10 Ways to Save Money at the Grocery Store …
If you’re going to eat, at some point, you’re going to have to go to the grocery store. Why not save money while you‘re there? There’s no reason it has to be a wallet-draining chore — just follow these ten easy tips on saving money at the grocery store.
1. Make, and stick to, a list
Photo Credit: JennKstep
Money Saved: from $10 up to $100 per week
Additional Time Spent: 20 minutes
Additional Trouble Level: 3 out of 10
Before you shop, make a list of the things you want to buy. Check your cupboard, fridge, and freezer to see what you already have, check the circulars from your local stores to see what’s on sale, and look in your coupon bin to see what you have in there, too! Only buy what you need, bonus if it’s on sale, and double bonus if you have a coupon AND it’s on sale! If you don’t make a list, you’ll end up buying things you already have, and you’ll forget things you really will need.
2. Don’t shop when you’re hungry
Photo Credit: -Sunny- *in hospital*
Money Saved: from $5 up to $60 per week!
Additional Time Spent: … minutes
Additional Trouble Level: 0 out of 10
If I’m hungry when I go grocery shopping, I spend almost twice as much as I do when I shop after I’ve already eaten. When I’m hungry, everything looks delicious, and I just have to buy it! Fruits and vegetable, snacks, junk food, everything gets piled into the cart, and I regret it when I get home and have to balance my checkbook, and explain to my sweetheart why we have six bags of chips, four boxes of cereal, and seven varieties of apples.
3. Shop locally if you can
Photo Credit: *Cinnamon
Money Saved: from $0 up to $60 per year
Additional Time Spent: 0 minutes
Additional Trouble Level: 2 out of 10
Every dollar you spend at a national chain or big-box store goes directly to them and their shareholders. You might save a little shopping there, but your local economy will benefit a lot more from your weekly grocery dollars than super-mega-ultra-Walmart, trust me. Also, when you buy your perishables, like dairy, meat, or produce from a local vendor or grower, it will be fresher, which means you’re a lot less likely to have to throw it out because it spoils before you’ve had a chance to eat it. Fruits and vegetables that are going to be shipped across the country are picked early, sprayed with a chemical that ripens them a little over time, sprayed with wax (to make it shiny and attractive), packaged, then driven for up to three days before it arrives at your store. Ick! Buy your produce locally, and it might be picked that same morning.
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You sound like a pro grocery shopper :p
All this talk about grocery stores is making me miss Walmart. We don’t have one in India :(
That’s some organised grocery shopping! And you actually do it everytime you visit the grocery store??
Good luck following it hun :)
Don’t think it’s going to be easy convincing the husband but it’s worth a shot I guess. Lemme know how that works out :)
Ooo I try to follow the eat something before I go shopping rule for dinners too. You’d be surprised at how much less you binge at dinner if you’ve eaten a small snack at home.
I also try to compare prices posted in the weekly circulars I receive from the closest three grocery stores to me, and sometimes end up ... See more shopping at more than one of them,but am trying to coordinate my shopping schedule with other trips to that location.
It is a good idea to have a calculator with you so you can easily calculate the price comparison to similar item packaged differently.
When you by natural foods and cook them yourself, you will find you eat less. Natural foods still have their fiber. Processed foods have ... See more much of the fiber removed. You eat more because you do not feel as though your stomach is getting full.
Also, natural foods have better quality calories. These calories are full of nutrients. Processed foods contain dead calories. Therefore your body craves more food. Hence you eat more and spend more.
There you have it. Save money by buying better food.
Peter
FitnessOver50
I’d totally pick natural foods over processed foods. The only part I have a problem with is the “cooking for yourself” part. Yeah. I just can’t seem to get my lazy backside to ... See more cook. Thanks for the tip though and for the website link! :)