I had originally started that because I was trying to figure out how much I needed to be decently prepared for an emergency for a few months. I already garden extensively and needed a better game plan there. What to plant more of, what to plant less. Can a snack cake be replaced by a healthier apple or banana?

I was amazed at how much JUNK I was eating! I managed to shed a few extra pounds, and not only am I healthier, but my checking account is as well. Two more ideas… Find a local flour mill! We have an organic mill not to far from us in Ohio. Sells bulk organic grains…. Even sprouted flours! Way cheaper then the stores!

This is a huge cost saver for me. It is called stutzmans farms and is located in millersburg ohio…. For those of you in Ohio.

They have so much, and I save so much money buying from them directly. Think they might do shipping. They are certified organic thru o.

So, you could look onlune under o. Seriously, do we really need multiple packs of Oreos? These are great tips, thanks! Years ago I kept a price book, and just the act of constantly checking shelf prices and writing them down got me to the point I no longer needed a physical price book. I have memorized the best prices for all of our regular purchases.

But starting out with a price book, that was valuable to learn where I was wasting money or getting a good deal. One thing I do is check over the receipt when I get home.

If I see a high price, it catches my eye. I started using this service due to some mobility issues and, much to my surprise, how much easier it has been to stay on budget when I stay OUT of the stores themselves!

No temptation for impulse purchases has equaled savings, which came as a pleasant unplanned surprise as well as a revelation of just how good the stores are at getting shoppers to overspend.

Just a thought for those who aspire to homesteading but have suburban lifestyles. Love your blog Merissa! You can also order groceries or anything else from Walmart.

Great advice, as always. Thank you! I, too, have started using grocery ordering. I did wonder, at first, why it was cheaper, even though the items were a bit more expensive than if I did ther shopping myself. Grocery ordering has been a wonderful blessing! Most of the ones in my state, Florida are all labeled that way.

I do try to shop frequently, but I will say some of them try to get more money for their stuff there than the bogo sales at the local grocery store.

Another way to save in my area is Meal Deals. While some of these may contain processed food, there is a local Fresh Market that has started doing real meals. They usually have recipes with them and I can sometimes split the ingredients up to use with other meals I had in mine.

For example, this week is Chicken Parm so it includes pre-breaded chicken breasts, noodles, tomato sauce, cheese and a salad kit. This kit is also a better idea than eating out as the cost is much cheaper!

Oh, and my store does NOT have a limit on how many of these meals you can buy! Next week is their great burgers too!! And Melissa, another way to save on groceries…. Have standby meals. My mother always said to have like 5 different 30 minute meals with all ingredients on hand.

So if you come home late, have a sick day or a hard day, whip up that meal. It helps with meal planning and you are always able to have dinner at home! Think pasta dishes, homemade pizza or frozen , chili, etc. I always do have a list, but I also always shop the sale flyer.

If I was planning to use broccoli but something else in on sale I almost always substitute that. Amazing post. Will be looking to utilize as many of these as possible. I wrote a similar post and you covered many of my tips but I have learned a few more ideas from you!

Thanks so much!! I need to shop my pantry for sure! Thank you for sharing on Merry Monday! Hope to see ya next week! Thanks for the tips. We love Zaycon! I hope you check them out 🙂 Let me know if I can help answer any questions on them.

Thanks for all these great tips — I use many of them, but I learned some new ones! Just wanted to say a special thanks for 12 and the cautionary note about asking for things. I had a friend who always asked for freebies when she saw something she wanted.

When she seriously suggested I clean my bookshelves because she needed something to read and promised to sell them to a half price store when she was done so they would go to someone else who liked to read — —that was amazing.

And no, friend was not even close to poor. One can be too frugal when it infringes on others 🙂. I would have told her to go to the library. Which she is already paying for with her property taxes. It is called the Grocery Outlet.

I used to go there first, get what I could, and then head for the supermarket to fill the rest of my list. The stock changes often, so if you find something you like, buy a lot of it, because you may never see it again. They also sell bulk foods. I just got enough basil to fill a spice jar for.

Always read the label! One of their very good deals is Hanover canned baked beans. Nobody ever complains about a steak dinner, either! Thank you for the tips. My own advice to save on groceries while shopping : only pay with cash and bring with you only a small amount in France, I take euros to go shopping.

When you are shopping, stick to your list. Especially with higher-priced items like meats and cheeses. Save money and take care of your waist by not overeating. Stretch chicken breasts by cutting them into thin cutlets.

Add lentils or oats to extend ground meat. At least twice a week, find a use for everything before it goes bad. Toss wilting vegetables into a pot of soup or spaghetti sauce. Freeze leftovers for another day and use ripe bananas for banana bread or smoothies.

Planning is key. Review several supermarket flyers or look for their specials online. When creating your menus, have a plan for leftovers, such as making sandwiches with leftover chicken or pot roast.

Try to shop on double- and triple-coupon days. Or use store apps for additional savings. Send them a tweet or friend them on Facebook. Plant tomatoes, peppers, carrots, lettuce, and more.

Save money, have fun, and get better flavor simultaneously. I try to make sure I always have stuff like flour, butter, yeast, milk, eggs to be able to make breads, pancakes, biscuits, tortillas, etc that goes along way to be able to have a base to go on. If money is super tight I try to make sure I have rice, potatoes, frozen veggies, cheese, fresh fruit, oatmeal and cheap cuts of meat.

With my list above, it may not be fancy but it is healthy and it will keep everyone full. I make a large pot of homemade soup. Leave it to cool then pour it into mug sized tupperware type containers I bought in Asda 80p each then freeze them.

Make your own muffin, breads, desserts, things of that nature — healthier and less expensive. Carbohydrates are your friend for filling out meals — pasta, rice, potatoes, corn, polenta, bread.

