How much do you spend on groceries every month?

[CountryMom]

I know everyone's situation is different and grocery prices can vary drastically from place to place, but I am going to ask anyway.

We are a family of 5 and we spend $200 a month on groceries. This is just food, I spend an additional $70 a month on diapers, cat food and litter, health and beauty, etc. I have one double coupon store, but there prices are VERY high, so I really have to watch what I buy there. The store only doubles to .50. I have a mom and pop store with good meat loss leaders and a midwest store with good loss leaderes. I try to balance my double coupons and loss leaders with Aldi's and Save-a-lot. I tend to over buy, so my freezer and pantry are pretty full. I am going to try to live off my stockpile a bit and see if I can lower my grocery bill some.

So fess up, how much do you spend a month?

[Kcwalc27]

Country Mom...
I'm a mother of 5 children, 1 dog and 2 out of the 5 kids are in diapers. So we spend approx. $100-$150 every 2 weeks $200-$300 a month. Not to mention dog food, thats about $30 a month and diapers thats around $40 per week, $120 a month. So all total my grocery bill is about $450 monthly. To cut these costs, I always check our local paper for sales (here's an example of last weeks sale

Ok, first all these items were buy 1 get 1 free.

2 @ $3.69 Minute Maid Juice, 2 coupons for $.30 off doubled to $.60 off each, paid $3.09 for both.
3 @ $2.99 6-pk coke, 1 coupon B2G1F, paid $2.99 for 3 6-pks.
2 @ $2.29 Birds Eye frozen vegs, 2 coupons for $.55/1 doubles to $1 off each paid $.29 for both.
2 @ $2.89 Motts apple sauce, 2 coupons $.55/1 doubles to $1 off each, paid $.89 for both
2 @ $5.09 Purex liquid, 2 coupons $.35/1 doubles to $.70 off each, paid $3.69 for both
2 @ $2.09 Goldfish crackers, 2 coupons $.55/1 doubles to $1 off each,paid $.09 for both
-----------------
Total was $41.07
after grocery card and coupons total was $11.04

That's over 50% off my total bill!

I buy my diapers at wal-mart where a super mega pkg is $16.49 along with $2/1 coupons. So like $15 a pkg. Same with wipes. I haven't bought a single can of formula since my baby was born almost 9 months ago! Love those free formula coupons!

Hope I haven't gone overboard and answered the question as it was asked. I tend to forget once I start babbling.
Angela

[mrswashburn]

well, this isn't just groceries....this covers diapers, rabbit food, gas for the car, general spending money....we spend $400 to $500 a month on all of this

[Kcwalc27]

If you are spending that much, you're doing better than I am! I didn't think about gas costs, which here its only $0.97.9 a gallon. And spending money...what's that?? LOL. Only way we can cut our costs is, hubby takes bus to work, no gas being used. Use coupons when grocery shopping, pet food...Wal-mart seems to be the cheapest for us, but PetSmart takes coupons too. And we are really careful on spending money, don't buy it if we don't need it. Well hope this helps.
Angela

[pat123123]

We spend from $100-$150 a month, average, for groceries and paper products, and cleaning products, soaps, laundry supplies, etc. I do NOT include pet food/supplies/etc in our total as it would throw it WAY off--we have one dog--well, two now since another turned up here last week; a goat, poultry, and a whole pile of cats. I won't even admit to how many cats I feed (though only one is in the house).

[PumpkinNoodlie]

Omigoodness Pat! How do you do that? I would love to hear some of your secrets!

For us....golly..I'm not really sure these days. I *used* to feel I kept it done to under $200.00 per month. But, that was before I started a diet...and a time when dh came home to eat lunch (which was always something in the crockpot for him).

My diet is really making me cringe right now...especially since fruits are out of season right now. I just picked up 3 cantelope for 2 bucks each (eek!). Since it's so difficult for me to diet in the first place..I'm trying to allow myself food items I enjoy. I've been tellilng myself to remember all the money I'll save on my health bills later LOL!. And we live so far out from any shopping (45 mins) its difficult to run in for all the weekly specials (and they're usually out by the time I make it anyway (wah!)

