# Which is the least expensive?

1. Dec 19, 2011

### Embison

Can someone help me figure out whether buying bottles or cans of beer is cheaper according to the prices here...

I'm only interested in the bottles 341ml and the cans 355ml.

I want to buy the biggest case possible of either cans or bottles.

Can someone let me know which one is the best bargain?

thank you for any help!!

2. Dec 19, 2011

Hey Embison.

When you want to do these kinds of problems, you want to figure out a standard unit that is in $per quantity. In this case the quantity is in litres so you are measuring$ per litre. Once things are in standardized amounts, you just find the deal with the lowest $/litre figure and you're in business. As an example lets look at the one on sale 473mL for 12.00 dollars. To get our price in dollars per litre we calculate 12.00/0.473 =$25.37/6 per litre for the 6 can 473mL or $4.23 a litre (Thanks for the correction Embison Now using this idea, can you do it for the other prices that you want to find out? Last edited: Dec 20, 2011 3. Dec 20, 2011 ### Embison$25 for a litre of beer? I don't know how you came up with that but it's far too expensive. If you buy two of the 473ml cans that's almost a litre and it'd come out to \$4.30.

But I also mentioned that I didnt want the 473 ml cans. I only want to buy either the 341ml bottles or 355ml cans.

I want to buy the biggest case possible of either cans or bottles at the best price possible. Can someone tell me which case of 355ml cans or 341ml is the best deal?

thank you!!

4. Dec 20, 2011

### chiro

Hahaha that was a bad mistake :)

Multiply the denominator by how many cans and you'll get the right price. So divide my answer by six and you'll get the right answer.

I did the calculation based on 1 x litre price and not number of cans x unit price.

5. Dec 20, 2011

### Embison

Thank you for your help I really appreciate it. So it looks like 30 bottles are the best bargain if I followed your advice correctly?

The beer prices don't really seem to be very rational here. You would think that buying cans would be less expensive than bottles. Especially when they have a bulk case of 48 cans vs the bulk case of 30 bottles. Usually when it comes to anything else, the more you buy the less expensive it becomes per unit etc. Not to mention the beer prices in Canada are already unbelievably high compared to the states.

6. Dec 20, 2011

### chiro

One trick that some companies do is to sometimes increase the unit cost for bulk sales. It sounds counterintuitive but there is usually an assumption that we get a better deal for bulk items, and some people take advantage of that assumption. Sometimes there is no difference, but other times it can actually work out costing more.