How I Save Money on Groceries
We are a family of 5 and we live on a budget. Our budget can easily be blown on groceries. I mean, I have a 12 year old 5 foot 10, 200 pound boy that eats his weight in food every single day and that is not cheap! Seriously, I can easily spend $1000 or more every single month on groceries if I am not careful.
CLEARANCE GROCERIES
If you know me though, you know that I am a cheapskate. I’m not even kidding. I never pay full price for anything and I love for finding clearance deals and that includes at the grocery store.
Did you know that you can buy food on clearance? Yes, you can! Crazy, right? Oh, and one other thing. Buying food on clearance does not mean that the food has gone bad. there are many reasons why groceries get put on clearance.
Why does food go on clearance?
Here are some of the reasons why food goes on clearance:
- Nearing expiration date
- Damaged packaging
- Out of season (Christmas labels after the holiday, etc)
- Manufacturer changed packaging
- Discontinued items
One of my favorite stores is Safeway (Albertsons) and I always check the clearance rack. If there is an item that I want on it, I check my J4U Safeway app and see if there are any other deals on this item and I am sure to add it. I have been able to find some really great deals this way!
COUPONS
I use coupons all the time. I will be honest though, I rarely clip coupons out of the newspaper anymore. I always look at the app for the grocery store that I will be visiting to find any coupons that would fit with my shopping list. I also often plan my meals around what coupons and sales I have found.
DISCOUNT STORES
Here in the great Pacific North West, we have Grocery Outlet and they have some amazing deals on closeout, overstock and discount groceries. I have two kids that take lunch from home and this is where I buy almost all of their lunch foods (granola bars, dried veggies, trail mix, etc). You can often find canned foods for pennies on the dollar and some deeply discounted deals.
I also do a lot of my shopping at Winco which has great deals. Winco has awesome prices on bulk items. For example, our family goes through a lot of oatmeal and we buy all of our oatmeal at Winco for just $0.61 per pound, which is about half the price of packaged oatmeal.
MEAL PLAN
Meal prep is a great way to save money on groceries. This is because your grocery shopping then become more intentional. No more blindly grabbing items that you may or may not prepare. Also, there is far less wasted food because if you have already planned your meals out, you know exactly what to buy and as long as you follow your meal plan, you won’t have any wasted food.
STICK TO WHOLE FOODS
Yes, sometimes what we consider as “healthy” foods are often more expensive than packaged, processed foods, but the fact is, when you stick to whole foods they are often cheaper. This is especially true when you shop at farm stands and farmer’s markets. Also, when you eat whole foods instead of packaged, sodium filled foods, you are healthier in general which often translates to less money spent on doctor’s bills.
These are just some of the ways that we save money on groceries. How about you? What are your money saving grocery tips?
