For Those Spend $400 Month on Food

I easily spend 500-600 a month. But I am fully aware that I buy too many veggies and toss too much out. And I also have a big pantry where things get hidden and never eaten. I've been trying to cut back especially on dry goods.

Like you, I can't imagine how people eat on $300 - $400 per month. We spend anywhere between $150 - $200 per week - 4 adults, 1 child (she eats as much as any of the adults! LOL!) BUT that does include some non-food items - shampoo, toothpaste, toilet paper, laundry supplies, cleaning supplies. And we also spend an average of probably $30 or so per week at the dollar store! I buy all my milk there (it's .30 per gallon less than the grocery store) paper towels, toilet bowl cleaner (Lysol!) Summer's Eve douche (double pack!), aluminum foil, etc. We have a GREAT dollar store!

I'm interested also to know how they skirt by on that amount.

I prioritize healthy eating over mostly everything. We spend maybe $1,500 a month on food for 2 adults and 4 small kids. Mostly fresh fruit, veggies, milk and lean protein. Organic when we can. Tons of berries, lots of healthy fare.

$400 would be one trip! LOL. I see an investment in healthy food as less cancer bills later on. It's just really important to me. I know eating healthy doesn't HAVE to cost that much, but the variety we buy and the sheer number of stuff (my 2-year-old can eat a whole container of raspberries easily in a sitting) cannot come cheap.

Just picked up some sirloin today because they looked nice. Which reminds me I still have to portion it.

We buy in bulk, the difference is huge. We have two freezers in the basement and what my older kids refer to as the food pantry but it does average out to 100 a week.

That of course does not include beer. You would not even consider me remotely frugal if you knew what I spend on beer. Why did I have to be the one woman in St Louis that hates AB products.

if it does not add up to you I suggest you do a little research on government subsidy on farmers. The foods that are largely subsidized produce a great deal of junk food and processed foods, and very little fresh produce. Food stamps, Wic, and other food programs may also be playing a role in keeping peoples out of pocket grocery bills down too. I don't use coupons either, coupons are mostly for processed food that we rarely buy. I buy about 50% organic, and while we eat very little meat, we eat a lot of fresh produce. In fact I don't hold back at all when it comes to cherries, blueberries, mangos, and other seasonal goodies. So for a family of 4, we spend $1000/ month on groceries. Whats crazy is that we eat a lot of rice and beans! Seems like we should be spending less, but Quicken does not lie. My husband was a box boy at a grocery store. He's seen things in the meat department that have us pretty much sticking to very reputable meat sources, and we skip the sales.

I spend about 400-450 a month on just food and my meals dont sound too far off from yours. We usually do cereal on the weekdays for breakfast since we always seem to be on the go but if not then we do eggs, bacon and orange juice for breakfast. lunch is usually a sandwich of somesort on wheat bread with a chobani yogurt tube and some fruit, dinner will be a meat, veggie and usually a starch of some sort. Snacks include fruits and veggies, granola type bars (the z-crunch bars by cliff) goldfish. are you buying purely organic?

We spend more than $400 per month. But I wanted to chime in that location matters. My bill, for myself alone, doubled when I moved here. So your location may simply be the biggest factor.

We buy in bulk when we can, and freeze. We have a vacuum sealer, so we make some things, like spaghetti sauce, in bulk and use for several different dishes.

Beans are a good way to stretch a budget. We also typically buy 2-3 small turkeys right after Thanksgiving and have them cut in half by the butcher. It help that my FIL raises cattle and we get most of our beef for the price of driving 5 hours to get it 100 lbs at a time.

Also, make a weekly menu. Shop just for what you need so there is less waste. But be flexible enough to change if you find a good deal.

Start a garden, even a small container garden for your tomato and cucumbers, helps.

I don't buy meat unless it's 99c a lb so we eat mostly chicken when we do eat meat. A few years ago hamburger used to be the cheapest meat protein but that changed. Sometimes whole trout comes in around that price so we eat that when it's around. I only buy what's in season and the cheapest. If I go into the store to buy a fruit, I look at all the fruit and buy the cheapest one. By far and away bananas are the cheapest. Second runner up is oranges from the local mexican store. You can get a huge sack of them for $1.99. Next cheapest is apples, but not granny smith. My favorite apple is rarely the cheapest so I haven't had one in a long time.

