9 Ways to Reduce Your Monthly Grocery Bill
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Envy those savvy grocery shoppers that come armed with coupons and always seem to know exactly what’s on sale and what to buy where? Here are 9 ways to help save money on your monthly grocery bill, most of them as easy on the environment as they are on your wallet.
1. Buy lettuce by the head, not by the bag or box. OK, so it may actually take you all of three minutes to cut, wash and dry a head of lettuce compared to buying the pre-washed bag or box, but on average you will save about $3.50-$4.50 for the exact same amount of lettuce. It’s also better for the environment (not as much plastic being used) and you probably want to wash the lettuce anyway, regardless of whether or not it’s in a bag or box. The lettuce will also be fluffier and fresher.
2. Buy your milk (& orange juice) from a convenience store rather than the grocery store. This may vary depending on where you live, but where I am a gallon of milk in the grocery store (store brand) is about $3.19-3.75 and in the convenience store it is only $2.49. That may not seem like much of a difference, but every little bit helps and in my house (with two kids, four people total) we go through about 4 gallons a week. That equates to a savings of $22.50 per month! Orange juice is also cheaper as a half gallon is typically $3.50-3.99 at the grocery store and only $2.50 at the convenience store.
3. Don’t buy perishables in bulk, unless you will use them. Every time I buy a five pound bag of potatoes I use about one and a half pounds and the rest grows arms before I get to eat it. I could have saved around $2.00-3.00 had I just bought the four potatoes I ate rather than the big bag that got tossed.
4. You can also buy celery, carrots, and other veggies in singles. Just as in point #3, if you don’t need an entire bag of celery sticks, don’t buy the whole bag. Most grocery stores have a separate section where you can buy carrots, celery and other vegetables in any quantity. If you only need one stick of carrot and one celery for a soup you are making, you can just buy one of each for a fraction of the cost of an entire bag.
5. Prepare your vegetables yourself. I know it is tempting to buy the pre-chopped onions, peppers, and zucchini, but it is a high price to pay to save five minutes of your time. You will save anywhere from $2.00-5.00 cutting your own vegetables. If time is a factor, my advice is to prepare all your vegetables ahead of time (I usually do it after I get home from grocery shopping). Place the vegetables in tupperware (not plastic bags) and add a crumbled up paper towel. The paper towel will absorb the moisture, thus leading to longer shelf life, and your vegetables will be ready to go when you need them.
6. Don’t buy watered-down juice. If you’re a savvy mom or dad (or at least a health-conscious one) and you have heard that your kids should reduce their juice intake, that’s great! Many companies are cashing in on this and are selling juices that are watered-down. So you are paying the same amount as the regular juice (whether in a bottle or in a juice-box), but you are getting half the juice and tap water that comes free right from your faucet. In other words, the companies are making twice as much money off of you! Buy 100% juice (in its entirety) and mix it with water at home. You will save around $2.75 to $4.99.
7. Don’t buy bottled water. In case you haven’t heard, most bottled water is tap water. The only difference is you pay $1.50 per 20 oz. if it comes in a plastic container. Drink more water from your faucet, it really is the same quality (it may even be better!). You will be doing your wallet and the environment a big favor! If your town water is questionable, you can always buy a water filter for your faucet. A much more economical answer to filtered water. If you only drank one 20 oz. bottle of water a day, this would save you $45 per month. And of course you need at least three times that.
8. Always look through the flyer and ask the deli clerk, butcher, etc, to see if anything is on sale. I know I have made the mistake of going to the deli counter, asking for the same meat I always get, just to find out a competing brand is on sale that week for $2.00-3.00 less per pound.
9. Try to shop at the same store. When you know a store’s layout, you spend less. You’re familiar with the products they carry and spend less time looking for things. In contrast, when you shop in places you aren’t familiar you tend to “look” more and thus buy more because you notice items you haven’t seen but want to try. On average, whenever I venture out to a “new” store, I spend $30 more than normal.
Now, if you make every change I just mentioned (on estimate) you would save about $170 per month!
Kimberly Bither, M.S., CPFT is a Nutritionist, Fitness Trainer, and
Writer at KimberlyFitness.com.
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34 Comments so far
leave a commentShopping at the same supermarket helps, but I also shop at a specialty store every few weeks to get [cheaper] high quality items (Trader Joes, farmers market or Asian market)
Making a weekly meal plan also helps to coordinate more expensive items (like fresh herbs & cheese) for use in several recipes before they go bad.
Excellent article. Another tip: Get to know your vendors at the farmers market. They’ll often give you better deals if they know you especially if you come near closing time.
Four gallons of milk a week?! That’s enough to earn its own budgeting slot in Mint.
Don’t drink watered down juice, yuk. Why would you buy 100% juice then add water to it? Do you do the same with milk? Is frugality really worth watered down juice? Maybe I need to check but I would never expect to see any convenience store prices less than a grocery store in my area. Check it out before assuming this could be true.
