Whats normal to spend on food each week?

[Lauralooneyfordisney]

We are a family of 2 adults and 2 large dogs. We spend about $100 a week on everything together and I do use a lot of coupons. We also only go out to eat about twice a month. I get a lot of certificates off of restaurant.com when they have the $2-$5 specials too. I even have a couple to use on our vacation at Vero Beach in May.

 

[WantToGoNow]

We are a family of 5 and we budget $150 every other week for groceries. My adult dd does couponing and we get most of our paper/toiletry items for free. We will buy the store brand of almost everything and we do not eat out except the occasional pizza. We also don't buy any junk food, snacks/chips, candy, ice cream or soda - those are things that we do not need anyway and they can really boost the cost of groceries. We do have cookies right now because dd had coupons and we got about 12 of the snack cups for free.

 

[2DisPrincesses]

I aim for $75 a week for the four of us (DDs 3 and 6). That includes everything- food, paper products, cleaning supplies, toiletries. I do quite a bit of couponing and get the paper products, cleaning supplies, toiletries, and pantry staples for free or close to it.

The bulk of my budget is spent on meat, fruits, veggies, etc- things that I can't really coupon for.

 

[neatokimmo]

Everyone keeps talking about paper products, are you talking about TP?

 

[North of Mouse]

Pigeon, yes, Harris Teeter is an expensive store, but it is the nicest grocery store I have ever shopped at and I've lived in several states (with job transfers). That being said, they also have the best sales and coupon policies of any place I have ever shopped. Their store is super neat, their produce and meat the best we've ever had and their customer service can't be beat. I can shop there cheaper than Walmart when I watch the sales and couponing. Ask anyone that has one in their area and I'll bet they will agree. We are super fortunate We have Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and Fresh Market here and I never shop there - they are more expensive and unlike many PP's, am very unimpressed.

 

[FireflyTrance]

My DH and I spend about $100 a week on groceries for the two of us, plus we usually eat out once or twice on the weekend for an additional $20-$50.

 

[scrapquitler]

Everyone keeps talking about paper products, are you talking about TP?

yes, people are talking about toilet paper, and more. Things like: ziploc bags, aluminum foil, plastic wrap, paper towels, paper napkins, etc. They might even be including things like laundry detergent, bleach, dishwasher detergent, etc.

 

[ccgirl]

yes, people are talking about toilet paper, and more. Things like: ziploc bags, aluminum foil, plastic wrap, paper towels, paper napkins, etc. They might even be including things like laundry detergent, bleach, dishwasher detergent, etc.

Yes, this. Also, Chlorox wipes, and flushable toilet wipes.

 

[BCV2003]

We are a family of 2 adults and 2 large dogs. We spend about $100 a week on everything together and I do use a lot of coupons. We also only go out to eat about twice a month. I get a lot of certificates off of restaurant.com when they have the $2-$5 specials too. I even have a couple to use on our vacation at Vero Beach in May.

Not to hijack the thread but last year at Vero we used a Restaurant.com certificate at Vero for Riverside Cafe. It was a very good. I'd definitely recommend it if they are still listed.

 

[tinker&belle]

Wow, I feel like a spendthrift. I spend $125 a week at the grocery store or a combo of grocery store/Sam's club. I also spend about $40 a week at Target on paper prnoducts, cat food/litter and some grocery things that cost less there.

So I guess about $165 once it is all said and done. We do a lot of budget meals too (usually spagetti/meatballs once a week and one other budget meal like eggs and toast or grilled cheese/tomato soup.) We do eat a lot of fruit/veggies, cheese, yogurt etc for snacks so that adds up. It is me, DH, and 4 yo DD and 2 yo DD.

We spend about $30 every couple weeks for a meal out and DH and I both take out $40 every two weeks for lunches out/incidentals.

