I do this to myself every single year. I tell myself I’m going to shop back to school early, and then suddenly it’s the last week of July and I’m staring at a supply list wondering how one kid could possibly need eleven glue sticks.
The good news: BJ’s has all three back-to-school sections live right now — kids’ supplies, lunchbox food, and tech. I went through every single one and pulled out what’s actually worth your money.
And I’m going to be honest with you throughout. Some of these are a dollar off and not worth a special trip. Some of them are 40% off, and you should grab them today. I’ll tell you which is which.
First things first: the $14 membership ends July 31
If you’re not a BJ’s member yet, stop and read this part before you scroll.
Right now you can join BJ’s for $14. On August 1, that same offer goes up to $20.
That’s nine days.
Here’s why I’m putting this at the top instead of burying it at the bottom: the entire back-to-school list below is the reason to join.
If you’re buying notebooks, pencils, lunchbox snacks, and maybe a Chromebook this month, the membership pays for itself somewhere around your second cart. Fourteen dollars is less than the backpack.
If you’ve been on the fence about a membership all year, this is the cheapest it gets before school starts.
Kids’ School Supplies
This is where the real value is. BJ’s supply prices are already good, and most of these have instant savings stacked on top. PLUS almost all of these have free shipping right now.
The ones I’d actually grab
Five Star Spiral Notebook Plus Study App, 1 Subject, 2 pk. — $4.99 (reg. $6.49), save $1.50 Available in wide ruled (Sky Blue/Fire Red) and college ruled (Floral/Geo), same price either way. Two Five Star notebooks for five dollars is genuinely hard to beat, and these are the ones that actually survive a full school year in a backpack.
Excello Global Products Back to School Pop-It Silicone Pencil Case — $4.99 Under five bucks and the pop-it thing is still going strong with elementary kids. Easy grab.
Top Flight Composition Books, Wide Ruled, 6 pk. — $5.99 (reg. $6.99), save $1.00 A dollar a book. Buy the six-pack even if the list only says two — you will need more by October.
Crayola Colored Pencils, 50 ct. — $6.99 No instant savings on this one, but 50 count for seven dollars is a solid per-pencil price.
Little Yellow Bicycle Silicone Pencil Case — $6.99 (reg. $7.99), save $1.00 The axolotl one. If you have a kid in that phase, you already know.
Paper Mate Back to School Supplies Variety Pack, 25 ct. — $7.99 (reg. $9.99), save $2.00 Sharpie, Expo, and Paper Mate all in one box. This is the “just check off half the list at once” purchase.
Pilot FriXion Light Pastel Erasable Highlighters, 12 pk. — $7.99 (reg. $9.99), save $2.00 Erasable highlighters are a middle and high school game changer. 20% off.
Lockermate by Bostitch Avocado Pencil Case with Mesh Pocket — $7.99 (reg. $8.99), save $1.00
Lockermate by Bostitch Video Game Pencil Case, Black Camo — $7.99 (reg. $8.99), save $1.00
U Brands Tabbed Dividers, Single Pocket Clear View, 8 pk. — $7.99
Paper Mate InkJoy 300RT Ballpoint Pens, 24 ct. — $8.99 (reg. $11.99), save $3.00 25% off and 24 pens. These are the ones that don’t skip.
Westcott Titanium Bonded Scissors, 3 pk. — $8.99 (reg. $9.99), save $1.00 Three pairs. One for the backpack, one for the house, one for the drawer where scissors go to disappear.
Wired 5-Subject Poly Cover Notebook, 160 Sheets, 2 pk. — $8.99 (reg. $9.99), save $1.00
Bostitch Pencil Sharpener — $8.99 (reg. $9.99), save $1.00
Little Yellow Bicycle Silicone Charm Pencil Case — $8.99 (reg. $9.99), save $1.00
Sharpie Highlighter Variety Pack, 18 ct. — $9.99 (reg. $12.99), save $3.00 23% off. Eighteen highlighters for ten dollars.
Contempo Dry Erase Board Set — $9.99
Excello Global Products 9-Compartment Plastic Storage Organizer — $10.99 (reg. $12.99), save $2.00 This one’s for the homework station, not the backpack. Good for corralling the supply explosion.
