I am a huge fan of shopping at Dollarama and even considered buying Dollarama stock in 2013 for around $30. Now the stock is selling at $149 as fo writing (Yahoo Finance), a quintuple-bagger or 5-Bagger as per Peter Lynch terminology. It is one of my biggest investing regrets that I never picked up the stock when it was $30, thinking it was too expensive. $##%&#(@(@&% #investingregret. Anyway, here are 8 absolutely amazing Dollarama products I usually buy when I am in the store.
This post will go over some great Dollarama products that are a ‘must buy’ or Dollarama must haves. Sometimes cash back apps that pay you to scan receipts like Caddle give you $0.10 for uploading your Dollarama receipt.
Is Dollarama a Canadian company? As Canadian as you can get.
Dollarama is a Canadian dollar store chain and first became a public company in 2009. It first opened its doors in 1994 and 24 years later, there are now 1000 stores in Canada and plans to expand into South America. The Dollarama head office is located in Montreal, Quebec.
I like the look of the dollar store, it’s not like your typical dollar store. Everything seems more ‘classy’ in there if you can use that word to describe a dollar store. Nothing is disorganized and things don’t look too ‘cheap’.
In fact, some things are of pretty good quality, and there are things that I only buy at Dollarama to save money. Not everything is $1 now, and they have items that go up to $4. Most items are $1 and I still find everything very reasonably priced. Every time I head to Dollarama, I step out with a bunch of things that I knew I needed but never got a chance to get. They just have everything that you have been meaning to get, all in one place.
I thought I would share what my favourite things are to buy at Dollarama whenever I go there.
Table of Contents
What Can You Buy at Dollarama?
Some of the items may not be found regularly because they are sold out but if you find them in your local Dollarama, grab them! D
ollarama purchases certain brands through liquidators and sells these products in their stores. Once they are gone, they are gone though.
This is the reason why you would find “brand name” items that would normally be much more expensive, at Dollarama, because they are being liquidated.
Dollarama Greeting Cards And Gift Bags
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I told myself I would only spend over $5 on a greeting card for an anniversary card or birthday card for my husband (c’mon, Hallmark or Carlton always has some nice cards that have a funny message).
Recently, I spent $7 on a greeting card and it just felt absurd. That’s the price of a meal at some places! I usually get greeting cards for birthday cards rom Dollarama (they have great ones for kids!) because it is only $1.
They also say “Hallmark” on the back so you don’t look cheap for buying a dollar store greeting card.
Dollarama also has great wine gift bags (or gift bags and coloured gift tissue paper in general). The ones at the wine store are $4 for each bag. At Dollarama, they are 2 wine bags for $1 or two fancier wine bags for $2.
Dollarama Party Supplies and Seasonal Decorations
Cups, balloons, plates, forks, knives, anything you might need for a party! When I hosted a baby shower and birthday parties, I headed to Dollarama to load up on streamers, and blue coloured cutlery for a mom to be who was expecting a baby boy.
Dollarama is also great for seasonal decorations- Valentine’s Day, Christmas, Halloween, Canada Day, if you’re celebrating in any way for these special days and are hosting a party, this is a great place to pick up supplies. In fact, according to Style Democracy, party supplies and seasonal decorations are one of their biggest sellers.
Dollarama Stationery
I love their white business envelopes and one box lasts me a long time. I have a pair of Dollarama scissors. I refuse to pay $8 for scissors at Walmart when they are not on sale. They have some nice pens even rainbow coloured pens and gold and silver pens (in fact, I picked up some pens to use for our wedding to sign the guestbook, they worked well).
Dollarama Cleaning Supplies
One of the best Dollarama products I always buy when I head into the store is cleaning supplies. You can get high-quality kitchen sponges for $2. I get always stock up on my cleaning supplies at Dollarama. Two kitchen rags (to wipe the counter tops) are $2. The microfibre Arm and Hammer washcloth is $1.50.
I also have a “Swiffer” type mop that is not a Swiffer and some wet sweeping cloths. These wet sweeping cloths are $3 (18 pieces) are great for my laminate floor, they are super thick and smell nice and fresh. There’s a little scrubbing edge that you can use to really clean those floors. I reverse the cloths to make them last longer and use both sides each time I clean. For my 450 square foot apartment, I usually use two wet sweeping cloths each time I wipe the floors.
