This week, Value for Money tests five varieties of tissues.

Lotus Olbas Facial Tissues six-pack €2.69, 4.5 cent a tissue

Highs:We suspected all scented tissues were about the novelty and would be of no value when it came to a nasty cold. Then we tried these, made in conjunction with the Olbas Oil people. The eucalyptus, menthol and mint vapours are remarkably strong and will go a long way to clearing the most bunged-up noses. The strong scent lingers on the tissues so can be counted on again and again. We were able to mop up significant volumes of water with these without them disintegrating.

Lows:The most expensive of the tissues tried and were more than five times the price of the Tesco value range, the cheapest brand we tested. We're not sure a small child with a streaming nose would be as enamoured with the strong smells as we were and these are only worth buying in the midst of a bad cold.

Verdict:Oddly refreshing

Star rating:****

Regina Looney Tunes Pocket six-pack, €1.80, 3 cent a tissue

Highs:If you want a tissue that smells good enough to eat (or at least good enough to chew), then you won't go far wrong with these. The bubblegum smell and the Looney Tunes characters will certainly serve as a welcome distraction when blowing young noses. While most such tissues are three-ply, these come with an extra layer.

Lows:The individual layers are so thin we're not convinced the extra ply will make a whole lot of difference when it comes to mopping up runny noses. What we are sure of, however, is that we're not the target market for this product, which is probably for the best as we found the sweet smell just a little on the sickly side.

Verdict:Not for us

Star rating:***

Tesco Value Pocket Tissues 10-pack, €1, 1 cent a tissue

Highs:Not everything in Tesco's value range compares well with rival products, but there can be no doubting that these tissues certainly do, and at a fraction of the price you'd pay elsewhere. They are not scented or infused with nose-moisturising creams, and they don't have pretty pictures on them, but they are very cheap and do a perfectly fine job when it comes to nose-blowing. They are three-ply and they soaked up plenty of water without getting all mushy in the course of our test.

Lows: If you have a cold for weeks and are constantly blowing your nose, then you might find that these chafe ever so slightly, but you'd want to be a terribly delicate flower to let that deter you from making such a substantial saving.

Verdict:A price that's hard to beat

Star rating:*****

Kleenex Balsam Hankies six-pack €1.85, 1.7 cent per tissue

Highs: While a small part of us fears we're being conned into buying this product, it does seem to reduce the reddening of the nose that comes with it constantly being blown. Whatever about the balsam, Kleenex clearly knows a thing or two about making soft and strong tissues.

Lows: We have no idea why much of the ingredient list is written in Latin, although maybe the marketing people felt paraffinum liquidum (liquid paraffin to you and me) and Calendula officinalis (marigold) sound more impressive. On special, they are good value, but the full price of 3½ cent per tissue would make them considerably less so.

Verdict: Comforting and good value on special

Star rating:****

Kachoo Funky Pocket four-pack, €1.89, 4.7 cent per tissue

Highs: These are certainly the funkiest of the tissues we tested - and we can say this with a degree of confidence because the F-word appears at least twice on each tissue. They are four-ply and as sturdy as any of the others. We are assured that the brightly coloured packet will make them much easier to find in a handbag and we liked the brand name a lot.

Lows:Does the world really need funky tissues? We're pretty sure it doesn't, particularly at this price. Okay, so, at 4.5 cent a tissue they are not enormously expensive, nor even the most expensive we tried, but we just can't see how the manufacturer can charge more than four times what Tesco is charging for a product that is almost identical, save for flash packaging and multi-coloured flower arrangements. They don't even smell nice.

Verdict: Too dear

Star rating:**