Yesterday's delicious breakfast.A whole wheat english muffin, watermelon, and bacon along side scrambled eggs made with ham, tomato, and fresh basil.
Scintillating - no. Practical, helpful, normal - yes.
Sarah and I go way back. And I mean way back. This means we can talk about anything and everything and not have to preface what we say with a story or explanation. It's comfortable and nice to talk with her because in my world everyone is "new." Everything needs an explanation and I wonder if I am being judged by what I say or don't say.
Anyone else in that place? Holla!
Sarah and I were discussing, in great detail, grocery shopping - the best places to buy this or that, the value - or not - of Costco, and how much Trader Joe's rocks.
Sarah asked me if I would tell her how much we spend a month on groceries - you know, if that was alright and I didn't mind....
It was no problem because like I said to her: It's you - it's me we've know each other forever. We're good!
The problem came in being able to pin point exactly how much we spend. I gave Sarah an estimate of about 400 dollars give or take - being what I normally spend each month. But I am not the woman who takes the calculator to the grocery store.
(It's definitely my personality to do this, and I use to, but my brain is on overload at this point in life. A calculator at the grocery store may just be what pushes me over the edge.)
In our house Daniel does the money ( Yay!!) and his take on the "grocery budget" when I asked was this: "I like to eat so you buy whatever you need to buy." Knowing how much we make I do not buy "whatever." But we do like to eat and we like to eat good. This translates into groceries being where the largest amount of our money goes to each month.
So, I am asking you - even though we don't go way back - what is an estimate of the normal amount you spend a month of groceries? And why? Does family size have a large effect on the amount, or perhaps it is the quality of food? The city you live in?
Do you shop only at one store or do you go to a few following the sales?
I will also pose to you the question Sarah posed to me:
How does one reduce the amount of money spent each month on groceries? Any great tips?
37 Comments:
We spend about $400 in our household as well. (We're in Utah. Hey - our states touch - four corners, baby!) Anyway, I do the whole Costco thing, along with the grocery store, and when I am in the mood I am the coupon/price matching queen. Some months I just have too much going on to be that dang organized. I've tried to lower our grocery bill, but I want to feed my family, I want to have things on hand, and I don't want to have to worry about not being able to provide. So, if I had to assume, southwest region that is, I would think $400 is average/fair. Now, what I spend on things other than food...now that is a whole other issue, lol!
we budget $336 per month for groceries for our family of four. This includes toiletries and cleaning products, but NOT diapers. I only shop at our commissary.
The way we were able to save $$$ was by making a weekly meal menu. And I also use a list that I stick to...even when there is a deal. However, I usually give myself some wiggle room with a "sweet" and a "salty" snack.
For our famiy of 7 (soon to be 8) I spend between $600 and $700 a month (this includes paper products, health and beauty, etc..). I shop at Costco and Target or WalMart. Our food bill has actually gone up because of trying to eat healthier. I've started *trying* to buy all organic, etc... I always buy organic milk and eggs, but other things are an availability basis.
There aren't usually coupons for organic or healthy products so my only advice is....COSTCO! Man, I love that place. I wish we had a Trader Joes. I hear lots of good things about them.
I'm slightly ashamed (seeing as how at the moment it's just Josh and myself), but we tend to spend approximately $300 per month on groceries. I shop at WalMart (it's the only option aside from Brookshire's, your normal little grocery store). Part of why we spend so much is because a) the city we live in has basically no options and b) I'm pretty firm as to what I want in our house. As in, Josh eats chicken almost every night, and I insist on buying fresh, organic chicken instead of Tyson frozen chicken.
Anyway, I do try to make a list and stick to it, and that does help keep my cost somewhat reasonable.
Lets see. I think we spend on average anywhere from 600 to 700 a month. That includes everything from food to cleaning supplies to eating out. We shop Walmart, DECA and Sams Club. No Costco here, and I am still crying about it. I have become a coupon queen. I print them off the web and clip them from the Sunday newspaper.
Wow...I am amazed. Next up you need to write a blog on how and where you buy, I am amazed at the $400.00 figure for your family and with you guys also eating organic and so well! We spend probably $300.00 a month on just the two of us. That's commissary and sometimes Wal-Mart too. I would love to have a Trader Joe's or Whole Foods nearby. Sean and I were talking recently about finding some local farmers or markets that had fresh fruits and veggies as we are tired of the bland taste we are getting from buying them at the store.