You say you haven’t checked it out, and then you tell her to check it out?
I’m lost.
But really, around here, milk’s cheaper in one of the grocery stores, otherwise convenience store wins, OJ is always cheaper at the grocery store, and cokes are cheaper at the gas station unless they’re on sale at the grocery store (12 packs).
Because juice has a lot of sugar, water is best. adding another 25% water to juice is a great way to stretch it. My kids drink a lot of juice, we buy frozen concentrate, and I put 4 cans of water instead of 3. Not a whole lot and it’s not that perceptable. You may take a week to get used to it yourself.
As for the article stating that you can save money buying the juice for a buck cheaper per half gallon, frozen concentrate oj costs about $1.50 for Minute Maid. That would save you another buck.
Great tips!! I would like to add that “pre-washed” bagged lettuce goes bad so much quicker than head lettuce and have found that sometimes it the taste is a little “off.” I also use the paper towel tip for lettuce. It stays fresh for a long time whether you place the cleaned lettuce in a plastic container or plastic storage bag. Just get as much air out of the bag that you can.
I’m surprised this article doesn’t talk about all of the other ways to save, I know it’s only 9 tips, but it could have as easily been 10 tips!
#10 – Use coupons & flyers, the Grocery Game has saved my wife and our family of 5 even, over 50% on our grocery bill, and many things we never pay more than $0.50 cents, usually free for due to all the coupons and sales and lots of great deals are had at “department/drug stores” ie: cashbacks at CVS. We have a supply of FREE razors and shaving cream, deodorant, toothpase & brushes, shampoo/conditioner, and SOO much more! =)
Milk is NOT cheaper at the conveinience store, at least in my area. The only thing I have seen sheaper is 12 packs of soft drinks.
I shop at 2 stores, one (Publix in the Southeast) has really really good quality of store brand goods. So I go there for veggies and Store brand items. When I have to have name brands, Wal-Mart is usually 10-30% cheaper, and they take coupons to boot.
Number 7 is my all time number 1 annoyance with the modern consumer. The conventional nature of laziness has taken us away from common sense. We can filter our own water with less contaminants than our local cities municipal water districts. Let’s get to it and buy a friendly water filter that costs roughly $30 and lasts forever! Cheers!
#4 Cutting down any items sold by the pound is my favorite tip. A few extra minutes getting help from a store employee can help you save money or get a bigger value. When my wife and I had some friends over for a party I wanted to have a cheese plate with artisan cheeses. It took an extra 5-7 minutes at the deli counter but we had them cut the cheeses roughly in half. Because those cheeses are sold by the pound we were able to get twice as many varieties on our cheese plate. (Saving money is up to you) Just make sure to pick cheese varieties that have store printed bar codes on them. That means they can cut it, re-weigh it, and sell the half you don’t buy. For an extra few minutes you can cut watermelon, squash, or even take home half a yam if that is all you want as a side tonight.
#9 was a total surprise to me. I shop at Berkeley Bowl, then Safeway, then Trader Joe’s, even Wholefoods, because I like something from each. Probably grab a lot of newbie stuff because I can’t settle down! LOL!
- buy milk at costco, it’s like $3 for two 1 gallon jugs. keep both if you can finsih it in time, or split it w/ a friend
- buy eggs from costco, it’s like $1.29 for 18, cheaper than any grocery store
- shop for produce and vegetables at the mexican and asian grocery stores.. so much cheaper. i.e. 5 bunches of cilantro for 99cents (20 cents a bunch) vs 1 bunch at ralphs/vons. 49 cents/lb for brocolli/colliflower vs $1.49 or more at ralphs/vons. 49cents/lb for peaches vs $1.00 or more. pretty much any produce and fruit is cheaper. it definitely adds up.
True to form sir.
I also do what’s called “perimeter shop” which means not going through the middle aisles. Everything you need to make meals – milk, bread, meat, produce is located around the perimeter of the store. It saves a bundle!
not true … Ramen noodles and Tuna are in the middle.
On #2: A gallon of milk at Costco is about $1.75 (my store in MN does not sell pairs of gallons). Multiply that savings for a month and you can get yourself a free membership there. Add the savings from other things you buy there and you will save more than doing ALL the things on this list.
No, I don’t work for Costco, I just have found them to be the best bargain in town for groceries. If you’re going to join get the $100 membership. If you have a family you will probalby find that your annual rebate check exceeds the $100 you paid to join (bonus!).
AWESOME TIPS! THANK YOU!
Portion control your food especially meats. American tend to eat more protein than needed. Use more legumes for protein by having at least one vegetarian night a week.
My wife and I use a spreadsheet BEFORE we going shopping. It has all the items we purchase regularly and the price. We can actually calculate the cost of our trip to the store before we go. If the total goes over our budget, we decide which items to forego in advance. Then we update our spreadsheet with the receipt which shows us if any prices change.
