Bulk Buy Wet Wipes: How to Buy Cases Without Overpaying

Bulk buy wet wipes without overpaying: how cases are sized, what cheap wet wipes really cost per wipe, which format suits home or business, and how to store them.

Wet wipes are one of the few household products where the price per unit swings by a factor of ten depending on how you buy them. The same multi-surface wipe can cost 7p from a single pack at the corner shop and under 2p from a case. For a family that uses a pack a week, or a café that goes through one a day, that gap is worth doing the arithmetic on.

This guide explains how wet wipes are sold in bulk, what cheap wet wipes really cost per wipe once you look past the headline price, how to pick the right format for the way you use them, and how to buy a case without ending up with 1,200 wipes you do not like.

The short answer

To bulk buy wet wipes sensibly, compare on price per wipe, not price per pack or per case. Cases typically contain 12 or 24 packs, or 4 canisters, and at distributor prices a good multi-surface wipe works out between 1.5p and 2.5p each. Decide your format by use: canisters for a kitchen or desk, 100-sheet packs for general household cleaning, pocket packs for bags and cars, and dedicated baby or body wipes for skin. Deep Fresh sells wipes in bulk by the case only, which is how the prices below are possible.

How wet wipes are sold in bulk

A wet wipes case is described as packs × sheets per pack. "12 × 100" is twelve packs of 100 wipes, 1,200 in total. The common formats are:

12 × 100 or 12 × 120 packs. The standard household and janitorial case. A pack lasts a family roughly a week; a case lasts a quarter.
24 × 72 or 24 × 48 packs. The baby and personal care format. Smaller packs, more of them, so you can keep one in every room and bag.
4 × 300 canisters. Pull-up tubs for kitchens, reception desks and workshops. The lowest price per wipe because there is almost no packaging per sheet.
48 × 10 pocket packs. Tiny packs for handbags, glove boxes and promotional giveaways. Highest price per wipe, but every wipe gets used.
6 × 50 floor sheets. Large, heavy-duty sheets for flat mops. Few sheets, large area each.

Cases come in twelves and twenty-fours because that is how the packing lines and pallets are set up. Deep Fresh supplies them unopened, exactly as they arrive from the factory.

What a wipe actually costs

Format	Case	Case price	Per pack / tub	Per wipe
Multi Surface canister	4 × 300 (1,200 wipes)	£20.00	£5.00	1.7p
Multi Surface Cleaning wipes	12 × 100 (1,200 wipes)	£25.00	£2.08	2.1p
Biodegradable Multi Surface wipes	12 × 100 (1,200 wipes)	£30.00	£2.50	2.5p
Pocket Multi Surface wipes	48 × 10 (480 wipes)	£20.00	42p	4.2p
Natural Bamboo Fibre wipes (skin)	24 × 100 (2,400 wipes)	£14.99	62p	0.6p
Extra Soft Baby wipes	24 × 72 (1,728 wipes)	£14.99	62p	0.9p
Adult wet wipes (skin)	24 × 48 (1,152 wipes)	£16.00	67p	1.4p
Multi Surface wipes, single pack	1 × 100	£6.99	£6.99	7.0p
Typical corner-shop pack	1 × 80	£2.00 to £3.00	£2.00 to £3.00	2.5p to 3.8p

Prices correct at the time of writing and exclude delivery. The single-pack row is there to make the point: the same wipe is more than three times the price when it is bought one pack at a time with its own postage.

Cheap wet wipes: where the saving comes from, and what to watch

Genuinely cheap wet wipes are cheap for sensible reasons: bigger case sizes, less retail packaging, no shelf-space costs and a distributor margin instead of a retail one. None of that affects the wipe. But some cheap wipes are cheap for worse reasons, and a case is a big commitment, so check the following before you order.

Sheet weight. A thin sheet means you use two. Look for "thick", "spunlace" or a stated grammage (40 gsm and up is a good household wipe).
Liquid content. A wipe that is barely damp in the pack is no use on a greasy hob. Good wipes feel saturated when you pull the first one.
Resealable flap. Without a proper sticker or lid, a 100-sheet pack dries out before you reach the bottom.
Labelling. UK cosmetic and household wipes should show a full ingredient list and a UK responsible person's address. If they do not, do not buy them, whatever the price.
Date. Wipes keep for about two years unopened. Clearance stock can be fine, but check you can use a case before the date.
Unknown brands at implausible prices. A 100-sheet pack for 30p is not a bargain; it is a thin, dry sheet in a pack that will not reseal.

