Saving Money Guide - Supermarkets
 

I know many of the readers here are too young to understand shopping as a finacial skill but in Japan like other countries it is a skill that can save you much money in the long run.
In Japan you will find competing chain stores that will have some things lower and some higher then their competitors.

In some shops you will find that beer is cheaper while pasta is not, fruit in some places is a bargan while in others is a rip off.

In Japan you need to look at prices in different stores and make the right buys in the right places. It is very bad to buy all of your stuff at the same store for convinience. you will end up paying more for the cheaper items by virtue of paying over the odds on other items. This is how they sucker people.

In most super's they will also have a discount basket where items can be bought cheaply as the expiry date is due. BE AWARE! these can also act as traps for the unaware. You might only be saving 20 yen on a date difference of 2 weeks. Pick up the item and find its fresh buddy and compare the price. Sometimes a great deal is found and sometimes you will end up putting the bargan back where it came from.

Household items, such a plastic stuff, cleaning, bathroom, kitchen and so on, can be bought at 100 yen shops for 105 yen (inc tax). These items bought in a super will in most instances be 150 - 200 yen and above.
Always check the 100 yen shop first. Spend a long time browsing as you never know when you will see the same item in a super for much more.
For me I had bought some spices for 230 yen ect. only to then see the same in a 100 yen shop.

My advice is to pick 5 things that you buy often and then compare the prices in various supers. You will soon understand the advantage you have by doing this.

Thanks for the mature advice and I will definitely take that in next time in JP.

250 yen is a big saving$$$$

If I may add, for the tourist, a lot of us rely on vending machine drink day in and day out while traveling. A nice chilled bottled from the machine cost you anywhere from ￥120 to ￥200, while the same drinks, in large 1 litre bottle only cost about ￥250 (to around 300), a possible saving of 1/3

I spent many a fortune on those convenient beer vending machines downing ASAHI at the office after work:D

At the local supermarket a 500 ml bottle of Coca-Cola costs 87 yen. At 7-11 the same bottle costs 127 yen. From a vending machine the price goes up to 150 yen.

100 yen shops have lots of uses, but you have to be careful of some of the things you buy there, they are often of very poor quality, and do not last long. 100 yen shops sell lots of name-brand soaps and detergents, but many of these items are Chinese knock-offs with counterfeit labels, and will not work as well as the real thing.

You can usually find the real items at Plaza stores (common in larger malls and shopping centers), or the American Pharmacy in Ginza or Marunouchi. The prices here are higher, but you get what you pay for.

My local 100 yen shop is huge, and has all kinds of items. In the late summer it even sells giant rhinoceros and wood beetles, complete with cages. The only things I usually buy at the 100 yen shops are drain nets for my sink, staples, glue, and tape for work, and boxes for files.

Can you think of any particularly worthwhile supermarkets in the areas readers here are most likely to visit, such as Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and so on? It may help readers - even short-stay tourists - pick up a bargain, or even just a flavour of Japanese daily life.

(I hasten to add that if someone were coming to the UK, I wouldn't rush to reccommend they hit the local Tesco, but you never know what might interest someone else :) )

We all know that 100 yen shops sell cheap chinese stuff, but many of the items are durable and worth buying if you need them. I suggest you handle said item first and investigate the reason that it can be sold for 100 yen. I said "many plastic items" and because they are mass produced and made in china they can be trusted. I bought a plant trough and 2 bags of soil for 315 yen, it is not a normal everyday purchase and so I had a bargin. Just ask my herb garden (now very productive).

When you have a plastic item with magnets the price goes up to 315 yen by virtue of the magnets, so one can deduce the value of the plastic.

Never buy Pocari sweat or Aquarius in litre bottles, as for the same price in Don Quixote you can get a 5 pack of the powder. You just add water (free) and you end up with 5 litres of the stuff for the price of one.

As for Supermarket guides. Always check the 100 yen shop first, then a Don Quixote if available. Then look at the local shops.
The supermarkets vary by area and what might be your local akafudado (sp) in Nezu might be your Hallo Mart in Matsudo.
This is why it is very important to understand prices. In one month you can save up to 3000 yen on a 15,000 yen outlay.

I just got back from my local Hallo Mart where I bought 4 large bannanas for 60 yen and a pack of 3 cucumbers and 10 ochra for 60 yen also. I picked up a 2 pack of 100% japanaese bean tofu for 100 yen. These were all found in the bargain basket/section.

Note to all beer drinkers...

KIRIN, SAPPORO and ASAHI all make various versions of beer. The ones you know and love are EXPENSIVE. Nearly all rate at 270 yen (100ml).
You can always buy the less well known lines by these famous breweries for a fraction of the price. They are always trying to market the beer in different ways and as a savvy beer drinker you can take advantage.
I love my Kirin, but 270 yen is too much, so now I drink Kirin Strong Seven which sells for 170 (100ml) and not only is very strong (7%) but tastes real good too.
You should have a good browse of the beer section in the super and take advantage of the new lines.

If you just want to get smashed then the CHU-HI drinks sell for about 150 yen (100ml) and can be 8% alc. Are very easy to drink and give a very painful hangover :)
The Chu-hi are a mix of fruit juice and pure alc. ENJOY!!!

I have found the 100-yen shops Daiso and the ones at the malls like Daiei tend to be surprisingly good deals. I wouldn't buy a lot of food or toiletries there, but basics you can examine in the store can go for much cheaper there than at "mainstream" stores. Don Quixote is also your friend.

So many of those taste like Michelob Lite to me, though. Yes, the price is right on those "lighter" beers, but a lot of them taste like water and beer mixed together.