Walmart vs. Target: Where These 14 Back-to-School Items Are Cheaper

Is it cheaper to spend your money on back-to-school supplies at Walmart or Target this year?

To find out, GOBankingRates reviewed 14 popular school supplies, including notebooks, folders, crayons and glue, for sale at the two big-box retailers. Target’s 20-for-$20 supplies list and inexpensive in-house brands like Pen+Gear and up & up were key factors in determining which store had the best back-to-school deals.

With supplies organized in alphabetical order, keep reading to find out if it’s cheaper to buy these 14 back-to-school supplies at Walmart or Target.

• Summit Ridge kids’ 17″ backpack: $5.00 at Target

Technically, Walmart beats out Target by two cents. Their line of Wonder Nation kids’ 16″ backpacks are currently $4.98 each. 

However, that $4.98 price tag is the backpack’s sale pricing. Wonder Nation backpacks are regularly $6 each at Walmart. In comparison, Summit Ridge kids’ backpacks cost $5 at Target. They also measure out to 17″, giving Target shoppers slightly more bang for their buck.

• Pen+Gear black ballpoint pens (10 count): $0.97 at Walmart

One of the sale school supplies on Target’s 20-for-$20 list is a 10-pack of Bic black ballpoint pens. Regularly priced at $1.89, the package is now $1.29 giving shoppers 32% off in savings.

But shoppers might be spending an extra 32 cents for a brand name. A 10-count pack of Pen+Gear black ballpoint pens is just 97 cents at Walmart.

• Pen+Gear crayons: $0.25 at Walmart

At first glance, Walmart and Target have unbeatable deals on crayons. Pen+Gear crayons and Mondo Llama crayons are both priced at 25 cents for a 24-pack. 

Before you buy, look a little closer at their regular pricing to determine which one is the better deal. Target’s Mondo Llama crayons are regularly 75 cents each while Pen+Gear’s are 72 cents at Walmart.

• Pen+Gear pink block erasers: $0.47 cents at Walmart

If you need a few simple pink erasers for your pencil box, Walmart offers a cheaper alternative to Target. 

Their Pen+Gear pink block erasers are on sale for 47 cents for a two-pack and are regularly priced at 64 cents. In contrast, up & up erasers are 49 cents at Target and regularly 65 cents for the set.

• Top Flight wide-ruled filler paper: $0.99 cents at Target

Shopping wide-ruled filler paper? You’ll find two competitively priced options at Target (Top Flight wide-ruled filler paper for 99 cents) and Walmart (Pen+Gear wide-ruled filler paper for 97 cents). 

To determine which retailer has the better deal, ask yourself how many sheets of paper come with your purchase. Pen+Gear’s features 150 sheets of paper while Top Flight’s has 175 sheets.

• Pallex 2-pocket paper folder with prongs: $0.15 at Target

Target is the reigning champ of cheap folders for back-to-school shopping this year. 

Similarly made folders, like Pen+Gear’s 2-pocket folder with prongs at Walmart, are on sale for 50 cents and regularly priced at $1 each. Both the sale and regular price cannot beat Target’s 15-cent offerings.

• Pen+Gear washable school glue: $0.25 at Walmart

This is another category where at first glance both Walmart and Target have the same great deals on 4-ounce bottles of washable glue. 

Just remember that the 25-cent sticker is also the sale price. Pen+Gear’s washable school glue emerges as the cheaper option of the two offerings, regularly 64 cents compared to up & up’s 65-cent washable glue.

• Pen+Gear school glue sticks: $0.25 at Walmart

Need to cross glue sticks off your school supply list? 

Walmart’s Pen+Gear glue sticks save shoppers just one penny more than they’d spend on Target’s up & up brand. Each package includes two glue sticks in disappearing purple.

• up & up unruled index cards (100 count): $0.75 at Target

Shoppers looking for an 100-count package of unruled index cards will find the better deal available at Target. 

Walmart’s Pen+Gear option, though currently priced at 72 cents per package, is regularly 98 cents without the sale pricing. There’s no sale price on up & up’s unruled index cards at Target.

• Pen+Gear assorted markers: $0.50 at Walmart

If you need a package of 10 assorted color markers, your best bet is to shop the Pen+Gear markers on sale for 50 cents at Walmart. 

Target’s Mondo Llama brand has 10-count markers currently priced at 50 cents, but their regular pricing is also $2.25.

• Pen+Gear 1-subject wide ruled notebook: $0.45 at Walmart

Even without the sale price of 45 cents, Walmart’s Pen+Gear 1-subject wide ruled notebook still emerges as the cheaper option in notebooks. Its regular pricing at 98 cents is a penny cheaper than the up & up 1-subject notebooks sold at Target.

• up & up #2 wood pencils: $0.39 at Target

Both Walmart and Target sell 8-count packs of #2 unsharpened pencils with their respective in-house brands. 

Compared to Walmart’s Pen+Gear brand at 47 cents, Target’s up & up #2 pencils emerge the cheaper of the two offerings.

• Sterilite plastic pencil box: $0.97 at Walmart

Both Walmart and Target have competitive prices on the Sterilite brand of pencil boxes, but Walmart edges Target out just barely as the cheaper alternative. Their pencil boxes are 97 cents compared to Target’s 99 cents.

• Pen+Gear 12″ wood ruler: $0.54

Walmart’s Pen+Gear brand wins the category of cheapest wooden rulers at 54 cents each: just one penny less than what you’d pay for a ruler from Target’s up & up brand.