Wondering how to save money on your groceries? Food prices are on the rise and you may think that paying less for the items that you need is nearly impossible. However, there are quite a few things you can do to achieve this very possible goal.
Make a list of what you need. Hitting your grocery store without a list is a sure way to pad up your bill with things you did not need. Prior to going to the store, create a weekly meal plan. From the meal menu, create a list of the grocery items you do not have in your pantry or refrigerator and need to purchase. You may also want to add any other health and beauty items you may need. You may have to prioritize your list if you find that you will be spending more money than your budget allows.
Combine sales with coupons. The secret to huge savings on your grocery bill is by combining weekly store sales with coupons. Sometimes, on their own, store sales or coupons don’t make for impressive savings, but by combining both of them you will see explosive results. If you have a store that doubles coupons, savings are even greater. If you can’t find coupons for the food items that you regularly purchase, then it is even more important to make sure to buy those items when they are on sale only. Just make sure to use coupons on the items that you can. Coupons for household items and toiletries are very common, and you can trim your budget by using coupons on those items.
When you can’t find coupons for the items you use, another way to save is by buying the store brand. For example, in my home, we buy cream cheese weekly. I save every week by choosing to buy the store brand, instead of the more expensive ‘brand name’ product.
If there are items that you buy and consume often, my best advice is to consider buying in bulk. For example, my children eat a LOT of apples. I could choose to buy apples for $1.49/lb. But instead I buy a five pound bag for $4.99 for a savings of 33%. Most people think that you need a membership to a warehouse club to buy items in bulk. Online stores like Amazon, can provide you the same savings on many bulk purchases, with the items delivered directly to your home.
Stock up at rock bottom prices. When one of the products you often buy goes on sale, save money by investing money, and buy more than one item. If, for example, lets say you consume a jar of peanut butter every two weeks. You regularly buy it for $2.50 per jar, but this week it is on sale at the rock bottom price of 99 cents per jar. Maybe you have noticed that this sale comes around every six to eight weeks. So, how about buying four jars at this very low price? That will hold you over until the next time the sale comes around and you can once again get it cheap.
As you can see, there are quite a few things you can do to save money on groceries. This is just scratching the surface and providing you with some ideas to help you get started, now.
Hi! I am Mercedes and this is my blog Common Sense with Money! Helping other people live better, spend less, and save more is something I am very passionate about. I combine simple frugal living tips and smart shopping techniques to help moms across the U.S. become better home economists. Thank you for visiting my blog.
These are all great tips on how to save money on something we all need – groceries. Another great tip to add is the use of coupons. You can find them in your local paper or magazines, or you can even find them online.
A great site to use to find these kinds of discounts and sales in your area is http://www.dailydealpool.com. They’ll send you a daily email, letting you know if there is any savings to be had on groceries.
Thank you for the coupon tip.
why is it that i can’t download your e-book for extreme couponing just because i already subscribe to your e-mail site?
Gloria,
I just resent the ebook but I had already emailed it to all subscribers about three weeks ago.
Mercedes
Another unique way to save on groceries is using awebsite called KitchenMonki.com. The site allows shoppers to organize their recipes in an iTunes-like fashion and have an e-grocery list delivered to their mobile phone based on those recipes. But here’s the cool part: The grocery list is broken down aisle-by-aisle, so that when it comes time to shop, you can enter the store with a detailed “plan of attack” and avoid the lure of in-store marketing – which is specifically engineered to capture unorganized shoppers that browse each aisle. (Recent research shows that in-store marketing can drive up to 50% of the total grocery purchase.) KitchenMonki will also scale your recipes – which may seem trivial – but when done properly, can help you ensure that you’re not over-buying some ingredients at the grocery store. Plus, it’s an excellent compliment to “couponing”.
im from the fox valley area in wi.im having a very hard time finding a grocery store that will double coupons.copps onley does up to five coupons if you spend twentyfive dollars before tax andcoupons.well to me thats not saving.
sorry i meant after coupons and tax.
See if you can bring someone else to help you use more coupons.
We have a store here that doubles $1 coupons up to 5 per customer per day.
I go with my husband and he uses 5 and I use 5 for a total of 10 a day.
Does anyone know where I can find a store in Chicago/Southwest suburbs that does double up coupons? I called a couple of local stores in my area & no one has double up coupon days. :’(
Hey you guys,
Thanks for the tips,I am a new couponer and I need all the help I can get.
Kam.
Planning is one of the greatest tools for success with using coupons. When you shop at the spur of the moment without a plan, you miss out on some big savings.
The BOGOs on Nature’s Bounty this week were a real boon at our house. My husband’s dietary supplements cost more than his prescriptions. This week, combining BOGOs, in store coupons and mfg coupons, we saved more than $100 on six months’ supply.