Frugal Living YouTuber Kate Kaden: 10 Dollar Tree Must-Haves

Can you guess the best buys worth your buck (and 25 cents) at Dollar Tree? Kate Kaden, a YouTuber dedicated to frugal living, shared in a YouTube video her favorite Dollar Tree buys every shopper needs to add to their cart.

From toiletries to notebooks, here are Kaden’s top 10 Dollar Tree must-haves.

• Twin Wire Velvet Notebook: $1.25

Kaden uses notebooks to hand-write various bullet points and checklists and relies on notebooks sold for just a dollar at Dollar Tree to get the job done.

If you’re not a fan of budgeting via an app or an Excel spreadsheet, Kaden recommends tracking your budget and organizing your receipts in a physical notebook. These notebooks may also be used as gratitude journals to journal throughout the day.

• Blue-Light Square LED Night Lights: $1.25

Have you ever considered getting a night light from Dollar Tree? Kaden recommends shopping for them at Dollar Tree, since the store carries several high quality night lights.

• Crest Cavity Protection Toothpaste: $1.25

You can find a lot of toiletries at Dollar Tree for a lot less, especially name-brand toothpaste. Kaden likes to buy Crest toothpaste at Dollar Tree.

“As a frugal person, I hate paying top dollar for toiletries when I can get it for a better price,” said Kaden.

• Vaseline Lip Therapy Cocoa Butter Stick: $1.25

In the video, Kaden references a Vaseline lip balm she buys at Dollar Tree that comes in a hefty tube for just a dollar.

Keeping a lip balm handy is also part of Kaden’s MILK acronym — Money, ID, Lip (balm) and Keys — as the essentials everyone should have when they leave the house.

• Rubbermaid Take Alongs Square Plastic Storage Containers With Lids: $1.25

Kaden recommends picking up name brand plastic storage containers, like Rubbermaid, at Dollar Tree. She said she keeps vegetables in these containers to snack on and keep fresh. As a bonus, these containers also come with lids for just $1.25.

• Voila Assorted Birthday Gift Wrapping Paper: $1.25

Why pay more money for wrapping paper, which is designed to be ripped up? At most Dollar Tree stores, Kaden said shoppers can find rolls of gift wrap for $1.25 per roll and cards, often priced at two for $3.

• Butane Candle Lighters: $1.25

Frugal shoppers may already know Dollar Tree is the best place to buy affordable candle lighters. 

Compared to using a regular lighter or matches to light candles, Kaden said a candle lighter is much safer and easier to use while remaining budget-friendly.

• Decorative Wall Plaques with Greenery Wreaths: $1.25

Skip shopping at overpriced retailers in favor of heading to Dollar Tree to pick up seasonal home décor.

Frugal shoppers can find plenty of festive and stylish decorations for their homes, including wall plaques, picture frames, candles, rugs and much more without breaking the bank.

• The Home Store Ultra Shine Dish Detergent Pods: $1.25

Frugal shoppers, listen up! Kaden highly recommends shopping for dishwasher pods at Dollar Tree.

The Home Store Ultra Shine Dish Detergent Pods mentioned above include 10 pods for 10 loads. This comes out to about 13 cents per pod. If you’re able to get your hands on dishwasher pods at Dollar Tree, Kaden said to go for it, because she thinks they work great.

• Scrub Buddies Pots & Pans Brushes: $1.25

“Dollar Tree is my favorite place to get cleaning brushes,” said Kaden, who shops for cleaning brushes as a pre-scrub when hand-washing dishes. “I use these things until it looked like it got electrocuted.”