At costco I can find a huge sac of broccoli for 3.99 that lasts us for nearly 8 days. Two loaves of sliced sourdough there cost 2.99. It's not my favorite bread, but I'm not paying 4.99 for one loaf of cracked wheat.

Just like dieting, every decision makes a difference. It all adds up. You may not think the .40c difference between two products is a big deal, but when you make that call over 100 times a month, it adds up. Always make the cheaper call, and you'll see the results in your wallet.

Also, I haven't eaten a steak in over a year. Not because I don't love steak, or crave the crud out of it... but because it's never cheaper than chicken. We're just not in a financial situation where we can make those kinds of choices. We're in needs over wants mode and have been for the past two years.

Buying the cheapest doesn't always afford you a lot of variety in your diet, but it is more cost effective. And if you scan the supermarket circulars you can find some great deals. My local market is selling avocados for .69c each but I just got an advert that they are on sale over at the smart and final down the road for only .39c limit twelve. I'm going to buy 12 and that's how we get variety in our shopping. When things come into season and go on sale, that's what we eat.

Also, baby carrots cost more than a regular carrots. I buy a 10lb sack of full sized carrots for 4.99 (at costco) and spend some time cutting them up and putting them in plastic bags. You pay a premium for the convenience of having someone else cut up and bag your carrots.

Grocery/food costs really depend on the State you live in etc.
For example, in Hawaii, food costs are higher than many mainland States.
A box of cereal is often over $6.
A gallon of milk is often over $5 and that is the sale price. If you go to those organic stores, Whole Foods etc., that SAME gallon of milk will cost about $8.
A dozen eggs is about $4.00+, but on sale it can be about $2.99 or so. But you can't be picky about what brand you buy.
Apples are about $2.99/lb. on sale.

It is not only about how you eat, but how you shop and your regions/city's food costs. Many factors.
Here, a typical week's groceries, is about $200 for a family of typically 4 people.
Again, this also depends on how you shop, what you buy, if you plan meals or not, how you eat, if you have coupons or not or shop sales or not, etc.
Some products have coupons. Not all. And then there are in store sales.

$600 on food for three people for a month seems steep to me. I fed three people for a month on half that much, including toiletries, dog food, cat food, and cat litter.
I don't buy disposable plates or cutlery, I don't use paper towels, and I clean with vinegar and baking soda, so I don't buy a different cleaning product for every household surface.

We don't eat meat at every meal or even every day.
Beans and rice, mustard greens, and cornbread make a damn fine cheap meal.
Or use meat as an ingredient instead of an entree by itself. For example, instead of making each of us a chicken breast and having vegetables and rice on the side, I would cut up ONE chicken breast and stir-fry it with frozen mixed vegetables and serve it over rice. One chicken breast fed three people with leftovers for the next day's lunch.

Avoid single-serving packaging. A big container of yogurt portioned out is cheaper than Go-gurt tubes or single-serving cups. A big container of rolled oats is cheaper than individual packes of instant.

I was told by an appliance repairman that the amount of laundry or dishwasher detergent recommended on the packages is about three times what you actually need to get most loads of clothes or dishes clean. The manufacturers receommend excessive qauntities to make you run out sooner and have to buy more of their product.

If you don't grow your vegetables in your own garden? A HUGE chunk of your grocery money is going towards veggies.

Typical dinner in my home?

Spaghetti with meatballs, garlic bread, salad

Chicken Cordon Bleu (yes, I make it myself), steamed veggies (I buy my frozen veggies when they are on sale and have coupons) and butter noodles.

Casseroles
Mexican food - burritos, tacos, enchiladas, black beans, refried beans, shredded cheese, sour cream and salsa.

Shrimp Alfredo, garlic bread

My menu this week:
Sunday - Shrimp Alfredo with garlic bread
Monday - Spaghetti, garlic bread
Tuesday - we had Popeyes as we had a baseball game to go to!
Wednesday - Pizza
Thursday - Cashew chicken with egg rolls
Friday - anything goes - it's boys night in
Saturday - not sure as we are going to Bill Cosby
Sunday - leftovers -

Make your own pizza dough and pizzas - saves a ton of money.
you can find coupons for milk, meat and veggies if you look. Buy peanut butter save $1.00 on bananas...etc.

