7 Tips To Save You Money At The Grocery Store
Inflation is hitting us where it hurts: our pockets. No, it’s not your imagination. The price of everything has increased to insane levels. Unfortunately, it looks like we may be dealing with these crazy ass high prices for a while.
We're all trying to eat better, but when prices are this steep, it can be hard.
Tip #1: Plan Ahead
Grocery stores are designed to encourage you to impulse buy. Think about it! The bakery usually is located somewhere near the front. It looks enticing and inviting. And let’s not forget all the candy and snacks located at check-out. The truth is grocery stores have every aspect of the store designed with consumer psychology in mind.
It’s easy to get side-tracked and buy items you didn’t plan to buy. Plan out your week’s menu ahead of time, and shop with a list. Stick to that list no matter what. As a bonus: you’ll likely save more, if you’re able to use the same ingredients in multiple recipes.
Tip #2: Buy Generic and Store Brand Items
Generic and store brand products are usually similar in quality and ingredients, but lower in price than name brand products. For example, Barilla spaghetti goes for $1.84 at my local Publix. The Publix brand spaghetti goes for $1.37. It’s only a 47-cent difference, but if you make this swap with a handful of different items, your savings can easily add up.
Also, if you’re shopping for medication, generic medication contains the same active ingredients as their name brand counterparts. If your physician gives you the green light, consider buying the generic version of a medication, such as acetaminophen instead of Tylenol.
Be observant because grocery stores are notorious for placing the more expensive name brand items on the middle shelves. This is aimed to keep them in-line with your eyesight. Therefore, try to look toward the lower and upper shelves to find cheaper items.
Tip #3: Use What You Already Have
You might have more than you think. Before you go grocery shopping, be sure to check your pantry and freezer for food that has yet to be used. Then, create your weekly meal plan based on what’s already there.
Also, despite how well you plan, you’ll occasionally have leftover food. Instead of throwing it away, consider repurposing your food or reviving it. Here are a few common ways to repurpose food:
Fruit close to going bad can be frozen and used in smoothies
Stale bread is easy to turn into breadcrumbs or croutons
Wilted vegetables can sometimes be revived with cold water
Tip #4: Pay Attention to Unit Price
Unit price tells you the price of an item per unit, usually in ounces or pounds. This allows you to easily compare the price between different brands and packages. For example, let’s say you’re comparing two different yogurts: one is 32 oz with a unit price of 10.6 cents per ounce; the other is 5.3oz with a unit price of 14.2 cents per ounce. Despite being different sizes, the unit price allows us to easily see it’s more cost effective to buy the larger yogurt, especially, if you eat yogurt daily.
Tip #5: Stock Up on Frequently Bought Items During Sales
Sales can be a great time to save on the items you frequently buy! They’re also great if you want to stack up on items with a long shelf-life, such as toilet tissue, paper towels, frozen foods, and any food that is non-perishable. But be careful. Sales can also be an enticing time to buy products you don’t need. This can lead you to spend more money than necessary. Stick to buying items that you regularly purchase and items that you know you’ll use within the next several weeks.
Tip #6: Avoid Precut Food
Pre-cut food is a huge convenience. When you consider the time and skill needed to neatly cut produce, it might be easier to buy the pre-cut version of your favorite fruit and vegetables. But if you’re up for the task, consider buying whole produce and cutting it yourself. You’ll save BIG. Pre-cut foods are usually marked up 100-400% from whole foods. No, that’s not a typo! You read correctly. The next time you want to buy pre-cut onions or mangos, ask yourself if paying the marked-up cost is worth it.
Tip #7: Reduce Your Meat Consumption
The bottom line: meat and animal products are expensive as hell. The price of feed for livestock has increased. This trickles down into more expensive eggs, meat, and poultry. If you’re down to try it, consider including more vegetarian protein options into your diet. I’m talking about beans, edamame, legumes, tempeh, and tofu. It doesn’t hurt to try something new!
If you want to keep your meat consumption as is, there are a few options to save money:
Buying meat when it’s on sale and storing it in your freezer
Swapping to less expensive cuts of meat
Avoid pre-cut meat and do the butchering yourself (example: buy whole chicken wings and cut them into flats and drums)
These are my favorite money saving tips, But what are some of yours? Drop them in the comments.
Bestie, Is Your Diet a Complete Mess?
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