You can’t save money on grocery shopping without coupons? Think again! In the first part of this series, I shared four different ways that, yes, you can save money buying groceries without using coupons. And of course, you may want to add these tips even when you do use coupons.
Buy in bulk
Buying in bulk can usually save you quite a bit of money, whether it is produce or prepared meals, meat or dairy, etc. This is often in contrast to when you are using coupons. With coupons, you often want to buy the smallest packaging that will take a coupon. Be sure to always check the unit pricing when buying in bulk, as mentioned in the previous post. Another form of buying in bulk is stockpiling on good deals.
Buy only what you can use
Isn’t it amazing that 25% of all of the food we buy winds up wasted? Don’t buy items that you won’t use. This goes a bit against the above rule, but let me offer some explanation. You want to eliminate as much waste as possible, so you aren’t throwing money away. I’ll buy ground turkey in bulk because I know that I can make different meals from it and freeze what we don’t immediately consume. Likewise, I will buy rice in bulk because it lasts practically forever without spoiling. I wouldn’t buy a bulk jar of mayonnaise, though, because we don’t use it very often.
Don’t buy what you don’t like
Another way of wasting food is to buy things that you or your family won’t eat. I often do this when I forget to read labels. We have a food allergy here and the darndest things contain allergens. Sometimes I see people buying healthy foods but then not eating them. As if just buying the healthy food is enough to be healthy. It is fun to try new things of course, but buy a small amount of something new until you are sure you want to add it to your diet.
Keep a price book
Knowing what things cost can go a long way to helping you make good choices. Sales are cyclical, and regular store prices can vary. I would never buy yogurt for more than 40 cents a cup or butter for more than $2.50 a pound, because I know I can get it for that price on any given week (depending on store or brand). I often do better than these prices, but they are my threshold.
Well, I hoped you learned something and will visit my posts again!
You can read more blog posts by Mary Ann Romans here!
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Related Articles:
Eight Rules for Buying Groceries without Coupons
Coping with the Grocery Shrink Ray
Adjusting Your Price Book with Escalating Grocery Costs