Saving money on groceries is not hard! Get the exact steps you need to know how to save money on groceries and still make delicious food for your family.
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How to Save Money on Groceries: Create Meal Plans
Creating a plan is the best way to stay on track when it comes to saving money. I like to create simple meal plans that I know my family will love and rotate through them.
Another way I like to meal plan is by creating meal plan templates. This allows me to use up leftovers or excess items I have in my freezer or pantry without having a strict and set recipe. This is also a great way to save money on groceries because sometimes, meal planning can get out of hand.
You won't wave money on groceries if you meal plan a different recipe every night. You need to coordinate days throughout the week with similar ingredients - a certain type of meat, vegetable, or grain. This allows you to bulk purchase, utilize your freezer and pantry, and limit wasting food.
How to Save Money on Groceries: Set a Grocery Budget
Along with making a meal plan, creating a grocery budget is going to help keep your grocery bill in check. Having a plan is always the best path to success - and saving money on groceries is no different!
Let's walk through an example of how to set a reasonable grocery budget. Track your normal grocery spending for 1 month. Don't do anything special or different, this is just to give you an accurate idea of where you're at now with your spending. We really like using Mint for budgeting, it's flexible and accurate and is a great way to see where your money is going.
Once you know how much your spending, set a goal for how much you want to be spending. Once you set this goal, you'll need to go through your monthly grocery expenses and see where you can make cuts.
Here are some suggestions:
- Do actual, factual research about food labeling and see what is worth paying more for to you and your family. This article is a good place to start and has some great additional references.
- Buy off brands when it doesn't matter.
- Shop with coupons - most of these are easy to use on your phone with apps.
- Price compare - this is really easy with online grocery shopping!
- Order groceries online. This allows you to see how much you're spending before you're in the checkout line.
- Cut out some eating out and purchasing prepared foods. Making homemade food isn't hard and it's much cheaper! If you're looking for great recipes, check out this list of 15 budget-friendly meals.
How to Save Money on Groceries: Utilize Your Freezer
Even if you only have a small over-the-fridge freezer, you can still use your freezer to save money. Just like purchasing food in bulk can save you money, cooking food in bulk can save you money and time as well.
I stock my freezer easily by simply doubling recipes that freeze well when I make them for dinner. It's also easy to stock your freezer with items you would normally purchase - waffles, bread, cookie dough, even chicken and beef stock.
Check out this extensive post about items I make and stock in my freezer easily!
How to Save Money on Groceries: Work Your Pantry
Utilize your pantry to purchase items in bulk, organize them so you can see everything, and label all of your items. This sounds trivial, but knowing where your food is will be essential to saving money on your grocery bill.
Lost items in your pantry are wasted money. You'll also buy repeat items when you can't see what you have and don't know what is in your pantry already. Don't underestimate the power of organization!
How to Save Money on Groceries: Get Support
Does all of this still seem overwhelming? Don't stress!! I offer a Homemade Meal Bootcamp as well as a Homemade Meal Membership.
Let me guess, you’ve tried a million meal plans, but you still can’t get it done. Here is why – you don’t need a meal plan. You need a Kitchen Organization and Meal Time Preparation Plan. Success comes from prep work and maintenance after that.
The Homemade Meal Membership takes homemade to the next level. Not only will I teach you how to get organized so you quit wasting money on eating out and throwing away food, but I’ll also teach you how to totally rock dinnertime, parties, holidays and organization. Click here to learn more!
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