Like almost every high schooler, I find myself low on money every now and then. I might be able to afford a snack or a new phone charger when I need one, but I can’t afford everything I need on a daily basis. Or, at least, I used to not be able to. Luckily, Cedar Rapids recently had a five Below open near Lindale Mall. Five Below has every everyday item I need.

From snacks to jewelry to decorations, five Below has it all. The store is split into some main sections: games, sports equipment, beauty supplies, candy, and some other knick knacks. For games, five Below has a wide selection, from classic Jenga to silly putty. The sports equipment section includes all sorts of balls such as footballs or kickballs, and also some weights and workout bands. In the beauty supplies, they have makeup, but also roped in is a small selection of clothes, shoes, home decorations, and arts and crafts. The biggest section of the store is probably the candy area, or at least right now with the extra Easter items. They have all the unique kinds like the Harry Potter candy to ones you find at movie theaters like Cookie Dough Bites or Snow Caps. This is just a summary of what Five Below offers. Truly the only way to know everything that is there is to experience it yourself. The store stays true to its name everything for sale is five dollars or less. In one trip I got some dry erase markers, a poster, an alarm clock and a bag of pretzels for under $15. Getting the exact same items at Target would have ran around $25, and this is an example with a pretty close margin. Here’s another example: a power strip at five Below is $5, but at Best Buy it is around $20 for the exact same size. The low prices make five Below the best place for anyone looking for a quick snack, electronic device or an important household item they need.

Five Below definitely isn’t the first budget store to exist. Stores like Dollar Tree or Dollar General have even lower prices than five Below. What makes five Below stand out among the rest is the quality of their products. They stock new, name-brand items, and their $5 ceiling gives more leeway to sell these products than stores that sell for more. Also, with their greater leeway in price, they can include quality electronic and beauty items, whereas a lot of other budget stores don’t.

Now that a five Below is in Cedar Rapids, I have a store I can rely on for affordable yet quality products. I hope everyone gives the store a chance by checking it out, getting great items and saving money.