Has anyone else gone to the grocery store lately, disappointed again by how high the prices are? Inflation has hit the grocery stores so hard the past year. On average all prices were up around 13% but in reality many items were much higher than that. At my local Costco, a bag of chicken thighs went up by $6 in a year. They had been $12.99 per bag and now they are sitting at $18.99 per bag. That is much higher than 13%. A bag of dog food went up $5 per bag and we all know the crazy price of eggs right now. I’ve seen people in Southern California post pictures of 5 dozen eggs costing $28.28. It is insane right now. Below I’ve listed some ways to help with managing the rising prices of groceries.
Check what you have in your freezer and pantry that can be used for the new week. This not only helps to keep from wasting what you already have, it might also allow you to cut down on costs on your next grocery trip. Do you have lots of flour and mozzarella cheese? Maybe add pizza to your menu for next week and all you will need to add is some pizza sauce and toppings. Do you have lots of bananas that are turning brown quicker than you can eat them? Consider making banana bread as an easy snack or breakfast. Use these items to help you create your meal plan for the week.
Make a meal plan that is affordable. Steak and lobster might not be the best choice if you are trying to lower your grocery costs but that doesn’t mean you can’t eat delicious meals. Go check out pinterest for budget friendly meals. Tacos, spaghetti, stir fry, etc are some easy, delicious and inexpensive meals you can make. Create your meal plan, include snacks and then stick to it. Look at the weekly ads to see which items are on sale and help incorporate those items into your menu for the week.
Only buy things you need. While its always great to add some tasty treats to your grocery list, if you are really trying to crack down on your food budget, consider cutting out extras for a while.
Use free online pickup from the many grocery stores that offer it. This allows you to see the items you’ve added and then your total. You can readjust to ensure that you are sticking to your budget. It will also keep you from adding items to your cart that you don’t really need. We’ve all been there, where you walk past the ice cream isle, and grab a few of your favorites even though they weren’t on your list.
Shop online and clip all the coupons. Gone are the years of getting the Sunday newspaper and clipping coupons. Now you can do it all online. The best part? Most of the time when you are grocery shopping on the app, it will show you the available coupons to clip, making it even easier to save money.
Use CashBack apps when shopping. Last year I earned over $100 in cash back from grocery store purchases and used the money to pay for my kids Christmas gifts. My favorites are Ibotta and TopCashBack. If you use my Ibotta link and enter the code (miivawj) you will earn $10 once you redeem an offer on the app and I will get $10 too!
While these tips might not stop the affects inflation has had on your grocery bill, they will help you make little changes that will help save money even in small ways. If you save $10 per week through these tips, that is $520 in a year saved on your grocery budget. Small changes have big impacts!