11 Surefire Ways to Slash Your Grocery Budget Today

One of the number one questions I hear in all the budgeting and Dave Ramsey groups I’m in on Facebook is how do you save money on your groceries? or How much do you spend on groceries a month for your family? Without fail every single time I post the amount we spend per month, I get tons of replies asking on how it is possible.

For our family of six which is currently 2 adults and four children (who at times it seems as they eat as adults) ages 9,7,5, and 3 we spend $500 a month which is roughly $125 a week on groceries. Often times I still have some of the $500 budget left at the end of the month.

I truly believe that we would spend even less if we weren’t living and traveling in an RV. Because of this I can’t be as frugal and shop bulk items as much as I used to. If we were living stationary and had room for more storage and more fridge space, I am confident it could be $400 a month. To me, $500 seems high.

Do we eat rice and beans? No. Not really. We actually eat healthy and delicious meals and no-one in my family has to go without. In fact, every week when we go grocery shopping our house is bursting at the seams with food. Are there a few meals I throw into our rotation that are cheaper? Oh for sure. But just because they are cheaper doesn’t mean they don’t taste good and often they are the ones my family requests most often.

Grocery shopping on a budget isn’t easy, so, to help others get their grocery budget under wraps and achieve their goals I have compiled our best tips for saving money when grocery shopping.

Heres the deal. Some will read these tips and will want to get started right away. If this is you, pin this page, and start this month with one of the tips and see how much money it saves you. .Others will look at the list and say no way that’s not for me. That’s ok too, pin this page and come back when you’re ready for it. Come back frequently and track your progress.

Tips for saving money on groceries!

Avoid Warehouse Shopping

Stay out of bulk stores like Costco and Sams Club. Yup, I said it. Do you want to blow your entire grocery budget in one place on silly items such as a giant bag of popcorn, a box of frozen sandwiches, and a giant jar of mayonnaise? If so, then head to one of these stores. Seriously, impulse buys here are real and because of the size of items the prices add up quickly. You buy five items and your cart is easily at $50 or more.

If you really want to take advantage of these clubs and have good self-control then focus on the actual deals such as bulk meats, drygoods, or dairy and stay away from packaged or convenience foods. You’ll soon see that to hit $500 we will be cutting those out anyways.

Do your research and know what good prices are in your area and if you still feel like you will save money by buying things at Costco then do yourself a favor and order it online for pickup. It avoids walking through a store of temptations.

Pick the Right Stores

It matters where you shop. This is SO important. People always ask me: do you spend hours looking over local sales ads in your area? Nope. Ain’t nobody got time for that. For real. I homeschool, I work forty hours a week, I blog, and I own a small business. Do you think I have that much time to think about grocery shopping? So I choose where I shop for my family wisely.

Depending on where you live this may or may not be possible. If you are in a rural area with little options this obviously will not work in your favor. We travel and our options change depending on where we are, but I always try to shop at Aldi whenever possible. If we’re out west I look for Winco. These stores alone save me so much money on my groceries I will even drive half an hour out of my way just to get there.

Find the stores in your area with the best prices and stick with them.

Plan Your Meals

Can I just say this three times? You need a meal plan. There is no possible way to stick to a monthly grocery budget if you don’t have a meal plan. That’s like trying to drive from New York to California without a map. You may get lucky and end up in California but it will take you longer and you may end up in San Francisco when you wanted to be in Los Angeles.

Start a list of your family’s favorite meals, pick some cheap options you know your family loves that you can incorporate weekly (nachos, bean burritos, pancakes and turkey bacon, soup, and grilled cheese). Make it a family affair and sit down and ask what everyone wants to eat for the next week.

Shop Your Pantry First

When you are making a meal plan look in your freezer to see if you have any leftover meat or vegetables or any other extras from the week or month. Do you have leftover spaghetti sauce, canned vegetables, noodles or anything else you were planning on using for a meal last week/month? If you have leftovers incorporate them into your new meal plan.

This will also keep your pantry and kitchen cupboards more organized.

Make a Shopping List

Make a list and check it twice. Scour your pantry and fridge and write down anything and everything that you know you will need for the next week or month (depending on how you run your grocery shopping). The less you go to the grocery store the better you will keep your budget.

