Saving Money On Groceries Is Easier Than You Think
The high cost of food. It’s all we hear about these days. So what can you do to save money on groceries? It’s easier than you think!
No matter who you are or what your income is, everyone is being affected by the high cost of groceries to some degree these days.
I’m always a bit surprised at how crowded the aisles are when I go into our local Publix. It doesn’t seem like people are buying less food. How are they able to afford those loaded carts full of expensive items? For Bob and I, and countless almost-retired and retired persons like us, saving money on groceries has become a necessity. I grew up in a frugal household, so I’ve always been conservative in how I manage my food budget. I have lots of experience in making our limited dollars stretch.
Here are my top tips to save money on groceries:
- Plan your meals and shop for a week at a time.
- Even with the most detailed list, you will probably buy some items you didn’t plan for whenever you go to the store. The more often you go shopping, the more of these impulse purchases you’ll make.
- When you create a meal plan, you’re able to use what you buy most efficiently, minimizing food waste. For instance, you can plan to use half of a head of broccoli in a stir-fry and steam the other half as a side for another meal. Look for as many places to economize this way as you can.
- Never go shopping hungry! The temptation to overspend is hard to resist when your defenses are down.
- It’s hard not to buy more than you planned when everything looks delicious. And it all looks delicious when you’re hungry!
- If you have to go to the store straight from work, bring a healthy snack to eat on the way.
- Shop at discount stores like Aldi, Trader Joe’s, or Walmart first.
- I make two shopping lists, one for Aldi and one for things I can’t get from there and need to buy from Walmart or Publix. It may seem time-consuming or difficult at first, but once you get used to shopping this way, you can get it done fairly quickly.
- Write out your list with the items in groups (like all the dairy, produce, meats, etc. together). And write those down in the order they are in at the store. This will prevent you from walking up and down the aisles multiple times and potentially picking up items that aren’t on your list.
- If you’ve never shopped at one of these stores, it can take some time to figure it out, especially if you’re used to buying name brands. You may have to shop there a few times to find out what they offer and what you like and don’t like. But the savings can be significant. Stick with it until it’s familiar to you.
- Buy off brand or generic items to save. Sometimes you need to try a few versions of a product to find the one you like. But often there’s not a significant difference in quality or taste. The brand name items and the off brand versions are pretty much the same.
- I was a die-hard, devoted consumer of a certain name brand ketchup for years, refusing to eat anything else. But then Bob convinced me to try the Great Value brand of ketchup from Walmart – and I seriously can’t tell the difference.
- Sometimes I like the store brand or off brand better! I believe (and many people agree with me on this) the Publix brand ice cream is the best ice cream out there. And it is often BOGO (buy one, get one free), so you really can’t beat the price.
- Carefully weigh the benefits of warehouse clubs like Costco or Bj’s. They may not provide real savings, especially for empty-nest seniors who don’t need large quantities.
- Many of the items you see aren’t really less expensive. Look at the cost per unit and compare with what you can buy at a regular grocery store.
- Consider how long it will take you to use a large quantity of a given item. Will it go bad before then?
- Since you can’t really buy everything you need for a whole week’s worth of food from these stores, most of what you purchase ends up being impulse buying. That can quickly eat up your food budget.
6. Use leftovers promptly to minimize waste. We hate to waste food, and it makes a difference in our food costs when we try to use up everything we buy. The EPA estimates an average family of four spend $1500 a year on food that doesn’t get eaten. Divide that in half for a couple, and it’s still $750. That’s a lot of money to us!
- If you have leftovers, freeze them for another meal later on, or repurpose them into a different dish.
- I often intentionally make double what Bob and I will eat for one meal so I can portion and freeze the other half. It’s thrifty (and convenient!) to pull something out of the freezer instead of ordering takeout when we don’t feel like cooking.