Save Money On Your Grocery Bill

Weve all heard about certain ways to cut your grocery bill like avoiding the grocery store when youre hungry, using coupons on double coupons day, and buying only the items on your list. These are all good tips and we should keep using them. However, Ive found a few pointers that might help you save even more on your grocery bill.

The first thing you need to do after youve made your grocery list is to try to figure the total cost of your grocery bill. Make sure youve got everything on the list that youll need because after youve made an educated guess youre going to go to your purse or wallet, take out the cash and leave the rest behind. Believe me, this will definitely cut back on the unnecessary extras because you wont have the credit cards to fall back on. And if youre like me, youd rather be hung upside down by your toe nails than be found short at the check out.

Dont be afraid to look on the day-old bread rack or in the "about to expire" section of the meat department. You have to be careful, but youll probably be able to tell whether the item is good. Just make sure to use it right away, dont let it sit in your refrigerator for a week. Who knows, it just might "meat" your expectations and save you money in the process!

Another thing to think about is the time of day, time of week and even time of month that you are shopping. Ive found that early in the morning and in the middle of the week is when the grocery stores are less busy and youll be able to get more efficient shopping done. Be careful not to go on the first day or two of the month. Some stores have been known to raise prices because that is the time that social security and welfare checks go out.

Buy in bulk when it makes sense. If youre shopping at Costco or Sams Club you still need to comparison shop. Ive found that some of the items are just as inexpensive at our local grocery store and there have been times when Costcos or Sams Club prices where higher. So most of the time it makes sense for me to get most of our groceries at my local store because we live two hours away from Sams Club

Look high and low for savings, literally. The grocery stores purposely place the higher-priced name brand items at eye level. The lower priced generic and store brands are usually higher and lower than the brand name items. Remember that the generic brand or store brand isnt always the less expensive. Some stores Ive been to list the cost per ounce, or per item trash bags so be sure to compare these prices when shopping.

Last but not least, if youve got kids at home try to find another mom to trade shopping times with. Its a lot easier to shop without kids, you wont be tempted to buy extras just to keep them quiet and youll have more time to comparison shop. Your chances of having an enjoyable shopping experience will go up as well as their chances for survival!