Choose the format by how you use wipes

Use	Best format	Why
Household cleaning: kitchen, bathroom, high chairs	12 × 100 multi-surface packs	Cheap per wipe, one pack per room
Catering kitchens, workshops, reception desks	4 × 300 canisters	Lowest cost per wipe, stays moist, one-handed pull
Cars, handbags, school bags, promotions	48 × 10 pocket packs	Always to hand, every wipe used
Skin: hands, face, body, gym	24-pack skin wipes (adult or bamboo)	Alcohol-free, made for skin, not detergent
Nappy changes	24 × 72 baby wipes	pH-balanced, dermatologically tested
Hard floors	6 × 50 floor sheets	Large, strong sheets that fit a flat mop

The common mistake is buying one case of surface wipes and using them for everything, including hands and faces. Detergent or disinfectant cleaning wipes are formulated to lift grease from worktops and are not meant for skin. Deep Fresh Multi Surface wipes are different, an alcohol-free, soap-scented all-purpose wipe that is labelled for hands, face and body as well as surfaces, but a dedicated baby or body wipe is still the gentler, larger sheet for skin. Keep one of each and the case of each lasts twice as long.

Delivery: the part people forget

Wipes are light for their size, which works in your favour. Deep Fresh delivery is priced by weight band, so a case of 12 × 100 sits in a low band, and adding a second case, or a case of hand soap, often moves you up only one band rather than doubling the cost. Two cases in one order is nearly always cheaper per case than two orders a month apart. Mixing a case of surface wipes with a case of baby or body wipes is the usual way households do it.

Storing a case

Keep the case closed and out of direct sunlight; a cupboard, garage shelf or under a bed is fine. Heat is the enemy: a pack left on a windowsill or in a hot car loses moisture through the flap. Open one pack at a time and keep the flap stuck down. If a pack does dry out, a tablespoon of water and a night upside down revives it. Rotate stock, oldest first, if you are buying for a business.

The Deep Fresh bulk wet wipes range

Multi Surface Cleaning Wet Wipes White Soap, 12 × 100 – £25 a case. Also in Lemon, Lavender, Lilium and Jasmine. The all-purpose household and janitorial wipe.
Multi Surface Cleaning Wipes canister White Soap, 4 × 300 – £20 a case. Also in Lemon. The cheapest wipe per sheet we sell.
Multi Surface Pocket Wet Wipes, 48 × 10 – £20 a case. Glove boxes, handbags, giveaways.
Biodegradable Multi Surface Cleaning Wipes White Soap, 12 × 100 – £30 a case. The plastic-free option; see our guide to plastic-free wet wipes for what the UK rules now require.
Adult, Bamboo Fibre and Baby wipes in 24-pack cases from £14.99, all alcohol-free and made for skin.

Everything is listed on the bulk buy wet wipes page with case prices, so you can compare per wipe before you order.

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest way to buy wet wipes?

By the case, direct from a distributor, choosing the largest pack format you will actually use. Canisters are the cheapest per wipe for surfaces; 100-sheet bamboo packs are the cheapest for skin. Avoid buying single packs online with their own postage.

Are cheap wet wipes lower quality?

Not when the saving comes from case size and distribution. A case of twelve costs less per pack because there is less packaging and no retail margin, not because the wipe is thinner. Judge quality by sheet weight, moisture and a proper ingredient list, not by price alone.

How long do wet wipes keep?

Around two years unopened, stored cool and out of the sun. Once opened, a pack with a good flap stays usable for a few weeks; a canister with a snap lid lasts longer.

Can I buy a single pack?

We sell one single-pack option, the 1 × 100 Multi Surface Cleaning Wet Wipes at £6.99, for people who want to try the wipe before committing to a case. Everything else is by the case.

Can I mix different wipes in one order?

Yes. A case of surface wipes and a case of baby or body wipes in the same order share the delivery charge, which is the cheapest way to stock a household.