Is it Cheaper to Make or Buy Uncrustables? (Frozen PB&J)
Uncrustables hit the grocery shelves in 1995 and the standard Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich has never been the same since. Unfortunately, these handy frozen sandwiches can come with a pretty hefty price tag.
Today we are going to breakdown the costs and see if we can make them cheaper! We will see how many Uncrustable sandwiches we can make with a loaf of bread, the average cost of Uncrustables at the grocery store, and if it is worth it to make them yourself.
How much are Homemade Uncrustables?
Thankfully just like a regular peanut butter and jelly sandwich, an uncrustable is super easy to make. There are tons of gadgets that you can use to get the perfect seal, but you can also use items you already have like a mason jar lid.
| Ingredients for Homemade Uncrustables | Total Cost | Cost for Recipe |
| 1 loaf of bread | Great Value 20 oz loaf= $1.32 | $1.32 |
| 1 jar of peanut butter | Great Value 18 oz jar= $1.84 | $0.69 |
| 1 jar of jelly | Great Value 30 oz jar= $2.62 | $0.37 |
| Total Cost: $5.78 | Total Cost for 12 sandwiches: $2.38 | |
| Cost per Uncrustable: $0.19 |
A 20oz loaf of bread has typically about 24 slices, so we should be able to make 12 Uncrustable sandwiches. We found the best way to make these frozen PB&J sandwiches less soggy was to spread peanut butter on both halves and put a little jelly in the middle of just one side.
We are estimating a total of 1 tbsp of peanut butter and a half tbsp of jelly for each sandwich. The more filling you add, the harder it is to seal the sandwich.
We determined our ingredients cost at our local Walmart, so depending on where you shop, your costs may vary.
For our batch of 12 uncrustable sandwiches using 1 loaf of bread, the total out of pocket cost would be $5.78. The actual cost of the recipe would only be $2.38 since we would have peanut butter and jelly leftover.
For a total of 12 Uncrustables, that would make the cost of each sandwich only $0.19 each to make at home.
If you wanted to take the savings even further, you could even make your own peanut butter from peanuts at home.
How much are Uncrustables at the Grocery Store?
Now let’s head out to some grocery stores to find out what the average of Uncrustables tends to be!
| Store Bought Uncrustables Quantity | Store & Price | Cost per Sandwich |
| Uncrustables 18 ct box | Sam’s, $17.41 | $0.96 |
| Uncrustables 15 ct box | Ingles Markets, $14.99 | $0.99 |
| Uncrustables 15 ct box | Target, $16.99 | $1.13 |
| Uncrustables 4 ct box | Safeway, $5.99 | $1.49 |
| Uncrustables 15 ct box | Smart & Final, $12.49 | $0.83 |
| Uncrustables 10 ct box | Food City, $10.59 | $1.05 |
| Uncrustables 15 ct box | Meijer, $13.99 | $0.93 |
| Uncrustables 4 ct box | Kroger, $5.19 | $1.29 |
| Uncrustables 4 ct box | Family Dollar, $4.99 | $1.24 |
| Average Cost per Uncrustable Sandwich: | $1.10 |
You may be wondering why you are not seeing any generic or store brand options for Uncrustables. Great Questions!
Uncrustables are made by Smuckers and they firmly protect their trademarked sealed sandwiches. So much so, they sued many companies for making a similar product and won because they own a patent on the product.
We found that the average Uncrustable sandwich at the grocery store was about $1.10. We did find them as low as $0.83 each and as high as $1.49 each.
Are Homemade Uncrustables worth it?
If we are looking at just costs, it is definitely worth making your own Uncrustables sandwiches for your kids!
A batch of 12 homemade Uncrustables was only $2.38 compared to 12 store bought ones starting at $9.96. That is a savings of at least 76% depending on how cheap we can find Uncrustables in our area.
Not only is the homemade version cheaper, but you control the ingredients. This means you can choose whatever combination that you like. You can use honey, Nutella, a variety of jellies and jams, and so much more!
As an added bonus, when you make Uncrustables at home, you won’t be adding extra preservatives and additives like sodium to make the product last longer. This basically just means the DIY version is really much healthier!
Overall, I think with minimal effort this is a very easy Do It Yourself option if your kids are a huge fan of Uncrustables. It doesn’t take very long to make a batch of 12 sandwiches and the savings for each batch is totally worth it!
