Grocery Comparision, Sales, Keeping track?
Hi, I am new at this. I am a stay at home mom and we are on a very very tight budget and I need help on how to compare grocery prices, any tips or ideas on that as well as how to keep track of it all. I do not have receipes either. I am thinking a spiral notebook will help me to keep track of prices here and there. However i need to know how to compare the prices, is there another way besides going to all the stores each week? Thank you so so much, I really need your help and I do not have anyone else to ask.
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If your local stores have websites, sign up for email alerts for specials. Safeway has a thing now where they have internet only specials and coupons that you load directly onto your Safeway card. No clipping coupons! Actually I just got a free dozen eggs today by doing that. Read the circulars that come in the mail and star the stuff you need. Keep a Wish List, and when you're making your grocery list, pick and choose what you need now, or what can wait. Say like you have tahini on your Wish List, but aren't going to make hummus for months, don't add it to the grocery list.
Another thing I've been doing for 3+ years now is keeping track of our grocery spending (just food, no booze or toiletries or pet food) in Excel. It really helps to keep spending down. You might think you're out of something, but one quick glance and you might see you just bought it last week. And conversely, you might think you have something, but you really bought it 4 weeks ago and it's gone bad. I've managed to get our (2 adults) grocery bill down from $450 to $225 a month. Good luck, you can do it!
I have the opportunity to watch the local and network news once a day between 5:00 and 7:00, the last half hour of which is national news. The past week or so I watched intently the information about the rains and flood waters out in the Missouri, Arkansas areas and felt really bad for those living there. This winter has really been a strange one for the whole nation, not just areas of it. I enjoy watching the news like that, I don't have time, with my current schedule, to sit down and read a newspaper, besides, I feel newpapers have a tendancy to be very biased in their opinions, even when they are writing about issues where opinions aren't even called for. I'm not saying that the networks can't be biased, I just feel that they are less biased than most other forms of getting the news, at least at the national level. So, that's my choice. Good luck.
at one time - - long time AGO - - I was going (was) to keep my receipts and enter them into a data base I would type
and the program would adjust the list to accept the new numbers and sale price and last date
I would enter my needs and the last numbers would appear and I could then print the grocery list
I am such a poor typist and I lost interest
besides tracking the inflation rate was not the idea
What could I accomplish WE can complain BUT to what good.
check the sales add = $1.29/5lbs sugar next week price $5.20
and I missed the sale
first off, it is good to check the store ads for sure. However, it is NOT worth it in todays day and age to go running from one store to the other. Actually, walmart may be your best place to shop unless you have a save a lot or aldi's in your area.
OK,,,,,, Winn dixie is offering Bryers ice cream buy one get one . the cost is 5.99 for one. however, walmart has bryers for 2.59 for the same container. You would actually be saving money by getting it at Walmart.
join a shoppers club ie... bj's or sam's. i found chips for lunches are cheaper to buy them in bulk in individual servings than it is to pay 3.49 for a bag of chips that you may get 8 servings out of. Lunchmeat at BJ's is 598 for a 2 pack of ham or turkey. the same single package at walmart is I believe 4$ or somewhere around there. So you have just saved about 2$ there.
I still check prices at BJ's and Walmart or Winn Dixie. I usually make a stop once a month at all 3 for my groceries. I know about what Winn dixie has on thngs, and I go by the add to determine if that week will be profitable to go there or not. OR to just get my meats in bulk at BJ's ab bag of chicken breast for about 9$ that gives me about 6 meals, or buy fresh chicken at 9$ for 4 pcs.
make a list. Stick to it. If you have a cranky child who only eats certain things, then make sure you get the best bargin on them. ie... 1 bottle of juice at winn dixie is 3.96. 2 bottle of the same juice at BJ's is 6.50. It is not much of a savings, but it is worth the savings.
get a guest pass for sams of bj's and check them out. if nothing else go into a winn dixie (or whatever grocery you have ) write the price down. do the same for walmart, and the same at the warehouse store.