I am garlic breaded out this week!! LOL!!

Hope that helps!

I make everything from scratch, even pizza dough, and when I seriously coupon, I cannot get to 400 a month. Even when all my toiletries are free, I spend at least 500. I think a lot of it has to do with what you eat, etc. we eat tons of fruit. Tons. I eat an expensive cereal that even with coupons is never less than 2.5 a box. I eat at least a box a week.it all adds up. I also buy organic milk. That alone is 25 bucks a month.

I'm happy if I'm around 600-800 before booze. And I work coupons to get this.

It really depends on where you live and what you eat.

We have a family of 3. I cannot fathom that number. We also eat out a lot (not fast food joints either)

I refuse to purchase subpar quality food for my family. I only buy quality and I am a believer that you get what you pay for. I don't use coupons.

I have a local butcher with prime meats that the high end restaurants use and I only buy meats from him because I know where it comes from. I am a very loyal shopper and I shop at the same grocery daily. I am there so much because I like fresh fruits and veggies. I probably spend at least $200 a week on foods (includes our wine).

I do have a freezer and I keep it stocked with my items from the butcher, frozen veggies, etc. If I see a great deal, I stock up. I have a huge pantry (size of a nursery) and it looks like a grocery store in there. A lady from Target laughed at me because cream of chicken soup was on sale for .50 a can. That is a great deal and I use a lot of it and I bought 2 dozen cans.

I can't imagine that budget unless someone lives on potatoes, beans, rice and peanut butter.

I spend $300-400 a months and we eat totally organically. We purchase our meat from local farms, through a co-op. The meat is VERY high quality. They butcher date is right on the package, and it's usually 2 days before I get the meat. I save money that way. I also buy eggs and get produce through the co-op. We have 3 meat free nights a week. Take last night, we fired eggs in red bell pepper rings. Had sauteed red potatoes, broccoli, and grapes. Other nights we do veggie lasagna, rice and bean Mexican dishes, etc. We just don't see the need to eat meat every day. I also don't eat much red meat. Even with the freshest, most local, leanest cuts...red meat gives me awful headaches. I do get ground sirloin and make tacos once a week. The B vitamins and iron from red meat is so important, but I can't take it more then once a week. We love Mexican food, so we eat a lot of chicken thighs. (Authentic Mexican dishes usually call for thighs, not breasts.) Even organic and local, I get them very inexpensively. Every so often, I will buy bacon butchered at our local farm, but we don't eat too much of that. We eat produce seasonally, and I also get organic frozen fruits and veggies from Costco. (Sometimes, a girl just wants some blueberries in the winter!!) I love to garden and we have a 500 square foot garden outside. That's really just extra, and we don't do it to save any money. It's just a love of mine. All of our meals consist o protein, veggie, and fruit. We don't eat too many starches (just don't care for them) other then brown rice and red potatoes. Veggies are the biggest serving on the plate, and protein and fruit are smaller. I just think that's the healthiest way for us.

Examples
Breakfast- Steel cut oats with honey and fruit, hard boiled egg or homemade breakfast burrito and apple. None of us love eating breakfast, so we keep it really simple.
Lunch - Leftovers, salad, and fruit. Or we often have burrito bowls, soups, salads, pastas, etc.
Dinner - Big salad or veggies, tacos, lasagna, fried eggs, vegetarian chili, grilled chicken, Mexican dishes. We also have fruit with dinner. Usually grapes, peaches, berries, you get the idea.

I get all our paper goods and cleaning supplies from Costco. Inevitable, I run out of something and don't have time for Costco, so I will throw it in my cart at the store. I don't shop at all the low cost stores. I stick to Sprouts, Trader Joes, and Kroger for staples. So, yeah. It's totally possible. I buy super high quality, fresh, organic produce and meat. It's priority for me, because I don't want to skimp on quality. I mean, I have to eat every day!! If I were buying steaks and other cuts often, our budget would have to go up. I'd love to eat those cuts, but I just can't handle all the red meat. An example of what we eat every day:

I'm wondering the same darn thing! My grocery bill alarms me. But even when I manage it very carefully I'm not in the same UNIVERSE as $400 per month.