All considered..it's probably at its highest right now. Maybe 300.00 for 2 people? Oh..and I know what you mean about the cats. I took one in..and notice I'm starting to baby her with canned food instead of dry. Welp..she *is* my baby these days! And the way she cuddles up to me really tugs at my heartstrings (for some reason...she likes to rest her head on my shoulder)! LOL!

[frugalchick]

Ok, let me see.....there are 4 of us, 2 very hungry teens, LOL!
and dh and I......dh and I are trying to watch the salt intake and
the fat/chol./stuff.....it does get so $$$!!!!

I would have to say over the last 6 months.....anywhere from
$300-$500 a month......this includes EVERYTHING. Paper, pet,
junk, you name it......

I would love to spend $150 a month....but don't see it for a while.
It is so much more $$$ when you have to buy the fresh fruits and veggies....least it is here! I never knew it cost so much to eat more of the 'healthy' stuff!!!

[aka_alisa]

there is only dh and i and we spend around 200. a month. that does include paper and we also have 3 cats, 1 bird and a turtle. this coming up year i am gonna start using more coupons and we are gonna start only buying loss leaders. we are also gonna start stocking our pantry so that we only have to go shopping once a month!!

[Jerseygirl]

I was doing great with my coupons, loss leaders, and those leftovers mom sends home on Sunday nights--approx $160. per month for the two of us and part time step son, this includes all the paper, cleaning and health products. We do either eat or order out about every 10 days. Before we moved I stopped buying completely and depleted my pantry to 3-4 storage boxes of food and 2 boxes of cleaning supplies-I figured it would be easier to move and it helped with costs-I was only buying about $10 in fresh fruits and veggies each week for over a month. OK great I'm paying for it now with much less time to coupon and comparison shop and not having the storage that I had, I had to go blindly into a store last week, no coupons no nothing, and for a few days worth of stuff I paid $50!! I have got to buckle down and get it together again, I nearly had an attack when I saw my bill, how do people do that?

[MicheleMomof3]

Right now we are spending $350 a month. 4 adults, 2 kids, 1 baby and 4 cats. It can be less but with Christmas coming Im always in hurry it seems. After Christmas I will have more time to clip coupons and shop longer.
~Michele~

[NativeMommyof2]

We usually spend about $280 and that includes food, cleaning stuff, diapers and animal food. ~

There are 4 of us ... Hubby, me and two boys. We also have a cat and 2 birds.

[Lori Biever-Launder]

I am a newbie here, but an old hand at being a cheapskate! There are four of us--two boys with appetites like linebackers!--, DH and myself, as well as a cat and a dog. I spend about 250.00-300.00 per month for everything. I will mention that I do NOT buy the cheapest pet food out there, but buy a brand that is recommended by a friend who is a vet. It is not expensive and NO, it's not Science Diet! A forty pound bag of dog food is about 16.00 and a twenty pound bag of cat food is about 11.00. I shop at Winco for 90% of my groceries and WalMart for most of the HABA stuff. No diapers, thank heavens! My boys are eight and nine and eat tons!

I always buy the marked down meats at Winco and have come home with some steals lately. When I was there alst tiem, I got four pound of bologna for $1.00! I am not a bologna fan, but my kids love it.

[Clementine]

I budget $400/month for groceries, hba, cleaning, and paper products. My *goal* is to come closer to $300/month
This is for dh, myself, dd#1 who is 14, ds who is 9 and dd#2 who is 5. We have no pets.

[sewinggranny]

We spend $200.00 a month on cat food, cat litter and dog food. We have 4 dogs, 10 cats and we feed 12 stray cats daily. Our groceries average about $200.00 to $250.00 a month. Its only 2 of us but my hubby takes a packed lunch from home every day and I feed a grandchild breakfast every weekday before school. We also drink a lot of drinks. However I do try to shop the sales and plan my menus around them so I guess with all the animals we feed we are not doing to bad.

