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Navigating and budgeting your finances is no easy feat. With rent or mortgage, car payments, student loans and more, sometimes even a trip to the grocery store might seem like the most daunting task. Although inflation has slowed down somewhat in the past year, prices for groceries are still high and only getting pricier. However, there are a multitude of ways that you can cut the cost on your monthly grocery bill, so you can lessen the stress that those trips to the store can cause you.
Make a List
Impulse buys can be hard to avoid and add to your total. One of the first things that can help you avoid those purchases is making a meal plan and writing down a shopping list. With a meal plan, you know exactly what you’re going to be making that week and know what ingredients you’ll need so you don’t buy random food items that will go bad if you don’t use them up.
Making a shopping list for everything you need can also be a huge help in avoiding those impulse purchases. Trying to remember everything you need can be overwhelming, and it’s easy to forget things, or mix up ingredients for what you need. When you have a list of the things you need, you’re able to mark off the items you’ve grabbed as you go through the store. There’s even shopping list templates that you’re able to print off as well as meal prepping tools to help keep you organized. If you find that it’s still hard to avoid tossing in those unnecessary items, consider looking into curbside pickup at your store instead. It’ll also save you the time of walking around the store and waiting to check out!
Research Savings
When it comes to saving money on groceries coupons and sales are your best friend. At a lot of grocery stores, you can sign up for a newsletter via email that will send you the upcoming weekly sales. Look into whether your stores have rewards programs to sign up for, as they will offer additional savings to members. Sometimes, grocery stores even have a copy of their weekly sales at the front of the store for you to grab. You can check it over when you get there to see if there’s anything you’re buying that’s on sale. It could also be a good idea to sign up for the local Sunday newspaper because it’ll often have coupons to cut out, like a “50% off” or “buy one get one free.” Be sure to double check if the coupon would be worth it. Some offers might cause you to buy more than you’re able to use.
Another smart idea is to buy generic brands when you can. While you might love your favorite name brand foods, buying generic brand items can really help lower the price of your groceries, especially for more basic items like salt or flour. If you don’t want to give up all your favorite foods, consider picking two or three items that you buy name brand and the rest generic.
Variety is Everything
One final idea that can help cut down your grocery bill is to not limit yourself to just one store. While it might feel convenient to just get your shopping out all at one place, you might be missing out on some deals other stores have to offer. Before you head out to run your errands, check out the websites or apps of a few stores around you. You might be able to split your groceries between a couple stores that have more competitive prices, saving you in the long run.
While grocery shopping can be one of those life errands that can seem tedious and even stressful, the last thing you want to do is spend a fortune on them on top of your other bills. Staying aware of the deals and prices at your local stores can really help drive down your monthly grocery bill, saving you the stress of it causing you to go over budget, and giving you some breathing room.
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