We all need to eat, and many of us want to eat well. But how can we do that without spending an absolute fortune on food? You can save a fortune on your food shop, and this post is going to tell you how. Read on to learn the secrets that will save you so much money!
Stop Buying Brand Names
Brand names cost a whole lot more than supermarket brands. You wouldn’t mind if they were much better quality, but the fact is, many of them aren’t. You can buy supermarket brands for so much cheaper, and yet the quality and taste of the product will often be similar. Try replacing one thing per week in your shopping and see if it makes that much difference. You might be pleasantly surprised and save a lot of money! If you can’t bear to start buying supermarket brands, there will still be cheaper brands you can try out.
Start Collecting Coupons
Collect coupons wherever and whenever you can. Make sure you cut them out of newspapers, and even search for them online. You can get tips from a site like http://www.stay-a-stay-at-home-mom.com/how-to-get-free-groceries.html. If you make sure you consistently use coupons, you’ll save so much money over time.
Create a Meal Plan
By creating a meal plan for the week, you’ll know exactly what you need to buy. Heading to the supermarket and winging the whole thing is really risky. Create some meals that you know don’t cost much to buy. You can even coordinate meals that don’t take very long to prepare with days where you don’t have a lot of time. You’ll be able to eat healthy meals and save time. What more could you want?
Don’t Stray From Your Shopping List
When you go shopping, don’t stray from your shopping list. In general, it’s a good idea to head straight for what you need and ignore all other aisles and shelves. Supermarkets and other stores will usually try to get you to spend even more money by putting their deals in tempting places. Usually the front of the store, or even on the middle shelves. Don’t get pulled into looking at these things if you want to save money as you shop!
Grow Your Own Fruit, Herbs And Veggies
If you like to stay healthy but you don’t want to spend a fortune, make sure you start growing your own fruit, herbs, and vegetables. If you can find a little spot in the garden, growing the fruit and vegetables you enjoy the most is a great idea. It’s really easy to create a little herb garden too. They cost very little, and you’ll always have fresh herbs on hand without wasting any. Buying them in packets can cost more than you’d like, and chances are, you won’t use them all anyway.
Keep an Eye on Prices
Supermarkets and grocery stores have a sneaky habit of increasing prices very gradually. It is not until you notice that your grocery bill has shot up that you realize that you are paying 15, 20, 30 percent more than you were on the same basket or cart of items last year. It is important to keep a close eye on your bill and use a percentage increase calculator to work out the increases.
Buy In Bulk
Buy what you can in bulk. If you use something often enough, buying in bulk can save you a large chunk of money. Meat is a good example of something to buy in bulk. Just make sure you store it properly so that it doesn’t go to waste!
Never Shop Hungry
If you go shopping when you’re hungry, you’re just asking for trouble. It’s scientifically proven that people who shop hungry tend to buy more food than they need to. Always have a little snack before you go, and consider taking some mints or chewing gum to avoid temptation further.
Create Meals From Leftovers
Always create meals from any leftovers you have to avoid buying more food than you need and throwing things away. There are so many great recipes online you can use to create delicious meals from your leftovers.
Sign Up For Loyalty Programs
Make sure you sign up for loyalty programs where possible too. Many supermarkets offer you loyalty cards, so it can be beneficial to shop with them and only them, using the loyalty card each time you buy something to get more offers and money off. However, this will depend on how much money you could be saving elsewhere. Make sure you memorize the rock bottom prices and figure out what is more worth your while.
When you start using these tips, you’ll be able to save a ton of money on your food shop. You won’t believe how much you could have been saving all this time! If you have tips of your own that you swear by, leave them below. Come back soon!
Great tips!!! I love shopping in bulk and making a meal. Making meals from leftovers is a plus.
That’s something I’m going to work on for 2017 … making a completely different meal from leftovers. I’m so sick and tired of throwing out leftovers because nobody wants to eat them. Personally – I think leftovers taste better two or three days after the original meal!
We never shop until we’ve eaten. We learned that (not the hard way, because we bought all kinds of food) when we realized EVERYTHING we saw looked good.
These are some great tips that I can really use. Our large family is so expensive to feed and we do waste alot. Thank you for this great article