[pat123123]

Hi! Sorry not to answer sooner. Someone asked how we keep our grocery bill so low. 100-150 a month for the three of us (including health/beauty, paper, etc)

First, let me mention something that will SHOCK you. We do not even use coupons very often!!!! I do not have a newspaper subscription and to just buy the Sunday paper would be $1.50 a week. If a coupon comes my way for something that we use anyway, or something that would be basically free or pennies, I'll use it. Otherwise, I hold onto the ones that I come across that don't expire EVER or for a very long time....The only store here that doubles coupons is Krogers--and they are the most expensive grocery in town. They only double the low value coupons also, under I think 39 cents or some such. Generally, the equivalent store brand is still cheaper at another store. I also don't garden...just a little herb garden, and usually a pot of lettuce and a couple tomato plants.

Here's some things I do...

1. As a general rule, we do not buy convenience foods. As with every rule there ARE exceptions. I do buy 4/1.00 generic boxes of macoroni and cheese--dh makes them (I hate them). I do buy Ramen noodles. I try to get them on sale 10/1.00 but will pay full price if necessary (and have found the least expensive place for those is our Walmart supercenter. So, I pick them up when there). A few times a year I'll buy him one of those cherry chip cake mixes (otherwise I bake from scratch) or a can of pie filling (for a certain recipe I make). As far as I can think of right now, that's all we buy from the convenience foods.

2. We buy generics. We are DEFINITELY not brand loyal. We will eat whatever brand or generic is the lowest price for that item. We DO have a couple of exceptions...there is one store brand of the velveeta style cheese we find HORRID....we only buy that product once or twice a year anyway so we do buy the other (slightly higher) store brand. The only other products I can think of that we insist on a certain brand is LaChoy Soy Sauce and well, I insist on a certain brand of fem. hyg. products....others cause allergic reactions but we won't go there, lol....

3. We build our diet around "basic" foods. This includes things like....

things like potaotes, onions, and bananas pretty much year round. (depending on the price of bananas that is). Plus, whatever produce is on sale or in season. Also, whatever produce I can get "free"--grow, take someone's surplus that they would throw out, forage for (ethically with landowners permission), etc

For us, canned veggies are generally cheaper than raw. We do NOT buy the ones that are costly either way. That means that though I love asparagus it is a rare treat here. A couple times a year maybe. Ideally I would plant some....

Probalby one of the biggest factors--meat is eaten as an INGREDIENT of other dishes, not as a main dish. This means soup and casseroles are big things here. Roasts, etc are not. In fact, it is a rare day that we eat a "meat" meal here. We have soup generally at least twice a week and casseroles at least a couple times a week.

Another key....I don't tolerate "picky" eaters. It is simply not allowed here. Everyone has a limited number of dislikes. I don't cater to more than a couple per person and everyone is expected to eat whatever is served (keep in mind, the couple of most hated foods of each person are not served to the family as a general rule, they are saved for other meals when that person is not there or has another choice). If the food is not eaten (because the person decides they don't want to, dont' like it) then they would get served it the next meal. It doesn't get tested very often!

I prefer to bake my own breads, and prefer to do so from home ground grain. I'm not always able to do this. When I can't, we get the cheapest store bread though I don't care much for it (except for toast). All desserts are homebaked. Many times I will open a can of fruit for dessert instead. We need that nutrition anyway!

I don't buy many juices....they are guzzled down at a rate faster than the body can use here. We don't buy sodas, etc. Beverages are water, milk, and as a treat juice or koolaid. Hot chocolate is a regular--we make it ourself, not mixes. Coffee for dh daily, and a couple times a week for me. Tea from my herbs or loose bulk purchased mint.

We take the attitude that whatever food we are able to get, is food granted us by God. We dont' waste it. We don't complain about it. We are grateful that we have food--when many in the world do not.

We eat yummy meals! All home cooking (meals out are a VERY rare thing here....and usually only if treated by visiting relatives!)
If you have any more questions on this, feel free to holler!