Keeping a price book is a really great way to help you cut back and save money. What is a price book exactly? A price book, is a notebook, or other method of recording information on various grocery store and other retail products, mostly price. Typically the items are listed side by side for easy comparison and the book usually contains the products you purchase the most.
I thought it would be nice to give you a little glimpse into my own personal price book. Why I keep one, what it has done for me, and how I set it up and use it.
The reason I started a price book was because I had the need to save money on our large family of seven. When we were standing in the grocery store, often we had trouble remembering what the cost of that item was, somewhere else. Only to later visit the other store, and find that it would have been cheaper to purchase it from them.
Being a comparison shopper was born in me. Even as a teen and probably earlier than that even, I can remember looking for the best prices. I got an allowance and carefully spent it. I didn’t purchase my candy at the gas station like everyone else. I went to our local discount chain and bought it. Yes, my friends thought I was nuts until they had to borrow money from me for something and it was often difficult to pay back.
That all carried over into my adulthood and now I find myself comparison shopping almost obsessively. I save sales ads for everywhere, I save coupons for everywhere and now I save the information about products I have on my wish list or that are on my weekly shopping list in my price book. If I find an item I want on sale, I first look at my price book to see if I have any prices recorded for it yet, then I look through my coupons to see if I might have a coupon for a certain store that sells the item. I look for the least expensive way to obtain almost everything. And only when I am confident I am getting the best price, and that I will use the item regularly, will I purchase it.
So how do I have my price book set up?
This is what an excerpt from my price book looks like:
| Store | Bread | Milk | Spaghetti Noodles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aldi’s | $.42 | $2.08 | $.39 |
| Walmart Super Center | $.69 | $2.56 | $.65 |
| Shop and Save | $1.12 | $2.78 | $.79 |
| Schnucks | $1.24 | $2.82 | $.88 |
| Dierbergs | $1.54 | $3.09 | $1.07 |
See how easy it is to be able to just take a look at your price book and comparison shop on your everyday products? Not all stores take coupons either, and some double them. So another store, that might seem more expensive, could wind up being much cheaper than the store that normally sells for the lowest. Use coupons, watch for huge sales and watch for bulk discounts.
You can save money, I believe in you!
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