We also found that sticking to really basic recipes that were cheap and had a lot of vegetables meant we could make double batches and freeze some meals. Things like Vegetable Bakes and Pasta Bakes. Cook everything from scratch; pasta, sauces, baking, breads; rolls, wraps, naan, tortilla, passata sauce and tomato pasta etc, and always have a full pantry and freezer!

I also like to make double batches of lasagna or pasta and freeze half for later in the week or up to a month later. One thing we do to save money is we grind our own flour. My family is gluten free, rice flour is expensive but rice is really cheap. We find jasmine rice makes the best flour, especially for baking and frying.

Buy fryer chicken a whole chicken. Cook for stock first — 1. Stock immediately becomes base for meal , soup etc. Pull meat from cooked chicken and divide — creates options for more meals, chicken casserole, tacos, chicken salad, etc depending on how many your feeding.

Grow your own fruit and vegetables. If you have limited space look up options and ideas online, or go to a hardware store. Grow a vegetable garden and know what is in season.

Grow or buy in bulk and store in freezer or bottle for later use. What is your 1 tip for shopping and eating frugally as a family?

I sometimes place orders for cleaners, coffee and more through Boxed. Often Boxed is featured on Zulily at even further reduced prices. When shopping online, I use the Ebates browser button that alerts me to cash backs and coupons.

At the beginning of each year, I like to dig out my price book and spend some time noting if prices have changed since the last time I updated it and if those places that had the lowest prices on certain staples are still the ones with the lowest prices.

I might find that peanut butter is now cheaper at an out of town store or that butter is cheaper at the second store I shop at instead of the first.

The discount on the grocery cards typically are not huge, but hey—every penny counts right? I need to get back into doing this. I also find that daily deal sites like Living Social will run various promotions for both online and brick and mortar stores that I shop at from time to time.

If you are on a super tight budget, you could benefit from spending just a few minutes each day doing daily point-earning activities at point reward sites like Swagbucks. Many point reward companies allow you to convert your points to Paypal cards so you can use the money wherever you find the best deals on groceries.

Available in paperback and Kindle on Amazon—get your copy here! Great tips! I just scored a great deal on chicken breasts and I stocked up. Should last us for a little while. I love the challenge of trying to feed us healthy for cheap. I try to plan my meal plan for the month with things already in the house and figure out my shopping list based on the few things that I need for the meals like a brick of cheese and some lettuce plus we always need milk.

It helps me because I can get the things that are super cheap and stock up the freezer and pantry for the next coming months without having to worry about the cost to the budget. This has save us multiple trips to stores. Lots of great tips here. I have always been frugal, and tried to save money by using up leftovers, but now that we live off the grid I have another reason to avoid food waste — no garbage service, lol!

I try to save every little spoonful of leftover food from each meal. I freeze it all and make my Kitchen Sink Soup because I put in everything but the kitchen sink.

Spoonfuls of rice or pasta, mixed vegetables, and meats become another full meal with a few cups of chicken or beef stock, kidney beans, fresh homegrown herbs and homemade bread.

Thanks for the great post! I usually start with the flyers to see what is on sale, then I check the pantry. From there I figure out a menu. Then I go shopping. The price book is an excellent idea. I have a spreadsheet where I track prices.

I try to update prices every few weeks, because unfortunately, prices are going up a lot faster than they used to. has gotten smaller. Plus a lot of coupons now are electronic either through being added by you to a store card or an App so no need to print. Six Figures Under{Debt Repayment Progress Report} 5.

Snail Pace Transformations {Step by Step Grocery Shopping With a Thrifty Person} 6. Mission to Save {Never Pay for Toothpaste Again} 7. An Inviting Home {An Adoption Story} […]. Snail Pace Transformations takes us through each step of her process.

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See my disclosure page for more information Steps That Will Save You Money On Your Groceries Before You Leave Home I generally make one big grocery shopping trip every other week, and then the following week I go to the cheapest store to restock our dairy, fruit and fresh vegetable needs.

Grow or buy in bulk and store in freezer or bottle for later use. What is your 1 tip for shopping and eating frugally as a family? Christie Burnett is a teacher, presenter, writer and the mother of two. She created Childhood as a place for teachers and parents to access engaging, high quality learning ideas.

Growing own kitchen garden is the best of the tips. Fresh picks from the garden and the kitchen waste can be used as organic fertiliser too. Give up the meat altogether and use filling, wholesome lentils, chick peas, beans, pulses for protein. Healthy, cheap especially if buying bulk dried and good for the planet and the animals.

Plan your menu according to the sales. I tend to do my meal planning around the BOGOs Buy One, Get One Free , plus I use coupons. Shop at different places to get the best prices, so we shop at a few different stores.

Buy meat in bulk and cut it yourself. Cut out unneeded things, like paper towel. Coupons and utilising Flybuys and Rewards points to my advantage. I do online surveys for vouchers.

We try to use a mix of fresh and frozen vegetables. Make double of as much as possible to freeze, reduces the number of visits to shops! Make sure you shop when you have time so you can compare products on the shelves. Shop farmers markets. Never shop hungry.

Make big soups, casseroles or pastas so you get 2 meals, or 1 meal and a few lunches. I made my own spaghetti sauce, easy and cheap. Make pasta sauce and freeze it. Limit pre-packaged foods, chips, cookies, candy, soft drinks, or sugary beverages.

Store brands are often as good or better than the pricier name brand. Compare ingredients lists and Nutrition Facts panels. Search high and low because the least expensive items are often on the top and bottom shelves. Beans, lentils, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, eggs, peanut butter, canned salmon, tuna or crabmeat, oats, brown rice, barley, quinoa, and frozen fruit and vegetables are all low-cost but high in nutrition and add flavor to any meal.

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