Four things you should always buy at Poundland – and four items to avoid

IF you’ve only a quid in your pocket, you’re guaranteed to pick up some kind of bargain at Poundland.

But not everything is worth adding to your basket.

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We reveal the four things you should always buy at the UK’s cheapest shop, and the things you should leave firmly behind.

Would you have ever thought to stop off at the budget store for lunch though? Or pick up all the essentials to paint your face for a night on the town?

You can pick up great dupes, as well as something to dec out your garden now the sun is out, and even grab a quick snack while you’re at it.

But even though most things at priced at just £1, it can all quickly add up – so here’s what to look out for next time you shop.

What you should buy at Poundland

Gadgets and gizmos

Poundland stocks a whole gadget range including earbuds, fitness trackers, Bluetooth speakers, keyboards and more.

But its products are much cheaper than plenty of the tech heavy weights like Apple or Samsung.

Poundland’s prices start from just £2 for mobile selfie lights, phone cases, USB plugs and power banks.

You can also get travel or festival essentials like power cables for the same bargain price.

At Christmas time the most expensive item on the online website was a premium smart watch costing just £15 – which made the perfect gift for any tech savvy family members who needed buying for on a budget.

Make-up and smellies

The budget store even stocks its own beauty range too, which means skipping a visit to Superdrug or Boots, and paying even less.

Poundland stocks £1 perfumes that fans have said are exact dupes of pricey designer versions including Marc Jacobs and Viktor & Rolf.

Some have even said you can avoid paying upwards of £40 for the same great smell of Chanel, by opting for the cheaper dupes too.

We even tested out skincare products that were competing with the likes of rival Boots’ No7 range, and the cheaper options got the thumbs up of approval.

Garden gear

It’s the perfect time of year to give your garden a bit of TLC but splashing out on new garden gear can come with a hefty price tag.

Firm furniture favourites from the likes of Aldi can set shoppers back almost £200.

But Poundland has its own garden goods on offer – it’s selling a fire pit for example, in time for the coming heatwave that’s cheaper than rivals like Asda and Argos.

Shoppers can pick up the garden accessory at the budget retailer for just £15, while it’s more than double the price at competitors.

Your lunch

Poundland has taken on competition from the likes of Boots and Tesco, by offering its own budget meal deal.

That means lunch is sorting if you’ve only a few quid to spare in your pocket.

In the Poundland meal deal you get four items for just £2, says money bloggers Skint Dad.

That’s over 30% cheaper than Tesco’s Clubcard deal – normally £3.

There isn’t a huge amount on offer at Poundland though and you get to pick from a choice of a sandwich, crisps, chocolate bar, and a drink, so it’s not going to be the healthiest pick either.

What you shouldn’t buy at Poundland

DIY tools

Got some odd jobs that need doing around the house? You should probably avoid picking up the tools you need from Poundland.

They may be cheap but could become more hassle than they’re worth later down the line.

Jackie Annet on her Broke in Bristol Blog said: “When I last used a pound shop paint brush, I had more bristles on the wall than the brush! Try Wilko instead.”

You can pick up a paintbrush from as little as £1 from certified DIY store B&Q too, it’s more likely to last longer so you’ll get more for your money.

Kitchen utensils

Just like the DIY gear you might be tempted to pick up from the budget store, kitchenware from Poundland doesn’t quite meet the same quality as rivals.

Peelers or scissors, and more, have been dubbed cheap and cheerful, but not very practical.

Yvonne Hudduma revealed on her Money Saving Tips Youtube page that the cheaper instruments will leave you spending more in the long run when you end up buying double or replacing them all together.

She revealed to her 4.19K subscribers that the kitchen kit is just not sharp enough, so tools end up breaking or not working how they should, meaning they’re destined for the bin.

She also mentioned things like sticky notes aren’t worth the change in your pocket either, as in just the same way they’re not sticky enough – and therefore a bit redundant.

Kit to cool off in the heatwave

The UK is set to be hotter than Barcelona and Lisbon this week with 27 degree highs.

Shoppers are destined then to flock to buy all the inflatables and paddling pools they can in order to cool off.

But one Dad found out his “bargain” £1 Poundland paddling pool was in fact just a tiny FOOT SPA when he desperately made a purchase last summer.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t buy the bargain summer gear from the discounter – particularly with the high chance that things will get popped and might not last until next summer anyway.

If it’s only £1 then you won’t have wasted much of your budget.

Just make sure you read the fine print, or at least the size details, of the bargain you’re picking up – or you could be disappointed and left still hot and bothered when you get home.

Batteries

With energy bills rocketing at an alarming rate, a cheap alternative to plugging something into the wall is to buy the battery operated alternative.

But it does mean you need to buy the batteries to power your new appliance, so you might turn to Poundland to fulfil that on a budget.

Plenty of fans have said that its batteries aren’t up to scratch – though they may be cheap, they don’t last very long which means you’ll have to stock up on more, making more purchases.

They might be worth it for a TV remotes or your little one’s latest toy, but anything using a lot of power is going to drain through the batteries quicker than you can fish out your next pound coin.

This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk