Truth be told, I really dislike cutting coupons for groceries. Although I use coupons for other purchases, groceries aren’t one that I seek them out for anymore.
I mentioned this when I discussed my money-wasting habits, but I find the entire process pretty cumbersome and tend to get so caught up in the “deals” that I find myself clipping coupons for items I normally wouldn’t even buy. The area I live in doesn’t have any stores that will double them either, so the opportunities to save money by couponing are pretty limited to begin with.
Have no fear though, as I’ve discovered plenty of ways to save money on groceries without using coupons, and I’m excited to share them with you!
Whether you dislike couponing, can’t find coupons for the items you normally purchase, or just don’t have the time for it, there are still plenty of ways you can save money on your grocery bill.
How to save money on groceries without coupons:
1. Make a shopping list
Before you head out to the grocery store, make a list of everything you will need for the week. Make sure you account for all meals and even snacks. Sticking to your list will help you avoid impulse purchases.
2. Don’t assume the biggest package is cheaper
Don’t make the mistake of assuming that the largest package of an item is going to be the cheaper option. Instead, check the unit price to determine which item is actually the best value.
The unit price can typically be found on the price tag of each item. If the unit prices aren’t displayed, just do the quick math on the calculator on your phone. You may be surprised to find that the smaller package sometimes ends up costing less per unit than the larger one.
3. Buy in bulk
Although bigger quantities aren’t always cheaper, you can often save money by getting good deals on bulk foods. Items such as frozen chicken and rice are typically cheapest when bought in bulk.
4. Only buy what you’ll use
This might seem like common sense, but you can bet almost all of us are guilty of having food go bad in our fridge before we have the chance to eat it. Resist the urge to stock up for the sake of stocking up, and don’t buy anything you aren’t 100% certain you’ll have the chance to eat before it spoils. Especially when it comes to produce!
5. Shop at Aldi & Trader Joe’s
If you have access to these stores, I highly suggest paying them a visit. We live in fairly close proximity to both, so I’m at these stores pretty often. I’ve found that the prices are overall less expensive than many of the larger supermarkets by us.
6. Buy generic items
For the most part, generic versions are just as tasty as their brand name counterparts. We’ve saved so much money over the years by almost always buying the generic version of groceries. As long as the nutritional value and taste align with the brand name version (and it’s cheaper), we buy it.
7. Keep track of staple items you need
We have an ongoing list that we add items to as we run out of them, or if we know we are about to run out of something. It makes it really easy to then just quickly grab this list as we walk out the door to shop. Then you don’t have to waste too much time sifting through your fridge and cabinets trying to figure out what you need.
8. Purchase in-season produce
Purchasing fruits and vegetables when they are in-season is a good way to not only get the freshest and tastiest versions of your produce, but ensures they will be at their lowest prices as well. Not sure when each fruit and vegetable is in season? No worries! I don’t always know either, but I find this comprehensive list to be super helpful.
9. Keep track of rock bottom prices
Try to keep either a mental or hard copy list of the absolute lowest prices you’ve found your staple food items being sold for in your area. Referring to this list will be an easy way to determine if something on “sale” is an actual deal.
10. Don’t shop while hungry
When you go grocery shopping while hungry, you are going to be much more likely to veer off your list and be enticed by junk food or items that look good to you at the time, as you’ll be led through the store by your grumbling stomach rather than the list of items you truly need. I’ve found the quickest way to double my grocery bill is to shop while hungry. Just don’t do it!
11. Skip prepared foods
Although it can save time in the kitchen to use foods already prepared by the grocery store, such as cheese trays and pre-cut fruit, these items are extremely expensive compared to their non-prepared counterparts.
An additional resource to save on overall food costs:
I also find it extremely helpful to save on meal costs overall by meal planning. A great option to utilize if taking the time to do your own meal planning doesn’t interest you is to use a super inexpensive meal planning service such as eMeals.
eMeals weekly dinner plans include:
- Seven meals based on whatever eating plan you choose.
- A shopping list with all of the ingredients you’ll need that is organized based on sections within whichever grocery store you choose. They also coordinate the meal plan with weekly sale items if you choose which grocery store you like to shop at!
- Recipe instructions that are simple and easy to follow.
You can click here to try out a free 14 day trial of eMeals. I think this can be a great resource if you are super busy and want your meal planning and shopping list done for you every week, while also saving significant money by eating at home and having your grocery list coordinated based on whatever items are currently on sale at your grocery store. I’d say that’s pretty darn convenient! Sometimes I use some referral codes to get some money off when I sign up on items like salad credit for Sweetgreen.
What are your strategies for saving on groceries without the use of coupons?
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Great tips for cutting the grocery bill! Especially the one about making note of low prices. Making a list is a no brainer for me each time I shop because I know it will keep me from wandering around aimlessly in the store and picking up things I don’t need. I’ve also been shopping at Aldi a lot more and buying produce in season to boost stay within my budget and boost my savings at the store.
