6 Hacks To Save Money the Next Time You Order Pizza
Written by
John Csiszar
Edited by
Gary Dudak
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Just about everyone loves pizza. Whether you’re having a party, feeding the family or just craving a late-night snack, it’s comforting to know that a hot pie is just a phone call away.
Unfortunately, just like everything else these days, you might have noticed that the price of pizza is going up — in some cases, way up. Supply chain shortages, rising labor and transportation costs, and the increasing prices of raw ingredients have all contributed to make pizza much less economical than it used to be.
By implementing a few clever hacks, however, you can combat these rising costs and still enjoy a tasty pie without breaking the bank.
Look for Specials
Nearly every pizza joint offers some type of special, particularly the big chains that deliver to your home. In some cases, the specials aren’t quite what you’re looking for, but they could still add up to big savings if you’re willing to be a bit flexible.
For example, a pizza place might offer a large 2-topping pie for $12, down from the regular menu price of $20. Even though you might normally order a 3-topping pie, you could save nearly half off if you could make just a small adjustment to your order. Sometimes, however, you might hit the jackpot and find that the restaurant is offering a broad-based discount, such as 50% off all orders, allowing you to get exactly what you want while saving money at the same time.
Join a Rewards Program
Rewards programs are most often associated with airlines and hotel chains, but more and more retailers are now offering them as well. It’s entirely possible, perhaps even likely, that your favorite pizza joint offers some type of rewards program as well.
Some restaurants might offer promotions like getting a free pie after you buy 10, or perhaps $5 off your next order after spending $50. Still others might simply award points with every purchase that you can redeem on future orders. As rewards programs rarely cost anything to sign up, there’s literally no downside to joining.
Order One Large Instead of Two Smalls
A common ordering hack that will almost undoubtedly save you money is to buy one large pizza instead of two smalls. Although it would seem to make logical sense that two 8″ pizzas would equal the same amount as one 16″ pie, the truth is that a 16″ pizza is actually four times the area of an 8″.
This means that a 16″ pizza gets you twice the amount of food as two 8″ pies, oftentimes for less money. If you’re worried about having a split household in terms of what kind of pizza people want to eat, consider getting a half-and-half pizza, with a certain group of toppings on one side and different options on the other.
Limit Your Toppings
If you’re the type of person who likes to load up a pizza with lots of toppings, you could be eating yourself into the poorhouse. Toppings are notoriously expensive, with restaurants often charging $2 or more per individual topping. Adding six toppings to a pizza will likely push the price of your pie up by $12 or more, in some cases doubling the cost over a one-topping option. Plus, if you add too many toppings to a pizza, the restaurant will give you smaller portions of each topping, further diminishing your value.
There may be other, non-financial reasons to tone down the toppings as well. Research has shown that once you put more than five toppings on a pizza, the taste begins to dilute. Also, too many toppings makes it harder for the pie to cook properly, affecting how it tastes. If you can’t get over your desire for more toppings, take the economical choice and add some toppings at home. Not only will they be fresher — and likely taste even better — but you’ll be saving at least a few dollars on the cost of your pie.
Get Your Drinks at the Grocery Store
While it can be very convenient to order sodas or other drinks at the same time you order your pizza, you’re definitely overpaying. Pizza restaurants are simply resellers of drinks like Coke and Pepsi, so in many cases you’ll be paying more than double the amount that you could buy these drinks at the grocery store.
Plan ahead and have some extra drinks on hand so that when the urge to get a pizza strikes, you won’t have to overpay for drinks at the same time.
Buy Frozen
As the cost of pizza has gotten higher and higher, restaurant chains have actually been losing customers. What’s been picking up the slack? Frozen pizza.
While some pizza aficionados might say that they would never buy frozen pizza, plenty of others would. According to research from marketing firm Vericast, frozen pizza sales jumped 11% in 2022, while the four big pizza players simultaneously lost 3% of their market share. If frozen pizza from a grocery store isn’t your cup of tea, consider taking advantage of the bulk-buy offers most pizza chains offer and freeze the extra. When stored and reheated properly, you might not even be able to tell that your pizza was once frozen, and you could save a stuffed-crust load of cash along the way.
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