We also build just a little slop into the budget for new items and impulse purchases.
Yes, choose for low-cost manufacturers and low-cost stores. You know they are having an impact on your community and world. Plus, cheaper is always better when it comes to the things that you eat and feed to your family – especially meat! Hopefully the food industry will respond soon.
/sarcasm
Scott – Drinking watered down juice is not about frugality. It is about having kids that aren’t obese because they just drank 800 calories of apple juice.
In addition to the convenience stores, I would also suggest checking out drug stores for milk, beverages, and snacks. They’re not just for drugs!
Save money by staying fit and healthy over the long term. That means eating nutritious, high quality food, chemical free and locally produced when possible. Learn to cook from scratch, it’s much cheaper. Monitor portion size and waste very carefully. Plan for and incorporate leftovers into economical egg frittatas, stir fry, grilled sandwiches, pasta sauces, soups, etc. Best food deal of the year: we bartered a half a side of grass-fed beef, are thrilled with the quality and the great deal. Tired your own home cooking? Rotate “eating out” at homes of frugal friends who love to cook. Explore ethnic cuisines for fresh, cheap, healthy food ideas.
Great ideas! I also do what I call perimeter shopping – at our chain grocery stores – they have managers specials all the time – greatly reduced prices on produce, milk, cheese, bread etc. If they are getting close to sell by date.
Many times these are also on organic products. Many of the products can be frozen if I am not ready to use right away. We cook mostly fresh so I just make what is on sale.
We don’t tend to use much milk, but like to have it around for when we do need it. I find that Organic milk, while more expensive per oz… saves us money because it lasts twice as long. Because Organic milk is double-pasteurized, it stays fresh two or three weeks longer than conventional milk. For light-users, this results in far less wasted milk. Next time you’re at the supermarket… compare the expiration dates between regular and organic milk.
I wanted to add three more suggestions that my wife does:
1. Pre-plan your meals before going grocery shopping. We wife will usually plan two weeks in advance.
2. Create a grocery list and stick to it. ESPECIALLY, when those chocolate chip cookies are calling you.
3. DO NOT go to the grocery store hungry. We have done this before and we came home with a bunch of junk food we didn’t need (yes, those chocolate chip cookies came home).
Greate tips. And I’m with you about the milk my wife and 8 year old can drink a gallon in one day.
To save I garden. Last night we had broccoli, potatoes,. salad with onions, summer squash, lettuces, and carrot all from my garden and just added some grilled chicken along with my breadmaker bread. What a nice meal and I felt so good about the whole thing. Even in containers you can save a ton of money.
Milk prices were always a big issue in our family. Then I found Aldis. Milk is usually about $1 cheaper there then anywhere else. I usually get it anywhere between $1.79 and $2.29 And there brand for NOT from concentrate OJ is way cheaper as well. If you live in an area that does not have an Aldi’s then check Walgreen’s. We used to get our milk there because it was cheaper.
If you want to get the kids 100% juice is is cheaper to make your own. We make our own grape juice or mixed fruit juices, by using a blender. Not adding sugar or at the least not as much as in regular juice.
Just remember that we pay for the cost of convenience and pre-made food, because we have run out of time to make a “dinner from scratch” for our families. With today’s economy I work more, so therefore I do not want to spend all my time in the kitchen. I would much rather be with my family.
I like the ideas but have to disagree heartily with idea that you shop at the same store. I go to one store that has great produce prices and another for most of my meats and other foods. I alternate weeks at Trader Joes to stock up on healthy treats only. I have found that each store has certain items at the best prices and are overpriced when it comes to other items. It takes a little extra time but I can usually manage two stores in an hour and same a lot of money that way. Also I plan my meals before shopping and make sure to check what is on sale at the stores I’m going to while I plan, so I get good deals on meats and produce. I’ve cut my grocery bills by 1/3.
Convenience stores are generally more expensive for all items in my area. I think the real take away here is compare all available sources before deciding where to buy . At the same time, gas costs can make it prohibitively expensive to shop too many stores, so figure any extra driving distance as a cost too.
I’m also on board with menu planning and making a grocery list. I found a really good article about doing both quickly at the same time. I hope it helps someone else.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2246943/save_money_on_food_now_cheaper_groceries.html
“9. Try to shop at the same store.”
A way to help you from straying and buying thing you don’t need is to make a shopping list before you go shopping and sticking with what is on the list at the grocery store.
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Frozen food like chicken, steak, vegge’s, and eggs, beans and rice. It changes month to month. Worth checking out.
Wendell
It is also a good idea to shop at places like Costco and Sam’s Club.
Great example:
Costco membership = $50
Gallon of milk = $1.65
18 eggs = $2.50
Basic essentials cost next to nothing and bulk non-perishables are always money savers.