A funny part of adulting is finding yourself at the cashier of your local grocery store, absolutely dumbfounded at how huge the bill is that you have to pay.
“Since when was grocery this expensive?!” is a thought you’ll find occurring more often than not while sauntering in the aisles, especially if money is tight. And it’s understandable since, with today’s economy, everyone is looking to cut corners and save some extra money when they can.
If you’re looking to do some budgeting for grocery store hacks and not find yourself breaking out in a cold sweat at the cashier while paying, there are a few simple tips you can try that can help you. Remember, a little tact and you’ll be able to see through how grocery stores try to trick you into spending more money than you need to.
So let’s get you prepped with all the knowledge and grocery store hacks you need to know.
1. Go straight to the bulk bins
The bulk bin section at your local grocery store will be your lifesaver. It is the store section where shoppers can buy foods by weight rather than individual packages. They usually have tons of products at cheaper prices like coffee, grains, oats, nuts, and spices.
If you’re lucky, you might even find bulk pasta, legumes, or other fun snacks like yogurt-covered pretzels or raisins.
The best part is you can decide exactly how much you need instead of having to buy pre-made overpriced packets that cost more and are inconvenient with their quantities.
Bulk bins are also more eco-friendly, so if you want to adopt a more environmentally friendly lifestyle, this will be a big step towards that goal. Some stores will offer plastic to-go containers or bags, but an excellent way to limit your plastic use would be by bringing your own sustainable and reusable containers.
2. Do you really need frozen dinner?
Prepared frozen foods are public enemy number one. Sure, they are convenient, ready-to-microwave, and a quick food fix after a long exhausting day at work when you can’t be bothered to cook real food. They are always at the top of the list of grocery items you should avoid.
If you look at it from a clear perspective, frozen dinners are much more expensive than being very unhealthy. Every prepackaged meal you buy will always be more expensive than the raw ingredients in it. Moreover, they are loaded with high sodium levels and a wide range of preservatives that you did not sign up for, and let’s not get started on the calory count.
You can easily save money in both the long and short-term if you go with fresh ingredients and a little bit of effort to make a quick homemade meal. The long term will hit you like a truck when you have to shell out thousands on health care and pharmacy bills because the high sodium and caloric food finally caught up to you in a wrong way.
3. Pre-cut fruits and vegetables are a scam
Yes, you’ve heard it here first.
Those convenient-looking pre-cut fruits and vegetables you’ll find at grocery stores are a scam for your wallet. It may seem like a good idea at first but if you want to save money, taking a half-hour out of your day to prep and cut everything up in the same way at home is a much better idea.
It’ll be long-lasting too. If you buy it fresh and cut it yourself, it’s going to last you up to ten days and up to three weeks if toss it in the fridge. For example, let’s consider a huge watermelon that would be a drag to cut up and might just be the first fruit you would avoid buying whole.
The same watermelon if you buy in pre-cut containers, it’ll last you five days at most before it turns into a gross puddle of red-pink goo.
4. Big brand names are your enemy
For every big brand you’ll see, there will be five other cheaper options of the same product, whether from a local brand or an in-house item. Even if you’re worried about the quality, it’ll be almost the same thing for a lot of products, so going for it will only save you loads of money.
As surprising as it sounds because of how much brainwashing good old marketing campaigns big brands partake in, many chefs prefer buying store-brand foods, and medical professionals opt to buy store-brand drugs as well. This proves how many informed shoppers who are smart with their money nowadays are more likely to buy store-brand foods than big brands.
5. Keep reduced-price items on your radar
The next time you’re at the grocery store, be on the lookout for daily specials or reduced-price items. Many stores often cut the price of food items with a short shelf life like bread and fish. This may as well be the most obvious grocery store money-saving tip you can get.
They are perfectly safe to consume, and the main reason stores do this is to empty their shelves instead of dumping them in the trash.
These items will usually have signs or stickers marked somehow, so when you get to the aisles with perishable items, you’re most likely to find something you need at a lower price than usual. This is the best way to save big on dairy and meat.
Wrapping up
Saving money for grocery shopping is a great way to go easy on the wallet, and you’ll start to see results by the end of the month when you take a look at where your budgeting is leading you towards.
There’s a lot more where that came from, and if you’re interested, then let Wallet Manual take you for a ride in the world of budgeting with numerous tips and tricks you can incorporate to make your life easier.
Do let us know if you have any other grocery store hacks. We’d love to hear all about it!
