Obviously the best way to save money is to shop the sales, stockpile, and clip coupons for products that you normally buy. We understand that sometimes that is just not possible for every person’s situation. We are reaching out to those of you that don’t have the time because of a high stressful job, kids running around, or simply just don’t want to do it. You can save money on your grocery bill without clipping a single coupon.

Here is how:

1. Make a List and Stick To It – If it is not on the list, don’t buy it. No matter how loud your kids are screaming for it. If your Little One insist on having a “bite” of the banana or Goldfish as you walk by, bring food with you to the grocery store for snacks.
2. Shop The Sales – We are going back to our grandmother days, where they only shopped the sales. If chicken is on sale this week, “honey we are eating chicken every night this week and leftovers on the weekend”. The front page of the grocery store ads typically lists the best deals, but not always. Know your price points so you don’t get fooled by the brightly colored ads or “1/2 off fluff”. Avoid the minimum purchase requirements, typically you pay more to get the discount.
3. Create a Price Point List – If you are shopping at Walmart or Sam’s Club, take the time and type your purchases into an Excel spreadsheet. Then use that price point list when you shop. You can refer to it when you are not sure if you are getting a good deal. We created our price points for meat from Sam’s Club so we can keep track of what is a good deal and what is just “fluff”.
4. Avoid Becoming a Brand Snob – So you are saving time by not clipping coupons, give yourself some flexibility on brands. If you family does not have issues with using any types of products, go ahead and buy the cheaper store brand. Why spend more money on that expensive jar of spaghetti sauce because that is what we always buy, when for a couple dollars in spices you can dress it up to be exactly the same flavor, maybe even better. We are label readers, if we find an expensive product on sale that we like we read the ingredients and duplicate the recipe at home with a cheaper brand. A good example is Quaker Oatmeal; the flavored oatmeal can be made at home with a simple addition of brown sugar, raisins and some pecans. Yummy! Another example of this for eating out is Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce, Google these words and you will come up with the exact recipe on the internet. There are tons of sites out there that will give you the recipes for all your favorite restaurants.
5. Loyalty Cards – Use those shopping cards every time you shop at those stores. Don’t forget to sign up for UPROMISE and Save for College and SavingsStar .
6. Butcher BFF – Make your butcher your new best friend. Try and find out when you store typically places the meat on sale or when they mark meat as “Manager Special”.
7. Make One Shopping Trip - This is not only a money saver because you are planning your meals and avoiding those $97.98 forgot the toothpaste runs to the grocery store but a huge time saver as well. Think about what meals you have prepared for the past couple months. They are pretty much the same. Think about it, you are probably serving the same reliable recipes month after month? Shopping for the month will save you time, gas, and probably a little sanity by shopping only once a month. Instead of the 1-2 hour shopping trips once a week with kids in tow, try shopping for 2-3 hours without the kids. If you try this method you may find that you are using all the food you have in the pantry and freezer by the end of the month. Looking for more time? Try cooking or preparing two or three meals at one time for the week and try preparing sack lunches on Sunday night for the rest of the week.
8. Register Watching – Watch carefully what is being rung up and if the price is correct. Watching the register for the correct prices can be an important key to saving money.

As we have mentioned the best way to saving money is to clip coupons but when you can’t or won’t you can still save money off your grocery bill if you will use some of these tips.

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This entry was posted by Frances on Saturday, March 17th, 2012 at 4:36 am and is filed under Frugal Fairhope Thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.