One question that I was asked recently was whether or not it is worth the money to buy your own soda machine and make your soda at home, as opposed to buying liters of soda at the store each week. I took a look at a couple of different factors, and I can share that information with you.
My first immediate response to this question would be no, but to be fair that is largely because we don’t drink soda at our home, with the exception of flat ginger-ale when some is ill. Because of the empty calories and the expense, we stay away from it (although we are not perfect, believe me, we still purchase other sweets, coffee, etc.)
Obviously, if you can avoid soda and drink water instead, you will save money. But if soda is something you enjoy, then the best thing to do is to find a way to spend less on it.
A typical soda machine costs around $80. You’ll have to purchase the soda mix or flavoring as well.
The cost for actual flavored soda comes out to about 40 cents per liter (20 for plain seltzer).
Now whether it is worth it or not depends on the price you are paying currently for soda. You’ll have to take that cost, anywhere from 50 cents a liter to $1.50 and calculate it out. Typically, generic soda is about 88 cents per liter. Sometimes coupons and sales can get you name brand soda for 79 cents per liter or less.
If you are going through 2 liters of soda a day, a soda machine may pay for itself in a few months, giving you ongoing savings after that, but if you are an occasional soda drinker (say with your Friday night pizza), it just might not be worth the cost. Seltzer drinkers would gain back their investment more quickly, since they wouldn’t be spending extra money on soda flavoring.