on something I’m going to throw away. > > I watched a few episodes of 'Extreme Cheapskate" a few weeks ago and was surprised at the number of people who won’t buy toilet paper. > > One family used washcloths- they mounted a basket where the tp roll would go stocked with the laundered washcloths and a small waste basket below for the used cloths. They showed the kids folding laundry and a small boy said something like “This one is dirty.” The mom simply said “No, it’s not,” but the washcloth was stained with skid-marks. Gross. > > Another person installed one of those sprayers like would be found in a kitchen sink to be used in a bidet-like fashion. No word on what he used to dry off. > > One lady peed in a jar so as to not flush and therefore save on water, but reported she had bowel movements ‘in the normal way.’ She was attempting to get her boyfriend who was moving in to do the same and offered to get him his own special jar. > > One guy required of his roommates that they to not flush and attempted to limit flushing to once a week. His toilet was, predictably, very dirty looking. :rolleyes: And I guess these people save enough on water and TP to buy a new Rolls Royce every year? Or maybe an extra case of beans? ---
**Author:** ![Amblydoper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@Amblydoper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amblydoper)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/27 "2013-11-13T15:49:14Z")
I’m Happy with Cottenelle’s super expensive option. Two squares per wipe works for me! ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/28 "2013-11-13T16:05:19Z")
I am surprised that no one has suggested an obvious alternative - newspaper. Specifically the free ones that thump through the door unasked for. The poor quality paper will, I am sure, dissolve quite well. In the poorer parts of the UK, before WW2, it was not at all unusual for families to tear newspaper into squares and hang them up with string in the outside lavatory. The problem with cheap newspapers is that the ink tends to come off, so it was the practice to keep them for a week or two first to allow the ink to dry properly. On our holiday in Turkey, our modern apartment had a proper WC, but there was a small pipe feeding in under the seat. This was to provide water with which to wash ones arse. We were advised not to put paper of any kind down the pan, as the pipes were too small to deal with it. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/29 "2013-11-13T16:10:17Z")
Name brand toilet paper is always on sale here _somewhere_ for like 60% off the regular price ($5 vs. $12 for example). I just look through the flyers and buy what’s on sale. ---
**Author:** ![JerrySTL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e274bd/32.png) [@JerrySTL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerrySTL)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/30 "2013-11-13T16:14:06Z")
When I was in the military back in the '70s they bought the cheapest TP. I doubt that they paid the cheapest prices, but that stuff was cheap! You could see the wood that it was made of still in it. Think splinters!!! I just buy a major brand that happens to be on sale as long as it’s double ply. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/31 "2013-11-13T16:14:27Z")
I just steal mine out of the Greyhound bus station. ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/32 "2013-11-13T16:29:13Z")
[We installed these over a year ago on our toilets](http://www.amazon.com/LUXE-Bidet-Vi-110-Non-Electric-Mechanical/dp/B005IT4C6G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1384359929&sr=8-1&keywords=bidet) and cut paper usage down to a third. Seriously, I hate pooping without a bidet as I never feel clean enough. (I explained to some friends just this past weekend that if you got poop on your hand, you wouldn’t just take paper to wipe it off, so why would that be enough for your butt?) As for paper, we get whatever’s name brand that’s on sale at the grocery store. ---
**Author:** ![harmonicamoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/65b543/32.png) [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/33 "2013-11-13T16:36:09Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > You compare apples to apples, i.e., a the total square footage of a six-pack of Charmin v. the total square footage of a six-pack of Northern. Not necessarily true. Although the width of a roll is normally standard, the length of the individual sheet sometimes varies. If you fold at perforations, then a shorter length would allow for more uses per roll. The TP game is indeed very complicated. A lot of variables. And ya don’t wanna run out of it. ---
**Author:** ![CoastalMaineiac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/34 "2013-11-13T16:37:54Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Toilet paper is sold in a confusing mess of single vs double rolls, differing number of sheets per roll, single vs double ply…So how do you find which is cheapest? Buy used? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/35 "2013-11-13T17:43:55Z")
Check the dollar store. One of the dollar stores around here (Deal$) sells [Panda toilet paper](http://www.dollartree.com/office-school/paper-plastic/bath-tissue/Panda-Ultra-Premium-Bathroom-Tissue-4-ct-Packs/803c709c714p301176/index.pro), which IMHO is as good as any I’ve ever used, for $2 for a 4-pack of double rolls. The [cheaper](http://www.dollartree.com/office-school/paper-plastic/bath-tissue/Softitelle-Bathroom-Tissue/803c709c714p78128/index.pro) dollar store toilet paper isn’t too bad either. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/36 "2013-11-13T18:02:32Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > This practice causes huge problems down the line. Those wipes were not designed to be flushed because they don’t dissolve. This means that the guys who keep the sewers working hate people like you with passion. Yeah, one guy in a 1.5 million metro area is clogging up the Deep Tunnel Project with his daily constitutional. :rolleyes: It’s me folks. :smack: \*\*I’m \*\*the reason Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District dumps a zillion gallons of fecal water into Lake Michigan half a dozen times a year. I’ve totally hexed a billion dollar pipeline by flushing 4 tissues a day down my crapper. I’m an asshole with my asshole!😛 > [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > One of the dollar stores around here (Deal$) sells [Panda toilet paper](http://www.dollartree.com/office-school/paper-plastic/bath-tissue/Panda-Ultra-Premium-Bathroom-Tissue-4-ct-Packs/803c709c714p301176/index.pro), which IMHO is as good as any I’ve ever used, for $2 for a 4-pack of double rolls. Actually if I absolutely had to use TP I gotta say Panda is really good stuff as far as TP goes. I’m still not switching, but if I had to that’s what I would use. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/37 "2013-11-13T18:25:29Z")
I think a bidet is, long-term, the most cost-effective way to clean your rumpus. Rinse til it’s clean, then wipe dry once. The end! I don’t have one yet, but I’d like to get one. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/38 "2013-11-13T18:35:31Z")
\*\*How Do You Find the Cheapest Toilet Paper? \*\* I just walk into the storage room in my house and there are cases of toilet paper stacked next to the cases of paper towels. We haven’t bought either in more than 10 years. Of course she makes it for a living and the product is awarded to employees for meeting various goals, accident free month, production goals, etc. It’s like owning a paper mine. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/39 "2013-11-13T18:36:06Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > It’s the one your finger goes through while you are wiping your ass. That rules out most brands. If I have to fold it 4 or 5 times to keep my finger where it belongs, it’s counter-productive. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789/40 "2013-11-13T18:43:24Z")
> [@Dallas\_Jones](#): > > Of course she makes it for a living and the product is awarded to employees for meeting various goals, accident free month, production goals, etc. They give you toilet paper for not having an accident? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-find-the-cheapest-toilet-paper/673789.md?page=3)