Dollarama Doggy Poop Bags
My dog goes through 3-4 poop bags a day. He likes to “double poop” much to my chagrin (like he poops and then walks a block and then poops some more after I have ‘sealed’ his poop bag). Sometimes I reuse the same bag (open it up and pray that I don’t get poop on my fingers and SOMETIMES I get poop on my fingers and I curse my attempt to save the environment when it happens).
Poop bags are expensive and I like to get the kind that is biodegradable. Dollarama sometimes carries the doggy poop bags that are in a box, and it costs $3 for around 160 bags. They are lightly scented. You roll it out and tear off.
This is much cheaper than buying it at a typical pet store for $11.99 for around 100 bags (that’s $0.018 per bag compared to $0.12 a bag for the typical pet store version).
The Dollarama poop bags aren’t always in stock in the store, though, and the plastic is very very thin (so thin that my husband refuses to use them, so we carry the Earth Rated brand as well at home and the cheapest place to get this is on Amazon.
It is $11.99 for 18 refills. Normally that’s the price for 1/3 of what you can get from Amazon). Sometimes the perforated edges don’t tear properly and you get a hole on each side of the bag (which is NOT good!!). But at $3, I still buy it!
Freezer Bags
Other Dollarama products that I always buy are the freezer ziplock bags. This is one thing I actually always go to Dollarama purposefully to buy. I love their freezer bags and I used them to put my organic baby food puree cubes, or I use them to put in a family serving size of chicken, ground beef, or pork to freeze (after buying in bulk and separating the meat into meal sized portions).
They also have actual Ziplock brand freezer bags too.
So I use them a lot since we often buy foods in bulk to save money and freeze meats to save money.
They are easy to label with a sharpie pen. I usually get the medium size and the large size Slide Seal freezer bags. They are $1.50 each I believe.
Aluminum Baking Pans
One time I checked out Safeway to buy aluminum baking pans and was shocked that they wanted to charge something like $5.99 for one disposable aluminum baking pan.
No thanks.
I’m not going to spend $6 for a disposable aluminum banking pan.
Dollarama has some great disposable aluminum baking pans which are great if you are bringing a loaf or some casserole to a friend’s house for a potluck and you don’t want to bother the host for your dish back before the party ends because you leave early because of #introvertproblems.
Food is always a great minimalist gift to give that won’t be thrown away.
Dollarama 3M Command Strips
When I find some 3M Command Strips at the Dollarama, I definitely buy a few packages because they aren’t found at Dollarama very often. Excuse the torn and ripped packaging as I couldn’t find a picture of a new 3M Command Strip package.
In fact, I think this is one of the brands that Dollarama buys from their liquidator because over the past few years I’ve only been able to find it a few times. These are great for hanging pictures or frames and not leaving a mark or a hole in the wall.
They are normally $8-9 at Home Depot or Canadian Tire.
Dollarama Pregnancy Tests!
This is a bonus Dollarama must-buy!
These Dollarama products idea is courtesy of Barry Choi from Money We Have who found some pregnancy tests (over 99% accurate) for $3 a pop! Usually pregnancy tests come with two tests but the price is definitely more than $6.
There are other medical based items that are normally very expensive at a drug store or grocery store, but very reasonably priced at Dollarama.
Dollarama Marijuana Home Drug Testing Kit
Okay this is an additional one that I added. Recently Dollarama introduced marijuana home drug testing cassettes! You can get a result in only 5 minutes for only $1.50. They think of absolutely everything, don’t they?
Can You Buy Dollarama Products Online?
Recently, Dollarama launched a delivery program where you can order certain items in bulk for a flat rate of $18 for delivery fee. You are able to order around 1000 Dollarama products, whereas in total they sell over 4000 products.
However, if you’re not buying in bulk, you’ll have to step foot into the store to buy your Dollarama products.
Is it Safe to Buy Food at Dollarama?
I often get candy, chips, and chocolate from Dollarama because it’s just so cheap. The amounts are smaller in portion so it’s easier to not binge eat.
It is really cheaper to buy it at Costco if you do the math but Dollarama makes money selling smaller quantities as a seemingly lower price.
