Tips on buying groceries! How to save money....

Tweet

Bargain shopping sounds harder than it really is and in this world today we cannot be picky! So I thought that you might enjoy a great way to save money while you are at the grocery store! The first thing that you need to do is write out your grocery list and set up your budget. On a monthly average I spend ONLY $350 per month for my family of 8! YES, that is $43.75 per person per month! And I believe that you can shop for your large or small family for less than $50 per person per month. Here I will show you how! I am sure that you and your family have some pretty nice expensive favorite foods such as pizza, fast food, and dinning out. Well.... Rule # 1 for my saving money on groceries is to CUT OUT OR LIMIT DINNING OUT! Eat before you leave the house! Eating before you leave the house will keep you from splurging on things that you are craving. Have you ever noticed that if you are hungry while shopping, that you actually spend more money than you would if you are full? Well, chances are, if you are craving that wonderful chips and dip with sour cream, black olives, and a huge delux pizza, you are going to by that even if your list only shows that you need toilet paper, diapers, and milk. That extra splurging can cost you a pocket full of money in no time. So my suggestion to Rule # 1, Of course, Eat before you leave the house and ONLY BUY what is on your list! Rule # 2! If you see the same food with two or more prices on the shelf but different brands...KNOW THIS....THEY ARE THE SAME THING, SAME FOOD, AND MADE THE EXACT SAME WAY. AND IN NO WAY IS ONE BRAND BETTER THAN THE OTHER. If you choose the more expensive brand you are not buying quality, you are ONLY buying the name of the brand! You cannot be picky in this world and if you are picky, you will continue to go broke every time you shop. Suggestion: Choose your food wisely! If you buy more expenseive foods you are only paying for the name of the brand. Each food brand might have different ingredients, but they all fill you the same way as the other brands. Cheaper in the end is always better because you can buy more when you buy cheaper. If you spot a great deal on a box of Hamburger Helper, for instance, you see a Hamburger Mac N Cheese flavored for $1.89 which is on sale from $2.39, you definitely want to think about it. But before you go grabbing that box, look at the generic brand of helper and look at the price. Most of the time you can buy two or three boxes of the generic brand compared to buying 1 box of a name brand box. That is MORE FOOD VERSES LESS FOOD. Rule # 3! Choose your stores wisely!!! I myself shop at 4 to 5 stores per month on 1 day only! The reason for this is because I am saving gas too! My personal stores of choice have changed over the years, but I have been known to stop at 6 or 7 stores during that one shopping trip because of the best deals in town. The stores I shop at are Food Giant, Sam's, Wal-Mart, Save-A-Lot, Rouses, Dollar Tree, Fred's, and Winn Dixie. I do not shop at all of these every month, but I have shopped at a couple of these when I have had no other choice but to do so. My main trip every month takes me to Food Giant (1st), Sam's (2nd), Save-A-Lot (3rd), and Wal-Mart (4th). Each store has their "benefits" and their "let downs", but all in all, these are my favorites. There are many more tips on how to save money. Check out my next discussion on my 4 favorite stores and WHY I love them, how much money you can save, and examples of my real receipts from my next shopping trip! Talk to you soon! And happy saving! Witmuch Meshell