# Handout 01.16: Unit Price Practice

Name: ______________________ Date: __________ Partner: ______________________

All prices on this sheet are realistic Long Island supermarket prices for September 2026. Every one is marked [update from this week's circular]; your teacher may write the real price on the board.

## The rule

**Unit price = price divided by quantity.**

Write the dollar sign on every unit price answer. If there is no dollar sign, you divided the wrong way.

The units have to match before you compare. **1 pound (lb) = 16 ounces (oz).** To change pounds to ounces, multiply by 16.

Worked example: a 24 oz jar of sauce costs $2.29. $2.29 divided by 24 = $0.095 per oz.

## Part A: Find the unit price (round to three decimal places)

| # | Item | Price | Quantity | Unit price (show your division) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Store-brand pasta [update from this week's circular] | $1.29 | 16 oz | $______ per oz |
| 2 | Marinara sauce, jar [update from this week's circular] | $2.29 | 24 oz | $______ per oz |
| 3 | Shredded cheese, bag [update from this week's circular] | $2.49 | 8 oz | $______ per oz |
| 4 | Frozen corn, bag [update from this week's circular] | $1.79 | 12 oz | $______ per oz |
| 5 | Deli half rotisserie chicken [update from this week's circular] | $4.99 | 1 lb 4 oz = ______ oz | $______ per oz |
| 6 | Rice, bag [update from this week's circular] | $2.79 | 2 lb = ______ oz | $______ per oz |

## Part B: Which is the better buy per ounce? Circle it and show why.

| # | Option 1 | Option 2 | Unit price 1 | Unit price 2 | Better buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marinara, 24 oz jar, $2.29 | Marinara, 45 oz jar, $3.79 | $______ per oz | $______ per oz | 24 oz / 45 oz |
| 2 | Name-brand pasta, 12 oz box, $1.49 | Store-brand pasta, 16 oz box, $1.29 | $______ per oz | $______ per oz | name / store |
| 3 | Shredded cheese, 8 oz bag, $2.49 | Shredded cheese, 2 lb bag, $7.99 | $______ per oz | $______ per oz | 8 oz / 2 lb |

## Part C: Sales tax on non-food items

Copy the rule from the board:

In New York, most grocery food is ______ taxed. Non-food items (foil, paper plates, cups, soap) and candy, soda, and prepared hot food ______ taxed. The rate in our county is about ______ percent. [Sal: confirm the local rate]

Circle the items that get taxed at the register: a bag of rice, a roll of foil, a two-liter soda, paper plates, a loaf of bread, a candy bar.

A roll of foil costs $3.49. The tax at 8.625 percent is $______. The total for the foil is $______.

## Part D: The bulk trap

A 10 lb bag of potatoes costs $5.99. A 3 lb bag costs $2.99.

Unit price of the 10 lb bag: $______ per lb. Unit price of the 3 lb bag: $______ per lb. Cheaper per pound: ______.

This family eats potatoes about twice a month, about 2 pounds each time. Potatoes keep for two to three weeks in a cool, dark place, and this family keeps them in a warm kitchen cabinet.

Which bag should this family buy? ______

Why? Use the sentence starter: "The big bag is cheaper per ____________, but this family should buy the ____________ because ____________."

________________________________________________________________

## Part E: When cheaper is not better (copy the list from the debrief)

Cheaper per unit is the wrong buy when:
1. ____________________
2. ____________________
3. ____________________
4. ____________________
5. ____________________

One of my own from home: ____________________

* * *

## Teacher key

Part A: 1. $0.081 per oz. 2. $0.095 per oz. 3. $0.311 per oz. 4. $0.149 per oz. 5. 20 oz; $0.250 per oz. 6. 32 oz; $0.087 per oz. Accept answers within $0.002.

Part B: 1. $0.095 vs $0.084; the 45 oz jar. 2. $0.124 vs $0.081; store brand. 3. $0.311 vs $0.250; the 2 lb bag (then ask: can the family use 2 lb of cheese before it molds? That is Part D's question).

Part C: most grocery food is not taxed; non-food items, candy, soda, and prepared hot food are taxed; about 8.625 percent in Suffolk and Nassau counties [Sal: confirm]. Taxed: foil, soda, paper plates, candy bar. Not taxed: rice, bread. Foil tax: $3.49 times 0.08625 = $0.30 (rounded). Total $3.79.

Part D: 10 lb bag: $0.599 per lb. 3 lb bag: $0.997 per lb. Cheaper per pound: the 10 lb bag. The family should buy the 3 lb bag: they use about 4 lb a month, the potatoes will sprout or rot in a warm cabinet before they use 10 lb, and the waste costs more than the savings. Accept the 10 lb bag only with a fix (a cool, dark place to store them and a plan to use them within three weeks).

Part E (from the debrief): it will spoil before you use it; there is no room to store it; the family will not eat that much; a food rule or allergy rules it out; you cannot afford the bigger total today even though it is cheaper per ounce.