Precuts are nice if you want a lot of variety in a quilt...but a lot more expensive than yardage.
I recently made a rag quilt that would have used 3 layer cakes, costing me about $105. Instead I bought yardage on sale at Hancocks of Paducah (on line), and it cost me about $42.
There is an online store called Connecting Threads...I don't believe their precuts cost more that their yardage. I purchased fabric from them, but have not used it yet, but people on this board have said lost of good things about it.
I try to buy everything on sale.