Frugality comes naturally to me, so I generally save money pretty easily. The one area where I tend to overspend is grocery shopping.
I hate cooking and eat a lot of microwaveable/prepackaged meals. As you can imagine, this is not cheap! I’ve been working on reducing my grocery spending (my goal is to cut my grocery budget by one third).
Here are 10 tips I’ve found to be helpful for saving money on groceries! How do you save money on groceries? Share in the comments :)
*Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. Read our full disclosure policy here. This post was republished on 8/19/2018.
Meal Plan
Get out your weekly calendar and write down what you are going to have for meals each day. Check to see what you already have in the kitchen and then make a grocery list for the rest of the items.
Don’t forget to include snacks (if you’re a snacker like I am).
Do you want to spend less on groceries?
Download our free meal planning worksheet today. This resource will help you to spend less money, eat healthier, and save time!
Stick to Your List
Once you get to the store, try to stick to your list avoid any impulse buys. As cliche as it sounds, don’t go to the store when you’re hungry.
Choose a Budget-Friendly Store
Certain stores (like Whole Foods) are not very budget-friendly. I LOVE Whole Foods, but I generally avoid it and only buy things there occasionally.
Instead of shopping at an overpriced store, find a more budget-friendly option like Fareway, Fresh Thyme, Aldi’s, Target, or Walmart.
Use Ibotta to Earn Cash Back
Want to earn cash back for grocery shopping just like you normally would? Download the free Ibotta app to earn a little cash back on your groceries.
Related Post: Ibotta Review – How to Earn Cash Back on Groceries
Ibotta has cash back options at over 280 stores, including grocery stores (Walmart, Target, Costco, Hy-vee, Cub Foods, Fareway, Trader Joe’s), drugstores (Walgreens, CVS), liquor stores, and more.
The app is free and easy to use, so who wouldn’t want to earn a little cash for buying things they were going to buy anyway? Download the app and get a free $10 welcome bonus!
Skip Pre-Packaged Items
Items that have been sliced or prepackaged in advance tend to be quite expensive. Instead, buy items that are not pre-sliced and cut them yourself.
Another option is to find simple meals that are quick and easy to prepare yourself (if you don’t like cooking).
Hunt for Sales
I’m a creature of habit, and I tend to buy the same brands every week. The more budget-savvy option would be to find brands that are having sales and purchase those instead.
A lot of the time, the brand doesn’t really matter anyway.
Find Coupons
If you enjoy clipping coupons, that’s a great way to save a little money. I don’t like to clip coupons, so I instead use apps to earn cash or find deals.. Apps like Ibotta can help you to save.
If you stack deals (use coupons from multiple apps), you could snag some dirt cheap prices!
Only Buy What You Need
If you meal plan and stick to your list, you should only be buying what you need. Do your best to avoid impulse buys or purchasing too much of an item.
Only buying what you need is cheaper and it reduces waste. Win-win!
Use Your Freezer
Do you find that you are always throwing away certain foods each week but you don’t want to stop buying those foods? I have this issue with bread. I buy a super healthy (read: flavorless) type of bread and it expires quickly.
Instead of only using half of the bread loaf and throwing the rest of it away each week, I stick it in the freezer so it’ll last longer.
Buy Cheap Staples
Certain “staples” such as rice and eggs are cheap. You can buy a dozen eggs at Walmart for less than $2 and this could make several meals.
This gives you plenty of options too if you don’t like to eat the same thing over and over.
You could make scrambled eggs, a veggie omelette, a fried egg sandwich, hard-boiled eggs, and more. There are also plenty of different meals you could make with rice.
Save Money on Groceries
Do you often overspend on groceries? This seems to be a budget buster for many people. What tips have you found useful for reducing your grocery spending?
Need help creating a budget? Download my step-by-step guide to setting up a budget that works for you!
Found your blog through The Financial Diet… it’s great! I blog at janebdiener.com and I’ve recently started looking very closely into my budget. I love all the tips on your blogs, particularly this one. The BEST thing I’ve been doing lately is to write down all the possible combos of my ingredients on a “menu” that I leave in my kitchen. This really helps mitigate the ever-so-common “there’s nothing to eat!” problem. I definitely feel like it makes me more creative with my ingredients too!
Thank you! I think that’s very helpful also!