Here are 5 of the easiest ways to save big on that grocery bill next week.
5. Buy unprocessed, unprepared, whole foods.
Buying processed and prepared foods from the grocery store can seem like a great time saver. Yet, while they may be convenient they'll also put in a dent in your wallet. Purchase prepared foods (such as pre-cut veggies or seasoned meats and fish) sparingly since they are usually much more expensive than non-prepared items. Remember: you're essentially paying the grocery store to do work for you. And they'll charge a premium for work that might only take you a couple minutes or seconds at home.
4. Plan out your meals
We've talked a lot on Table Talk about how amazing (and difficult) planning out meals can be. Maybe the best reason to starting planning out your meals is that you can save a lot of money. Meal planning not only helps you cut down on excess items that you won't need to buy for the week but also make better use of what you already have or are already buying.
3. Buy store brands
It's a strange truth but store-brand products are normally just as good as their name-brand counterparts. And they're much less expensive. In fact, a lot of store-brand products are even made in the same plants, with the same ingredients; they just have a different label. Canned goods and frozen vegetables are best bets for store-brand savings.
However, some items are better to buy brand-name. We suggest that you continue to buy your favorite and trusted name-brand paper products and meats. These tend to have the biggest differences between name and store brand products.
2. Eat Less Meat
Look at the receipt from last week's trip to the grocery store. We bet that combined, the most expensive group of items was meat. Meats can get very expensive very quickly.
Think of meat as a treat that you eat only a few times per week or something that you can use to add to flavor other dishes (like cooking some pancetta before making spinach or peas) rather than the centerpiece of every meal. You'll save a lot of dough and maybe feel a litter healthier too (bonus!). Try eating more beans and finding creative vegetarian recipes that are so delicious you won't even miss the chicken or beef!
1. Buy groceries online
The easiest way to save big on groceries is to shop for them online. Of course, online grocers normally have delivery and service fees but these costs are offset but the fact that 1) It's a lot easier to stick to a list or meal plan so you won't spend money on impulse buys 2) You won't be spending money on gas to go back and forth from the store 3) You can automatically take advantage of sales and coupons and 4) The prices of regular products are normally either the same price or less expensive than in the store.
Even cooler, online tools like Chicory can create smart shopping lists that automatically help you lower your weekly grocery bill, buy only what you need for what you want to cook, and get everything delivered with a few clicks.
Chicory is kind of like a friend that helps you always follow these and other grocery shopping tips.
Save Big on Your Groceries with Chicory
