Saving on groceries?

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

We shop at Walmart, Costco and sometimes Aldi. We used to shop more at Aldi but honestly found Walmart to overall work better for us. We do have an Aldi newly built right next to Walmart though.

We used to have a Costco membership, but it resulted in us spending more because we'd buy more than we needed.

Well that's the thing..you need to know what stuff you would and wouldn't use up before purchasing. It doesn't make having a Costco membership a waste though. We buy toilet paper, paper towels, bottled water, I get my k-cups when they are on sale (72 count variety pack ends up coming out cheaper than Great Value when it's on sale at Costco and it's name brand there), I actually just checked because I thought I had a battery issue and my battery was $30 less at Costco (didn't need to buy it though). If you've got a toddler they've got a bunch of kids clothes there. But yeah you don't need to buy the giant thing of mayonnaise lol. Generally it doesn't take much to break even and then get ahead when factoring in the membership price. My husband has bought tires at Costco as well. We've also done tires at Walmart.

We're looking at possibly shifting to Walmart and seeing if we do better there.

We primarily shop at Walmart many things being Great Value brand.

You mentioned organic chicken, have you checked the price difference? I remember checking at Costco and whoa was it a LOT more than non-organic.

We do freezer meals meaning we make meals that are freezer friendly ahead of time and then we have them ready for a later date. We just did on Wednesday a chicken stew (chicken, carrots, onions, red potatoes, parsley and some seasoned salt plus later on cornstarch and milk to thicken the sauce) in the crockpot (it was a yucky 40s rainy/little snow kind of day) that had been made a month prior. Easy peasy thaw in the fridge pop in the crockpot for 6 hours. That would feed 4 people. It's just us 2 so it was dinner for Wednesday and Thursday.

We also freeze things like chicken broth, beef broth, did tomato paste that we use for chili, roasted red peppers, etc so if you buy a container you can just divide some things up and freeze for later usage.

 

[Caseheidi]

I do meal planning for the entire month, and do a big shopping trip to Winco. I do another trip in the middle of the month to get fresh produce. By planning the whole month, I can get most proteins in larger family packs and break it into the portion sizes we need before freezing. I am also able to combine items I need more of. Just by shopping Winco, it saves bunches over Fred Meyer /Safeway/Albertsons which are the most common stores here (Pacific Northwest).

We do also have a Costco membership. There are several items we get there that helps us save. We also love their pharmacy. They are only 5 minutes from home, so really our closest shopping place.

I have started planning my breakfast and making a weeks worth at a time. I love making my own egg bites, and find that making larger amounts of meals to eat over time helps save me money and reduces some food waste.

 

[barkley]

meal planning around sale items for sure but beyond that-

do you have decent storage space (not just size wise but in the case of dry/canned goods some area that is somewhat regulated temp/humidity wise-i've got an insulated garage that helps with what i will suggest to you)? if so (or not, you can always do it to a lesser degree than i do)-

see if you can start informally tracking the non perishables you use on a regular basis. about how many cans of certain items, boxes of items. keep an eye for when they are on sale and STOCK UP. if it's affordable for you-spend over your monthly budget to stock up to lower the cost of subsequent months (i look at mine as both a monthly and a yearly budget item). i purchased some canned veggies and canned beans a handful of months back when they were on sale for 50 cents each-some now can't be got for less than $1.25 (99 cents on sale), the multi packs (4 cans) for those items now (off sale) can still be gotten for 20% less than buying 4 individual cans. not as much these days but to some extent i can get multi packs of dry goods from walmart online for about 20-25% less (so instead of 4 individual boxes i get a box that has 4 of the same size serving packages in it). you have to be careful with walmart online though-much of their stuff is now much higher in price than in the store to offset their shipping costs.

liquids-when juice is on sale i buy upwards of a dozen bottles. better to pay as much as 50% less. bottled water i get when they have big sales and grab half a dozen flats.

meat-i used to do costco but now find that with the exception of a couple of items i do better with good sales at the grocery store. i'm finding one of our stores now does unadvertised meat specials that are spectacular but you don't know about them until you're at the store-so i check when i'm near that store but have to resist buying anything else unless it's on a good deal. i got one meat item at 50% less per pound this week-if you have freezer stocking up on a deal like this can save. organic is a personal choice for some folks-for me it's too much of a sticker shock so that also keeps our meat prices lower.

