Tips for Saving on your Grocery Budget

I know that we have all heard MANY, MANY tips on how to save money on grocery shopping. There are people who cut coupons, people who know what day of the week each item is on sale, people who stock up on clearance or major sale items. And then there are people like me- not organized enough to get myself to the store on the same day of the week, let alone know which days something is on sale. I’m not creative enough to cut coupons and cook from what I get couponing.

Nope. I needed grocery shopping tips that were easy to implement, simply used common sense, and that could work any day of the week, without too much preplanning. I’ve been married and managing grocery shopping and cooking for the last 8 years, and I’ve now had enough experience to share some of my tips.

I typically spend around $120 a week on groceries for our family of 5 (two adults and three small children). This month I have really been trying to keep the weekly groceries under $100 to match up with our spending freeze goals. It’s been challenging, but with a little work, I’ve been able to do it so far!

1. Know YOUR budget and plan accordingly.

Listen. When I shared on instastories that I try to spend around $100 a week on groceries, I got A LOT of feedback- and not all positive. Many people mentioned that there was NO WAY they could spend that little on groceries for their family due to different circumstances. Teenagers, more family members, hosting weekly, special dietary needs, location….the list could go on and on. And that is JUST FINE! Your budget does not need to be the same as my budget. But you should have a budget. Look over your circumstances and your needs set a budget and work to stick with it! If something doesn’t fit in the budget, go a week without it!

2. Meal Plan

Meal planning does not have to be fancy. For me, it is simply jotting down a recipe for each dinner of the month. I meal plan monthly, but many people prefer to meal plan weekly. Having one thing to cook every night of the week helps me to know what I need to buy and what I don’t need to buy at the store.

3. Avoid Drinks…and not just alcohol

I know that alcohol is a hot topic, but one of the primary ways that we save money is by simply not drinking. The same thing also goes for soda, energy drinks, juice, and flavored waters. The only drink we buy is milk. Try it one week and see if it makes a difference in your grocery budget! Or try to buy just one thing of juice or alcohol and savor it throughout the week. Remember, limiting yourself does not mean never, ever buying it again. It simply means cutting back. If you want to save money, this is a great place to start!

4. The Snack Aisle will GET YOU.

What do you think is more expensive- buying meat or buying snacks? Look at your last grocery receipt and add up the snack items, then add up the meat items and compare! You might be surprised. I find that buying snacks is more costly than buying meats! There are several ways to cut down on buying snacks. First, limit snacks in the household. My children have one afternoon snack a day and I usually send a morning snack to school with Tera. Otherwise, if they are hungry, they can eat a piece of fruit or wait until mealtime. I know that it sounds harsh, but it’s actually helped us a lot with eating meals. My kids are far less picky at mealtimes when they are actually hungry! Second, limit which times of snacks you grab. I allow my children to choose one snack a week. That one box of snacks usually lasts the entire week, and the kids have fun picking out which item they want.

5. Buy in Bulk

Now, I’m not talking about a bulk store like Sams Club or Costco. I know that many people LOVE those stores, but my unpopular opinion is that they don’t help save any money. Perhaps when my family is bigger, I will find it beneficial to shop in bulk. But for now, I stick to the smaller stores that actually save me money. However, it is still possible to buy in bulk at these smaller stores like Aldi, Walmart and Kroger.

If you look at the price stickers in the store, you will see a little spot that tells you how much you are paying per ounce. The “bulk” box of crackers on the right are 26.1 c/oz while the individually packaged crackers on the left are 33.3 c/oz. Now, are those cents really that big of a difference? No, maybe not. But let’s say you throw 100 items in your cart – option A is 10 cents more than option B. 100 option A items will end up being $10 at the end of your grocery trip! So, yes, that does add up. I can do a lot with 10 extra dollars! It’s really not difficult to take a handful of the “bulk” crackers and place them in a baggie or bowl for each individual child.

This same concept also works for applesauce, crackers, chips, yogurt, trail mix…and anything else that comes individually wrapped!

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Side note…buying in “bulk” instead of individually packaged is also a huge benefit to the environment. And buying some reusable bags and pouches (or rewashing your own!) is also a great idea.

6. Shop Seasonal Produce

I feel like this is an added benefit of shopping at Aldi- they tend to stock mainly what is in season and just don’t have what it isn’t in season. I found this handy chart from Foodie Zoolee as a guide for what is in season! You can go to her website and download and print this for free!

7. Remember that anything pre-made, pre-seasoned and in the freezer is going to be more expensive.

This makes logical sense. If someone else out there is seasoning and preparing your chicken, you will pay for both the chicken and the person who is pre-preparing it. If food needs to be frozen or refrigerated, it is going to cost more to transport, store and preserve it. It’s not always a bad thing, and as I mentioned in the picture caption, it may be a season of life that you are in right now. That is ok! But if your primary goal is to save money- walk away from the pre-seasoned and pre-prepared meals. I do sometimes enjoy walking along the prepared meals section to look for ideas of what I can make and what ingredients would be needed!

8. Learn to say no.

Impulse shopping. It gets me every time. Even at Aldi, which has only one aisle of non-grocery items. But every time I walk down that aisle, I seem to find something that I NEED (even though I didn’t even know it existed before walking in the door). This is where serious self-control and discipline need to come in for me. If I had bought this 1st-grade workbook, would I have used it? Probably. But do I NEED it? No. And even if I do find that I need it, I know of at least three other places that I could purchase it. It’s really hard to say no, especially when I can absolutely justify the price and the item. But it’s also important to train our own minds to not buy things just because they are justified. Going without is sometimes difficult and painful and it’s not really popular, either. But it’s worth it.

There you have it! My top 8 tips on saving money on groceries! As you can see, I can shop almost exclusively at Aldi. I know that some people dispute whether or not Aldi saves money, but my friend Katie from Eat Pretty Darling just recently did an Aldi trip. When she got home, she inputted all her items into Walmart pickup website to compare the prices. Check out her results!

What are your top tips on saving money grocery shopping?