It doesn’t need to be complicated, time-consuming, or require a special university class to save money on groceries these days. Extreme couponing isn’t the only way to save money. I should know because I have a dirty little secret. I’m a couponer. Okay, it’s not very “dirty,” and it really isn’t much of a secret. I mean, I did have a couponing blog (Savings & Stewardship) for about 5 years. Now before you start looking at your toolbar and posing your fingers to get you the heck out of here: HEAR ME OUT!
(Un)Extreme Couponing
I do not have toilet paper hidden under our beds. And we will run out of mustard in the next few months. Granted, I haven’t purchased toiletries at full price for years, but that’s really not very difficult to do these days. Just visit the dentist twice a year for a free toothbrush, switch to DIY Taco Seasoning, and use fresh flower pedals as
I digress.
Wish you had more money to afford those fancy ingredients?! Or maybe you’d just love to be able to go to the beach for an extra week next year? I mean, seriously, I don’t think any of us would say “NO” to more money. Especially it it only required an hour worth of minimal “work” per week in order to get paid. Think of it: how much money do you think you could save each month if you put in an hour’s effort per week? Think you could save 50% off your grocery budget? 75%?!
Save Money on Groceries
The good news is that saving money on your groceries doesn’t require a three-ring binder, 47 subscriptions, or fighting a woman in Aisle 10 for the last box of BOGO Pop-Tarts. (Please don’t do that — they really aren’t worth it!)
Spot the Sale
The first step to saving money at the grocery store is actually pretty common sense: know what things cost. Not necessarily what the little yellow SALE! tag says they cost, but what they actually cost.
Stock Up
Once you have a general idea of what you normally pay for things that your family eats, you’ll be able to recognize a genuinely good deal when you see one. Then, when chicken, butter, or your favorite cereal hits a great price, stock up. Not “this will last until Jesus comes again” amount, but up to 6 months’ worth. This is because typically, your favorite items will go on sale every 6 months. Buying this way allows you to potentially always buy your favorites at their best price. But that’s not all …
Use Coupons
To maximize savings, apply coupons, promotional codes, and store loyalty opportunities to reduce the sale prices even more! For example, most stores will allow you to use a product coupon ($2 off Post cereal) AND a store coupon ($10 off $50) AND scan your loyalty card for additional promotions (10¢ off per gallon of gas). You’d be amazed how much you can save just by combining these, especially when you are buying items that are already on sale! This is when stocking up turns your monthly budget into major monthly savings!
Meal Plan
Now, you can start to plan your meals around what you already have and what’s on sale that week/month. Pro tip: Check the price per ounce instead of assuming the giant “family size” is cheapter. Because sometimes, IT IS NOT!! Walmart is notorious for this: often times, their larger quantities actually cost more per ounce than the smaller ones. And sometimes, only certain sizes are on sale at your local grocery store. So, always double-check!
In short, you don’t have to make grocery shopping your part-time job to put a serious dent in your food budget. Pay attention to prices, stock up strategically, stack the savings, and cook with what you have.
And maybe keep some toilet paper under the bed. You know, just in case. As we saw with Covid, it’s always best to have a little extra.
Want more? Be sure to check out my full list of easy tips and tricks for how to save money in the kitchen.
P.S. If you landed here looking for “Grocery University,” the course I originally recommended in this post, it is no longer available. However, this post has been updated with money-saving advice I still use myself.