paper goods-again, track what you use and buy it on sale. i get tp/paper towels/puffs about twice per year when they are on sale.

dairy??????? we can stock up b/c we have ultra-pasturized milk that last 2 or more months but otherwise it's just price comparing. with cheese i buy it on sale, if it's big bags i break them into smaller zip locks. today i found that sliced american cheese (not my fav but one of us likes it) was actually 16% cheaper in 24 slice packs vs. the larger 'value packs' (look at unit pricing or pull up the calculator on your phone).

produce? the only price consistent item i've found is bananas so that the default fresh fruit in our house. otherwise it's what's on sale that drives it's use.

again-SALES. most stores have lost leader items they are selling below their cost to get people in. if you will use it, take advantage. one of our stores has some great deals but again-unadvertised. they end up on end caps so i avoid going down the aisles and just doing a peripheral walk to see what are the weekly deals. around certain holidays stuff goes on sale-memorial day/4th of july it's condiments, thanksgiving/christmas it's baking goods...i stock up for months.


last-check your receipts for errors. i've found that safeway makes errors 30-40% of the time (it's reduced my shopping there) so i print out from the website the list that shows what 'just for you' and online coupon clicks i've done. i go through check out, scan my receipt and end up at customer service to get a refund. just today i had to hit a store b/c i realized the other day the clerk transposed the numbers on 2 lemons and charged me for imported papaya instead ($1 vs $15.99 ). if you buy something at costco (or online from them) and it goes on sale w/in 30 days-they will refund the difference.

 

[robinb]

You can also save money by meal planning. I meal plan every week.

I use an app called Paprika to store my recipes and it generates a shopping list.
I shop Costco for bulk canned tomato products, canned beans and veggie/beef/chicken stock so I always have that stuff on hand. I check what we already have and remove any of my pantry items from the list. When I go to the store I stick to the list.

i also use a whiteboard on my fridge that is a running list of what we need as we run out of things. I used to make my whole shopping list on the whiteboard and snap a photo of it, but I have just transitioned to using Paprika for everything.

 

[Twilghtsprkle]

I shop at Costco & Aldi. Meat is purchased at Costco since i don’t like the meat at Aldi. I buy the big packages and cut up and freeze extra. The pork loins at Costco are great. Frozen veggies are also bought there. Some fresh, but mostly purchased at Aldi. I have a lot of allergies to work with so many things most people use I don’t buy. We can’t eat potatoes, tomatoes, and peppers. Very minimal dairy due to an intolerance. And mostly rice vs pasta. Rice I do buy nicer Japanese kind at like $30 for 15 lbs.

 

[DisneyTexan]

Do you like frozen pizza? Mike's Screamin Sicilian Pizza is bogo this week at Kroger.

This pizza is really good! The Los Angeles Times reviews packaged food brands once in a while, and this brand made the top of their list. Recently there was a topping combo that was on closeout, and I bought a couple pizzas for only $4 each! I usually buy them when they are BOGO, which comes out to about $5 each. Hopefully they are on sale at my Kroger this week.

 

[DisneyTexan]

last-check your receipts for errors. i've found that safeway makes errors 30-40% of the time (it's reduced my shopping there) so i print out from the website the list that shows what 'just for you' and online coupon clicks i've done. i go through check out, scan my receipt and end up at customer service to get a refund. just today i had to hit a store b/c i realized the other day the clerk transposed the numbers on 2 lemons and charged me for imported papaya instead ($1 vs $15.99 ). if you buy something at costco (or online from them) and it goes on sale w/in 30 days-they will refund the difference.

Excellent hint. I'm one of those annoying people who stops near the door of the store to check my receipt. My best/worst recent find (depending on how you look at it) was an overcharge of $23 on a ham in December.

