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By Lisa Sharp17 Comments
Are you wanting to learn how to meal plan effectively and save money on groceries? I’ve been meal planning for years and found a lot of tips and tricks along the way.
The few times I’ve skipped meal planning I’ve been shocked how much more stress I had and how much more money I spent on food. It’s a good reminder of how much it helps.
When I was first married my husband and I didn’t make a lot of money. He was finishing his degree and I was doing just a little freelance work.
We needed to keep food costs down but still wanted to eat healthy food. I was raised eating a pretty natural diet and a lot of food from scratch.
One of the best ways I found to save money was to meal plan. Food waste is such a big problem in this country and it’s not only bad for the environment but it’s really bad for our budgets. It’s like throwing money away each month.
Another benefit to meal planning is it can often prevent you from eating out as much. You don’t have to try and find ingredients for a meal last minute, you know what you have and can make.
There are many ways to meal plan. It may take you a bit of trial and error to find what works best for your family. First, ask yourself these questions.
Which meals will you be planning for, breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner?
Do you want to just have a number of meals planned or have them planned for set days?
Where do you want to keep the plan?
I grocery shop once a month, so I meal plan once a month. I also only plan dinners because we do simple lunches. I use my meal planning printables and keep them on a clipboard until I grocery shop and then move the meal plan to my household binder.
Figuring these details is key and will help you make meal planning more successful for you and your family.
Creating Your Meal Plan
Once you’ve asked yourself the questions above it’s time to start the actual meal planning. It can seem overwhelming at first but once you get into the habit it becomes quicker and easier.
There are many methods for meal planning but this is the one that I find helps to save the most time and money. You may need to change it up a bit to fit your family but it’s a good starting point.
1. Start With What You Have
Check what food you already have on hand. Write down what you want to use. An easy way to do this is by keeping inventory lists. This is the best way to save money and prevent food waste. You’d be amazed at how many meals you can make with what you already have.
2. Check Sale Ads and Coupons
Check sale ads and coupons. Make a list of the sale items you think you may want to use. Also, check cash-back check apps likeIbotta for deals you want to use.
3. Decide What Meals You Want to Make
Look at the ingredients you have on hand and sale items you want to get. What meals can you make from these things? After you have those meals down decide what others you want that month.
Be sure to look at your schedule as well. Stick to easy meals on busy days and limit how many new things you try if your schedule is busy.
4. Keep Track of Ingredients
As you write down meals be sure towrite down the ingredients you will need and quantities on your shopping list. If you see that you only need half a package of chicken for a meal you know to come up with a second meal for the rest or make a note to freeze the rest for your next meal plan.
5. Organize It
Now it’s time to make sure everything is ready for grocery shopping. I like to take my meal plan with me so I can make changes in the store if I find good deals. I put the meal plan, shopping list, and my coupons on a clipboard that I take with me to the store.
Once I’m done the shopping I keep the meal plan in my household binder or on the fridge. Make sure it’s somewhere you remember and will use it. Also, as you use the meal plan keep track of meals you enjoy. This list makes it easier to meal plan in the future.
You can also find meal planning apps to help you keep track and stay organized.
Free Meal Planning eBook
Additional Resources
Meal Planning Printable Pack– This printable pack includes everything you need to meal plan; a shopping list, meal planning sheet, inventory lists, and more.
Eat At Home Meal Plans– If you don’t like making your own meal plans this service may be for you. They do all the work for you. Each month you get access to four separate meal plans (Traditional, Slow Cooker, No Flour, No Sugar, and Wholesome Traditional), grocery lists, and recipes.
Once a Month Grocery Shopping Guide– This is my FREE complete guide to how to grocery shop only once a month.
Money-Saving Worksheets– Learn how one family spends less than $200 a month eating organic food.
Everyone can agree that saving money is something we all try to do, and meal planning is a great way to help. While you skip out on spending money at restaurants, meal planning also involves buying items in bulk, which can be a huge money saver.
Everyone can agree that saving money is something we all try to do, and meal planning is a great way to help. While you skip out on spending money at restaurants, meal planning also involves buying items in bulk, which can be a huge money saver.
While grocery shopping turned out to be a hair cheaper than even the cheapest meal kits, it's nearly even. If you consider the time and energy you save by forgoing long trips to the supermarket, meal kits might present the better value.
Costly – Meal planning can be more expensive than meal prep, as it requires frequent grocery store trips and can lead to food waste. Nutritional benefits may be limited – Although meal planning can help seniors access a variety of foods, some seniors may not properly plan their meals to meet their nutritional needs.
Lack of Flexibility: Strict adherence to a meal plan may limit spontaneity in dining choices and can be challenging to sustain in social or unpredictable situations. Nutritional Variety: Without careful planning, meal plans may lead to a limited variety of foods, potentially missing out on some essential nutrients.
But, what if you use the idea as potentially you could save $9 a meal and start limiting your eating out. If you regularly eat out 5 times a week, if you reduce this to even 2 times a week, this is $27 savings, per person, per week. For one person, this is $100 a month. The total amount of savings can add up quickly.
Average grocery cost per month for 1 person in a household
Considering the Thrifty and Liberal plan averages, the monthly grocery cost for an adult male falls between $275.63 and $434.33, while the average for an adult female ranges from $238.46 to $384.93.
On average, a family of five spends anywhere from $922 to $1,488 a month on groceries, according to USDA monthly food plans. If you're looking to curb your spending, consider meal planning, buying in bulk, and shopping at more affordable grocery stores.
That breaks down to about $18.75 a day for a three-meal-a-day contract. That may seem reasonable, but it's almost double what meal plans cost on average a decade ago. Some of that increase is due to colleges upgrading their dining facilities and menus in hopes of being more attractive to potential students.
Economic Choice: Frozen foods are economical. You don't pay for stalks, pits, skins, rinds, or damaged food. Edible ounce for edible ounce, frozen food costs are usually less than their fresh counterparts, and they don't tend to vary widely in price.
Let's be honest, meal planning is a pain in the butt. It forces us to think ahead when most of us are having trouble remembering what day it is. That said, the time and effort are completely worth it. Quite frankly, anything that makes my weeknights easier is worth considering.
Even though you've gotta eat to stay alive, spending money on food is still spending money. The average home cooked meal costs about $4, and the average meal bought out will set you back about $20! Needless to say, you can save some serious dough by doing a no eating out challenge.
He thinks we've had food delivered once or twice in the past month. That means prepping meals we can both enjoy has saved us approximately $350 in the past month alone. Even after factoring the cost of groceries (I buy frequently-used items in bulk), we're saving roughly $150 per month on dinners.
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