Make it from home, it’s always cheaper. Or is it? We’re going to talk about the break down of made from scratch vs. store bought and the cost effectiveness of some of the staples that are often talked about when deciding whether to make or buy something.

Now, before you comment, I know for many, myself included, the cost is not the only factor, but rather the nutrient quality as well.

We’ll discuss those benefits too, but focus mostly on cost in this article. To assist in the calculations and keep prices factored the same, I leveraged Chat-GPT to help me calculate these costs. Prices will definitely vary by area.

Bread — cheaper to make or buy?

I am going to just include yeast bread here, because if we’re on a budget, we’re probably not splurging on sourdough, but I’ll guarantee that it is cheaper to make your sourdough (I did the math for ya).

Here is the break down for a yeast bread:

Store-Bought Sandwich Bread (2025)

Cheap white/brown sandwich loaves: ~$2.00–$3.50 per loaf (generic / supermarket brands).
Premium “artisan” or “organic” sandwich bread: ~$4.00–$6.00 per loaf.
Sourdough sandwich loaves (for comparison): ~$5.00–$8.00.

This one actually surprised me, because I definitely thought it would be cheaper to buy. Even though I have bought bread in my post partum season to keep things a little easier for me, and there is honestly no comparison.

What do you need to make homemade bread?

If you’re looking to make your own homemade bread, like anything in the kitchen, you can do it simply or invest in helpful tools. As always, I recommend keeping it as simple as possible when trying something new, and see if you like it and it’s sustainable FOR YOU.

Essentials:

Bread pan or pullman loaf pan
Bowl for mixing
Hands to knead

Investments for Long Term

Kitchen Aid or Bosch Mixer
Grain Mill

You can do so much with the essentials, but I will say, having a mixer does make it a lot easier and cuts down the time by a lot. If you decide you like making your bread, it’s a worthwhile investment (trust me, you’ll start making a lot of other things from scratch too). If you want to step up your game, you can also start milling your own flour. I love my Nutrimill grinder, and I go back and forth between already milled flour and making my own.

Here is my low fuss sourdough bread video, but yeast is even easier.

Bone Broth

Admittedly, I already knew the answer to this one, because I have been making it for years now BECAUSE it’s so cheap to make and SO EXPENSIVE to buy. But let’s do the breakdown anyways.

Store-Bought Bone Broth Prices (2025)

Shelf-stable cartons (organic brands, 32 oz): ~$4.50–$6.50 each
Specialty / premium bone broths (grass-fed, frozen, keto-focused): ~$7–$10 per 32 oz
Average per gallon (128 oz): ~$18–$25

Not only do you get an entire gallon for the price of one 32 oz container, you also get to control all of the ingredients. And often it is way cheaper than this, because if you look at the notes, most broths are made with scraps. I usually save all my scraps from cooking in a gallon bag in the freezer (think carrot ends, onion skins and roots, garlic peels, etc). Once it’s full, it signals it’s time for me to make broth. I usually will get a whole chicken in the instant pot, cook it for the meat, then take the bones and veggie scraps and put it on slow cook for 16 hours. I will do this twice to get super flavorful broth (closer to 2 gallons worth).

Let’s talk about the essentials:

A pot to simmer

Investments:

Instant Pot or Slow Cooker

The essentials to make bone broth is just a large pot to simmer the broth in for 12 to 16 hours. When I first started making broth, this is how I did it. I saw many people making it on the stove, so this is what I thought I needed to do.

Then I realized I could make my life much simpler (and a little less scary) by using an instant pot slow cooker function so that I didn’t need to leave my stove on all night if I started later in the day (something that freaked me out a bit).

I have a video on how I make broth using beef bones, but you can apply similar methods to chicken!

Mayo - Cheaper to Make or Buy?

Mayo is one of those things I didn’t realize you could make until I watch a short one day and saw someone do it themselves, pretty easily I might add.

So what did I do the first time I tried to do it? I used a whisk. 0 out of 10 recommend, but do know that it IS possible to make without any motorized tools. You’ll just get a real arm workout.

Mayo is something that CAN be more expensive to make, depending on the ingredients you use, however I think it can still be a huge money saver in the long run by only making what you need (not letting jars go to waste and expire) and by leveraging ingredients that are better for your body in the long run.

Also, once you’ve tasted fresh mayo, it’s hard to look at jarred mayo the same.

Store-Bought Mayonnaise (2025)

Hellmann’s / Best Foods 30 oz jar: ~$5.50 (≈ $0.18 per oz, or ~$0.09 per tbsp)
Organic or avocado oil mayo (12–15 oz jars): ~$7–9 (≈ $0.45–$0.60 per oz, or ~$0.23–$0.30 per tbsp)

Key Insights:

Homemade mayo is cheaper than premium organic brands by a wide margin.
Compared to big-brand (Hellmann’s/Best Foods), the savings are smaller — but homemade has the edge in freshness, customization, and clean ingredients.
If you use specialty oils (like avocado oil), homemade mayo can actually cost more, but still cheaper than premium store-bought versions.

Essentials:

Immersion Blender

Truly, this is worth it if you don’t already have one. A blender is usually too big and a whisk will make you skip arm day for a week.

Ice Cream — Cheaper to Make or Buy?

This is one I want to be cheaper in all scenarios, but the reality is that if you’re an occasional ice cream eater, or just don’t care that much for higher end brands, you’re likely better off buying. Especially since you do have to buy specialty equipment (while generally not to expensive, it is still an added cost).

However, if you love a good midwest custard, or want to make specialty flavors, I think that making your own will be worth it. Let’s look at the breakdown:

Store-Bought Ice Cream (2025)

Premium brands (Haagen-Dazs, Ben & Jerry’s, Jeni’s, etc.): $6–8 per pint (16 oz) = $12–16 per quart
Mid-tier brands (Breyers, Turkey Hill, Blue Bell, etc.): $5–6 per 48 oz tub ≈ $3.30–$4 per quart
Budget store brands / generics: $2.50–3.00 per 48 oz ≈ $1.70–$2 per quart