As mentioned I also always get the organic rice crackers from Dollarama. My kids love them and they are healthy and organic, made in Poland.
Best dollarama Finds
Since Dollarama makes money by helping companies liquidate their goods that might not sell as well, you can find some ‘brand name’ deals at Dollarama.
I recommend checking out the Red Flag Deals Dollarama finds. You can see some great deals on the forums that readers post about.
Dollarama Products Recap
To recap, I find Dollarama amazing to shop at, and I find a lot of their goods are high quality. Here are the Dollarama products that are most ‘worth it’ next time you shop in store, that would be considered Dollarama best buys:
- Greeting cards and gift bags
- Party supplies and decorations
- Stationery
- Cleaning supplies
- Doggy poop bags
- Freezer bags
- Aluminum baking pans
- Command strips
- Pregnancy tests
Some other things that I love buying at Dollarama are organizational boxes and bins.
There are some freezer safe clear plastic bins for around $4 that work great to maximize your freezer and refrigerator space by keeping your foods organized.
Recently, I also like buying certain toys for my toddler there. We got a great hockey stick for him for $4 (it’s very sturdy, he hasn’t broken it yet) and Play Doh canisters for $1.25.
What Not to BUy at dollarama
Although I find the quality of the above items are stellar (for the price I pay for them), there are some not so stellar finds at Dollarama.
Here are some of them according to Buzzfeed in 21 Weird Items That are Actually Priceless at Dollarama. Some of these things are shocking, who would have thought you can get a breathalyzer test at Dollarama?
Additionally, although some Dollarama toys have been great and have held up, I find the some of the toys at Dollarama not to be of the best quality. They break within months (or some of them, even days).
Do not buy Dollarama toys!
In general, I find that you can save a lot of money at Dollarama even though their price point is not simply $1 or $1.25 anymore. I know some people who don’t like to shop at dollar stores because everything is made in China, but I find the convenience and deals too hard to resist.
You may also be interested in:
Readers, have you shopped at Dollarama?
What are your favourite items to buy at Dollarama?
GYM is a 30 something millennial interested in achieving financial freedom through disciplined saving, dividend and ETF investing, and living a minimalist lifestyle. Before you go, check out my recommendations page of financial tools I use to save and invest money. Don’t forget to subscribe for blog updates, a free dividend yield spreadsheet, and the free Young Money Bootcamp eCourse.
GYM, I’ve never really been a dollar store shopper. I tend to do a Walmart super store run every few weeks and stock up on stuff benefiting from their “every day low prices”. Tom
@Tom- Are you a WMT shareholder? Is it part of your Dividends Deluxe? 🙂 The last time I was in Walmart was in Mexico (a few months ago) but I just don’t like dealing with big crowds.
Hi GYM, I shop there a lot less than I used to because I always bought more than I needed.
My main purchase there? Chocolate bars! And gift wrapping supplies. Also at Christmas time I buy lots of my stocking stuffers including stationary.
I find the household stuff is cheaper at Costco, in bigger quantities.
@Caroline- Ahh, I don’t have a Costco membership but I hear great things about Costco. Yeah, that’s how Dollarama makes money on their name brand products. Smaller quantities. I used to buy Twix there but now I moved onto Lindt bars and Cabdury Dark/Milk bars at No Frills/Shoppers Drug Mart haha.
The one thing I’ve gotten from the dollar store a couple of times, are plastic squeeze bottles to store different syrups I make for my cocktails..haha
@Jordan- Brilliant! I bought these mini ketchup/mustard containers too but to be frank (pardon the hot dog reference related to your blogger series haha) I don’t know where they went!
GYM, very good information. I don’t shop at the dollar store often. But I do get the birthday card from there. The similar card would cost $3-4 at WalMart. To me, it’s just a card. $1 would do the job. Envelops are a good item to buy, too.
@Helen- That’s my thought process too. I used to buy nice cards all the time but then they are $7-8 here now, which is the price of a meal so no thanks!
My wife loves to shop at dollerama too. As long as she shops there and not the shopping mall, I am more than happy to let her loose in there. Comparing to Costco and Walmart, we always rack up at least a hundred dollars in damage. So dollerama is all good.