Thanks Chonce! We are lucky to have lots of Aldi locations in Chicagoland 🙂
Great tips!! We have an Aldi close by that we shop at! We also shop at Trader Joe’s, Walmart and the local grocery stores. I couponed for a little bit too and also found that I was buying stuff we didn’t need and not really saving that much money. What’s saved the most money for us is meal planning, choosing meals to make with few ingredients and eating what we have before going back to the store. Also – love the tip on not shopping while hungry!! That’s usually what gets me in trouble!!
Thanks Sarah! That’s great! Shopping while I’m hungry is a disaster waiting to happen. I don’t do well in general when I’m hungry (I’m that person that is snacking every 2 hours), so when I’m getting groceries it just makes everything look good!!
Great tips! I lived in a double couponing area, but it was still difficult to find coupons for what we needed. And then sometimes the price after double couponing was still more expensive than Walmart without a coupon. I only recently started implementing #9, and now buying eggs will never be the same! 🙂
Hi Kay! 😉 Yep, all of that work to use coupons and then sometimes it would still be cheaper to buy the store brand for me. Sometimes it’s just not worth it!
Okay, I don’t know how I did that, but I’m “anonymous” up there! 😛
Found you! 🙂
Buying in bulk is great. One of the stores I like to frequent has tons of bins for items… you scoop into a bag and make note of the code. Cuts down on extra packaging, you get the exact amount you want, and it’s cheaper!! I also have started shopping the sales and prepare meals around those items instead of making a meal plan and then shopping to fit it. Takes some creativity, but I think it’s helped us reduce our grocery spending.
That’s awesome! Is it a chain store or just a local one? I don’t know any stores like that except Whole Foods near us.
I could be misreading the comment but I think the place she’s referring to is similar to Bulk Fresh Pantry in Westmont. Where they have bins of dry goods (spices, baking necessities, nuts, etc.), you scoop them into a plain plastic bag and buy as much as you need, they weigh it and you pay by weight. It used to be called the Home Economist. Definitely check it out!
That’s fantastic, I had no idea Bulk Fresh existed. I will have to check it out, thanks so much for sharing! 🙂
There is a store here close to me in North Idaho that sounds similar (buy in bulk, bag & tag) and it is called Winco. I love that store!
This is very timely as my husband and I were just discussing how we are spending too much on groceries. I really hate cutting coupons. Actually I’m fine with cutting them, I just don’t actually use them! We have a Trader Joe’s but it’s a bit out of the way for weekly shopping, so we don’t go there as often. We do love their selection though. What do you think about Costco and Sam’s Club?
We actually had a Costco membership up until a few months ago! I personally really love the experience of going there. It’s probably just all the free food and drinks samples, but I genuinely enjoy myself while shopping there!
While I think they have a great selection of items and some different foods that we can’t really find anywhere else around here, we ended up deciding it wasn’t worth the membership cost for us. We tended to be enticed by all of the unique foods and would end up buying the bulk quantities only to have a lot of it go bad, since it’s just my Husband and I eating it all right now.
I think once my daughter is off pureed foods it might be a good idea to reconsider a membership again, but for right now it just doesn’t seem to make sense. Even if we save money on toiletries and the like there, it unfortunately doesn’t offset the cost of the $50 yearly membership or the fact that we simply can’t eat all the food we purchase. I still think that for families with older kids that it could be a great cost savings though!
Great list. I don’t generally coupon because I buy so little processed food (not even cereal) so although I’ll put one in my wallet if I happen to see one, it’s mostly just not worth my while to spend time on. But not wasting food is obviously a big one for me — I’m trying to become a reformed stocker-upper — and so is shopping at multiple stores to get the best triangulation between quality and price. Within reason, anyway; I usually hit two or three close-together places on my weekend shopping trip, though sometimes I’ll just do one depending on what my list looks like.
Wasting food is something we are constantly working on as well. We’ll go long stretches of time where we have almost zero waste, and then other times when I feel like every day I’m throwing out something that we didn’t end up eating. I’d love to get to a point where we never throw away a single leftover or spoiled piece of fruit!
I also agree about hitting up multiple stores only to a certain point. If you have to go miles out of your way for a second store just because it’s cheaper, the gas used to get there usually always is more expensive than the savings (not to mention the cost of your time). That being said, we do usually go to 2 stores when we shop. We’re lucky that they are right across the street from each other!
I really liked your money saving list for groceries. We have stores that offer discounts to cardholders, like Kroger. We also have Randall’s, which provides not only discount, but provides personalized deals on items we frequently purchase such as milk, our favorite organic pizza, etc. With prices reduced 30-45% off the usual prices.
Another technique hubby and I use for shopping is looking for “manager’s special” products. These are marked packages that are getting ready to expire. Percentages off range from 30% to 75%. This is the way we keep our freezer full of meatsand veggies. You have to make sure you rotate products placing the older stuff on top.
Thanks so much for the great tip contributions Helen! These are fabulous ideas 🙂