We shop at Aldi and walmart mostly. We price match at walmart, from other stores. Sometimes Sams club.

Sometimes there are coupons for meat, but you need to use or freeze right away.

Here is something I came across as well.

http://www.imaceliac.com/2012/03/gluten-free-freezer-meal...
&
http://www.imaceliac.com/2012/07/freezer-meals-take-two.html

I know that they are GF but they certianly can be modified for gluten..

Good luck

I spend less on a family of three, but I think you have to consider the cost of living of your town.

The grocery bill from my house to my mother's house is probably $80 - $100 difference, in the same city.

I eat a lot of fresh food also, but I take advantage of a lot of the deals. I shop mostly at Fresh & Easy and I buy a lot of their 0.98 cent deals. If it is onions & green peppers I chop and freeze half and keep half fresh. Carrots I put in a lot of our meals, roast, soups, salads. I cook 1/2 a chicken, which is more than enough for us. We will pick at the leftovers the next few days and even throw some away sometimes. We go through about a gallon & a half per week. My daughter won't eat bread with her lunch, and I only use bread for sandwiches. Therefore, I freeze half the loaf. During summer, my daughter goes to summer camp and eats there, as it is included. I never eat out for lunch so I will usually buy 1/2 lb sliced turkey breast, and a package of cheese, a pkg of bagels or sandwich rolls and leave it at work. I already have a jar of pickles and peppers there and just bring a baggie of chips, minus the baggie, I reuse a container. I filter my drinking water at work, so I am not a part of the office expensive water club. Now that it is summer, I pay 0.25/day for a large cup of ice to put in my water jug. My breakfast is usually a cup of yogurt and a fruit.

I also make my own latte at home. I make it the night before and add ice to it in the morning. I purchase a large bottle of vanilla syrup and it is only $4 for the bottle, which lasts about a month.

The most expensive thing we eat is the meat. I usually purchase a whole chicken and cut them, season them, and then freeze them. I usually do the same thing with my steaks. I buy the whole piece of meat, cut it, season it, and freeze it.

Fresh & Easy mails me a coupon for $5 off when I spend $30, as well as some valued customer coupons they send to my app. They track what I buy and send me coupons. That is a 16% + savings!!! It's right around the corner, so I shop every 2 - 3 days.

My mother doesn't have a F&E store any longer, as they closed in her area, so she has to pay some pretty high prices for fresh food.

I was wondering the same! We don't buy too many snacks or things we don't need, we try to eat healthy and I stick to my grocery list every time I go shopping. I still spend around $600-$700/month.
I will be so glad to see more ideas, and learn from other moms here!
A. :)

We are a family of seven, and probably spend $500 a month on groceries.
Typical meals include:
Tacos
big green salad with grilled chicken and French bread
Spaghetti and meatballs, bread and salad
Soup and bread
pizza

I shop at Sam's Club, Kroger, or Meijer. We have in-season fruit on hand all the time, but I don't buy grapes when they are $2.79/lb. I wait until they are 99 cents a lb, and that's our fruit that week. Same with apples, oranges, cantaloupe, etc. We have corn on the cob in season, squash in winter. I don't get a hankering for homemade guacamole in the fall and spend $3 on a crappy avocado!
We aren't picky about our brand of bread, milk, eggs, or butter. I always check the organic section, but only buy organic if it is deeply on sale or clearance priced.
I get our meat at Sams, buy it in bulk, separate and freeze it. We have meat less and less as a main dish, and more as an add-in for pasta, pizza, salad, etc...
Kids don't drink soda. Or sports drinks. If pretzels are on sale and Doritos aren't, our snack of the week is pretzels. If block cheese is on sale, and shredded isn't, I'm shredding block cheese that week. I usually hit the grocery twice a week, and staples are:
bread
eggs
bananas
lunchmeat
snack chips
cheese
butter
in-season fruit
onions
green peppers
lettuce
tomato
soft taco tortillas
yogurt
granola bars

