Weekly Grocery Bill

[Jakesmom1]

Hi all,

Just wondering what everyone spends on groceries each week. It seems no matter how hard I try I cant keep it under $150. We are a family of 3 and I do cook a full dinner each night, you know meat, vegetables, some type of starch and salad. Dh and I also take lunch to work with us every day.

Would love to know your tips, with the economy the way it is, I would love to be able to cut back and still feed my family healthy meals.


Thanks for any ideas.

Jakesmom1

 

[zurgswife]

Don't feel too bad my budget is $160 for a family of 6...2teenage boys and I try and try to know avail.

 

[JoanneNC]

I won't be much help as I can't seem to get mine any lower then $700 for the month for a family of 4 (2 adults, 1 6yr old and a 2 yr old)

I recently started draft weekly menu's so that helps but what I haven't done yet and I am sure it help is draft my menu's based on what is for sale. I also don't have multiple store options around me to get only whats on sale at each of them as I have read others doing.

Eating healthy is also not cheap

 

[It's A Small World]

I pay between $50-$60 (after coupons) a week for a family of four. I generally save $15-$25 using coupons. I only buy items that are on sale. I buy my meat in bulk when it's on sale. We don't eat a lot of junk and I buy fresh fruit from a local produce store for a heck of a lot cheaper than the super market.

 

[chocovrdmicears]

I have been really trying to stick to a grocery budget . To be comfortable my budget is $150 a week but I have been able to get it down to $100 when I have to. We are a family of 4, Dh, myself & dd6, ds5.

 

[prncess674]

I won't be much help as I can't seem to get mine any lower then $700 for the month for a family of 4 (2 adults, 1 6yr old and a 2 yr old)

Don't beat yourself up over it. Think how much more your monthly food bill would be if you ate out all time. I think some people pat themselves on the back for low grocery bills but don't mention that they eat out 3 dinners a week for a min $50 a pop.

 

[cherepikr]

I spend $50 a week for my family of 5 eating 3 meals per day at home. I used to spend about $150 before I started couponing. There are excellent sites available for tips on savings on your grocery bill using coupons.

 

[carj]

We buget about $100 a week at the grocery store but we eat out a lot too.

I do try to stock up on items when they are on sale, and I do mean stock up! There was a great sale on Capri Suns at the beginning of school, I think I paid $1 a box. I bought enough to last us almost until Thanksgiving. My pantry looked a little ridiculous, but since the best sale I have seen since is $1.75 a box, it was worth it.

If it is something that won't go bad and I am certain that we will use it, I buy a lot of the item. If it is a great deal and we use it occasionally, I try to buy enough to last us until the expiration date.

We recently had a great deal on chili. We only eat chili about once a month. Most of the cans expire in about a year. I bought 12 cans. I hope that makes sense!

 

[roadtripper]

Doing a veggie meal or a minimal meat meal one or two nights a week can really help cut down. I have newfound love for beans of all kinds, and grains like barley, that stretch meat dishes.
Reinventing leftovers is also a budget saver--or having a "clean out the fridge" night every so often.
We are lucky to have a PriceRite grocery store near us, which has really good, inexpensive produce. When I go to other places, I get total sticker shock.
Obviously, the usual tips like buying store brands and buying in bulk when things are on sale are ueful, too, and planning meals around what's on sale-- not going to the store with a preset menu. Good luck!

 

[Caitsmama]

I would love to know some good sites for coupon using - as i am spending around $100 a week for us (family of 3). and i would love to learn how to stretch my dollars..

 

[cherepikr]

I would love to know some good sites for coupon using - as i am spending around $100 a week for us (family of 3). and i would love to learn how to stretch my dollars..

couponmom.com
hotcouponworld.com (go to the forums section)
afullcup.com (forum section also)
The above are all free, and US sites

Thegrocerygame.com is a subscription site that services the US and other countries.

HTH

 

[Sorsha]

Family of 5 here, and our budget is usually around $150 a week as well.

We do sit-down meals (protein, starch, veggie, bread) about 5 nights a week, and DH takes the leftovers to work for lunch the next day. We do breakfast for dinner about one night a week, and usually have a popcorn/sandwiches/snack food night one night on the weekend.

I don't coupon at all, just shop the sales. I have been knows to hit 3 grocery stores in a day.

I could probably get that budget down some if we cut out some of our more expensive purchases; coffee creamers (we use a lot of that stuff), DH's favored brand of SPENDY yogurts, etc. But I do try to shop pretty frugally.

I buy a lot in bulk and freeze it, and I always buy the lowest priced item... never had a problem using store brands vs. name brands.

 

[Tammysue5]

Thanks for the coupon sites... We are currently a family of 5, and our grocery bill is usually upward of $200-250 a week. Our DS17 is very into eating healthy....Which is not cheap. So, I do tend to pay more for groceries....but I do use coupons and feel we eat healthy.

This amount includes meals pretty much every night, breakfasts, EVERYONE takes a lunch to school...(by choice which sometimes I am happy about...sometimes if I am behind in the morning I will try to talk the kids into a hot lunch. ) I think our biggest items are fresh fruits and veggies... we always have apples, bananas, grapes, oranges... those are pretty much staples here....

