25 Biggest Rip-offs In America

The biggest rip-offs in America are debatable considering the overall mood of the people. But some are obvious. How many of these things are you wasting money on every month?

Healthy Juices

With all the sugar that’s found in most fruit juices, you might as well drink a soda or go and suck on an actual orange. 100% juice is all well and good to hear, but it’s not entirely honest.

Amusement Park Food

How much do you think it costs to make a churro? How much does it take to buy and plump a hot dog? It’s part of the experience, but it’s also the expensive part.

Restaurant Pasta

You might have heard this before, but I’ll put it simply. You’re paying for the sauce and the cost of doing business. Pasta is cheap.

Hoverboards

How people fell for this or allowed themselves to fall for it, is kind of amazing. These things roll, there’s no hovering involved.

Buying Land in Scotland

Unless you live in Scotland and are paying a small fortune for a sizeable plot of land, that one-foot square won’t mean anything. When it comes to the biggest rip-offs in America, this one is all types of hilarious.

Bottled Water

Bottled water is great when your water supply is tainted or otherwise foul. But apart from that, it’s tap water that’s sold for a dollar or more and listed as something it’s not.

Warranties on Electronics

Sure, insuring something that costs a lot is normal. You want to make certain that you can get it repaired if something goes wrong. But when the cost of the repair and the warranty are the same, it’s peace of mind, not a bargain.

Oil Changes

This doesn’t mean you need to stop getting oil changes, since that’s a good way to blow an engine. But when it comes to the extras, it’s called upselling, and it’s done in several industries. Just get the oil change and go.

Travel Size of Anything

Anyone who sells these things knows how to make money since people typically only buy these when they’ve forgotten their own. Go ahead and buy one or two and then refill them.

Razor Blades

You don’t need the latest advances in razor blade technology, it all shaves the same more or less. Buy in bulk, stay away from name brands, and save your money for something else.

Starbucks Coffee

Do you know why baristas give you a blank look when you ask for regular coffee? You’ve cracked the code since Starbucks and other places like this give you regular coffee laced with sugar and cream and give each drink a new and exciting name. That’s marketing.

Electronics Cables

You’ve likely heard that stores are having trouble competing with online companies, and that’s true. The thing is, you don’t need store prices when online is cheaper. The tech isn’t much different, and it works just as well.

Funerals

Essentially, you’re paying someone to dig a hole, put a giant hunk of stone over it, and hold a small ceremony for a loved one. It’s tough to say that it’s a scam, but when it costs thousands of dollars to do this, well, it gets a little easier.

Fountain Soda

Keep this in mind next time you visit a restaurant and have a soda. A large portion of that drink is water since servers are taught to use the maximum amount of ice unless it’s otherwise requested to ‘go light’. Plus, the cost of soda is so low that the $2 or more that’s charged is mostly profit.

Ink Cartridges

One of the biggest rip-offs in America is also one of the most devious. A lot of people have been tuned in to this scam over the years. Printers are cheap, while ink, which is gone way too fast, is insanely expensive. Shouldn’t it be the other way around?

Gym Memberships

Have you ever joined a gym and then tried to quit, only to find that there’s a cancellation fee? Why bother with the gym when the cost of equipment and free exercise pays for itself so quickly?

Premium Gas

The experts telling you that premium is better for your engine aren’t exactly lying, but they’re not telling the truth either. When talking about the performance of premium, they’re talking about high-performance engines. Unless you drive a racecar, you don’t need premium. Not only is it expensive, it’s one of the biggest rip-offs in America.

All You Can Eat Buffets

If you need that much to eat then you’ve either starved yourself for too long, you’re morbidly obese and have an eating problem, or you just like spending money. Apart from Las Vegas, buffets are a serious rip-off that drains your wallet just as fast as they fill your stomach.

Hotel Mini Bars

For many these little money-sucking rectangles are pure evil since the cost of everything is double if not triple the normal price. Don’t get lazy when you stay in a hotel, find the nearest convenience mart and take a walk.

Free Credit Reports

Do people still fall for this? Well, if they don’t know then they don’t know. Time to learn a little and realize that your credit is dinged, and the only ‘free’ part of it is something they won’t tell you about. When discussing the biggest rip-offs in America, this is one of the several things that many people need to know about.

Branded Painkillers

There are generic brands that are of lesser quality and are cheap knockoffs. But in the case of medications, it’s illegal to peddle something that’s advertised as useful with a lesser effect than the branded painkillers. In other words, the generic medicine will work as intended, or there’s a lawsuit brewing.

College Textbooks

Anyone who’s walked through a college bookstore knows what it’s like to feel their wallet grow thinner just by glancing at the prices. But when you figure out how many college textbooks are relevant after the first semester you’ll figure out very quickly that you could purchase your books at a used bookstore and save a ton of money.

Movie Theater Popcorn

It’s not the theater’s fault, it’s the people running the theater. Indeed, ticket prices don’t necessarily help the theater, and they rely heavily on concessions, and movie theater popcorn is usually a guaranteed sale. But charging for something you can get at home at less than a third of the price is ridiculous.

Wireless Cancellation Fees

This is part of why month-to-month is worth far more than signing a contract since wireless cancellation fees are only designed to keep the company from losing money. Thinking that you need to pay for the privilege of canceling is, well, dumb.

Lottery Tickets

When you think about your chances of winning with a handful of lottery tickets versus the chance of lightning striking you dead, it’s a little sobering. Plus, the fact that some of the laziest and oldest people around win this thing makes it feel a little too pre-determined.