Save $$ - Grocery Shopping Tactics
Below is a compilation of the top 15 ways we have found to save money shopping for groceries.
Please feel free to comment on what grocery shopping saving tactics work for you!
1- Take inventory. Know what you have in stock (this seems so obvious).
2- Shop different stores for items that are on sale (yes this is inconvenient).
3- Stockpile items on sale and plan meals on the sale items.
4- Purchase items on sale with a coupon if you can.
5- Organize, organize, organize. Plan a list. Make a list. Stick to the list!
6- If you need to sign up for the grocery card to get the savings, do it.
7- Shop on double coupon days if your store participates.
8- If coupons are really good, buy multiple newspapers to stockpile them.
9- Check out grocery stores' web-sites for online-only coupons.
10- Bring a calculator to determine cost /unit to decide on size (bulk or not).
11- Buy store or generic brands if they are cheaper.
12- Look up and down. The most expensive brand are always at eye level.
13- Always review your receipt for errors (this happens far too frequently).
14- Shop with less people if you can. Less people = less impulse buys.
15- NEVER shop hungry. And this is challenging because I'm always hungry!
For more budget saving ideas, check out other budget savers!
It works for us.
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Great tips! I have not come in contact with a place that doubles coupons-- or maybe I have and just didn't know it. I need to ask around. Thanks for the great post!
I like these. Especially #12.
Amen on checking your receipt. I can't tell you the amount of times they charge too much...thanks for the great tips..
Great tips! A few things I have learned along the way.. shop the perimeter. The box/convenience foods are more expensive so avoid the center aisles. Also, we opened a credit card through a local grocery chain which offers additional discounts on food and groceries when using the card. Not only do you get a reduced price at their gas pumps, they send you coupons based on your own spending habits AND reward dollars every quarter based on the amount of groceries you purchased (we received $75 one month!). We still budget for food and pay off the card each month. No finance charges that way.
You have some great tips here! Since I work full-time, I've decided not to try and coupon right now, but you have some great suggestions of other ways you can save on groceries!
Great tips! I also grocery shop only with cash--I keep a price book so that as I make my grocery list I can note the price I can expect for each item, total it, and add $10 in case I find an unadvertised sale. This helps me avoid impulse purchases--the possibility of embarrassment at the checkout is a great deterrent!
Great tips. Saving money on groceries is so important as the prices seem to keep going up.
Good tips! I'm going to have to refer back to them and try to save more. Thanks!
Great posts!
My friends and I know if we need something special. like broom, bucket... if we see it for a low prize we give a call or take it with us.
Shops here have a special corner for cheap products, those with torn packages and such.
Sometimes that means 30% off.
Going to differing stores and watching flyers is a good idea. It takes time and organization but you can save $$.
Walmart price matches any competitor's ad if the price is shown (they will not honor % off offers, as they don't want to give you a percentage off their already often lower price). But, since we have a Super Walmart with a grocery store in it, I always bring my two local grocer's ads and get their prices at Walmart - saving two other trips!
That's a good point - to use grocery stores' matching policies!
I love the website www.pinchingyourpennies.com they have lists of the best grocery deals. It's not current for every state, but luckily it is for mine.
Thanks for the tips.
These are some really great tips!! Thanks for sharing!
These are all great tips! I think menu planning is the key for me to staying on track. I can see how much more we spend when I am not planning like I should. I have several menu planners and lists all typed up so that I can just print them out, if I don't have the imagination to make up a plan for the week.
Great job!
Great suggestions! I've found some mistakes on my recipts from time to time!
I've saved hundreds by planning my meals for each week and then purchasing accordingly and nothing more than I needed. Nothing goes to waste and some weeks you hardly have to buy anything if you have stockpiles of stuff you've bought on sale.
speaking of mistakes.
i just bought ONE watermelon ($3.00) at our grocery store and got charged for 30 of them. The bill came out to be over $90 and the casher didn't seem the least bit suprised by that...Oops, wrong decimal point placement.
OY VE.
If you want more of the good coupons, don't BUY more newspapers for them... go to McDonalds or other such restaurant after breakfast and rummage through the pile of cast off papers. Ours always has a stack of flyers and coupons right there, waiting to hit the recycle bin.
I also hit the local Liquidation store- great deals there.
Great post, wrote about it here http://www.rather-be-shopping.com/blog/2007/08/29/blog-post-review-day-vol-i/
Thank you for submitting your post to Carnival Of Tips.
One thing I do is buy in bulk at Costco, then split it with my friends. It's cheaper for everyone! This is especially good for must-haves like toilet paper.
if you have an Aldi's near you and you haven't visited them, do yourself and your wallet a favor and get there! I cut my grocery bill by more than half and I feed a family of 5 (two grown sons, me, my husband and my 15 year old - sometimes there's 7 if you count my daughter and her fiance when they visit which is at least once a week and her fiance LOVES to eat)
The never shop hungry is key here. If I'm hungry when I shop, I tend to think everything looks good. Brining a list both saves money and time for me. If not, I wander around the store wondering why I'm there in the first place.
Great tips. I live in a very small town, so I only have one option available for grocery shopping, but buying things on sale and planning meals around them is a good idea.
keeping a good inventory is my weak area. This is why when I was tryin to dig the cocoa out of the cabinet I found 3 open containers of bacon bits.
Those are a lot of great tips. I've really been keeping track of our food budget lately and we spend way too much money on food. I've been trying to cut back and plan better so we can save money.
My friend and I were just talking about grocery bills getting higher along with gas prices last night on the phone.
Thanks for all the great tips, every little bit helps!
Love the tip about planning meals AROUND sale foods. That is a great tip. We have three grocery stores within blocks of each other, so I really need to shop them and find the best deals. It's just so hot to get in and out of the car.....