Hey everyone! It can be a bit challenging to adapt to the increasing costs of groceries while at the same time adjusting to increased living expenses. I have picked up a few helpful tips that will save some money on your grocery bill and over time.
- Use a shopping service like Instacart or pick-up service at a grocery store near you. I am sure this is a shocker because you pay a fee for this service and the cost of the groceries is increased if you use a service like Instacart. So, exactly how do you save money? Well, when you are shopping this way, you aren’t impulsively buying things on the shelves. These marketing ploys work, and they increase the cost of your overall grocery bill. So, while per item you may pay a slight increase, overall, you are likely to save money because you aren’t impulsively shopping. This also increases your chances that you will stick to a healthier eating pattern as those YUMMY OREO COOKIES won’t be pulling at your heart strings. You also save time and gas by not traveling to the store.
- Plan your weekly meals. This goes hand in hand with using a shopping service. When using a shopping service, you want to get the most bang for your buck so planning makes sense. This also eliminates just buying “stuff” that might make it into a meal.
- Use bouillon cubes in place of buying canned broth. Y’all. Why haven’t we thought of this before? A typical container of bouillon cubes has 25 servings and costs about $5. If you buy canned broth, it’s about $1 can….do the math. Also, as an added bonus, it saves on pantry space (more room for Oreos). If you don’t know how to use a bouillon cube, you simply dissolve the cube in a cup of boiling water.
- Quit buying plastic single use water bottles. Not only are we destroying our planet and oceans, but there is also a more cost friendly way to get the same flavor. I love my filtered water but what is even cooler is that you can buy a rechargeable water pump on Amazon for $15.99 that affixes to the top of any 5-gallon bottle making it easy to dispense into your glass or water bottle. Want it cold? Buy a plastic juice jug from the Dollar Tree and pump the water into it and refrigerate. Just to math this out….there is 405.6 oz water in a 24-pack of water bottles at 16.9 oz each. This equals about 3 gallons of water for about $3 (average cost). So after 3 jugs of water, you have more than paid for your pump and you still have all that use left!
- Spice up your life in the bulk section! This one has been a bit problematic since the pandemic as bulk items have been pulled from a lot of places, but! If you can buy your spices in small amounts when you are first trying them, you won’t have a ton of waste. I like to save my used spice jars and refill them with bulk spices. Just slap a post it on the outside and you’re good to go! Another tip is to purchase your spices in the specialty stores or aisles. Check out the Mexican food section of your store the next time you need Cumin – the bagged spices are less costly yet so full of delicious flavor!
- Buy frozen or canned produce. This is so helpful! I can’t tell you how many times I have thrown out veggies or fruit because we didn’t get to them in time. Buy frozen. They are picked at the peak of freshness and flash frozen. You can pull what you need and leave the rest without throwing stuff out. We all have great intentions to eat healthy and when we have that week of pizza and burgers instead, at least we don’t have the added guilt of throwing out rotten produce. Added tip for fresh produce – don’t rinse them until you are just about to use them. They spoil faster when you rinse them.
- Freeze fruits or veggies that you don’t think you’ll use. One tip for preserving berries (summer is upon us), is to freeze them in a single layer on a cookie sheet with parchment paper. That way they are all individually frozen and won’t mush together. When they are frozen, just dump them into a freezer Ziploc bag and you are good to go.
- Quit buying dryer sheets! I know, I hear the gasps now, but there is an alternative for static. Wool dryer balls are on the market, and you simply reuse them in every load. They are natural and won’t build up dryer sheet film on your lint trap. (Safety tip: You should wash your lint trap with hot soapy water every so often if you use dryer sheets to get rid of this film. It also increases the effectiveness of your dryer using less time to dry your clothes.) These are also great for those with sensitive skin and babies. If you do encounter static on your clothes, dry them with an added foil ball (aluminum foil balled up) and decrease your dry time. Static is caused by friction and when we over dry our clothes, it increases static. This is a double savings – less on the electric/gas bill, AND no more paying for dryer sheets. You’re welcome.
- Bring your own bags to the store. At eight cents a bag, those costs do add up over time. However, those eight cent bags can always be reused for a garbage bag, or a shower cap, or to carry other stuff. Bonus – produce bags make the best trash can liners for the bathroom.
- Buy reusable K-Cup Coffee Pods. They’re a thing and they are a beautiful thing. I love my Keurig, but the K-Cups do get expensive. If you are not in a hurry, it’s easy enough to refill the reusable cup and still enjoy the ease of K-Cups. This is also a more environmentally friendly approach by reducing waste.
I hope there are some tips in the above article that are helpful to you. There are lots more ways to save money at the grocery store and I welcome the sharing of your ideas!
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