DTI issues price guide on school supplies

As the opening of School Year 2025-2026 nears, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has released its “Gabay sa Pamimili ng School Supplies” to help parents and students find products that fit their needs and budget.

The opening of classes is scheduled on June 16, 2025 and will conclude on March 31, 2026 under the Department of Education Order No. 12, Series of 2025.

The DTI said the expanded price guide highlights price reductions for 29 various school supplies like notebooks, pad paper, pencils, ballpens, crayons, and other writing essentials.

The 2025 price guide covers 195 stock keeping units (SKUs) across 12 product categories, with reductions ranging from P1 to P10 versus prices of the school supplies in 2024.

These include notebook, P5 to P10; pad paper, P1 to P6; and pencil, P5.

In addition to the price drops, 101 SKUs (52% of the 195 SKUs listed) have maintained their prices from last year. This includes all SKUs for ballpens, erasers, and sharpeners.

The guide also introduces 48 new SKUs (25% of the total list), providing consumers with even more options and introducing newer brands and variants.

To help consumers spot deals, the guide uses these icons: a pen marks items with no price increase, and scissors highlight those with price reductions.

Notebooks are priced from P15 to P52. Pad paper prices range from P15 to P48.75. Pencils cost P11 to P24, while pens are available from P3 to P33.

Crayons, in various box sizes, can be purchased for P12 to P114.

Sharpeners are priced at P15 to P69, and rulers at P16 to P39. Erasers, in various sizes, remain priced at P4.50 to P20.

The agency reminded consumers to check product labels, such as the number of leaves in notebooks and pad papers.

“Consumers should be wary of school supplies without labels, especially those that do not indicate the manufacturer’s or importer’s name and address,” the DTI said.

To download the latest “Gabay sa Pamimili ng School Supplies,” consumers may visit the DTI website or follow the official Facebook pages of DTI Philippines and DTI Consumer Care for updates and advisories.