Start by identifying the closest supermarkets to you hello, high gas prices! and cross check the cost of your favorite items online before you shop.

Think about what you spend the most on and prioritize finding the best price for those items. The next step is to follow that quintessential shopping advice: Don't go to the grocery store hungry.

You're much more likely to make impulse and unhealthy purchases if you do, so shop after a meal or grab a healthy snack before heading to the store.

And remember: The cheapest groceries are not always the most nutritious; consider spending slightly more for foods that are filling and nutrient-dense. For tips and recommendations for a more economical shopping experience, see below for advice from the experts at the Good Housekeeping Institute Nutrition Lab.

Fruit and vegetables are among the groceries with the largest price jumps lately , but you can still find affordable produce by buying seasonally.

Purchasing when produce is abundant helps lower the cost and will all but assure the best taste and highest levels of nutrition. Seasonal Fruits. Seasonal Vegetables. Another way to save money on produce is to opt for fruit and vegetables that have a longer shelf-life. For example, to help extend your grocery dollars, choose apples over berries or carrots or celery over leafy greens.

Generally, some of the cheapest fruit and vegetables year-round tend to be bananas, apples, oranges, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and sweet potatoes. Meat can be the most expensive category for most food budgets, and can account for a large portion of the overall grocery bill.

To save money, opt for the ground variety of your favorite protein. Ground beef, chicken or turkey are super versatile, easily frozen and can be used in many different recipes. Larger cuts of meat will usually cost less per pound, but they may require marinating, braising and slow cooking to bring out the tenderness.

If you do prefer to include cheaper cuts of meat, consider including:. Buying a whole chicken instead of pre-portioned cuts can also save money and the leftovers, including the bones, are great for making chicken soup or bone broth.

Consider cutting costs even further by implementing Meatless Monday or meatless dinners a few nights a week. Swap out meat for healthy plant-based meat alternatives such as tofu, tempeh, beans and legumes, as your protein source. The cost of fresh seafood may also vary seasonally.

According to the Seafood Nutrition Partnership , fresh Alaskan salmon is less expensive during the summer when the fish are more abundant.

To find the cost of buying groceries online at these three retailers, I first generated a list of 37 popular grocery items -- some name brands, some generic -- on the same day and in every grocery category including bread, snacks, dairy, produce, meat, fish, beverages and pantry staples.

I mostly avoided specialty items and organic ingredients for this exercise. For each product, I chose the cheapest available option from all three retailers: Amazon Fresh, Target and Walmart. If an item wasn't available at one retailer, I selected the next closest thing, since that's what a shopper would likely do.

In some cases, a product was only available in a larger or smaller size. In those instances, I prorated the amount and price to ensure it was an even cost comparison. While there are other places to order groceries online , Amazon Fresh, Target via Shipt and Walmart are three of the most popular US grocers with a national presence and the option for online delivery.

You'll also get Amazon Prime Video and a few other perks. As of Feb. All three offer free in-store pickup in some form, although Amazon has fewer locations than Walmart and Target. Target-owned Shipt will send groceries to your door in a matter of hours but there are some staples, including meat, not available for delivery.

While I tried to use only items that were available for delivery, it wasn't always possible. Target and its national shipping partner Shipt don't have every grocery staple available for shipping, particularly fresh meats and some produce.

If you want to shop for your full list of groceries at Target, you're likely going to have to visit a brick-and-mortar location.

In general, Walmart and Target offer the same prices online as they do in brick-and-mortar locations, but not always. Sales items, in particular, are not always coordinated between online and in-store.

Amazon Fresh is mostly online-only save for a few locations, although many products on Amazon Fresh can also be found at Whole Foods. Hungryroot is a cross between a grocery delivery service and meal kit company and encourages you to go rogue from the recipe.

Sick of plain pasta again? Chef Chris Aquilino , director of culinary at Elior North America , likes to jazz up his meals with jarred items, including pesto, olives, jalapeños, artichokes, sardines, and anchovies. They also stay fresh for a long time.

According to Aquilino, herb purées, such as basil and cilantro, can even stay fresh for weeks at a time. So don't be afraid to open up that tube. Aquilino also suggests stocking up on tomato paste.

There are numerous ways to cook with tomato paste including topping fish and making barbeque sauce. While you can easily find canned tomato paste at most supermarkets, Aquilino prefers the kind available in a tube. Use limited data to select advertising.

Create profiles for personalised advertising. Use profiles to select personalised advertising.