This post is from our regular Wednesday contributor, Erin.
From my short time in the personal finance community, I’ve seen “groceries” listed as the number one budget buster most often. Food is a necessity – it’s something we all need to spend on, and consequently, it’s something we all struggle with.
Let’s face it: there are a lot of temptations available to us at the grocery store, especially when shopping on an empty stomach. That’s why going grocery shopping without a plan is basically a death wish when it comes to your budget.
For the most part, I’ve always been one for shopping strategically – for groceries and other things! I never go shopping on a whim.
I’m happy to say I’ve taken this page out of my mom’s book, as I always went grocery shopping with her when I was younger.
So if you’ve been trying to cut spending on food down, here are a few tips I’ve learned throughout the years that can help!
Always Take Inventory and Make a List
These two tips are complimentary. The night before my mom was going to go grocery shopping, we would sit down, go through the circular, and make a list of what we needed.
After that, my mom would go through the pantry, the freezer, and the fridge to see what else was needed, and I would add things to the list as she called them out.
This might sound like a lot of work upfront, but I personally like being prepared when going to the store. For the most part, I only buy what’s on sale, which means browsing circulars is a good idea.
It’s also easier than ever to do: most – if not all – grocery stores offer their circulars online, and they let you create shopping lists by clicking on items. Some also offer digital coupons.
I find looking at the circular in the store, or going through every aisle of the store to search for what’s needed, to be a little overwhelming. I don’t like to spend any more time than necessary at the grocery store, and I’m willing to do the work beforehand to make that possible.
By taking the time to prepare beforehand, you’ll know exactly what to expect out of your trip, and you’ll be able to estimate how much you’re going to spend. Not to mention, you won’t accidentally find yourself buying things you already have at home. This makes it easier to stick to your budget.
Know Your Prices
Do you know how many times I’ve seen prices advertised as “sales” and ended up laughing at the price? Sadly, a lot.
I know the price I’m willing to pay for most items on my list because I’ve built that knowledge up over time.
Unfortunately, when I moved, I had to re-learn prices. I thought food would be cheaper in the south, but it turns out I was wrong (at least in our area). The biggest problem? The (lack of) sales.
Re-learning prices took me a bit of time, and there have been products we’ve had to give up because they simply never drop in price here. Knowing what you’re willing to pay for something helps!
Along with this, knowing what produce is in or out of season is always beneficial, too. Practice delayed gratification when it comes to food.
I’ve also seen other bloggers suggest making price binders, and I think that’s an awesome idea if you can’t keep everything in your head. It can be a lot of information to keep track of!
Whatever you do, don’t toss things into your cart without considering what you’re paying for it, and look at unit prices, too. Buying a larger package can sometimes be a smarter deal.
Fake Meal Planning
I have to admit, I don’t meal plan – at least, not in the traditional way.
Whenever I used to go shopping with my mom, the list always started out the same: “Milk, bread, meat…”
My mom had shopping on auto-pilot for the most part. After so many years, she had several meals on rotation, so we generally purchased the same things week in and week out (depending on what was on sale).
This allowed her to get in and out of the store quickly, and she also knew exactly where everything was located, so she didn’t have to pass anything that might have been tempting.
Another bad thing about moving was having to learn the layouts of the stores. We spent far too much time on grocery trips in the beginning, and the longer you’re in there, the more likely you are to add other things to your cart.
Do yourself a favor and know the route you’re going to take beforehand. Write out your list in accordance to the physical location of food.
Whichever way you do it, meal planning tends to save people time and money, so feel free to do that. Write down the list of ingredients you’ll need to make meals for the week, and you won’t be left scrambling at the last second to think of what to make for dinner.
As a side note – I imagine if you have kids, you also want to be in and out as quickly as possible so they don’t get restless or start asking for everything they see on the shelves.
If that happens, try to explain why you’re not buying things in simple terms (“No, we’re saving up for X, remember?”) to help them understand.
Be Open to Being Flexible
We all have different diets and preferences when it comes to food.
I’ve seen people suggest going vegetarian to experience a decent amount of savings since meat is so much money. I’ve seen others unwilling to compromise on the value of healthy (and sometimes more expensive) food. And we’ve all heard how ramen is the broke college student’s best friend.
I think the best thing to take away from this is to simply be flexible with what you eat.
I’m not strictly a vegetarian by any means, but you won’t find me spending $8 on some cut of steak, either. And while I can’t argue with the value in eating healthier, there are some nights we resort to eating pasta because it’s cheap, easy, and filling (but stay away from fast food!).
We need to do what’s right for ourselves and our bodies – there’s no “one price suits all” solution when it comes to groceries. Do what you can with what you have.
Being flexible goes for buying generic brands as well. There’s no harm in trying them, right? I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the quality of some store brands.
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Overall, groceries don’t have to be such a budget buster. By planning ahead and being intentional about what you buy (and what you stay away from), you can drastically cut spending on food.
How have you slashed your grocery budget? What’s your weakness at the store? Do you meal plan?