Lockermate by Bostitch Flexi Storage 4-Pc. Kit, Collapsible Pencil Case — $10.99 (reg. $11.99), save $1.00
Ticonderoga #2 Sharpened Pencils, 72 ct. — $10.99 No savings listed, but Ticonderogas at 15 cents a pencil is the price you want. These are the ones teachers actually ask for by name.
Crayola Ultimate Crayon Bucket, 200 ct. — $12.99 (reg. $13.99), save $1.00
EXPO 18-Pc. Dry Erase Set — $14.99 (reg. $16.99), save $2.00 If you’re a teacher or you’re putting together a teacher gift, this is the one.
Sharpie Tank Highlighters, 36 ct. Value Pack — $16.99 (reg. $19.99), save $3.00 Thirty-six highlighters. This is a classroom quantity, not a one-kid quantity — split it with another mom if that’s more your speed.
Lunch Gear & Water Bottles
Reduce Foodee Leak-Proof Insulated Kids Food Storage Container, 10 oz./2 pk. — $16.99 (reg. $19.99), save $3.00 Two insulated containers for seventeen dollars. If your kid is over sandwiches, this is how you send warm leftovers.
Ello Everyday 4.5-Cup 10-Pc. Meal Prep Set — $16.99 (reg. $19.99), save $3.00 Technically not a school supply, but glass meal prep containers at this price are worth grabbing while you’re there.
Ello Pop & Fill Insulated Water Bottle, 2 pk./18 oz. — $19.99 (reg. $22.99), save $3.00 Two bottles for twenty dollars. Buying two at once is the smart move because one is going to live at school permanently.
UA Hustle 6 Backpack — $34.99 (reg. $39.99), save $5.00 Under Armour backpacks hold up. This is the one you buy so you’re not buying another one in January.
Lunchbox Snacks — and this is where the stacking happens
Here’s the part I get genuinely excited about, because BJ’s is the only warehouse club where you can stack a manufacturer coupon on top of a BJ’s offer.
Right now there’s a Spend $30, Get $5 promotion running on Kraft back to school items — and a couple of them also have coupons.
Lunchables Pizza with Pepperoni & Extra Cheesy Pizza Variety Pack, 6 pk. — $10.49 Clip the $2.50 off coupon
Final price: $7.99 Then it counts toward your Spend $30/Get $5. Six Lunchables for eight dollars is about as good as this gets.
Jell-O Simply Blueberry, Orange & Raspberry Gelatin Snack Cups, Variety Pack, 12 ct. — $8.99
Clip the $1.00 off coupon
Final price: $7.99 Also counts toward the $30.
Capri Sun Hydrate Fruit Punch, Tropical Punch & Lemon Lime, 40 pk./6 fl. oz. — $10.99 Counts toward Spend $30/Get $5. Forty pouches, about 27 cents each.
Capri Sun Flavored Juice Drink Blend Variety Pack, 40 ct./6 fl. oz. — $14.79 Also counts toward the $30.
How to work the Spend $30/Get $5: Combine any of these Kraft back to school items until you hit $30, and BJ’s gives you $5 back. Two Lunchables packs plus a Capri Sun 40-count gets you most of the way there.
Clip the item coupons first, then let the total do the work — the $30 threshold is based on your pre-coupon subtotal, so the coupons are pure bonus on top.
That’s the BJ’s trick a lot of people miss. Manufacturer coupon plus club promotion, same transaction.
Classroom Donation Tissues
Every single supply list has tissues on it, and every single year I forget until the night before.
Kleenex Ultra Soft 3-Ply Facial Tissues, 12 pk./60 tissues per box — $17.99
Kleenex Ultra Soft 3-Ply Facial Tissues, 12 pk./120 tissues per box — $18.99
Kleenex Trusted Care Facial Tissues, 12 Flat Boxes, 160 per Box (1,920 total) — $18.99
That last one is the best value of the three — nineteen dollars for nearly two thousand tissues. Send two boxes to school and keep ten. The teacher will be thrilled and you’re set through cold season.
Back to School Tech
The tech section is where the deep discounts live this year. A few of these are excellent.
