Tips for Saving at the Grocery Store

by Carrie Gamble

I’ve learned things over the years to save money at the grocery. We’ve been through some super tight spots financially before. SO much so we used to bring a calculator to the grocery store. Once we hit whatever amount we had budgeted for that week we didn’t buy anything else or we would exchange things for what we really needed that week. And some weeks were so bad we could only eat at Taco Bell because we couldn’t afford groceries that week and tacos were super cheap back then 😆.

Tips on Saving

Buying bulk when I can, especially paper products.
I meal plan every week so I’m not just buying a bunch of stuff I don’t need.
I make a list of what I don’t already have in order to make the meals from the meal plan.
I typically buy generic brands unless I can’t find one. There has only been a few times that the generic was just not good and I wouldn’t buy it again.
We used to use coupons,(we killed it when stores used to do super double coupons!) but find these days that whatever coupons are out there I don’t buy those items.
- Sometimes Meijer will mail me coupons or send me a mailer letting me know to go to their digital coupons for my most used items. They know what I use because I have signed up for Mperks and make sure I log in at check out every week to get my points and those points turn into money off later in the month.

Shopping at Multiple Stores

These days I shop at Aldi first and buy there what I can for cheaper, but be careful NOT everything is cheaper there. I use the Meijer app to compare prices for things I’m unsure how much they are before purchasing at Aldi. Usually eggs, milk and cheese are always cheaper at Aldi. Thankfully Aldi is literally across the street from our Meijer, making it super accessible to shop this way. Just stay away from the Aldi Aisle of Shame there in the middle it gets me sometimes anyway because some of the things I find I really do need 😆.

What tips do you have that save you money?