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We all need to eat, but the costs can get away from us. This is one area of our lives that we can control the cost of. This is by no means all of the ways that you can save on food, but it’s a start.
If you are already doing many of these, great you’re ahead of the game. But If you’re not doing any of them try to figure out how to add a few into your routine. If you stopped, get back with the program. Just remember not to add too many at one time. The more you do the more overwhelmed you’ll become and none of them will stick as a new habit. You want to make it like second nature to save on food when you shop.
Some Ways To Save Money When Shopping For Food
1 Get Good and Cheap: Eat Well on $4 a Day. This is a free ebook and it is a great starting point for anyone ready to start saving money on their food. The recipes are made to work with people who are on the SNAP program, but even if you’re not on SNAP you can still benefit. It makes you think differently about what you are buying.
2 Make meals from scratch, now that you have the Good and Cheap ebook. Fast food isn’t really fast, but it is expensive and mostly unhealthy. Making your meals at home will save you time, money and help improve your health.
3 Tired of the same old recipes. Try sites like allrecipes.com or hungry-girl.com. Also there is the old fashion way of going to the library for free cookbooks.
4 Don’t buy anything just because you have a coupon. You need to know if you will use the product or not. The best bet is to use the coupon with a sale. Some things just don’t go on sale that often. If you get a coupon for one of those items you most definitely should use your coupon before it expires.
5 Make a price book for the items you buy most. Track the price and size of the items you buy and then you will be able to know what the cheapest price is. The sales run in cycles so you will know when the next time the cheap price will be back around. When a sale happens and it’s a rock bottom price you can stock up. You should do it for every store that you shop at. You could also try it at stores that you don’t shop at so you can see if you should start shopping there.
6 Beware of warehouse shopping. While the prices are low, if you don’t get through large packages and food goes to waste you actually lose money. Know how much you can get through.
7 If you really want the deals from a warehouse store try finding a friend or family member that will go in on it with you. Find items that you both want and split the quantity and cost with them. This way you both can get the lower price.
8 Plan ahead of time for your shopping trips for the sale and coupons you can use. My favorite way to do this is by using CouponMom.com.
9 Make a budget and use cash. When you run out of cash you don’t buy anything else for the rest of the month. This will take some getting used to and great planning, but you will definitely learn how to control your spending.
10 Shop when your store is slow. This will allow you to get a better look at everything as you walk through the store. Since many items are often on sale without being advertised you need to check shelves carefully to find additional deals.
11 Sign up for your local stores advertising to gets all of the promos, discounts and their ads before anyone else. Each store is different so be sure that you check them all out.
12 Know the coupon policy for each store you shop at. They can change at any time. Do you remember triple coupons? Those were the days!
13 Learn what can be frozen. This will help when you can get a great deal, but there is too much to get through. Your freezer can be your best friend.
14 Buy in season. This not only saves money now, but it will likely add to your freezer stockpile.
15 Cut all of your fruit and veggies. You pay far more than you need to when you buy them pre-cut.
16 Plant a garden. If you know what you’re doing go big, and If not start small with a plant or two in a container. Or If that is too much then just start with one or two herbs in a window container.
17 If you are using milk you should know that it costs more to get 2% milk over 1% milk. Double check the price before you buy.
18 If you like popcorn investing in an air popper would be perfect for you. It is cheaper to get the kernels and pop them yourself than to get the microwave kind. It is also much healthier. When you air pop you can add butter, but also many different kinds of flavors. Get creative.
19 Meatless Mondays. This is wonderful for your health, but also your wallet. Cutting out meat for a family of four for dinner alone could save you $3-15 depending on the meat and the deals you get for it.
20 Making meatballs, hamburgers or even chili? Try adding lentils in place of some of the meat in the recipe. It gives you more fiber and cuts down on the cost of the meat.
21 Don’t buy bottled water. The cost is much more than you pay from the tap. If you are concerned about the quality of the water you can get an at home test for it. You can also use faucet filters or pitchers if you find that your tap water isn’t the best. Either way this is cheaper than the bottled water.
22 Trying going organic? Don’t let the cost get you down. There are a few good sources for organic foods that won’t break the bank. You can grow your own; use a co-op, farmers market, Aldi and even Sam’s Club or Costco. Most chain grocery stores stock a decent variety of organic foods as well. The prices will vary widely across all of these different stores, so check around for the best values.
23 Never shop hungry. You will always end up buying more than you need to and things that are not as good for you when you are hungry. So eat up!
24 Make soup instead of buying. Most soups that are cheap have little to them besides broth which is usually high in sodium. Making your own you control the ingredients and quantity. You can always can them to keep them longer.
25 Buy dried beans instead of canned beans. They are cheaper than canned by almost half the price. They do take a little while to cook. It is best to soak them overnight. Since you are planning your meals you will know what needs to be done and when. So you won’t ever forget to soak them ahead of time will you?
