True Cost of Ownership

I know there is a lot of discussion on the initial cost of soaps, for example, $16 for 4 oz seems pretty standard although some sell for $10 and others much more. And surely one needs to add the cost of shipping (not tax because thats different for everyone). And packaging is all over the place. You can spend $7 to get some package of soap or $70 for some MdC. Some people sell 3.5 oz and some  7oz.  Worse  yet, some used weight and others ml.  So, who has TRUE Cost of Ownership cost breakdowns, that is cost/shave. I know some people track this stuff. Or in other words, how much does it cost you per shave for your soap of choice. I know everyone does this differently. Some use big brushes, some little. Some make a ton of lather, others just enough to get the job done.

Wow! That's a lot of math. I'll be interested if someone has figured this out. Likely won't change what I do but it would be fun to look at.

I’ve been keeping track of quite a few aspects of my shaves, and doing some research on certain expenses (I made a non-extensive refill soap cost comparison last year), but I need some more time before I can really start summing up numbers for any conclusions.

Some day I’ll probably want to forget about tracking anything and just shave as I please, but it has been interesting to keep notes for a while now.

I track landed cost as Canadian $/gram. I include shipping and import duties and exchange rate depending on where the soap came from. I have never bothered to track the number of shaves.

Interestingly, I bought Nuavia on sale, I received a 10% discount on Boellis and at the end of the day they both cost $0.32/gram which was also the same that I paid for my puck of Valobra. Funny thing is I didn't have to pay any shipping on the Valobra because it was in an order that qualified for free shipping from IB.

Boellis and Nuavia are both regarded as expensive, but when you make the comparison it looks like Valobra might be overpriced.

I track landed cost as Canadian $/gram. they both cost $0.32/gram

Thank you Nuki Man but that is cost/weight. The real cost is cost/shave. Take a container, count how many times you use it, and divide the cost by number of uses. If a soap cost $15 and you got 60 shaves then that soap cost a quarter (i.e., 25 cents) per shave.

Considering that people complain about the high cost of hardware (e.g., razors, brushes) and they are durable goods that might last a lifetime, to not worry about the cost of consumables makes no sense to me considering one buys them over and over again.

Pricing can be very deceiving. That hard triple milled soap, might get you many more shaves than a soft soft like Nuavia and, in fact, be cheaper. The same is true for "soft US artisan soaps". The only way to know is to do the math.

I am working on this and so far some results make sense (e.g., true creams, not croaps, cost more per shave than soft or hard soaps). OTH, one can just tear up some of the soft soaps and they end up being far more expensive than one thinks. Just trying to find out what others think.

I've seen threads where people have done this. Basically, weigh a soap, use it for 10 days, and then reweigh it and divide by 10. Take this number and divide into the total weight of a new pick and you have the number of shaves per puck. Then divide the cost by this number and you have cost per shave.

I've seen threads where people have done this. Basically, weigh a soap, use it for 10 days, and then reweigh it and divide by 10. Take this number and divide into the total weight of a new pick and you have the number of shaves per puck. Then divide the cost by this number and you have cost per shave.

Interesting, I never thought of trying to do the calc based on 10 shaves as a proxy and it seemed like way too much to bother counting the number of shaves in a whole puck.

I've seen threads where people have done this. Basically, weigh a soap, use it for 10 days, and then reweigh it and divide by 10. Take this number and divide into the total weight of a new pick and you have the number of shaves per puck. Then divide the cost by this number and you have cost per shave.

Interesting, I never thought of trying to do the calc based on 10 shaves as a proxy and it seemed like way too much to bother counting the number of shaves in a whole puck.

+1. In a way, it’s interesting to know exactly how many shaves one gets out of such and such product, but this method would make it far quicker to have a very reasonable estimate of both cost per shave and amount of shaves per product.

I had lunch with a bean counter ( accountant) once. He decided to bring up religion and gift me a pamphlet. I handed it back as our BBQ ribs and baked beans were served. I held up the menu. ' Once this is read you are supposed to eat that, not the reverse' pointing to my plate. I swear he had this OCD gleam in his eye trying to count our respective servings. Then he excused himself to the men's room as the waiter approached with the check. I told him my friend was paying and slipped away.
These spreadsheets are fun, but in the end often GIGO. You are going to discover THE SOAP and simply not give a damn about the cost.

I likely won't ever have to rebuy a soap