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My biggest budget buster is food. If I go over budget on something one month, it is almost ALWAYS food. I am easily impulsed and tend to go straight for the junk food. Luckily for my wallet, my husband and I have found a couple of ways to help us stick to our monthly budget and save money on groceries.
Buy Generic
If you are used to buying name brand products, it can be difficult at first to switch to generic items. But trust me, it will save you a lot of money in the long run.
Now there are some things that I will not buy generic, like Oreos. The generic just doesn’t compare. Besides my few exceptions, I try to solely purchase the generic brand items. The main staples are milk, bread, canned goods, and eggs.
The store-brand milk at my local grocery store has been priced at $1.99 for the last few months. The name brand costs $4.19. Buying generic saves me $2 per gallon. I go through about one gallon a week which equates to $104 per year for just the milk! That’s so crazy when you think about it that way! Imagine how much money you can save a year by switching to generic on most of your items.
Stock Up on Good Deals
If we find a really good deal on an item that won’t expire for a while, we will stock up. We have learned that we can get canned vegetables and tomatoes for 39¢ at the cheapest so when that sale rolls around we stock up in order to make it through to the next sale.
We try to buy as little as possible for the full price. Pasta and pasta sauce are other items we stock up on when its at its lowest price because they’re quick and easy options.
Meat is another item we don’t buy unless its on sale for its rock bottom price. We will buy it cheap and freeze it. Buying meat at regular price can be a huge hit to your grocery budget.
Meal Plan Based on Your Store’s Ad
My husband and I try to plan our meals for the week based on our local store’s ad. We look at front page items and try to plan meals around those items. The items on the front page tend to be the best deals.
We also try to pick things that we can use for more than one meal. For example, if beef roast is on sale we will plan to have beef roast for dinner one night. Then we will use the leftovers for shredded beef sandwiches for lunch later in the week.
Only Make One Trip (and Stick to the List)
It is extremely easy to go over budget if you’re making constant trips to the store. Trust me, I used to work at a grocery store and was constantly impulsed.
Plan your meals ahead of time and create a list, so you only have to go to the store once and you have a plan on what to buy when you walk in. If you strictly stick to the list, you won’t overspend on those impulse buys and you know that what you’re buying won’t go to waste. A lot of the items I bought on impulse would get thrown away because I would snack on them that day and end up throwing the rest away later after it went stale.
Or I would see something I wanted for dinner and spend a lot more money on that dinner than I would on one of my planned meals. If you are impulsed by something, write it down and if you still want it later you can go back or you can keep an eye out for it in your store’s sale flyer for the next few weeks. This happens to me a lot with Oreos, which happens to go on sale about once a month so it works out well for me.
Check for Markdown Items
Our local grocery store has a markdown cart for grocery items, a cooler for dairy items and the meat often has markdown stickers. I always check these spots when shopping. If I am looking for ground beef and there’s a package with a dollar off coupon because it’s close dated, I will buy it and freeze it.
If I have a recipe requiring sour cream and will use it tonight, I don’t care if it’s going to expire in five days. I’ll gladly save the few dollars. Just make sure you pay attention and are not impulsed when looking at markdowns. Just because it’s 50% off doesn’t mean you need it or that it’s worth buying. If it’s not on the list, skip it.
Use a Cashback App
There are a couple of different savings apps out there, but I like to use Ibotta. Ibotta is an app that gives you cash back for shopping at certain stores. There are hundreds of stores that you can choose from, including Amazon and most grocery stores.
When you are in the app you can unlock products to earn cashback when you purchase them. Once you purchase that item, you submit a picture of your receipt and the app will credit your account.
You can also earn cash by shopping online on popular sites when you launch the site through the app. Once you make a purchase on a particular site, Ibotta credits you a percentage back.
It can be annoying to have to scan your receipt, but my local grocery store rewards card connects to the app. So instead of scanning my receipts, the app automatically checks my purchases on my store saving card. Then it applies the cashback on any items I had unlocked on the app. Before every grocery trip, I unlock ANY items I think I may possibly buy and Ibotta does the rest for me. If your local grocery store can’t connect through a rewards card, you can take a picture of your receipt when you’re done.
I have earned $164 so far, which I can withdraw through Paypal or can redeem for gift cards. You can also earn extra by teaming up with other users. Together, you work towards goals to earn extra bonuses each month.
Conclusion
I’m not going to lie and say that I am never impulsed anymore. I definitely am on occasion. Lists and meal planning have definitely helped me reduce my impulse buys. I also feel better about those slip-ups and impulse buys when I’m receiving cash back for my purchases.
These changes we’ve made to how we go grocery shopping have drastically reduced the amount of money we are spending each month. One step closer to being the financially savvy girl we all want to be!
How do you save money each month on groceries?