It is an unpleasant fact that everyone has to eat. There is no exception to the rule. We all go grocery shopping at one time or another. The question is, “Are we paying too much for our groceries?” The truth is that most of the time we are. To start, I must tell you there is no perfect way to ensure you will not spend too much on groceries but you can waste less.
There are some general rules or principals that will save you some money if you are interested in cutting your food costs. These guidelines will help you save money on grocery shopping.
- Make a list of the food you already have. Don’t forget their expiration dates. Expiration dates will be needed if items need to be replaced before you do your next shopping trip.
- Plan a menu for the period of time you plan to shop for, generally this will be one to two weeks. Planning too far ahead will be too complicated and then you won’t follow your menu.
- Compare what you have and what you need so you can generate a shopping list.
- Take your shopping list and check the Internet to see if the manufactures will have some coupons that you can use. If they do, print them up and place them with your shopping list.
- Check any circulars and ads the store might have for the products you plan to buy.
- Take a calculator with you when you go shopping. You can figure costs per ounce or per item to ensure you are getting a real bargain.
- Follow your list. Don’t buy just because it is on sale. Point of purchase advertising is a great generator for grocery store profits. This will translate more money for the store and more spending for you.
- Shop late at night or early in the morning. You will find bargains on meat and dairy products. This will save you extra money that is not advertized nor has a coupon.
- When you go shopping, don’t go hungry. If you are hungry, you will subconsciously buy more than you need.
- Get the family involved and shopping will be easier and less stressful.
- Shop at one store. Driving to other stores will generally cost you money and time, making shopping too time consuming and you won’t stick to your plan. In most cases, the fuel and time to going to more than one store won’t save you enough to justify the effort.
Using these suggestions will be difficult at first. However, the more you use the suggestions the easier it will get. You will find a routine you can get into and shopping with a plan will save you money.