Do you think you could possibly do a blog on how you guys are eating this well on your budget? Maybe also about buying from local farmers and how you find them? I know you kind of did a part of that a few weeks ago, but I'd love to see more on it.
mmm. i almost took a picture of my breakfast these last two mornings. avocado and scrambled eggs with cheese. avocados are so beautiful.
i've posted on this before- but just to go along with it- we spend just around or under $350 a month- but lately the prices went up so much, that i just get what we need at sams (not that many things, but some- and only things that are way cheaper there) and i don't always take that out of my budget- bc when you buy beef or chicken in two months worth at a time, really, i'm not going to take that away from my budget, you know? so, it slips by- bc it's not complicated that way.
Megan
We currently budget $500/month (or $125/week) for groceries (this includes incidentals as well) and even this can be a challenge at times for a family of 5- and I'm a smart shopper. However, I've found since moving out West that groceries are more expensive here. Back East, I would have no trouble with this budget. On a related note, here is a link to an interesting post I read recently on the same topic: http://greenstylemom.blogspot.com/2008/06/one-week.html
It's an epidemic. I'm talking about this at my blog, too. :-)
But just to say, I take out $800 cash each month for groceries for 8 people. I spend between $600 and $700 on actual food. I usually just shop the commissary, but I'm playing a little game this month to see if it really is more expensive to eat on economy. I'm thinking not.
And I suggest that there is a strong possibility that if you aren't actually keeping track, you're probably spending more than you think. :-)
I spend about $400/month too. I MOSTLY shop at the commissary because even in So. California it's significantly cheaper than the shopping "out in town". That does include my ridiculous little habit of buying my fruit at the farmer's market.
I usually make a meal menu and that includes the food I send the husband back to base with during the week, so I guess that's not bad.
We usually budget about $300 a month. That does not include diapers etc. We do bulk shopping at Sam's club for diapers, water, chicken etc.
I find that I can save money when I do a list of what I will be making that week. Sometimes I do it for two weeks and that makes it a lot easier for me to save even MORE money.
I do look for coupons on some items and try and get organic on most things, but I do tend to splurge a little at Whole Foods. I just cannot resist. They have the best turkey bacon there!
I have NO idea how much we usually spend, but I'm in the process of drawing up a budget for us for the month. I know you do this already, but my only tip to save on groceries is to cook foods rather than buy pre-packaged! As a strict vegetarian, that means I bake vegan bread, cook veggie burgers, etc.
Here's how we do things (and granted, we're only 2 people), and we learned all we know from Crown.org--LOVE that ministry!! We went to a seminar about 6 months after we got married, and all I can say is that it was the best $40I ever spent.
Anywho, back to the issue at hand: groceries.
For us, our grocery shopping excursions and budget are for food ONLY. Everything else is tossed into our miscellaneous category (which includes cleaning supplies, toiletries, stamps, envelopes, matches, whatever else you would need for a household that isn't edible). For the two of us, I spend $180 a month. I do need to bump it up to $200 because of rising food prices, but I'm consistent and it works for us.
Ways that I "save" or am able to stick to just that budgeted amount include shopping at our local farmer's market (which is HUGE, plus the produce is way cheaper and better than going to the grocery store), and my crazy shopping schedule.
Basically, at the end of every month, I go to my Google calendar and create a dinner menu for the next month (yes, I said month). From that menu, I base my grocery list, along with things that we just always use throughout the month. We do one big shopping trip a month that includes going to Sam's, Wegman's (oh how I love Wegman's), and Aldi and the public market. I know, I'm crazy, but it doesn't take more than 2 hours round trip because I also separate my grocery list out into what to buy and where (we've done the math and know what's more economical for us to buy at Sam's and other places). Then, I do another small trip after our fresh fruit and veggies and stuff are out and that's it. Two trips a month, max.
Now, if I look at the menu and think, 'Gee, I don't really want that for dinner', I just swap it out for another meal that's on the menu that I do have all the ingredients for. Easy as pie. Unlike this comment which is rambly and a million paragraphs long!!