Best deals in the section
Amazon Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen), Charcoal — $49.99 (reg. $89.99), save $40 (44% off) This is the single biggest percentage discount in the whole back to school lineup. Great for a kid’s room as an alarm clock, timer, and homework reminder that isn’t a phone.
Logitech M325s Wireless Mouse — $12.99 (reg. $22.99), save $10 (43% off) Available in blue and red. Thirteen dollars for a real Logitech mouse — grab one for every kid doing schoolwork on a laptop.
HP 15.6″ Touchscreen Laptop, Intel Core i3, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Microsoft CoPilot — $349.99 (reg. $499.99), save $150 (30% off) Biggest dollar savings in the section. This is a legitimate high school or college machine, not a throwaway.
Acer Chromebook 311 14″ FHD, 4GB, 128GB eMMC, with Bonus Wireless Mouse — $179.99 (reg. $249.99), save $70 (28% off) If your school runs on Google Classroom, this is the practical buy. Comes with a wireless mouse included.
Logitech POP Icon Keyboard & Mouse Combo, Rose and Off White — $49.99 (reg. $69.99), save $20 (28% off) Cute enough that a teenager will actually use it at their desk.
Altec Lansing Kid Safe 2-in-1 Translucent Headphones, Blue — $14.99 (reg. $19.99), save $5 (25% off) Volume-limited headphones for the little ones. Fifteen dollars.
Also worth a look
iHome 4 pk. Canned Air — $14.99 Four cans. Unglamorous, but you’ll use them.
Logitech H390 USB Computer Headset — $22.99 (reg. $24.99), save $2.00 For virtual classes and online tutoring.
JLab Go Air Sport True Wireless Earbuds, Graphite — $24.99 1,500+ reviews and 32-hour battery at twenty-five dollars.
Logitech MK295 Silent Wireless Keyboard & Mouse Combo, Graphite — $24.99 (reg. $29.99), save $5.00
Philips 6-Outlet Surge Protector with USB + 3-Outlet Power Strip, 2 pk. — $24.99 (reg. $29.99), save $5.00 Two-pack. Dorm rooms and homework corners never have enough outlets.
Philips Surge Protector, 3 Grounded Outlets, 1 USB-A + 1 USB-C — $24.99 (reg. $29.99), save $5.00 Available in white/grey and teal/white.
Amazon Fire HD 8″ Tablet, Black — $99.99
Fujifilm Instax Mini 12 Instant Camera with Bonus Film, 20 Sheets, Blue — $99.99 Not a school supply. Absolutely a dorm room and locker decoration must-have.
Amazon Fire 7 Kids Tablet, 16GB — $109.99 Blue and purple both available. Includes the kid-proof case.
LG 32″ FHD Curved 100Hz Monitor with FreeSync, Black — $169.99
Lenovo V15 G4 15.6″ FHD Notebook, Intel Core i3, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, Windows 11 Home — $399.99 (reg. $479.99), save $80 (16% off) 16GB of RAM at this price is the standout spec here.
Big ticket, small discount
Being straight with you — these are barely on sale. Buy them if you were buying them anyway, but don’t rush.
Apple iPad Air 11″ (M3 Chip), 128GB, Wi-Fi, Purple — $549.99 (reg. $569.99), save $20 Xbox Series X 1TB Console, Black — $639.99 (reg. $649.99), save $10
My honest advice on timing
Buy the supplies now, wait on the clothes. Supply instant savings tend to disappear right as school starts, and the picked-over shelves in mid-August are real. Clothing and shoes go on deeper clearance after the first week of school.
And buy doubles of the cheap consumables — pencils, glue sticks, notebooks, folders. You are going to need them in November, and the November price will not be this price.
One more time on the membership, because the clock is real
$14 through July 31. $20 starting August 1.
If you’re planning to buy even half of this list, the membership is the cheapest line item on your receipt. And once you’re in, the coupon stacking I walked through above is available to you all year — not just in August.
Happy shopping, friends. May your glue sticks be plentiful and your supply list be short.
I Found a TON of Clearance Deals at BJ’s This Week (Prices Start at $6.48!)
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