When it comes to groceries and saving you have to decide on what to save, time or money? Time is something we all have the same allotment. Unlike money where some have more than others, everyone gets 24 hours each day so how you use it is totally up to you. When it comes to grocery shopping (I am sure everyone can relate to this, because…..Food, Hello!) one mistake you don’t want to make is trying to save money and time at once. This is almost impossible, you have to decide which is more important at that given time.
For example, it makes no sense driving to three different grocery stores because a particular brand of tomato paste is on sale, consider the time you will spend driving around and gas. The rule of thumb for me is if a sale/coupon can’t save me $20 or at least 25 percent off my total groceries, it is not worth my time driving around.
Here are ways I save on groceries:
1. Online grocery shopping: I started using this over a year ago, and it has saved me a lot of money .Grocery stores like Kroger and Walmart allows you to order your groceries online and pickup in the store. You don’t even have to get out of your car, how cool is that ? This saves you time and money because you don’t have to walk around the store looking for any product and you don’t get tricked into buying what you don’t need on your way to get the milk. Also if you have kids they will not be tempted by the candy the store strategically place at their eye level at the checkout line.
2. Use rebate apps: There are lots of apps out there that would give you some money back by simply taking a picture of your receipt and scanning your groceries, it is as simple as that. My favorite is Ibotta (available on the App store and Play store). Use code *gkvoeir to get $10 added to your account when you scan your first receipt. Walmart also have something called savings catcher in the Walmart app, you scan your receipt and if there is a lower price for the item you bought from surrounding stores Walmart gives you the difference back.
3. Buy in Bulk: This one is a no brainer, this saves you a lot of money since the CPU (cost per unit) is cheaper than buying it from the grocery store. My current favorite store is Costco, Sam’s Club is another one. The only down side to this is the membership fee, the cost of membership ranges from $45 -$60, they are sometimes available on Groupon with a $10 to $20 gift card with purchase.
4. Use it all: The last week of the month in our house is the “use it all week”. This is when we use all the left overs in our pantry, fridge and freezer to make meals for the week. It is amazing how creative I get during this times, and some of my best recipes were created using left overs in my pantry and fridge.
5. Stay out of the store: This one is something I am still struggling with. The more you go to the store the more you will spend on groceries. Have you ever found yourself in Kroger (yes I like Kroger) with the intention of buying milk and 15 minutes later you are carrying two bags of groceries out the store? Yes we have all been there. Try and have a running list of items you need for the house so you don’t go dashing to the store each time you need something and if you do #3 above you will always have backup.
What other ways do you save on groceries? Share in the comment below
Sending love & strength your way,
Dami
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