Thanks for talking about this today--I always love getting tips from other folks!
Blessings,
Erin
For my self I budget $100/month, for food equalling about $25.00 per week. And I can usually stick to that and still cook delicious, healthy meals.
I buy almost everything at Superstore(an incredibly low priced grocery store here in Canada) I try to only buy fruits and vegetables if they are under $1.00/lb, I can usually get organic for that price. I price compare regularly store flyers and will go to another grocery store for certains foods on sale. And I like to purchase meat on 10% Tuesdays.
But I wouldnt mind some of those stores that you talk about in the south, up here!!
Leslie
We're a family of 8...and spend (most months) less than $400...it's hard because I'm like you and don't pay a lot of attention to it. As someone else said, it is more expensive to eat healthy. I am very frustrated with that because the prices of everything is going up, and we are already down to the bare nubs, and am feeling the pressure to cook healthier, but can barely afford the steady diet of pasta and hamburger we seem to exist on at the moment...
We're a bit on the odd side here, as we're in another country - different prices and different money. But with myself, Matt, my 19 yr old sister, and Oceana we spend under $100 a week - so $400 a month. That's about $80, in USD. That includes diapers, toiletries, etc - everything. Matt takes his cellphone calculator to the store and stays under that number. He usually does the shopping - I rarely even go. Not for lack of wanting to, it's just how we work at this point. We don't eat organic, and for the most part we don't eat breakfast. Lunch usually is leftovers for us. So we're probably not the best venue to be asking...
But when we were in the US I shopped Aldi and WalMart (not that carefully) and for two of us spent under $40/week with toiletries.
I'm also not sure exactly what we spend but I estimate it at around $400. I try to do a Costco trip once per month and then the rest is commissary. It really is so much cheaper on a lot of things. I also try to fit in a Trader Joe's trip at least twice a month when I'm on that side of town because their organic dairy products are so much cheaper that it's totally worth it. Plus, they have a better selection of Annie's.
We spend probably about 250.00 a month. Due to my outragous student loans (alot) we have a very very tight budget, but we always buy the same things. We dont eat anything fancy, and I WISH I could shop organic but too expensive where we live. I would say we eat pretty balanced, alot of veggies, ground turkey, chicken and pasta. If we are having a good month I would say around 400.00. We shop at Bottom dollar, so everything is off brand (food lion brand here). Or else at walmart.
We are usually in the $300 range including Costco and toiletries. We are still learning how to fit diapers into the budget! We were trying to stock up while we had a good income to save for this summer, so we shall see... This month I am aiming for $150 or so! Wish me luck!
We don't really track our grocery budget, either. I keep it pretty simple, though. We buy everything at the commissary, except for a lot of our fruits and veggies because the ones at the commissary are downright icky most of the time. They also don't have much for organic produce, although I buy it when they do. I used to clip coupons, but now I just throw them away as I always forgot to use them and they were just a clutter problem.
So, we probably spend about 400 for groceries and other household items, plus about 50 bucks a month for various random items. The money we are saving by cloth diapering is really just getting plowed back into our grocery budget as I buy more organic now. We also don't buy much that is processed; Annie's Mac N Cheese is about the extent of that, and we don't even eat that all that much anymore.
I don't really bargain shop when it comes to food. We cut back in other ways first, always. For instance, we only drive one car, only have basic cable (and that only because it's cheap bundled with our internet), have one pay-as-you-go cell phone that is rarely used, and use old washcloths as cleaning rags instead of paper towels or disposable wipes. We also cut back on eating out when it seems we are spending too much. I'm really happy with what we are saving and spending, and it always surprises me when people say you don't get paid squat in the military. Really, you just have to know how to spend it (and how NOT to spend it).
We spend around $500 a month for our family of 4 and all of that comes from WalMart. Sadly, there are no Costco's or Trader Joe's or even a decent Farmer's Market. I desperately want to lower that number to around $350, but I'm also wanting to eat healthier and I find that it's more expensive. Haven't figured that whole process out yet.
Thank you so much for this post!! So much great info :) It seems like $400 is a popular amount - well, at least we're not alone! I read all the previous posts and got a few good ideas. Erin has me inspired to plan more ahead - wow! amazing process she has going!
