25 September 2024
Everybody wants to save some money. The grocery store takes a hunk out of our monthly salary, that’s for sure. Here are some ideas about how to save a buck or two.
List
Make a list. Start with an ongoing list to take care of staples that are either out or getting low.
At least a rough idea of what you will need to serve your family based on work, school, and other commitments, will help you get the most out of your spending. However, keep yourself flexible. You may find some protein on sale; likewise produce. This can dictate what your meals will be for the week. If you go for what is on sale first, then you can fill in with the rest of the foods on your meal plan.
Convenience packaging can also cost more in the long run. One of those boxes that will offer you a pasta salad in an instant, can actually be made from separate components and adjusted to your personal tastes for, overall, less money. You will also be saving on unnecessary salt and additives. Sometimes those pre-chopped veggies, or packaged salad, or jarred spaghetti sauce are not that much more expensive, especially when you factor in your time. Try to be judicious but still be able to fix food at home instead of ordering in or a drive-thru.
Avoid impulse buying. Those bags of chips may look so very enticing after a rough day at work, but try to pass if you can.
So, you have a list and you are pretty much going to stick with it except for some variables based on store bargains.
Unit Pricing
On the store shelves there is a tag that shows the price of the item. Also included is the price (usually in cents) per unit. A 10 ounce can that costs $2.00 will have a unit price of $0.02. Using that unit price you can compare different brands even though they may be offering different sizes of the same thing. In general, generic or store brands will be the least expensive, but not if you have coupons or the store is running a special or sale.
Buying everything organic can also add up. Decide what you can afford. Also be sure to eat what you buy. If it sits in the fridge getting mushy, you have wasted your money.
Speaking of this. Make friends with the manager in the meat department. Little chats will give way to hints that items that will be going on sale soon or a price reduction is in the offing. Check sale prices at stores other than your usual. If the other prices are relatively the same, you could save some bucks. However, traveling from one store to another may not be efficient and you need to calculate the cost of gas. Switch to plant-based proteins. Compare prices at the dollar store versus the grocery store.
Use the store’s discount card. Sometimes they offer cents off on products or a reduction in gasoline rates.
Bulk Purchases
There are items like toilet paper that will serve you well to buy in bulk. It will reduce trips to the grocery store and will cost less per unit. However, this is only a good idea if you have the space to store these goods. Having a case of peanut butter sitting in the living room of your studio apartment is not a good choice. You also need to decide whether the prices will offset the annual cost of a membership card.
So, in the long run, it will take a little math, okay a lot of math, but once you hit a rhythm, you will find your tab at the grocery check out is a little lower.