We fill that list in with specifics for meals for that week. Yeah, we have a lot of repeat meals. But every lunch and dinner has a fruit and/or veggie served with it, and there are always eggs, bagels, cereal, or waffles for breakfast around here. We keep it simple. String cheese for afternoon snacks, or a piece of fruit, or a handful of nuts. My kids love Flavor-Ice, and they are super cheap for like a hundred, and it makes a nice cold after dinner treat for about 50 calories for them in the summer.
Hope those ideas help someone!

we also spend about $600 a month on food. We cook/pack all of our meals. Breakfast is usually cereal. Lunches can be anywhere from a salad or sandwich. Dinner is usually chicken with rice and a veggie. I do like to bake cookies for desserts or we have lots of fruit, yogurt and cheese for snacks also. We are a family of 4 with my daughter being gluten free

We were a family of 10 and I spent slightly more then that per month, now we are a family of 8 (2 have left the nest) and I'm spending right around that, but I am trying to build up some of the staples.

Now I think some spend more because where they live cost more. While some things have gone up, I think compared to other places we are still fairly cheap.

I plan everything we eat. I plan things that can be used for more then one meal. We keep beans and rice always on hand. I do grow a lot and can a lot, so of course that helps.

When you have a lot of mouths to feed you learn to be frugal.

Hi. We spend about that much as well--maybe even more. We buy organic. And allergen-free food (no casein/cow dairy, no gluten, no soy). Pasture-raised meat. Supplements to help keep us healthy and correct underlying problems (daughter and I have a liver disorder; my husband is on 2 pharma drugs, so I have him taking supplements to help make sure the pharma drugs don't fry his body/make other issues/problems).

We barely ever buy anything processed. Just about make everything homemade. Buy good lunch meat (when we buy it) at Whole Foods because it has no nitrites/nitrates. We need to buy dark chocolate with no milk/casein--which isn't cheap. Gluten-free bread is about $5/loaf.

Anytime you have to buy allergen-free, your food bill is going to be high. I could make my own bread. But after buying all of the ingredients (gluten-free flour is expensive), it's just about a wash if I buy a loaf already made.

I buy Sweetleaf Stevia instead of using sugar, artificial sweeteners, agave. I sparingly use honey, molasses, every once in a while a little organic pure raw cane sugar when I do some baking. That's expensive.

I'm trying to really watch what I buy lately when I grocery shop, just because groceries/the grocery bill seems to keep creeping up and up and up every single month. But seriously, I'm not really sure how to keep it down. We've been eating less and less when we eat (loading up more on the veges), and there are rarely any sweets around the house (trying to purge our addiction to sugar). I keep thinking that having a little bit of a hunger pang is actually good for you--it helps keep you in synch with your body and what it really wants (rather than mindlessly stuffing it). Also drink lots and lots of reverse-osmosis water; that helps fill the "hunger" need and is good for the body. Most people are deficient in their water intake.

I also try to plan out (roughly) the supper meals for the week, so I can make sure we have the food we need to make the meal and so that we can make sure to us up leftovers so they're not thrown away. We rarely ever have leftovers, though; we usually only make enough to eat for that particular meal.

I am struggling now that my daughter is out of school for the summer as to what she and I are going to eat for lunch. We've become quite creative.

We don't spend much more then that, but I buy almost no meat. We hunt and fish for our meat.

In the summers when I am back in my home state living in my townhome with my adult son, my grocery bill is $125.00 a month. We buy: ground turkey, steaks, oatmeal, broccoli, carrots, cornish hens, popcorn, water, tea mix. popsicles, bagged apples, sherbet, nuts--BORING.

He is a health freak who not only watches his waistline but mine too. Therefore, I don't buy chips, icecream, cookies (the stuff that adds up).

