Frugal shopping tips

For most of my adult life and marriage I have needed to be frugal in my shopping. There have been times when I could loosen the purse strings, so to speak, and be less frugal but for the most part I have needed to carefully plan and budget our shopping needs. This post is about frugal food shopping specifically. Maybe one day I will write tips on how to shop for other things but food is something that is necessary to survive so I am addressing it first.

Make a budget.
The first logical step is to know how much money you have to spend. It is a fairly simple but does take some time. To do this you will need to know roughly how much money you make monthly and how many expenses you have. List out everything from insurance to cable to your water and electric bills. Once you have that number, see how much is leftover. This is what you have for food, any other necessary items, and emergencies (if you swing it, setting aside a small amount each month is a good idea, even if it is only a few dollars).

Plan a menu.
I recommend doing a simple breakfast and lunch menu that stays relatively the same. This is to make your life easier. As for the suppers, there are a few different ways you can do this. Start by writing out a list of all your favorite, simple meals. It will hopefully be enough for a few weeks. If not, start looking for meal ideas on websites, blogs, and cookbooks. Next you can either write down a few weeks worth of menus and rotate or write them on notecards and pick what you want when you plan your shopping trip.

Make a list.
Once you know which meals you are eating that week, look over each one carefully for the ingredients you will need. Then check your pantry for any of those items so you don't waste your money buying a spice or an ingredient that you already have on hand. Once you have that done, make your shopping list. I have found it helpful to keep a 'running list' on the refrigerator. If you run out of anything during the week you can add it to the running list so that you will not forget it on shopping day. Because you will forget, believe me, lol. Then STICK TO THE LIST. This is probably the hardest one for me! When I shop I see delightful things that I must have, all food related of course....and when I give in to my inclinations I pay for it by going over budget. Learn from my mistakes. Don't stray from the list! You made a careful list to avoid going over budget so don't ruin it by impulsively 'needing' something.

Use cheap staples.
For a very frugal menu beans, rice, lentils, potatoes, and pasta are going to be your new best friends. These are cheap, easy to prepare, and go a long way to fill little bellies. Or big bellies, if you happen to be feeding those.

Use alternative grocery stores. 
By alternative I mean a store like Aldi or Winco. The selection will be smaller but you should be able to find all the basics for a better price than the grocery store. I shop at Aldi and love it! It was a rather strange experience for me the first time I went I went to an Aldi, shortly after my husband and I got married. I had never heard of a grocery store where you needed a a quarter to get a cart or had to buy your own bags. However, I have come to greatly appreciate Aldi and it saves us hundreds of dollars each year to shop there.

Shop sales. 
Before each shopping trip I check on the sales, especially for fruits and veggies, and try to incorporate those items into the menu. Make sure it is something that you are going to use and that it won't cost more to buy it than you usually spend on that type of item. It won't do to buy a sale item if it is going to cost you more in the long run but it can be a good way to save a few cents or even dollars each week.

Use a lot of cheap sides.
I try to have a few sides that are filling so we don't use as much of the main dish. I used to only have a couple and then we ate far more of the main dish or more meat, which ended up costing more in the long run. Once I switched to several sides I was able to shave quite a bit from the food budget. It also made my husband and children happier.

Make more soups.
Soup is cheap, relatively healthy, filling, and perfect for cooler days. I make my own broth in my crockpot so I can season it myself and is something very healthy for my family. I also add homemade rolls on the side. It makes for a nice, simple meal. I usually make a large batch and then freeze it for another day.

Make what you can from scratch.
IF it makes sense. Many items are really cheap if made from scratch but not everything is worth it. I buy spaghetti sauce because it is cheaper for me to by it than to make it. I make a lot of our breads because it is cheaper. So do your homework and make what makes sense from scratch and buy the rest.

Get to know your market.
Become familiar with the stores you frequent. Memorize the regular prices of the items you buy most often. This way if you happen to see a sale you will know if it is actually a good deal or not.

I hope that this will help you get started or give you some new ideas on how to be frugal! Please share your favorite frugal tips in comment section below.

~ Hannah