Mark Cuban Says If You’ve Got $100,000, You’ll Get The ‘Best Guaranteed’ ROI Buying Bulk Toothpaste & Soup — Put the Rest in the Bank, ‘Let It Earn Nothing’

Imagine waking up to find an extra $100,000 sitting in the bank.

For plenty of people, the mind races straight to stocks, real estate, or the next hot investment. Mark Cuban’s first move is far less exciting. In fact, it starts in the cleaning aisle.

When Forbes asked the billionaire entrepreneur back in 2010 what he’d do with a fresh $100,000, his answer wasn’t about finding the next Apple (AAPL) or predicting where the market was headed. It was about getting rid of debt, buying everyday necessities in bulk, and keeping cash on the sidelines until the right opportunity showed up.

It isn’t flashy. That’s precisely the point.

The First Investment Doesn’t Even Involve Investing

Cuban didn’t hesitate when laying out his game plan.

“First I pay off all my credit card debt and evaluate paying off any other debt I have,” he said. It’s a logical first step. With many credit cards charging interest rates north of 20%, eliminating that debt can deliver a return that’s difficult for most investments to match.

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But then comes the part that catches most people off guard.

Rather than hunting for market-beating returns, Cuban looks through annual household spending and asks a simple question: Which items are guaranteed to be purchased anyway?

His answer includes everything from toothpaste and soup to other everyday essentials that eventually end up back in the shopping cart.

“I look to see where I can save the most money on those items,” he explained. “Saving 30% to 50% buying in bulk … is the best guaranteed return on investment you can get anywhere.”

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Why Toothpaste Beats Timing the Market

At first glance, buying toothpaste by the case hardly sounds like investment advice.

But Cuban isn’t talking about filling the garage with products that will never get used. He’s talking about expenses that are practically unavoidable. Most households know they’ll keep buying toilet paper, shampoo, laundry detergent, and pantry staples year after year.

Buying those items at a steep discount creates instant savings. Unlike stocks, there’s no waiting to see what happens next quarter. The return is realized the moment the purchase is made because that money would have been spent anyway.

It’s a different way of looking at investing. Instead of asking how to make more money, Cuban starts by asking how to stop unnecessary money from leaving in the first place.

Cash Isn’t Always a Bad Thing

The final piece of Cuban’s strategy may be the most surprising.

After paying off debt and stocking up on essentials, he said he’d leave the remaining money in the bank and “let it earn nothing.”

That might sound strange in a world where savers are constantly told every dollar needs to be invested.

Cuban sees it differently. Cash isn’t just sitting around doing nothing. It’s waiting for a moment when a truly attractive opportunity appears. Having money readily available means there’s no need to sell investments at the wrong time or scramble for financing when prices suddenly become attractive.

Sometimes patience has value all by itself.

For Cuban, a $100,000 windfall isn’t a reason to swing for the fences. It’s a chance to strengthen the financial foundation first, trim everyday expenses that quietly add up over time, and keep enough cash ready for whatever opportunity comes next.

It may not be the most exciting investing strategy ever shared by a billionaire. But it’s probably one of the easiest to understand.