Quite a lot of people shop for groceries at Wal-mart. My general rule for our Wal-mart is to not touch it with a ten-foot pole (it's not nice here), maybe I should check it out again, though.
Shannon talked about how much easier it was for her to stick to her budget back East than out West. I wonder if that has anything to do with it. Our eating habits were changing so much at the same time that we moved, so it was hard to keep track of the change in food prices.
Well its hard to tell for us cuz at Walmart we also buy all the toiletries. But it would be fair to say if I stay really healthy and don't buy crackers and snacky items and stuff the price almost evens out. We spend about $4-500 depending. We are now starting to use the commissary more often and Costco, but the real saver in gas and time and money is, Walmart. They price match just about everything except meat(it will the prepackaged stuff).So if the milk or fruits and veggies are on sale or tp or whatever are on sale at Target or any other store including the local 'Farmers market' ads, I make my list and take my ads and will find a quiet time to shop and tell the tellar every item I bought and for how much its on sale elsewhere and sometimes I show them the ad if they are not sure, but for the most part they know the ads too and will catch some of the stuff before I even tell them. This way I get everyones ads in one stop.
Val in ABQ
I honestly cannot tell you what we spend.
We are a frugal family, but food is one thing where I do not really budget.
I buy stuff on sale, etc., but good food is worth any price, especially if my kids will eat it :)
We used to be in the military and I got on that 1st and 15th going to the commissary routine....we still shop on those days...I go to 2 grocery stores..Walmart and Aldi's and Sam's once a month. I do a meal plan for 2 weeks and stick to it...I eat out one time a week and 1-2 leftovers...lunches and breakfasts and snacks are all included....we spend $500 a month and this includes toiletry s. Diapers too...I watch what we buy and get alot of generic.
Good question, I always wonder what other people spend, if we are in the norm.
Well for us (5) we spend about 700 a month. It crazy, living here in Monterey CA has really pushed our budget to it's seems. We only shop the commissary and Costco.
Just to give you an idea milk is about $5 a gallon in the city store, commissary 3.95, and Costco is 5.45 for two gallons. Anything we use daily comes from Costco.
We sure miss our COLA from Alaska here! It sucks because I think the cost of living is higher here then up there.
I just want to know how people are spending such a small amount???? I cook, everyday, every meal, is this why my monthly food costs are so high??? And we butcher a cow each year, so I don't have to buy any meat at the grocery store! I'm at around $750-800 a month?? What the heck am I doing wrong? Although, I live in IL and it is expensive here!!
I cook from scratch and we don't eat out a lot, I also shop every two weeks because you know we're military and get paid the first and the 15th.
I spend about $250 for two weeks, so I guess about $500 a month, some months more than others, the summer time I seem to spend $300 for two weeks but that's because the kids are home from school and they eat everything but the kitchen sink LOL
I don't think I spend a lot on food, things are expensive nowadays. But one thing that helps me keep in line is making a menu plan every week (been doing it for 10 years) and buying what I need and not just what I feel like throwing in the cart.
For a typical month we spend 400-450 on groceris. But that includes, diapers, formula, paper products, etc. Basically anything and everything. We only shop at the Commissary because prices at Wal-Mart are much too high for everything. We will occassionally have to buy something from WM, but try very hard not to.
We have been spending 'at least' $150 to $200 a week in groceries. So that is about $600 to $800 a month. We are a family of five and I am very frugal! I have tried and tried to stay around $100 a week but it never works. I agree with the comment three comments above me- I too live in Illinois/Wisconsin area (I do my grocery shopping in Illinois)and it 'is' expensive here. Food prices have gone way up! Grrr...
For our family of 3 we spend $180 a month. I shop mostly at the commissary, but also a Wal-Mart, Aldi, and other local stores depending on the sales. The best way we save is by combining coupons with sales. I highly recommend the Money Saving Mom blog for finding the best deals out there. Also, I make a plan and stick to it. We don't always eat what we "want", and I try to use up all leftovers and misc things I have on hand before going to the store. Oh, and most importantly I pray before each trip that God would help me to be wise with my decisions and make the best use of the money He has blessed us with.
