During the difficult financial times of inflation, it can be difficult to maintain a frugal budget and save money on groceries. Here are a few frugal tips to help you save money on your grocery bill. Following these tips can help you save money on your grocery bill during times of inflation. With a few simple changes, you can save money and stay within your budget.
Plan your meals
Planning meals ahead of time can help you avoid impulse purchases and create a grocery list with only the ingredients that you need. This will help you stick to your grocery budget and avoid buying items you don’t need.
When you plan your meals, make sure you include foods that are healthy and affordable. For example, you may want to plan a casserole that you make with ground chicken instead of ground beef to save money on groceries.
Also, you can shop the sales at the grocery store to plan your meals around what food items are on sale that week or month. Create a weekly meal plan or a monthly meal plan so you know what to cook for each day.
Buy in bulk
If you’re able to buy food and other groceries in bulk, you can save money in the long run. Buying items such as canned goods, frozen vegetables, and other non-perishables in bulk can help you save money when shopping for groceries.
Plus, you can avoid the impulse purchase and temptation to overspend by buying more food than you need at a higher price per ounce. Buy things that you use frequently when you can get them at a decent price such as pasta, flour, and sugar in large quantities so you always have them on hand when you need them.
Inflation has caused the prices of everything to skyrocket and has left everything horribly overpriced. Yet income is still the same for most people. Granted, in January 2023 those on Social Security and other like-type incomes will get an 8.7% increase, which will help. Even though that is a good amount of an increase, sadly it’s not enough to cover how much prices have gone up within the last few months.
After Covid hit, it became difficult in most places to find groceries and such that we used to could easily buy. Finally it got a bit better and we could find things in the stories that we needed most of the time. Sadly however, inflation added to the pandemic has made it often impossible to find a lot of needed grocery items these days.
For this reason, it’s recommended that when you see on sale or clearance things you use and need that you stock up on (not hoard!) necessary items so that you don’t run out of what you need the most, such as meds.
Shop with a list
Always make a grocery list before you head to the store. This will help you avoid buying items you don’t need and only buy the items that you need and want at a time when inflation is so bad and prices are so high. When you have a little extra money, buy up a little extra of non-perishable items.
Make a list of the items that you regularly use such as milk, eggs, and butter. Then, make a list of the items you use occasionally such as bread, peanut butter, and cheese. Then, write down any other items that you may need for your meal plans such as tortillas and fresh produce. After you make your list, stick to it to avoid overspending on your grocery bill when prices are high and the cost of everything continues to increase.
Buy generic brands
Opting for generic brands during inflation can help you save money on groceries. While generic brands may not always taste the same, they often provide similar quality products at a lower price.
You can often save anywhere from 10% to 50% when you buy generic products. Avoid shopping on an empty stomach! When shopping at the grocery store hungry, you may spend more money on unhealthy snacks and foods than you normally would if you shopped when you aren’t hungry. Make a list before you go to the store to help you stick to your budget while grocery shopping.
Most generic store brand items are put up by name brand companies. It’s often the exact same thing just in different packaging. Through trying various generic items you will learn what is the same, what you like, etc. Make a list so you won’t forget. 🙂
Shop sales and clearances
Take advantage of sales and discounts when you can. Many stores offer discounts on certain items or have weekly sales, so always keep an eye out for these opportunities to save money.
Finding items on clearance can save a load of money. If it’s something you have use for, wonderful! But what if you see a great deal on clearance for things that you don’t use?
If it’s a super great deal, something that will keep for a good while, and something useful then you might consider buying it anyway on the clearance price. If times get worse (and they can surely get much worse), it might be helpful to have items you can barter with.
Get the Fetch App
Check out Fetch Rewards. It’s a free app that turns all your receipts into Rewards. Just snap your receipts from any store or restaurant and earn points every time. Then, redeem those points for Rewards, including hundreds of gift cards. You’ll earn the most points on thousands of popular products found in the app, and even more on Special Offers.
Download Fetch Rewards for free here
Conclusion
Inflation is bad, that’s a given. Prices are outrageous. Money simply doesn’t go as far as it did two years ago. Recession will likely immediately follow the inflation. Making the most of these frugal tips can help you save money during these tough financial times.
It will likely mean you will have to make a few simple changes, but by doing so you can save money stay within your budget, and keep food on the table.