One thing that helps our budget is we usually have a side of beef we buy from my dads farm.

 

[Princess Nancy]

I have cut down my bill alot using The Grocery Game.com It is a subscription service, but Imo worth it. I would not coupon if I had to wade through all the info on the other websites, so I pay and they send me a spreadsheet weekly to my stores. It matches coupons with sales.

My sis on th eother hand doesn't pay for the service and rocks it, reading the free websites mentioned earlier.

I think trying the free or cheap trial from Grocery Game can get you started and then you will know what can work for you.


BTW My kids fav night is leftover night. I think they love chosing their favs fromt he week.

Another new fav is Baked Potato Bar night. I do bacon bits, sour cream, butter and cheese. Trust me, I am certain to bake more potatoes than we need and often they ask for it the next night.

Good luck.

 

[bettyann29]

I was budgeting $120 a week for 2 adults, an 18 yr old, 17 yr old, 15 yr old and 11 yr old.. I couldnt get it to that no matter what.. I always went closer to $150 every week.. but that was for everything including cleaning supplies, toilet paper, dog/cat food, etc.. so then I started changing it up and said ok, I'll keep budget to $120 per week for actual food, $10 for extras such as toilet paper, cleaners, etc and $30 for dog/cat food.. I have been able to stick with this much easier.. I just wasnt being realistic enough I guess.. I've actually been doing a little better with my watching sales and using coupons, etc.. but if I know about what I'll be spending I can budget it better and this has helped for me..

 

[mjantz]

This amount includes meals pretty much every night, breakfasts, EVERYONE takes a lunch to school...(by choice which sometimes I am happy about...sometimes if I am behind in the morning I will try to talk the kids into a hot lunch. ) I think our biggest items are fresh fruits and veggies... we always have apples, bananas, grapes, oranges... those are pretty much staples here....

(bolding mine)

If you have 1 kid who is 17, you've got at least one who can pack their own lunch. My 11YO packs his own lunch & does a great job. I have a list & he has to select 1 thing from every section on the list. A typical lunch for him would be a PB&J, apple, yogurt tube, cookie, pretzels & a juice box.
For my DD, who I still pack for, I pack the night before.

AFA reducing our grocery budget, look into S.H.A.R.E or Angel Food. I've done both now & give a slight edge to SHARE but Angel Food is not bad IMO. I do a bit of couponing but not as much as I use to. I'm trying to get back into it because even $5 off helps.
I'm also trying to limit the individually packaged stuff I buy. Juice boxes & fruit snacks are about my only holdouts. I don't do the individual chip bags or anything like that. One of my DDs weekly chores is to fill baggies with cheese crackers, pretzels, etc for school snacks.

 

[Alicia87]

We've been working on reducing our $150/wk grocery budget down to $125/wk so far. Believe it or not, we stay at or below budget as long as I plan our meals exactly for the week. If I do not plan the meals, our budget is blown!!

 

[cruisnfamily]

I have cut down my bill alot using The Grocery Game.com It is a subscription service, but Imo worth it. I would not coupon if I had to wade through all the info on the other websites, so I pay and they send me a spreadsheet weekly to my stores. It matches coupons with sales.

My sis on th eother hand doesn't pay for the service and rocks it, reading the free websites mentioned earlier.

I think trying the free or cheap trial from Grocery Game can get you started and then you will know what can work for you.


BTW My kids fav night is leftover night. I think they love chosing their favs fromt he week.

Another new fav is Baked Potato Bar night. I do bacon bits, sour cream, butter and cheese. Trust me, I am certain to bake more potatoes than we need and often they ask for it the next night.

Good luck.

My thoughts exactly on the grocery game. I realize it can be done for free but I wouldn't do it. I'd rather pay for the service as it saves me way, way more than I would do on my own.

Also, thanks for the baked potato bar night idea! I'd love to do that, but I'll have to see if DH is into it. I'm afraid nobody would think it was enough food if I just served potatoes and fixings....I'm gonna work on it!

 

[JoanneNC]

My thoughts exactly on the grocery game. I realize it can be done for free but I wouldn't do it. I'd rather pay for the service as it saves me way, way more than I would do on my own.

Also, thanks for the baked potato bar night idea! I'd love to do that, but I'll have to see if DH is into it. I'm afraid nobody would think it was enough food if I just served potatoes and fixings....I'm gonna work on it!

Only quoted you because I wanted to point out your banner.

GRATS on quitting smoking
Each day that is smoke free is one day of healthier living..
Keep it up

 

[lady9]

I spend $120 a week for 4 adults (my parents live close and I make them dinner 4-5 nights a week),and DS12 and DD7. I also do not have to buy beef because we bought a side of beef in the fall. Our side will last about 15 months so it comes out to about $10 a week. I also include all my cleaning supplies and tolietries in my weekly budget. We eat out once a week, usually after church but that is it.

I plan our meals based on sales and what I have already stock piled from sales the previous weeks. I don't go to the store to get specific food for meals. I go to stock the pantry/freezer with sales items. I read somewhere that the coupons in the newspaper often match up with store sales a few weeks later. I hold onto my coupons until there is sale on that item and many, many times, I have found this to be true.

Thanks for the websites for coupons/grocery game. I will check them out.