Right now I have a monthly pass for meetings with the online tools, but I can't really afford it anymore. I know ww online is a little cheaper, but can I still weigh in at Weight Watchers if I switch or would I need to weigh in somewhere else? Can I still buy materials/food from the meeting place if I switch? I want to stay with WW and I need a reliable scale to weigh in, but I have to make it work financially.

you have to weigh in at home, and if you want to buy anything, i think you have to buy them while you're a meeting member.
Thats what i did. I bought the books at the meeting then downgraded to online.
And now im not officially a member but i still do the diet. We couldn't afford even the $12.

As far as I know, the cheapest way to do WW is the monthly pass. You get everything for one low cost. It comes out to 10.37 or something a week. It seems like more because it's all up front. I just keep telling myself if I keep going and keep losing the weight is going to come off and I won't have to pay anymore!!

You will have access to the online store, but shipping and handling is expensive.

Online says it all...you get nothing from the meetings and don't get to weigh in anywhere but at home.

As others have said: Online is 100% online only. You weigh in at home (or some other scale you prefer), but you do not have access to the Meetings or Weigh-ins at Centers.