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We do some of the same things Erin. The main thing we do is make up a list and know what prices we should be paying. We’ve moved to doing the majority of our shopping at Costco, so the big issue is staying away from buying things we haven’t put on our list. We allow ourselves a little wiggle room in the event we want something but usually keep that to a set dollar item.
We save by buying what is on sale and sticking to a flexible meal plan. I also make a list so that I end up buying foods that go well together and that can be used to make a real meal. Without a list, I just end up with a bunch of mismatched ingredients that don’t make anything!
Good tips. It definitely pays to know prices. Back in the day before I did much food shopping, just seeing the sign “sale” made me think it was a good deal. Not so anymore…I know I can get it cheaper elsewhere. It definitely pays to be flexible as well…we generally buy and eat whatever is on sale that week.
A big help to us was doing the full inventory before we left for the store. This not only stopped us from buying multiple items, but it helped us become flexible while at the store because if we saw something on sale, we knew what we had at home to eat with it so we could change our meal plan on the spot.
I feel like one way I can get better at this is to USE what’s already in my cupboards. I find myself constantly stocking up on my favorites, when I have plenty of food in the cupboard. I need to use it so it doesn’t lead to wasted food or wasted money. I might have to try meal planning with some of it, just to make sure it gets used.
FrugalRules Ah, Costco can definitely be tricky when it comes to sticking to a budget and plan! Especially with the free samples. =) But knowing what prices you normally pay at the store really comes in handy when you’re at Costco and wondering if something is worth the buy.
Holly at ClubThrifty I can never go shopping without a list! I either end up forgetting something or getting a bunch of random things as well. And who really wants to go back to the store the following day? Not me!
Andrew LivingRichCheaply Yes, very true on the sales! What kills me is that as long as an item is a lower price, it’s a “sale” – even if that means 10 cents off. That’s not what I have in mind when I consider what a good deal is!
blonde_finance That’s a good point, Shannon! I do the same thing, kind of with different “areas” of the home. Right now, we’re good on pantry and frozen items, but we need actual dinner food, so I’ll make sure to focus only on that when we go shopping and skip the rest of the aisles.
SimplySave Yes, I think a lot of people (including myself) have been guilty of that at some point or another! There’s no harm in trying to “meal plan” with food you’ve already got.
I do follow a grocery budget but we are fairly generous with it as being healthy is a core value in our home and I’m willing to spend a bit more. I also recognize that I am in fortunate position to be able to do so as well. :) I do use a shopping list and try to meal plan as I am greeted by three hungry people when I walk through the door at night!
Great tips Erin! Taking inventory and making a list before I go grocery shopping is a must. I don’t like to get to the store and wonder whether I have something at home already or not. I meal plan to some degree but I don’t plan out every single meal for each day. Instead, when I’m shopping I think up meals I’d like to make and buy the ingredients but I’m never sure when I’ll actually cook that meal. It all just depends on how I’m feeling on a given day.
Yes, Yes, and Yes to everything in this post. I practice all of these rules and I hardly ever pay more that I “should” for what we need. I learned my tips from observing my mother, too except she was the queen of couponing! Couponing is just one lane I can’t seem to get into. It’s hard enough keeping up with my spending. Overall, I think any form of planning when it comes to food shopping is beneficial in the long run. Great tips!
ShannonRyan Meal planning does have its place, especially when you’ve got your family relying on you to cook something up! It’s never fun having the “What do you want to eat tonight?” back and forth. =)
Chonce It sounds like we take a similar approach. I don’t really meal plan, but we buy a lot of the same things to make the same meals over and over. We’re flexible with when we make what, though.
ReneeWrote I hear you on couponing. The furthest I go is with “clipping” digital coupons because it’s easy and I don’t have to remember to hand them over when I check out! Or I use the ones you get after a transaction, as they’re usually for things we buy on a regular basis.
It entertains me that you say circulars. Is that a common term where you’re from? It’s super rare in my area :-)
It sounds like we have a semi-similar approach. Mostly we pick proteins from the freezer to eat for the week and then at the store we pick up whatever is on clearance, and add it to the freezer. So our meals are built around what we have on hand already (and what we feel like eating…. we’re not terribly diligent on controlling food costs.)
moneypropeller It’s entirely possible I’m being old-fashioned with it, but that’s how most of my family refers to them! Yep, that’s pretty much what we do. I’d like to incorporate new meals, but it’s so much easier to stick to what’s familiar as it makes shopping easier.
One of the best ways we’ve found to save on groceries is to make sure we’re being thoughtful about where we are buying them. For instance, we can usually get produce for far less if we buy at a farmers market, and dried goods are cheaper from bulk stores.
Suburban Finance Yes, that’s why prices are so important to know! Even within regular stores, some have better regular prices on produce, meat, cold cuts, etc.
These are great tips. Planning ahead is a huge part of saving money. Trying discount grocery stores is a good way to be flexible and save a lot without having to mess around with coupons and sales.