You have to understand that my cost of living is one of the lowest in the country. This is the store where we get our meat, produce, and deli items the most and shows you the lowest prices available in our area. These prices are often matched by the discount grocery stores, too.
http://www.eriecountyfarms.net/weekly-specials/2

We eat cereal or eggs and toast, and fruit for breakfast. Lunch is leftovers or sandwiches and soup or other veggie. Snacks are anything from yogurt to leftovers to fruit. Dinner is a protein, a veggie, a salad, and either potatoes, or rice, or noodles. We do buy chips and pop for occasional treats. That's how I "think" about food, but I can make a wide range of dishes and don't always plan ahead of time, I do tend to stock up for the future though. Also, a certain amount of our business inventory comes home - and yes, I account for that on my tax return :)

I buy my meat when it is on sale and freeze it. I stock up on turkey at 99cents per pound, and a 10 lb turkey will feed us for days. I only serve more expensive cuts of meat (steak, chops, tenderloin, chicken breast) once a week for Sunday supper. The rest of the week is more inexpensive cuts like ground beef, pork shoulder, rump roast, chicken legs with backs etc. As for grocery staples I only buy when on sale and stock up. Fruits and vegetable I buy what is in season and on sale. I use lots of potatoes, carrots and onions, they are inexpensive and versatile. I buy bread at a discount bakery-10 loaves for $10. I plan my meals around what is on sale in the weekly flyers and what I have on hand. I do not buy and ingredient that is not on sale.

I check the deals at all the grocery stores. Then I do my shopping and meal planning.

Here is what I posted on my family facebook page:
RIO RANCH has Apricots $.79 lb Pork ribs $1.59 lb, Boneless chuck roasts $2.79 lb White corn on the cob 5/$.99 Seedless watermelon 7 lbs/$.99Yellow onions 7 lbs/$.99 Sat/Sun sale: Avocados 7/$.99, Strawberries 16 oz $.99, nectarines 2 lbs/$.99 cucumbers 10/$.99
CARDENAS Watermelon (seeded) 8 lbs/$.99 chuck steak, boneless $2.59 lb, Fanta 2 ltr sodas $.79 manila mangos 5/$.99
ALBERTSON's seedless green grapes $.89 lb Bacon, bulk $1.99 lb, Lays chips or kettle chips $1.88.
FOOD4LESS Green seedless grapes $.88 lb, peaches $.78 lb. yogurt, Yoplait $.50, Langers juices 64 oz $1.78,
STATER BROS. Strawberries 4 lb $3.99 Ragu pasta sauce 16 oz, 24 oz $1.29

BTW, I went to Costco and Sam's to price and then buy Ginkgo Biloba and garlic pills. Sam's price was the best for both of them by a considerable amount.

I have seen lots of difference in prices and I hate paying full price.

Monday. Roast beef $2.59 lb, potatoes 10 lb/$.99 carrots $.20 lb, onions 7 lbs/.99
Tuesday Popeyes fried chicken (Tuesday only sale Leg and thigh $1.29) Salad (lettuce $.33 head) tomatoes $.33 lb, cheese $2.50 lb, hardboiled eggs $.10 ea sunflower seeds, celery leaves $.50
Wedesday Left over Roast Beef etc
Thursday Chef's salad Spiral sliced ham $.99 lb, lettuce, tomatoes, celery leaves, sunflower seeds, cheese, hardboiled egg, chopped green onion, chopped horseradish leaves
Friday Ham sandwiches ham lettuce tomatoes cheese sliced onion, pickles ($1 quart) bread 7-grain bread $.99 loaf
Saturday Left overs
Sunday Smoked ribs Pork ribs $1.28 lb smoked baked potatoes, cheese butter $2 lb, chives (garden) Chard (garden)

We usually get 5 salads out of a head of lettuce because I only buy the biggest heads so that's 2.5 meals per head.

Breakfast is usually egg between two slices of bread or oatmeal or yogurt. Eggs are cheaper than cereal and milk
Lunch is a sandwich or a salad or a left overs.

The prices I put next to the items is so that you can see what I paid. I buy where the prices are the cheapest. When brown/yellow onions went on sale 7 lbs/$.99 I bought 5 or 6 lbs. I bought onions that were the size that I can use up the entire onion and not put half in the frig where it might get lost and spoil. Other stores had onions for $.99 lb or more. If half my onions spoiled, I'd still be ahead.

For desert we like fresh fruit smoothies. I use fresh or frozen strawberries $.99 lb (because I buy them fresh and then freeze them after I top them and wash them), a banana ($.33 lb) and a yogurt ($.50)

Hope this helps. Good luck to you and yours.