 

[disneyseniors]

OP, my daughter did exact comparison shopping at 3 different grocery stores because she always wanted to check it out and finally did it!
Her results: She shopped at Aldi's, Walmart, and our local family grocery store.
Aldi's was only a few dollars cheaper than Walmart,, which surprised me.
Our family owned grocery was $30.00 more expensive than Walmart!. That is significant to me. She bought exactly the same items at each store.
We have switched to Walmart from the family grocery, and have saved a lot of money - that is, if we can keep away from all the other things that distract you, LOL.
I also shop at Target and get their 5% off total purchase. Some of their items are even less than Walmart! The only thing is with Target, they don't keep items stocked as much as other stores. I guess it's their supply issues.
I imagine the prices are different in other states and vary due to supply and demand. But I am a Walmart convert now.

 

[cvjw]

We buy almost everything we eat and all household goods at Costco. We practically buy everything at Costco. Some things could be cheaper other places, but I like the quality that I get buying at Costco.

 

[LAS2AMS]

You can minimize your grocery spend by taking advantage of sales offered at traditional grocery stores and stocking up when items are priced low. I’m not going to write a huge narrative that few people will read, but basically the sales your local grocers run aren’t random - certain items go on sale certain times of the year. For example, ketchup is generally lowest during grilling season (summer); frozen foods generally are priced at their lowest a couple times of year (including March, this month

When you see those cans of Progresso (full line) or Campbell’s Chunky soup priced at $1 in the fall, stock up. When you see your favorite frozen dinner entrees priced at $1.67 during March, stock up. When you see corned beef priced at $1.99/lb for St. Patrick’s day, stock up (freeze the excess). Strawberries for 99c a lb? Stock up and freeze.

This strategy requires you to have ample storage space, as well as invest in another freezer, but the savings do add up over time. It also requires you to send huge amounts of money some months, and none others, so it will not work for everybody.

Always take advantage of apps for coupons. In SoCal, Albertsons/Vons regularly feature $5 off $50 coupons (or similar) and Amazon Fresh has been dong a $15 off $35 for the past couple months.

if you eat stuff that’s primarily sold at high-end grocers like Whole Foods, Bristol Farms, etc. there’s not much you can do to save $$…

 

[greeneyedchick]

Last year, I finally got around to putting us on a budget. I sketched out all the categories, and spending limits, and then... the supply chain crashed. Groceries are now insane. We are spending $800+ a month for two adults and a toddler. That doesn't really even include diapers, but does include laundry detergent, etc. We used to have a Costco membership, but it resulted in us spending more because we'd buy more than we needed. We're looking at possibly shifting to Walmart and seeing if we do better there. Our 'usual' store is Kroger, and they've really cut back on the savings and coupons we used to get. We buy mostly store brand.

We do tend to spend a little more to get organic chicken/turkey, but we've cut back on our meat consumption and pretty much never eat red meat anymore (for other reasons).

What are people doing these days to save on the grocery budget? Unfortunately, I don't really have the attention span for something like extreme couponing.

Do you live near a Fresh Market? They have organic chicken breasts and ground beef on sale for $2.99 every Tuesday. I have also started shopping at Aldi's even though it's not super close. I never felt like I was saving when I had a Costco membership. Do you have a Sam's club near you? I got an offer in the mail for a $45 membership with a $45 credit off of your first shopping trip. People have recommended them because they have cheaper gas prices. Since the membership would essentialy be free with the coupon, I'm going to try it.

 

[greeneyedchick]

Excellent hint. I'm one of those annoying people who stops near the door of the store to check my receipt. My best/worst recent find (depending on how you look at it) was an overcharge of $23 on a ham in December.

Also check your Target receipts. I have had items ring up for more money 4 times recently in Target. I only noticed because I happened to be comparing prices when I bought them. Target's response each time was that they were raising prices but hadn't gotten a chance to update the prices on the shelves yet. Usually when they raise prices, it's 10 or 20 cents at a time, but in all of these instances, it was over a dollar increase for the items. They did adjust them when I called them out on it.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Also check your Target receipts. I have had items ring up for more money 4 times recently in Target. I only noticed because I happened to be comparing prices when I bought them. Target's response each time was that they were raising prices but hadn't gotten a chance to update the prices on the shelves yet. Usually when they raise prices, it's 10 or 20 cents at a time, but in all of these instances, it was over a dollar increase for the items. They did adjust them when I called them out on it.

I price checked one of their items that was online (and also showed in the app and that item was available for in-store pickup in less than 2 hours) it was something like a $2 difference. May not seem like much but it was something and the cashier didn't even bat an eye at that, I just showed the item in the app.

