7 Grocery Shopping Habits That Are Costing You Money
As gas and grocery prices rise, more and more Americans are struggling to keep up with the costs of everyday expenses. This makes it more important than ever to look for any waste in your budget.
Because of how habitual your grocery shopping trips can become, this is one of the areas in a budget that is most vulnerable to waste — whether you’re buying duplicates of things you already have, being swayed by sales on items you would never normally buy, or just watching a lot of perishables sit uneaten in your fridge until they expire.
If it seems like there’s no way to spend any less on groceries than you already do, you might be surprised at just how many sneaky sources of waste are hiding in your monthly grocery spend. If you’re making any of the following mistakes, you could be wasting hundreds each month.
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1. Driving around to multiple stores in a single trip
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This is one of those seemingly frugal habits that aren’t actually worth it. Having a store rotation is great. Costco might have the best prices for some items, but not for others – or there might be some specialty items on your list you can only get at a more niche market.
But if you’re visiting every store every week, you’re using up a lot of gas and a lot of time. Instead, you should make a rotation. If Costco is your go-to for bulk buys, try to plan your trip so that you buy a month’s worth of groceries from the wholesale club in one trip. Next week, get a week or two of groceries from the next store in your rotation.
2. Not using a cash back card to pay for groceries
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Even if you have the most meticulous strategy for eliminating wasteful spending from your grocery budget, you’re still leaving money on the table if you’re paying for those groceries with cash or debit.
There are so many great rewards credit cards available now that there’s no reason not to earn something back on the spending you know you have to do every month. I earn over $300 each year on gas and groceries just by making sure I swipe the right card.
The key here is to continue strictly budgeting how much you spend on groceries every month and paying off the balance in full by the statement’s due date so that you can earn cash back without paying interest on credit card debt.
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This is a sneakier form of subscription creep that can feel justified if you don’t do the math. If you’ve got both Costco and Sam’s Club memberships, for example, take some time to look through your bank statements and find out how much you’re really using each and whether you get enough value out of each to keep them.
While some families might be able to squeeze enough value out of each membership to make the annual fees worth it, a lot of families don’t really need so many.
If you prefer the grocery selection at Costco but keep Sam’s Club because the gas station is closer, for example, maybe you can ditch the Sam’s Club membership and get the Costco credit card which offers 4% back on non-Costco gas stations. The cash back on the credit card and the amount you’re saving by skipping the Sam’s Club annual fee might be enough to make up for any savings you were getting at Sam’s Club gas stations.
Do the same math for other shopping memberships like Amazon Prime or Walmart+. Think about which perks you’re actually using and whether or not there’s a cheaper way to get those perks.
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Every grocery shopping trip should start with looking through your fridge and pantry to find out what items are actually running low and what items need to be used up. Then, use that information to come up with at least a loose meal plan for the coming week.
Even if you don’t have the energy or desire to create a detailed meal plan, you can at least jot down a few of the meals you typically cook every week or the kinds of meals you’re craving. That plan should be built on the items you already have so that you’re shopping to supplement what’s already there rather than buying all new ingredients.
Without a list, you can end up with a fridge stocked with four bottles of ketchup and not a single food item that goes with ketchup. Shopping without a list also leaves you vulnerable to sales and impulse buys that you don’t actually need.
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Trying to eat healthier is a great goal. But how many bags of spinach have you bought only to watch them quietly turn to slime in your fridge? If you’re buying a bunch of fresh veggies with no plan for them, you’re just pouring money into the garbage.
If you’re in the process of changing the way you eat, meet yourself where you are. Get frozen or canned veggies that won’t spoil so quickly. Get precut fruit so it’s easier to grab as a snack. Find ways to incorporate healthier foods into what you already eat — like sneaking some oatmeal or chia seeds into the meatballs you’re making for dinner or adding a can of peas to your favorite stew.
Don’t just buy the foods you think you should be eating and hope you’ll actually eat them. That’s a recipe for wasting money without making any progress on your health goals.
6. Buying the wrong things in bulk
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Bulk deals can be a great way to save money on the things you use regularly. But it’s not the most cost effective move for every item on your grocery list. You have to be especially careful with anything that’s perishable — make sure you only buy as much as you can eat before it turns.
Even some food items that seem a little more shelf-stable can still be bad to buy in bulk if your family won’t use it fast enough. That includes things like coffee (especially if it’s already ground) and olive oil.
Always check the expiration date when buying large quantities. Try to estimate how much of that item your family can eat in that time frame and limit your purchase to that quantity.
Buying 10 pounds of potatoes because it’s cheaper per pound than buying a five-pound bag only works if you can eat 10 pounds of potatoes before they expire. If you only end up eating five pounds or less, you paid more for the five pounds you actually consumed than you would have if you’d just bought a five pound bag to begin with.
7. Not having a grocery budget
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With rising grocery prices, this one can seem impossible. But having a target number you want to stay under can help more than you think. By the end of the month, if you’re cutting it close to that target number, you know it’s time to get creative with what you’ve already got at home rather than just buying more of the usual on autopilot.
Just about every kitchen is stocked with those neglected canned foods, forgotten frozen veggies or the leftovers from a couple nights ago you swore you’d eat. Holding yourself to a budget can force you to actually make use of those things before buying more.
If you’re not sure where to start with setting a grocery budget, look at how much you spent on groceries last month and then challenge yourself to spend, say, $100 less than that this month. Keep pushing that number down each month until you find an amount that you can comfortably afford while eliminating wasteful spending and stockpiles of uneaten food.
Cutting waste from your grocery budget isn’t just about spending less at the supermarket. The money you free up can be redirected toward bigger financial goals, whether that’s building an emergency fund, paying down debt or saving more for retirement. Want help deciding where those extra dollars could make the biggest difference?
Use the Bankrate tool below to connect with a vetted financial professional who can help you with a strategy to reach your financial goals.
