Saving Money at the Grocery Store
Most Americans spend (er, waste?) a shocking amount of money at the grocery store. We all love food, and most grocery stores carry an ungodly amount of delicious gourmet food. It's easy to go over your budget by anywhere from $20 to $100 without even trying. Here are a few tips for saving money at the grocery store--without spending hours poring over ad circulars or coupons.
1. Always, always, always shop by the unit price, not the total price. The tags on the shelves should list a unit price for nearly all products--how much per ounce, pound, or portion. In many cases, sizes will be misleading--bigger boxes and jars don't always mean bulk savings. Sometimes it just means a lot of tuna. Compare unit prices to find out what's actually cheapest.
2. Don't write off generic store brands. They're not as pretty (though most chain stores are bringing in gourmet-style store brands), but store brands are usually pretty cheap. So, get over the brand snob in you and give them a try. Though you may have some favorites you don't want to compromise on--like Haagen-Daz--most of your staples (think canned fruit, pasta, and bread) can be replaced--without anyone knowing the difference.
3. Buy fresh fruits and vegetables when they're in season. If they're not in season, they can be incredibly expensive. In these cases, buy canned instead if you can't find an in-season replacement.
4. Keep your eyes trained on the top and bottom shelves. Most overpriced and overpackaged products sit comfortably on the middle shelves--right at eye level.
5. Use coupons! If you want to make a dent in your grocery bill, coupons really can make a difference. The trick is to use them wisely. Coupons gurus recommend shopping around for store that will offer coupon doubling and using coupons only when items go on sale. If you've got a winning combination--stock up! If you don't want to do the work of matching up coupons to sales, the The Grocery Game, a paid service that does the work for you.
6. Take a second look at convenience foods that appeal to you. Look at what's in them--could you make something similar? For example, that bag of frozen pasta and sausage look delicious--but there's not a lot in it and it's kind of expensive. Look at the picture and figure out what's in it, then go buy ingredients (like sausage, some dried pasta, tomato sauce, and a few mushrooms). While the cost may not always be a ton cheaper, you'll usually get at least twice the servings for your money if you make it yourself.
7. Watch out for individual servings--they'll usually drive your bill up quite a bit. Only buy them if you need the smaller sizes for travel and can't prepackage the regular size (like putting a few cookies in a Ziploc bag). Individual packages of crackers? If you're going to eat them on the couch, then just buy the whole box and get more for less. Snack-size yogurt? If you're going to eat them at home, get a larger tub and save dollars at at time. Pre-packaged hamburger patties? Why not buy the package of ground beef, take five minutes to make the patties, and save a few bucks? Plus, you can customize the sizes for different family members and add in some special seasonings to make your meal even yummier than the pre-created packages!
And finally, keep in mind that as long as you are grocery shopping instead of eating out or ordering in, you're probably saving money. Let yourself have a few splurges and find out what areas you can crack down on, and you might find yourself with a sizable chunk of extra cash at the end of each month.
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