 

[neatokimmo]

yes, people are talking about toilet paper, and more. Things like: ziploc bags, aluminum foil, plastic wrap, paper towels, paper napkins, etc. They might even be including things like laundry detergent, bleach, dishwasher detergent, etc.

Ok gotcha! I call that "house stuff" and isn't mixed in with my food. I don't buy paper towels, plates or napkins so I wasn't making the connection!

 

[Lauralooneyfordisney]

Not to hijack the thread but last year at Vero we used a Restaurant.com certificate at Vero for Riverside Cafe. It was a very good. I'd definitely recommend it if they are still listed.

Thanks. I will check on that. They also have quite a few in the DTD area.

 

[mjbaby]

I spend about $150-$180 per "shopping event" for two adults, two kids (one an 11 year old boy, which skews things - he's ALWAYS hungry!) and a dog, inclusive of health & beauty, cleaning, and paper products. I'd say that about 75% of what we eat is local and/or organic. I regularly manage to find $30-$50 worth of coupons for every shop, which happens every 10 to 14 days. We deal with food sensitivities at our house so strictly limit wheat, soy and beef. Also, my husband eats out lunch at work maybe three times a week, so that's not included, and we eat dinner out as a family once or twice a month. I am pretty good about not buying food at work, so that's a minimal expense.

I tend to spend more in the spring, summer, and fall when I can buy meat to freeze for the winter and local produce for canning - outside of canning/freezing, we eat seasonally. No January tomatoes, for example, or April green beans. I also have a garden, but don't track spending for that but I don't spend much on it (grow most things from seed and maybe $25 worth of starts a season). We have two apple trees which in some years provide enough apples for a year's worth of applesauce, cinnamon apple slices and other things (some years are a bust).

 

[ziggystardust]

I don't think whole foods or trader joes have coupons.

whole foods does. I've used them and gotten some stuff for dirt cheap. If you need help, I swear by thekrazycouponlady website. She has a whole foods thread about once a week where she lists all the sales and coupon match ups.

 

[figment3258]

Here in MA I spend 160$ a week and that is everything we have 4 adults and 2 girls with a third on the way. I use coupons on stuff I already use.

 

[Lex33]

We are a family of 5 and we budget $150 every other week for groceries. My adult dd does couponing and we get most of our paper/toiletry items for free. We will buy the store brand of almost everything and we do not eat out except the occasional pizza. We also don't buy any junk food, snacks/chips, candy, ice cream or soda - those are things that we do not need anyway and they can really boost the cost of groceries. We do have cookies right now because dd had coupons and we got about 12 of the snack cups for free.

Please come to Boston and show me how to do this. There is no way on earth that I could ever come close to $75/week for my 5. Even with coupons. I shop in 4 stores to get the best price. We also rarely dine out and there are few snacks in my house. I am close to $300/week on groceries and some nights my son has dinner at work provided by my mother.That doesn't include my husbands lunches. I just can't seem to get him to bring lunch. My biggest splurge is organic milk and a few organic produce items. So OP, no $300 is not way over the top for groceries.

 

[Sadie22]

There are three adults in my household. I do not shop on a regular schedule. Instead I stock up at the best prices I can find, bulk-cook, and then shop my pantry and freezers for meals. I do not use many coupons, and I select by best price and quality, not brand. Last year I purchased a community-supported agriculture share for fresh fruits and vegetables. This was $475 for mid-May through October, and I froze about half for later consumption. My husband and my son always pack a lunch, and I work at home.

I use Quicken to account for what I spend so I was able to pull up a report to tell me what I spent in the Grocery category last year. We spent $6,872 on groceries last year, or an average of $573 per month or $132 per week.

My husband and I do dine out a couple of times a month as part of a date or occasionally we order carry-out pizza. If I include that expense in my food totals, we spent $8,234 last year, or an average of $686 per month or $158 per week.

It's interesting to see what others do. Thanks, everybody, for sharing.

