Ripoffs and markups are all around us, and if we’re not careful, we could end up paying a lot more than we should for many things on a day to day basis. But of all of the ripoffs out there, BillShrink’s list includes the most ridiculous of them all. While these may not come as a complete shock to you, let’s take a look at some of the biggest ripoffs in America today:

Movie Theater Popcorn

When we think of going to the movies in America, most of us picture sitting in the theater with a bag or bucket of popcorn. And while popcorn is one of the least expensive things to make, it’s pretty darn pricey to purchase at the movie theater. According to ABC News, a small bucket of popcorn at a movie theater averaged around $5.50 – “more per ounce than filet mignon.” Since popcorn only costs less than 10 cents an ounce to make, the markup for movie theater popcorn is somewhere between 900% and 1,300%. Yuck!

Text Messages

While most of us wouldn’t want to go without this next ripoff, the markup on text messages is quite ridiculous. They generally cost about 1/3 of a cent for each carrier to deliver, but the typical pay-per-tex plan charges about 20 cents for outgoing texts and about 10 cents for incoming texts. That’s a markup of about 6,500%.

Branded Painkillers

According to Yahoo! Finance, over-the-counter pain medication like Advil is typically sold at around a 60% markup. But is the pain relief superior to the genetic equivalents?

As Yahoo explains, the law requires all generic drugs to be just as effective (and even use the exact same active ingredients) as the branded drugs they are modeled after. Yet still, a 50 tablet bottle of 200mg Advil somehow costs $8.49, while Duane Reade charges “just $5.29 for the exact same bottle of generic ibuprofen.” So unlike the age-old “store brand” debate where there is a qualitative difference between a generic and branded product, painkillers are the rare exception of being, literally, the very same product for a lower price.

Wine Service at Restaurants

The next time you want to order wine at a restaurant, beware the 2nd least expensive wine on the menu. That’s right, the 2nd.

This rip-off rests upon a shrewd appraisal of human psychology by bar and restaurant owners. Most people, when dining with a date, will never order the least expensive bottle of wine on the menu for fear of looking cheap. Instead, they will opt for the second least expensive wine to cover their bases. According to Time Magazine, “restaurateurs know this behavior well, and so they often put the heftiest markup on that second-cheapest bottle.”

Techincally, all wine at restaurants are ripoffs because you’d pay far less at a liquor store than you would when dining out or while at a bar. But that’s no secret.

Premium Gasoline

Many people believe that their car will operate better if they use premium gas. However, if your operating manual doesn’t clearly state (many times) that your car requires premium gas, then you’re wasting a lot of money by paying for it every time you pump.

Find 7 more examples of ripoffs over at Billshrink’s The 12 Biggest Ripoffs in America