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Several years ago I remember being able to walk into toy shops and actually shovel lego bricks into a bag and thus buy them in bulk. Unfortunately I can't seem to find stores anymore that offer this service.

Is it possible to buy the basic blocks in bulk anywhere online?

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    At official LEGO stores, you actually can shovel bulk bricks! Use the "Locate a LEGO store" bar along the top of the page to find a location near you.
    – RedRiderX
    Feb 23, 2012 at 13:17
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    If you can find a Lego store, they can sell cases of bricks if you ask the manager. They'll have to give you a price, but it's what the store itself uses to stock it's Pick-a-Brick wall.
    – Nathan
    Feb 23, 2012 at 14:32
  • @Grandpappy: They're very difficult to find, I managed to grab the only bulk bag by getting there as soon as the store opened. They only do this after dismantling models used for display.
    – Ambo100
    Feb 23, 2012 at 16:20
  • @Ambo100 I think Grandpappy means the stock cases they use to fill the PaB walls, which presumably don't come from dismantled models but a big box in the back room somewhere ;) Feb 23, 2012 at 16:59
  • And if they don't have what you seek in stock, the store manager should be able to order it for you (depending on their willingness, I suppose). 2x4 bricks should be no problem.
    – Joubarc
    Feb 24, 2012 at 9:03

5 Answers 5

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The LEGO Store has the Pick-a-Brick service, which allows you to bulk buy elements, up to 999 of any one element apparently.

It's not necessarily the cheapest, for example 2x4's are GBP£0.19 each, so purchasing 999 of them would cost me £189.81 plus shipping - there's no obvious savings/discounts for bulk ordering.

999 Black 2x4's in my Basket

As Refro points out, BrickLink might be a better option: the prices are more variable, but often cheaper than PaB, discounts for bulk purchases can be found from some sellers, but shipping costs might be higher depending on where the seller is based relative to you.

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Besides the options mentioned above there is a lugbulk program targeted at afols. If your a member of a LUG you might be able to order bricks that way. Typically the prices are lower than if you order via the Lego stores.

As an alternative you could use bricklink to get the desired amounts.

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Several years ago I remember being able to walk into toy shops and actually shovel lego bricks into a bag and thus buy them in bulk.

Official LEGO retail stores offer a similar service called Pick-A-Brick, which is available online and in stores. Despite having the same name, they each have their own differences:

  • The LEGO retail outlets house a matrix of bins, each filled with a certain type of brick. The bricks used tend be excess bricks from LEGO's own factories and some bricks of the same kind may be included in more than one bin. Bricks are packed into small or large plastic cups, you pay for getting as many bricks as you can in one cup.

  • The online version of Pick-A-Brick allows you to choose between thousands of individual pieces and colours. Parts are sold by the brick, each with their own prices with an additional fee for postage, packaging and handling involved.

  • Then there are also the LEGOLAND stores which aren't classified as LEGO stores (despite The Lego Group having a large chunk in the theme park company). These too offer a similar Pick-A-Brick service, with a larger range of parts then the average LEGO retail store. Since the stores are located inside the park you must pay admission to the park to browse the shop.1

Unfortunately I can't seem to find stores anymore that offer this service.

There are many unofficial stores dedicated to selling LEGO.2 It's possible that some of these independent stores would offer their own service which typically sells bricks by weight.


1. Incidentally, I had contacted the Legoland Windsor representatives in 2010 to see if it's possible to visit the store without paying admission. 'You will need to purchase a full day ticket on arrival but as long as you return to guest services within 30 minutes these will be fully refunded'.

2. I haven't come across any independent LEGO stores living in England but I've seen a few in Eastern European counties.

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    I seem to remember LEGOLAND (Windsor) shops being open for a few days in Christmas period free of admission charge - as the rest of the park isn't open then. Not sure if they still do it, but that's a good option (especially if they still offer free annual pass vouchers at a certain amount of purchase)
    – Joubarc
    Feb 24, 2012 at 9:02
  • From a conversation with a store manager: US based retail stores (Lego Store) are able to order bags of specific bricks for their PaB walls. They do not have access to the full range of parts that online PaB offers. If you time it correctly and know the mgmt, they can order a bag (or more) for you. Legoland Discovery Centers (mini theme parks) also have PaB but with a smaller selection and at a higher cost ($10/100g)
    – user1262
    Jun 3, 2013 at 13:29
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If you go to the Lego store and get a case of 2x4 bricks, it'll cost about $70. People in my LUG have found that you can expect to find about 675 per case, which puts them at about 10 cents a piece.

We found this to be significantly cheaper than Lego's online Pick-a-Brick, or Bricklink.

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    Update: I recently (Dec 2014) checked with my local (US - Cincinnati) Lego Store and they still sell full boxes of PaB items (Except the really small items such as 1x1 round tiles). Current price in my store is $100 per box.
    – Phil B.
    Dec 9, 2014 at 13:16
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You can also buy bricks on brickowl.com. They cost about 20 cents each thus you can get 50 for 10 AU dollars.

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