 

[Janepod]

$125/week for 2 adults, a 6-year-old, no pets. Husband buys breakfast and lunch in the city every day but I have no idea what he spends on that.

We buy all organic, very little packaged/processed. Almost no snacks, almost never "prepared" supermarket foods. I.e., I cook from scratch pretty much every meal.

We eat fish 2-3 times/week, chicken 3-4 times, beef 1-2 times. I do follow sales and plan meals accordingly.

 

[KKB]

Though where you live, how many in your family certainly impact (as does product choices)
We live in a small city in the midwest. 5 of us--DH, me, DS16, DD13 & DD11. I spend about $600/month on groceries (not household items).
I watch sales, clip coupons (ONLY on items we use regularly; no one doubles in our area, so I cannot maximize that kind of savings), stock up when things are on sale.

Our meat is typically ground beef/turkey and chicken breasts. But I often catch pricier cuts of meat marked down at Super Target & toss them in the freezer. I refuse to spend more than $3/lb. for protein since we typically need 2 lbs. for 5 of us (and a couple of meals for DH & my lunch the next day--IF we are lucky). I buy fresh fruit every week--sales/season dictate this, except bananas, which we get every week. (cheap & always in season). We go through about 4 gallons of milk/wk.

My pantry/fridge/freezer are ALWAYS stocked with basics as well as some well-priced convenience items (frozen pizza, chicken nuggets, soups, pastas, canned/frozen fruits/veggies, cheese, juices)--for 2 reasons. 1--we ALWAYS have food for meals. 2--I can stock up on these items when they are on sale, and control my expenses (our food bill has averaged $600/month for YEARS, due to watching sales & stocking up, I truly believe)

A typical dinner is protein, starch, veggie, fruit, milk.
Weekday breakfast is cereal, toast, bagels, Sunbelt breakfast bars.

I plan meals weekly based on what is in the freezer. I keep a list of proteins in the freezer, then look through my recipe books/magazines & choose recipes that sound good to me. Planning is VERY VERY important...I am less likely to waste money buying things that I don't need/aren't on sale/are too pricey, nor do we go out as often.

I work full-time, have very active kids & am trying hard to workout everyday immediately after work (4:30-5:30). So I am focusing On crockpot or 30 minute meals these days. This is working VERY VERY well. I crocked 4x this week, and it is nice as there is always something to eat.

 

[KKB]

Today I did well. Why?
1--good chunk was the markdowns on meat at SuperTarget. $3.49/lb. 90% ground chicken (no hormones or additives) marked $2/pkg off as it expires Mon.
2--Target allows you to use a Target coupon in addition to a mfg. coupon. Needed my Neutrogena moisturizer. 10% off...$2 Target coupon...$2 mfg coupon...Target red debit card gets me additional 5% off...and I am getting a $10 rebate (had to spend $30). This got me to slightly less than half of retail for 4 bottles. (on my dermo's recommendation...alpha-hydroxys in the AM, retinol at night)
3--bucks that Target (gift card)/Walgreens/CVS offer. I had $5 from Walgreens for buying Prilosec last week (I use it daily)--and found large bottles of Suave shampoo in the clearance area for .75!! I also had $5 gift card from Target, also for buying Prilosec (and I used a coupon when I bought both of those Prilosecs)

This is what I can do simply by using the coupons that come in my Sunday paper (and my mom gives me hers), watching sales, checking the meat department EVERY time I go to Target. I spend about 2 hours/wk shopping. Maybe 30-45 min. prepping before. Worth it.

Plus totally the thrill of the deal...had to call my mom with my deals today...
Walgreens $9.34...cost me $1.34 cash
Target $122.01...had saved $51 in coupons...got another $5 gift card...and have a $10 rebate coming.
Now I don't think I am ready for Extreme Couponing, but to save almost 90% at Walgreens (actually more...that was the Suave...) and about 30% at Target...and I am not even counting sale prices, which means my savings is even more.