Shop Monthly if Possible

I get that this is not always possible for everyone. It’s not possible for us that’s for sure. Space in the RV is very limited. The fridge, freezer, and pantry shelves are TINY. Because space is limited, we have to shop weekly and it’s ok, we make it work. If you can swing it you should try for a monthly shopping trip. That’s what we did when we lived in a house. It takes a lot of prep time up front but then you are done for the month. If you need to grab milk and some fresh produce you can order them to pick up from the store which will save you time. It’s also helpful to keep you out of the store and away from impulse purchases.

Track Your Purchases

Track your purchases in your head or write them down as you shop. As you are filling your cart, you need to count and keep track of how much you are spending AS you are placing the items in your cart. You have a budget to keep and you need to know where you are at each time you are in the store. There should never be a surprise at checkout. You should have a ballpark figure at what your cart will cost. I always make it a game to come in under my ballpark figure. This alone will give you a sense of accountability and keep you from adding items into your cart as you shop.

Is this difficult to do? Yes. Trust me, I still do it when I shop with four kids, so I know it can be done. You want to round up items to account for tax and give you a cushion. So if you are putting an item for 1.78 in your cart you will count it as $2. I keep a running total in my head of how much is in my cart. If I have $80 currently in my cart and I add milk it’s now $85 and so on.

Always Pay Cash

Do not even bring your debit card with you to the store. Bring your budgeted amount of cash for your trip and do the counting method and this is your guaranteed way of staying on track! If you don’t have it with you, you can’t spend it.

Allocate Leftover Cash

Use your leftover grocery budget at the end of the month for bulk purchases or to stock up on items. If you follow these tips it’s likely you will be under budget each month. If you shop weekly or at the end of the month use your leftover budget to stock up on meats, canned goods, cheese to be frozen, frozen items or pantry staples such as sauces, rice, or noodles. It’s always good to stay ahead.

Skip Coupons – For Real.

Couponing will almost never save you money. This is coming from someone that went through a couponing phase. I know I’ll get flack for this from some but I don’t care. Coupons ONLY really save you money if it’s an item you were going to buy anyway. If you buy something that you weren’t planning on or really don’t need just because you had the coupon then you are actually losing money. I don’t care if it’s something your family will use. This is just the truth. Unless you have a coupon for cheese and were buying cheese for tacos anyways, stay away from them. Coupons are just not my thing.

Now, if it’s the end of the month and you have extra for stock up reasons and you have coupons for stock up items then totally use them.

Eliminate Snacks

Let’s talk about snacks and convenience foods. They will eat up your budget quickly. Eliminate them as quickly as possible. These include pre-cut fruit and veggies, pre-made breakfast sandwiches, frozen waffles, corn dogs, frozen meals, etc. These are expensive and usually not healthy for you anyways. Are you buying pre-portioned snacks? You will pay extra for those. Get some snack baggies and portion them on your own. Be selective with the snacks. Right now the biggest snack items in our house are usually fresh fruit and veggies (we usually stick with what is seasonal or on sale), popcorn, pretzels, applesauce, tortilla chips and salsa, quesadillas and I do treat the kids with go-gurts because I found there was no difference in price when buying a larger tub and dishing it out. If you are packing lunches for school you can still save money with purchasing non-convenience food items.

Got teenagers who will die if they don’t snack between meals? I’m going to steal a page out of mother in laws book because I’m not at that point yet. When her kids were teens, she would make a huge pot of spaghetti and keep it in the fridge for whenever people said they were hungry and it wasn’t meal time. It’s a great way to maintain the budget and keep those growing bodies fed.

Another easy and cheap snack for teenagers is a pizza quesadilla. Keep a jar of marinara, a bag of mozzarella and a bag of pepperoni in the fridge and buy a big bag of tortillas. When hunger comes, they can add a little sauce, some pepperoni, some cheese and nuke it in the microwave for a quick snack.

You Can Do This!

Can it this be done? Yes, it can. I do it every month. When I see what some people spend each month on groceries, my mind breaks. I don’t think I could even spend that much if I tried.

This is something that has always been easy for me. I understand that it’s not easy for everyone, they’re probably much better at other things than I am. If this is something that you want, but it’s overwhelming for you, pick one or two things from this list to try this month and see how it helps. Next month add one or two and you’ll be on your way to a great grocery budget!

What are your top tips for saving money on groceries each month?

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