Ok be honest, grocery shopping isn’t exactly your favorite thing right? I don’t hate it but I can sure think of a few things I’d rather do than grocery shop. But somebody’s got to do it right? One thing that makes it more enjoyable for me is knowing I’m saving our family money IF I make sure to stick to just a few grocery shopping “rules.”
I went shopping on a very rainy day with 2 tired kids and still managed to stay under budget making sure to stick to just a few rules.
You can watch our trip and see our haul here!
Rule 1: Buy what’s on sale and stock up on it
Simple enough right? Buy stuff that’s on sale. But I had this vision in my head of that lady that hoards a hundred shampoo bottles in her garage and I didn’t want to be that lady. But here’s the deal, if it’s not expiring soon, or it’s freezable and it’s on a killer deal, if you buy 2 or even 3 instead of just one, eventually you’ll build up a supply in your pantry and freezer. How awesome would it be to not be running out of stuff, plus when you do go shopping you’re only buying things that are on sale because you’re not having to pay full price on a bunch of stuff because you ran out.
Rule 2: Avoid convenience foods if you’re on a tight budget
On this particular shopping trip we passed by the cheez-it snack packs and the box was $6.99. Halfway down the same aisle we found a box of cheez-its for $1.97 and it was basically the same amount of cheez-its. Some things may be worth it to you to pay extra for convenience, but if you’re on a budget that’s an easy way to cut back.
Rule 3: Use your phone when you’re shopping
Seriously though…. I don’t know how our parents did it without this tool at their finger tips. I use my phone a ton when I’m shopping. I use the calculator to keep track of where I’m at so I don’t go over budget. I also will use it to pull up recipes on pinterest if I see there’s a great deal on an item. Great deal on greek yogurt? Pulling up recipes to see what I could make with that and if I already have the other ingredients needed. I will also use it to compare prices. If I see something I could buy on amazon, I’ll pull up the website to compare prices. Plus some stores even have better prices on their own websites than in their stores so do some quick searching to make sure you’re getting a good deal.
I also use a rebate app called Ibotta. You can get cash back from things you’ll be buying anyways. Every time I shop, I just hop on the app and see if anything I’m buying qualifies for a rebate, scan the item, and then the cash is in my Ibotta account ready to be transferred over!
Use the referral code rdgupxl when you sign up and start saving the next time you shop!
What are some other ways you save while you shop? The more you save in the grocery store the more you have for the fun stuff!
<3 Krista