Bricklink vs BAP - a list of useful cheaper parts
Bricklink is great, but it pays to take a minute to check the price of parts against buying direct from LEGO. In most cases, small rarer parts are cheaper to get from the source.
I’m comparing prices for NEW elements from UK sellers, though in some cases the used prices can be just as eye-watering. The differences are usually a couple of pence which doesn’t seem much but spread over a bulk order those pennies really start to add up.
It’s also worth pointing out that BAP delivery seems to be fixed at £2, or free if you go over the £50 mark. However in order to trigger the free delivery, you’ll need to add ANY other “normal” item from the LEGO.com store.
So without further ado, here’s a breakdown of some of the more useful ones I’ve found so far.
26601 Wedge, Plate 2x2 Cut Corner Usually 1-2p cheaper, especially for red, yellow, olive green
17836 Tile, Modified 3 x 4 with 4 Studs in Center There are several colours unavailable on BAP, but red is anything up to twice as expensive to buy new from BL
33909 Tile, Modified 2 x 2 with Studs on Edge For anything other than black or grey, BAP is up to three times cheaper. They are 6p, apart from dark blue and dark red (7p). Bricklink meanwhile has blue ones at 18p and other colours are similarly inflated.
32952 Brick, Modified 1 x 1 x 1 2/3 with Studs on 1 Side Between 10-14p on BAP. Black, white and blue are 10p with most BL stores starting at 19p.
34103 Plate, Modified 1 x 3 with 2 Studs (Double Jumper) Black ones are 8p on BAP, and at least 14p on BL.
57878 Train Wheel RC Anything train-related is always mega bucks, but you can get brand new ones for around the same price as used. They are 30p each on BAP. On the subject of wheels, don’t leave yourself out of pocket buying official metal axles - they are a rip off. For serious trains, look into using bearings or if you just want a bunch of decent priced compatible axles, Ali Express is a good bet. I’ve had great success with these, ended up with 100+ for about £4.
36841 Bracket 1 x 1 - 1 x 1 With the exception of medium blue, every colour is cheaper on BAP, coming in between 8-12p. As I write this, white and dark turquoise are out of stock but everything else is in stock. There aren’t ANY black ones available for sale in the UK on Bricklink, and other colours are up to 6x the price.
36840 Bracket 1 x 1 - 1 x 1 Inverted Again between 8-10p. I haven’t checked other colours but red ones are 4x as expensive on Bricklink, and white ones are double.
18974 Vehicle, Mudguard 4 x 2 1/2 x 2 1/3 with Arch Round This one is nuts. For most colours, stick with Bricklink. For black however, you’re looking at a minimum of £2 EACH compared to 47p on BAP. You can get a set of 4 for less than the price of 1.
35480 Plate, Modified 1 x 2 Rounded with 2 Open Studs A super useful part. Always at least 1p cheaper on BAP, but for rarer colours like green you’re looking at 5-6x cheaper.
6205 Tile, Modified 6 x 16 with Studs on Edges These are always gonna be pricey. The most expensive one in LBG on Bricklink is over £20, but you can normally expect to pay £3-4 each, compared to a shade over £2 on Bricklink.
32828 Bar 1L with 1 x 1 Round Plate with Hollow Stud Another one that makes no sense. For new elements off BL in large quantities you’re generally looking at 20p+. They are 6p each via BAP.
3676 Slope, Inverted 45 2x2 Double Convex This one makes me wince. In light bluish grey, these pieces are 22p on BAP. International BL sellers tend to start around 40p, but if you’re in the UK you’re looking at over £1.50 EACH. Crazy. The similar 3045 Slope 45 2x2 Convex is also cheaper but not quite so drastically.
13965 Brick, Arch 1 x 3 x 3 Not such a drastic difference, but in LBG these are always 30-40p on Bricklink and always in small quantities. You can get shiny new ones straight from LEGO for 30p each.
I’ll try and keep this list updated if I find new stuff to add. It’s also worth a reminder that you can order baseplates from BAP, in old “proper” green. The part number is 3811 for 32x32 and 3857 / 2748 for 16x32.
Suggestions? Email hello@northwestbricks.co.uk and I’ll add it to the list.