maintaining a consistent budget for grocery shopping is a key way to not overspend your overall budget. there are several things that can cause our grocery bills to rise. use the few simple steps below to try to get a grip on your grocery bill.
determining your spending limit…
many times, we get ourselves into trouble when grocery shopping by spending more than we have. take the time to sit down, write out all your bills and determine how much money a month should be alloted to groceries. once you have a set budget of how much you should be spending at the grocery store, it will help you make smarter decisions when grocery buying.
grocery shopping weekly…
i have found that grocery shopping weekly saves me money. before, i was making a 2 week grocery list but halfway through, i would need more milk or bread – for example. i would then make another unexpected trip to store, which put me in the position to potentially spend more than my budget.
make a grocery list before you go…
make a list of dinners that you are preparing for that week. make your list based off of those dinners and other items you will need for the week. be sure to account for items you will need more than one of. stick to your list as much as you can, eat before you go 🙂 and avoid impulsive buying.
go vegetarian…
you can cut out expenses from your weekly budget by going vegetarian. avoid eating meat/seafood every night. preparing salads, vegetable casseroles, soups/stews, frittata’s, etc. is a great alternative to meals that contain meat. a typical family of four can save about $3.00 per meal or $15.00 per week or about $800 a year by going vegetarian several times a week.
if you would rather not cut out meat, your weekly list can be scaled down quite a bit by writing meals that can be recycled. for example, buying a whole chicken and using it in several different meals. roast the chicken with vegetables for dinner #1 and use the leftover roasted chicken in 2 or 3 other meals throughout the week. check out my 3-in-1 meals.
couponing…
i am an extreme couponer. although the prices on my website do not reflect the prices i get my groceries for, i would urge you to consider looking into couponing. couponing the right way will allow you to buy products at rock bottom prices. coupled with a coupon, you should be paying little to nothing for it. i usually stock up on those items, which helps me build a stockpile. that way, i will have a large number of specific items and will not need to buy those items for a long time. for great ‘how to’ articles on couponing 101, visit some of my favorite sites – homemaking mom, moola saving mom, and coupon teacher. if i am out of an item and do not have a coupon for it, i will usually buy the generic brand. using coupons at the checkout can save hundreds in the long run. also, if you can not afford to pay $1.50 for the washington post every sunday, use the coupons tab on our website for free. it has hundreds of coupons that can help you save!
avoid prepackaged foods…
in today’s busy society, it is very tempting to buy items that save us time! unfortunately, in most cases it comes with a price tag. studies show that buying pre-packaged items are 50 to 75% more expensive. we are paying for the handling, washing, transportation, refrigeration, and packaging of those items. pre-shredded cheeses fall in the same boat. buying a block of cheese and grating it yourself is usually much cheaper than buying pre-shredded cheese. rarely, the price of pre-packaged/shredded items can be the same as items you can cut/shred yourself. in those cases, hook it up!
feel free to tell me techniques that you use to get a handle on your grocery store budget. i’d love to hear from you and add your tips to the list!
make a grocery list before you go…
in today’s busy society, it is very tempting to buy items that save us time! unfortunately, in most cases it comes with a price tag. studies show that buying pre-packaged items are 50 to 75% more expensive. we are paying for the handling, washing, transportation, refrigeration, and packaging of those items. pre-shredded cheeses fall in the same boat. buying a block of cheese and grating it yourself is usually much cheaper than buying pre-shredded cheese. rarely, the price of pre-packaged/shredded items can be the same as items you can cut/shred yourself. in those cases, hook it up!