@Leo- Yeah, you get so much for so little haha! I never spend more than $25 there.
We are frequent shoppers of the dollar store chain here in the Bay Area, Dollar Tree. When we need to get a greeting card, Dollar Tree is the place to go. We even buy some extra greeting cards for any future gatherings we may attend like a birthday party, graduation or baby shower. Beats going to the mall and getting a card for close to $5
Other items we like to buy at the dollar store are cotton swabs, candy, seasonal decorations(Halloween, Xmas) and even helium balloons for parties.
@Kris- I think we have a Dollar Tree too (but not 100% positive). I have seen Dollar Trees in the states though for sure. Thanks for sharing what you guys buy at the dollar store!
Back in university, I used to work at a Dollarama for $7.75/hour minimum wage. This was when there was no scanner so we literally had to count items as we bagged them which was easy because everything was $1 (or 2 or 3 for $1 if you could remember those items) and it was cash only, so we had to turn away a lot of people who tried to use their debit or credit cards. My favourite purchases were the liquidated items, such as brand name shampoos and face washes. Once they had my favourite St Ives face wash and Biore nose strips and I seriously bought 3 of each for only $1 a piece. My least favourite thing was that people would come by to purchase glass vases for wedding centrepieces and would get upset when they cleared out the ones on the shelves and wanted us to “get more” from the back (which we weren’t allowed to do as everything was restocked overnight). Still, it was a great student job and it gave me first dibs on a lot of items before other customers bought them. 🙂
@Jessica- No I don’t remember the 2 or 3 for $1! Yeah, they changed the prices (increased them and brought more expensive products) and it worked even better for their bottom line. Biore nose strips for $1!! That’s great, those are like $10 a pop normally.
Hahah… I am one of those people who bought the glass vases from Dollarama but I never got upset since I only needed 5 vases haha! I even got friends to bring them to Hawaii!
What a great experience and so great to get first dibs on liquidation stock!
Nice! I agree with everything you listed here to get for cheap. Now if only we got that store here in Hawaii lol. I would be happy if we got a Daiso too. But of course that could never happen, the shipping costs would raise all the prices.
@Melanie- I KNOW. I tried to find a Dollar Store in Hawaii and couldn’t find one!! That’s why I brought everything I needed with me for my wedding instead of looking for it there. Daiso would be amazing. That makes sense why there are no dollar stores in Hawaii- because of the high shipping costs.
Hey Gym,
Thanks for the shout out! I definitely go to our version of Dollarama here in the US, Dollar Tree, and buy most of the things you mentioned. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the command strips, though! What a great steal!!! If I ever see them I’ll be sure to stock up! 🙂
@Lily- I just went to Dollarama today, to go in and simply buy some BBQ tongs, and came out with: another box of freezer bags, a grill cleaner, paper plates, cups, wine bags…!
Somebody needs to learn the difference between “stationary” and “stationery”.
@Rusty Brown- Thanks so much for pointing that out! I have edited it now. Have a good Thanksgiving.
The $2 soap refills are well worth it. It is about 1.5 or 2 liters, and is made in Canada. Also, felt pads for chairs. They also started stocking vegetable chips…mmmm.
@JamesB- Cool thanks I’ll have a look next time I go to Dollarama. It’s really a treasure of a place lots of good things to buy- good to know the soap refills are made in Canada.
Great info on your site! I’d also add that you can find some amazing deals on books at Dollarama and selection will vary by location. Definitely some hidden gems in terms of value for both kids and adults.
@FMS- Cool thanks! I’ll keep an eye out for books. I checked out the kids section once it was pretty good but nothing jumped out at me.
i buy everything you mentioned plus soups,shake n bake, spices and paint brushes and lots of other items. Great place to save money.
@todd- I was just looking at their paint brushes the other day. Really high quality!
Recently picked up a wireless mouse for 4 dollars. Works great!
@Greg- Nice. Their electronics are surprisingly good.
I always buy stationery and cleaning products at Dollarama but I don’t think I could trust a Dollarama pregnancy test! ?
@Lee- Haha, good point. But pregnancy tests from drugstores are typically just as accurate as the ones in the doctor’s offices. Would be nice to see a side by side comparison of the two (Dollarama + drugstore)