 

[sksjasams]

I‘m in the minority here, but I find Costco more expensive than other places and don‘t save money there. I do like to buy some items there that I can’t get other places. And I do buy their rotisserie chickens there too. I break them down and freeze the chicken for use in recipes.

You will definitely save money shopping at Walmart. I still do online order pickup since Covid began. It makes it super easy to compare prices with two tabs open on the computer. I do a pick up at Kroger (pick n save) and Walmart every Sat morning.

Most items are cheaper at Walmart, but sale items are often less at Kroger. For ex, Nature Valley Protein bars are usually $4.69 at Kroger, but only $3.12 at Walmart. But last week, Kroger had them on sale for $2.79 with a digital coupon for $1 off one, so only $1.79 each. So I bought the max of 5. This week, they are still on sale for $2.79, but the coupon is only $0.50 off two, so not as good.

 

[disneyseniors]

I forgot to add, that we still shop for sale items and meat at our family owned grocery store in addition to WAlmart. Their meat is excellent and when they have a sale on certain items, you can really save. They also hire alot of handicapped people and I like to support them too.

 

[boop0524]

I’ve been shopping mostly at Aldi too and really like their food. Fresh items are great and even things like knock off Doritos are surprisingly good. I have decided things we buy often like bottled water will have to stop. We don’t have a fridge filter but do have a Brita (in fridge), so we’ll live.

It’s going to be tough to give up a few things I really love that are just too high lately, but hopefully it’s a short term pinch. It’s just us 2 but we are moving over the summer to a HCOL area due to DHs new job, and we really need to buckle down.

 

[RamblingMad]

We buy almost everything we eat and all household goods at Costco. We practically buy everything at Costco. Some things could be cheaper other places, but I like the quality that I get buying at Costco.

Yep. I get much better cuts of beef and chicken at Costco. The chicken has much less fat. And the steaks are much thicker. I also now ground leg of lamb instead of buying ground lamb at the grocery store. I had to buy a meat grinder, but I'll make up the difference within a couple of months.

But you have to be picky at Costco. Everything isn't cheaper. And there are some things, where I have to go to Sprouts, Fry's, or my local farmer's market for. For example, fruit is much better at Sprouts these days. I can get beef liver at my local farmer's market. And I can get most of my spices at Fry's.

 

[Kimkimba]

Prices have skyrocketed around here. We try to eat a lot of organic and I have a lot of special situations in my family of 5 (kids are a young adult and 2 teens). I don’t limit what we buy but I do try and save. If I added it up it’s probably close to $2000 a month.

 

[barkley]

I also now ground leg of lamb instead of buying ground lamb at the grocery store. I had to buy a meat grinder, but I'll make up the difference within a couple of months.

it's a tremendous savings on lamb. i will get 2-3 of the boneless legs and break them down into packs of ground, larger chunks for kabobs (we eat allot of it during the summer bbq season) and half legs to roast. i gasp when i see the price of ground lamb at the grocery store-the price at costco is at least half off and since we trim the fat it's much leaner.

a meat grinder attachment for our kitchen-aide has been such a tremendous addition to our kitchen, it along with a vacuum sealer saves us allot.

 

[CallieMar]

There’s only 2 of us and our dog and we shop mostly at Costco and Winco and go every week. We go through a lot of milk and buy most of our household items from Costco as well. I check the meat section, their pork shoulders are usually very well priced and we break them down at home and freeze them. Otherwise we mostly eat chicken breast or ground Turkey and that is cheaper at Winco, although the price of those has definitely gone up lately. We use the bulk section for spices and a lot of pantry items. This really helps especially since I’ve cut back on baking only for special occasions for budgetary and health reasons. I can just buy exactly the amounts I need and not worry about it going bad or having to use it up. We eat leftovers for lunch and supplement with frozen veggies. We have a Save Mart near us as well and I’m on their email list to be notified of their deals. I would say most of the time their specials are still more expensive than Winco, but last Friday as an example they had center cut pork chops for .77/lb as a one day only special! We loaded up the freezer. For our dog we use Chewy to autoship his wet food and I also keep an eye out on the Target app (sometimes they have spend $40 get a $10 gc).