I was shocked to see how little people spend on groceries!!! I am not in the military, so no commisary. We are a family of 5 and I would guess we spend $600 - 800/month on groceries. I find that kids snack a lot and it really adds up. I have no idea how people are keeping such low budgets and still buying meats and veggies and fruits. We don't like to skimp on food, we love to eat, so I do try to keep the spending down, but we like what we like and so, it comes to about $150 - 200 a week. Not sure what else we could do differently, but I'm still trying to figure out where we go wrong.
We are right in the process of cutting back now - just started a serious budget a couple weeks ago. Groceries are a bit higher here in Canada, so I am averaging about $100-$150 per week right now, with most of it organic (we have an organic basket delivered once a week, I plan all the meals around that and it's about $45 and is plenty for all of us for one week). We're a family of five, but of course one is not eating yet :-)
I'm saving some b/c I stopped buying a lot of processed foods and am making everything myself now - more time consuming, so much healthier and soooooo much tastier (I realize I don't have to tell you this!!). But I'm continuing to look for ways to cut back . . . things in general are just more money now.
5 people
$400/month
I just switched my family to a preservative, additive and food color free diet and I was scared of what it would do to my budget. But I'm still staying under $100 week! I've found I spend more on my staples, but I no longer buy snack foods or drinks other than milk. My cart is full of things from the "edges" of the grocery store, no more center aisle shopping. Fruits, Vege, Dairy, Meat, whole grains. And I feel so much better about what my family is eating.
I just have to comment too even though I'm a post behind...
I have to agree with your few lone commenters who are confused as to how families of 4 or 5 are only spending $400 a month on groceries. We're spending WAY MORE than that. I'd say closer to $600 per month- and we haven't even started buying diapers again :P
We eat fairly healthy. Not all organic- but certainly not all junk/boxed food that can get expensive. We don't do anything in a box anymore for the kids for snacks. They eat fruit or cheese, etc...I just don't know what else I can cut out without my entire family whining "I'm hungry" constantly.
I think my biggest hurdle in keeping costs down is my husband who is notoriously hungry at 10 at night and commonly runs out to get "just a few things" and ends up with fast food or junk from the nearest grocery store. Let me tell you, that adds up to hundreds of dollars a month after awhile.
I need pointers from other Mom's I guess on how to shop and cook for my family without breaking the bank.
Dang, I'm doing something wrong. I spend about $700 on food for a family of eight. Some other commenters are way cheaper than I am.
I shop at Winco for almost everything. I do have a bad habit of not doing a once a week shop and so I end up going every day or so. That's not a good thing.
We live in the Pacific Northwest so I don't know how we compare in price with other states. I do know our prices are going up, up, up.
I really should be a better shopper. Doing the coupon thing and all but I just don't roll like that.
We follow Dave Ramsey's "Total Money Makeover", so we do all cash. I have $300/month for groceries only (family of 4--a 3 yr. old and 11 mo. old--and my husband and my son eat a LOT). My husband thinks that is too much to spend of food every month (he never goes shopping!)...I just recently convinced him to change it to $300 instead of $250! We eat a lot of fruits and veggies. I did just plant a garden this year, so that is starting to help a little--mostly cucumbers, tomatoes, zuchinni, and grean beans--and I try to get "healthier" foods, but we're not organic or whole grain 100%. We live in the Midwest in a tiny town, so we have to drive an hour round trip to shop at a WalMart. Dilons (Kroger-owned store) here in town is super expensive. Plus I can get all my shopping done (toiletries, household, etc) in one trip. The closest Sam's Club is over an hour away (one way), so it's not cost efficient to do that.
I always shop with a list (otherwise I never get what I really need and spend too much money!). When the cash is gone, it's gone. You learn to get creative :) I have to admit that some months I have to "borrow" cash from another category to get more fresh stuff (juice, milk, fruit), but for the most part I try really hard to stick to the $300. You learn to buy the off-brand, cheapest things (which doesn't always mean sacrificing on taste!). As a kid, we didn't have a ton of money, so I've learned some tricks from my Mom about how to make a meal stretch.
Sorry to leave such a long comment!
PS-please thank your husband for his service to our country. I have a great amount of respect for our service men & women (I have several family memebers myself in the Armed Forces).
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