Easy Ways to Save Money On Groceries Without Coupons.
I think most of us are all looking for ways to save money. I’ve tried clipping coupons in the past, but I found that I ended up buying a lot of things we wouldn’t ordinarily use or eat because I was able to get such a great deal. Those things often ended up unused or spoiled. Which really doesn’t make it a money saver then, does it? After brainstorming a little bit, I realized you could save money on groceries without coupons.
I am able to earn a little bit of freelance money and money from this blog, but otherwise we’re a one income family since I’m home with the kids. All the money I earn gets invested back into my space. Speaking of which, there are affiliate links present in this post.
When I evaluated our first quarter, I realized we actually did quite well staying on budget with our groceries. There were even some weeks when we came under budget and were able to reallocate our savings towards something fun.
Here are 10 easy ways to save money on your groceries without coupons.
1. Bring your own shopping bags. Not only is it better for the environment, but a lot of stores will also give you a few cents back for each shopping bag you use. My grocery store gives $.10 back per bag used. When I do my big twice a month shop, I use 10 bags. It seems small and inconsequential in the moment, but by taking my own bags, I save close to $75.00 a year.
2. Eat high protein snacks like almonds, cheese sticks, or hard boiled eggs. Snacking on high protein foods will stick with you longer than potato chips, candy, or crackers. The longer you can wait between snacking, the longer your snacks will last in your pantry or refrigerator.
3. Know what you’ve already got at home. When I meal plan, I look to see what I’ve already got on hand. Then, I look to see what is on sale at the grocery store that week. From there, I plan our meals. If you’ve already got ¾ of the ingredients you need at hone, there is no reason to re-buy those items.
4. Stock up when things you always use are on sale. For us, this list includes pasta, yogurt, frozen fruit and vegetables, and coffee. This week, my favorite brand of coffee is on sale at my grocery store buy 1 get 1 free. I’m buying 4 but taking home 8. I’ve now got two months worth of coffee and saved $40.00.
5. Pay attention to special promotional days. For example, the coffee I referenced above has an extra savings attached to it for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday only. Instead of it being $9.00 a bag (I like the good stuff, coffee is one of my grocery splurges), it is $7.00 a bag as long as I also purchase $25.00 worth of groceries. I often find out about promotions like this via my grocery store’s social media sites or circular.
6. Get out of the mainstream grocery store. There are several “low frill” grocery stores in my area. At these places, I have to bag my own groceries, keep an open mind, and put a quarter in the cart return to get one out, but these savings are obscene. They don’t take coupons and they don’t’ always have everything I’m looking for. But because they have a different overhead, they are able to pass their savings on to their customers. I’ve found Aldi, in particular to be amazing. They’ve got their own organic line and their price for organic milk beats my regular grocery store by over $2.00. Yearly savings on milk alone: $104.00
7. Make things from scratch. Have you ever thought about how much money you could save if made things from scratch at home? We don’t make EVERYTHING from scratch but we do make a lot. Malone loves pancakes for breakfast. He wants them almost every morning. Instead of buying frozen premade pancakes, we started making them from a mix. I realized we were spending about $10.00 a month on pancake mix (the just add water kind) so I googled how to make homemade pancakes. I was surprised to learn that we already had everything we needed in our pantry. Yearly savings on pancakes: $120.00
8. Pay attention to serving sizes and eat them. You can save a ton of money by eating proper serving sizes and following dietary recommendations. If you sit down with a bag of potato chips and eat the entire bag, they’re gone in one sitting. If you take a few seconds to portion out the serving size on a plate or in a bowl, they’ll last much longer!
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9. Keep an open mind about brands and generics. There are a few brands for our family that we absolutely will not stray from. Unless there is a specific brand that you absolutely adore, try something new. In the process, you’ll save some money.
10. Meal plan. Every Saturday morning, I take a look at our family calendar to see what our week looks like. I plan our meals based on what we have on hand (see above) but also on how busy we’re going to be. For example, on Mondays Malone has basketball from 3:30 to 4:00 pm. It is in a neighboring town, so I either need to plan a meal that I can put on the table fast (like leftovers) or use the crock pot. If have my meals planned, I will not be tempted to run to the store quick for a rotisserie chicken and deli salads or call in a take out order. Yearly savings (based on spending $20.00 for a quick grocery meal already made) $500.00.
Bonus Tips.
Avoid prepackaged foods.The easier it is for you to use a food as soon as you bring it home, the more expensive it likely is. Instead buying prepacked snack sized food for school lunches, buy the bigger bag and package them yourself at home. If you purchase prepackaged foods or snacks, you are paying more for the premade portion sizes.
Invest in reusable paper products and food storage containers.If you use cloth napkins instead of paper napkins, you don’t have to continue to buy them. Did you know there are companies that make reusable food storage bags for snacks on the go? Sure, there is a little bit of upfront investment. But the lifetime savings outweigh the initial investment!
If you liked this post, I’d love for you to share it with your friends. It seems like almost every day someone within my Facebook friends list is wondering about how they can save money on groceries without coupons. This post was written for and inspired by them.
What are you doing to make your dollars stretch further in your food budget?
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