Odd pricing at Walmart

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
May 30, 2008
Messages
2,505
Location
New York
Just for kicks I stopped by a Walmart I don't visit very often and took a look at their oil section for 5W-20 oils. Pricing seems rather odd right now. For example, the cheapest in the 5 qt. jugs was Quaker State at $9.50, but quarts of the same were $3.77. Yellow jug Pennzoil was $10.50, and quarts were $3.50. Motorcraft semi-syn was $11.50 for the 5 qt. jug, but only $2.77 for the single quarts. I didn't check others too closely to see if this holds true as they were actually out of the Motorcraft I wanted. What gives?
 
ALWAYS more expensive to buy oil in the quart bottles. (unless it was the old days at Checkers and oil was 49 cents per quart)

WalMart has weird pricing between stores here. Our QS is $8.50 for 5qt jug but the store less than 20 miles has it for $9.50.

Bill
 
I expect the quarts to be more, but it just seems odd that the pricing of quarts is exactly opposite the pricing of the 5 qt. jugs. I usually pick up a quart or two extra for top-off purposes to keep in the trunk of the car.
 
Originally Posted By: AuthorEditor
I expect the quarts to be more, but it just seems odd that the pricing of quarts is exactly opposite the pricing of the 5 qt. jugs. I usually pick up a quart or two extra for top-off purposes to keep in the trunk of the car.


What do you mean by "the pricing of quarts is exactly opposite the pricing of the 5 qt. jugs" ?

We all know it's more expensive in the quarts, so what is your question?
 
Quote:


What do you mean by "the pricing of quarts is exactly opposite the pricing of the 5 qt. jugs" ?


The Motorcraft oil is more expensive than the others in a 5qt. bottle, but by the single quart it is cheaper.
 
Quote:
The Motorcraft oil is more expensive than the others in a 5qt. bottle, but by the single quart it is cheaper.
Huh? $11.50 a 5qt. jug is and has been a great everyday value on the 5w20. It's only relatively recently that the others like Pennzoil conventional, Castrol GTX and Havoline have dropped in price to the level of MC5w20. Excluding ST, only QS green @ $9.50 and MC5k are less expensive here( MC5k no 5w20 in jugs).

As to the OP, as said nothing new or particularly odd about the pricing. Qts. have always been more expensive at Wally. That said, with the exception on MC5K and ST, MC syn blend at $2.77 is a good relative value. But, many have long wished for MC syn blend to be sold in jugs in the weights besides 5w20.
 
hey OP i understand your point.the cheaper the 5 qt ,the higher price on the qt.sort of an inverse relationship.it is kind of odd.
 
urrlord--thanks for understanding what I was trying to write about! What I'm trying to say is that the pricing of the quarts is in inverse relationship to the pricing of the 5 qt. containers. In other words, the cheapest oil in 5 qt jugs has the most expensive quarts, and the most expensive of this bunch in 5 qt jugs I've listed has the least expensive quarts. My guess is that it comes down to WalMart's computers telling them exactly what price point maximizes profit. It's something like the folks who buy Motorcraft synthetic are less likely to buy quarts so they price them a bit lower, while for some reason folks who buy green bottle Quaker State buy lots of quarts so they price them higher. Just my guess.
 
Yes, Author, that is strange. I'll have to pay attention the next time I'm at the local WalMart.

As for the majority of the replies, I think people need to take more time to read what the OP is saying before they reply.
 
I guess I didn't understand the point because while the inverse jugs/quarts relationship may be true for some (eg QS) oils now, it is not and has not been traditionally true for others.

Examples, until relatively recently Mobil Clean 5000 always had the lowest jug price @ $11.00 and the lowest quart price @~ $2.57. The next lowest was MC Syn Blend 5w20 jug @~11.50 and qts. @~$2.77. And Wally's Super Tech has genarally been the lowest of both, but it's not name brand.

In my area Pennzoil conventional, Havoline and Castrol are all $11.50 (same as MC blend), but all of them were higher and have come down relatively recently, Castrol being the lastest. So it appears they have come down to the MC price. Truthfully I pay little attention to the small difference in the quart prices, as they rarely (if ever) come down in price and as a rule I don't buy them.

What I can say with confidence is, as opposed to the quarts, Wally has traditionally been willing to mark down the 5 qt jugs to a competing price point. IMO, irrespective of the qts. price, that's what's going on now. And, it is only within the last year that QS has made the marked move down to ~$9.50 or less a jug. It's also one of the reasons I am running QS in my cars now after not using it for years.
 
Originally Posted By: Bill in Utah
ALWAYS more expensive to buy oil in the quart bottles. (unless it was the old days at Checkers and oil was 49 cents per quart)

WalMart has weird pricing between stores here. Our QS is $8.50 for 5qt jug but the store less than 20 miles has it for $9.50.

Bill


Not necessarily true in my area at our local Walmart. For several months PP was 4.01 a quart, but 23.00 for the 5 quart jug! I remember seeing it and thinking it was odd, and I bought the quart bottles separately.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom