Store brand items have both advantages and disadvantages. It is important to take these both into consideration when deciding whether they are right for you. Consider the following factors.
Advantages
Price
For many this is the biggest advantage of buying store brand items. They are usually cheaper and sometimes significantly so. With something like over the counter medicines, which can be very expensive, you can often only pay a fraction of the price for the exact same thing. Many right now are on tight budgets. Also, these are often on grocery items that get bought constantly so even small savings can add up as time passes.
They are often made by the same people
A lot of times the store brand is just the name brand with a different box. Sometimes the same big companies make them.
They often taste exactly the same (or better)
Just because it is a store brand does not mean that it is bad. Sometimes the store brand item is just as good as the regular one. Some people even prefer the store brand items in some cases. It may be different or you may barely be able to tell a difference at all. For something like an over-the-counter medicine with the same active ingredient, you will usually not notice any difference, for instance.
Disadvantages
Sometimes they are not as good
Sometimes you will notice a difference. You may like the name brand better. It might be worth the extra money to you to get that.
You know what you are getting
Sometimes people buy products from different sources. You might be traveling somewhere and not familiar with the store brand items. When you continually get the name brand items, then you will be familiar with the product and can get them over a wide range of places.
You can’t always get store brand items
Sometimes certain products do not come in store brands. You might not have as wide a selection. For instance, some breakfast cereals come in many different flavors. They may have a store brand for one of the flavors but not for all of them.
For many the benefits of buying store brand items outweigh the cons. In general, it is at least something that you can try. If you find that you do not like the product as much then you can go back to the name brand product. Also, consider the above advantages and disadvantages when deciding whether it is right for you.