We all go into the grocery and know that pretty much doing grocery is an expensive task but still buying groceries and making food at home is pretty much cheaper than buying prepared food outside or eating out.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports, food is third-largest household expense so it’s a big help if we get to know what we have to do in order to save a couple of dollars while doing grocery. Good thing we have compiled 10 different ways to save money on grocery shopping.
1. Plan your meals around sale items – If there will be an upcoming sale in your nearest grocery store take the opportunity to plan your meal based on the sale items. This would allow you to save more money on meat, poultry and other ingredients needed at home.
2. Use up all your food in the pantry – It’s been said that most of us don’t utilize stocked food and most of the time it goes to waste due to spoilage. To prevent this you need to create an inventory of your food stock and use them up. This would save you lots of money and you won’t be wasting so much food again.
3. Planning your grocery trip – You should do grocery once a week at the most. Why? Well because doing unplanned trips to the grocery can lead to unnecessary purchases. So to avoid that know what you need in advance, check your pantry and know what would be the menu for the week.
4. Look for alternatives or substitutes for expensive items – Review your grocery receipts for the past 2 weeks and check or highlight those that are expensive and look for a cheaper substitute for that item. A little adjustment can have a big impact on saving for grocery shopping.
5. Scout for cheaper prices for usual purchases – Look into your weekly purchase and most likely you’ll have those items that you always purchase regardless of the budget. If you do, take the time to go out and look for cheaper prices for the same items.
6. Use Coupons! – In this day and age coupons can be easily downloaded via Coupons.com, SmartSource.com or redplum.com. Coupons can be of great help in saving money during grocery shopping.
7. Use cash-back programs – Earn cash-back on your groceries with apps like Ibotta, SavingsStar and Checkout51. All you got to do is take a photograph of the receipt and take advantage for the cash-back service.
8. Sign up for loyalty programs – In order to get discounts and privileges check your local grocery store (or drugstore) and be familiar with their discounts and in store promotions for members and loyal customers. This way you get first hand exclusives and information of their sale and discount programs. Also another good thing about signing up is that you get points every time you purchase on their store. You may use those points as cash on your next purchase.
9. Use a smaller cart – Well study shows that using bigger carts makes people buy 40% more and using hand held baskets can be equally dangerous as well. According to the Journal of Marketing Research using a basket allows you to purchase vice products – like candies and sodas as a unconscious reward for putting up with the hassle.
10. Learn how to grow your own food – A lot of people right now consider growing their own food on their backyard as an alternative. Herbs and other crops that are usually consumed in the household are being grown in backyards to save money and to get fresh food on the table.
What are your grocery shopping tips? I would love to read your comments below and add more to the tips listed above
Elaine Fernando is a Professional Organizer, a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) and a member of APPO (Association of Personal Photo Organizers). Elaine may be reached at 908-630-8995 or [email protected]
