When I preserve food in glass jars (aka. “canning”) almost everything in the process is reusable from year to year. However, the one disposable element is the jar lid that comes in contact with the food.
In previous years, I’ve opted to buy lids when I need them, but this year I’ve decided to bulk order lids so I could get them as cheaply as possible. Here were the places I was able to find lids (locally and online) and the price per lid.
| Online | ||
| Location | Price Per lid | |
| Regular | Wide | |
| Amazon.com | $0.49 | $0.44 |
| Freshpreserving.com | $0.19 | $0.27 |
| Acehardware.com | $0.25 | $0.33 |
| Upper Valley Merchants | ||
| Hanover Coop | $0.15 | |
| West Lebanon Feed | $0.23 | $0.33 |
Price per lid is based on the volume of lids purchased, so smaller packages might have higher per-lid prices.
Note that I couldn’t find the shipping charges for Freshpreserving.com, which may increase the cost per lid. At Amazon.com, I only used Prime merchants, so I wouldn’t have to pay shipping charges, and use the cheapest price I could find.
Big props to the Coop for having the cheapest lids. In addition, being a Coop member, I may get an additional 10% discount on my lids, lowering the price even further. I will stop by and order a case!
ReLocavore: Redefining "local" 
May 30, 2014 at 12:59 pm
This is so helpful! I’ll have to look at local sources, but thanks for posting this – nice to know what the major retailers are charging!
May 30, 2014 at 1:00 pm
Do you have any other retailers online that you know selling canning lids? There’s lots of mom-and-pop storefronts with canning supplies, but I haven’t bought from any of them.
May 30, 2014 at 1:04 pm
I’ve looked at those too, but never bought anything. Sometimes Home Depot and Lowe’s will carry the lids as well and when they have a sale it isn’t bad – but you have to get them when the price is right and they go fast!
May 30, 2014 at 1:50 pm
Thanks for the tip. I checked their websites and didn’t see anything available there. I’ll keep my eyes open for the local flyers. If I see sales, I’ll post.