The Grocery Budget Challenge

shawn said:
Different HTs have different prices. In any case, the days of us spending $50/wk on groceries are long gone. It's more likely to be about $200/wk even with Cyd being a superstar shopper. That number has been creeping up from about $150 earlier this year.
Click to expand...

Including our monthly run to the butcher shop, we were consistently averaging about $250/wk…including diapers and wipes from Amazon. Over the last quarter, we’re knocking on $300/wk. Wasn’t that long ago we were at $150/wk +/- $50.
 
LBarr2002 said:
We gave up the horizon milk a few years ago. Wife always bought the omega 3 version for the kids.
Click to expand...

Yeah…’fancy milk’ happened some time around the time kids started showing up in my house. Started with Fairlife for some reason, and switched to Horizon a couple years ago. I’m not a fan of the Omega…has a weird bitter taste to me…but I do think the stuff I posted is better than the standard plastic jug stuff.
 
UTfball68 said:
Yeah…’fancy milk’ happened some time around the time kids started showing up in my house. Started with Fairlife for some reason, and switched to Horizon a couple years ago. I’m not a fan of the Omega…has a weird bitter taste to me…but I do think the stuff I posted is better than the standard plastic jug stuff.
Click to expand...
I never drank it, agree it had a weird taste. We always had the cartons of horizon and a .5 gal of store brand 2%.
 
shawn said:
My rough estimate is that the dollar has been devalued about 40pct in the last year.
Click to expand...
I'm thinking closer to 50% but it's hard to say and we're definitely in the same rough order of magnitude. 5% is a lie to keep the peasants happy. To keep on topic, it's like labeling milk "whole" instead of 3% :laughing:
 
So, today we went to Sam’s and Publix to pick up a few items. Dinner for 2-3 nights and other provisions for the month. Paper towels, TP, shampoo, toothpaste, girly products, etc.

$160 at Sam’s and $185 at Publix. This won’t get us through the week for food!

This made me think it would be an interesting to start a thread of Food Cost Of The Day.

Is it the food selection and brands that we buy? Is it processed vs…fresher? WTF GIVES? But $340 for this is INSANE! (2 beach towels were returned so minus $20)
IMG_0759.jpeg
IMG_0761.jpeg
IMG_0763.png
IMG_0762.png
 
I mean, I'm assuming you aren't buying a lot of those paper goods every week so that's harder to average out but not impossible. :lol: I get most paper stuff and whatever else is reasonable through Amazon Subscribe & Save, never had a Costco or Sams membership. I shop unit price, and don't buy chips (ok, occasionally tortilla chips), veggie straws, or organic milk.

There's also this: The Grocery Budget Challenge

Edit: I get a big pack of paper towels every 6 months and toilet paper every 3-4. There are six of us.
 
Heard a financial guy say to never buy non food items when grocery shopping. Makes your groceries seem much higher. But that’s just common sense knowledge. But I can see it messing with people. I do buy all my paper and plastic stuff bulk at sams. Seems to save a lot. But my weekly trips to the grocery store are much higher. I usually just buy quite a bit of what’s on sale and stay stocked up in the freezer. Never have to pay full price that way.
 
trailhugger said:
I mean, I'm assuming you aren't buying a lot of those paper goods every week so that's harder to average out but not impossible. :lol: I get most paper stuff and whatever else is reasonable through Amazon Subscribe & Save, never had a Costco or Sams membership. I shop unit price, and don't buy chips (ok, occasionally tortilla chips), veggie straws, or organic milk.

There's also this: The Grocery Budget Challenge

Edit: I get a big pack of paper towels every 6 months and toilet paper every 3-4. There are six of us.
Click to expand...
Never saw this thread. Same premise as I was thinking. Thanks
 
mbalbritton said:
Never saw this thread. Same premise as I was thinking. Thanks
Click to expand...
Me neither. The grocery store is getting out of hand but I LOATHE going to Sam's and I'm not going to WalMart either. I make a Sam's trip for certain things maybe 3-4 times a year and it's $300-400 but that does include TP and PT, Clorox, vinegar, Zyrtec, certain things that have always been cheaper and in bulk that I can get there. I'm starting to replace Sam's items with Amazon but I'll still have to go some.
 
I used to be a pretty consistent HT shopper. The experience was better and, with my unit price method, it was a wash compared to FL or Walmart. I've recently been shopping at a Lidl that's half the distance from the house and has better prices on staples like eggs and milk. It's a smaller store that is occasionally out of something, but they generally have stuff we eat, the trip takes 1/3 of the time, and we're spending less.
 
R Q said:
Me neither. The grocery store is getting out of hand but I LOATHE going to Sam's and I'm not going to WalMart either. I make a Sam's trip for certain things maybe 3-4 times a year and it's $300-400 but that does include TP and PT, Clorox, vinegar, Zyrtec, certain things that have always been cheaper and in bulk that I can get there. I'm starting to replace Sam's items with Amazon but I'll still have to go some.
Click to expand...
I don’t mind sams at all. They have scan and go that you do from your phone. In and out. Now Costco, screw that shithole. Went this week with a friend to get some stuff for work. Checked his card on the way in, checked it before entering the Register areas. Scan it to check out. Then wait in a line for 20 mins to have your receipt checked and leave. Self checkout has 6 registers and 7 people working it. How stupid
 
trailhugger said:
I used to be a pretty consistent HT shopper. The experience was better and, with my unit price method, it was a wash compared to FL or Walmart. I've recently been shopping at a Lidl that's half the distance from the house and has better prices on staples like eggs and milk. It's a smaller store that is occasionally out of something, but they generally have stuff we eat, the trip takes 1/3 of the time, and we're spending less.
Click to expand...
Lidl and Aldi are so much cheaper sometimes. Well worth the headache for me of going to the “weird” grocery store.
 
jeepinmatt said:
Lidl and Aldi are so much cheaper sometimes. Well worth the headache for me of going to the “weird” grocery store.
Click to expand...
But there’s a huge quality gap on most products. Some of it is fine, but the 3 times I’ve been and tried, the quality is crap. That’s my biggest problem. I’d rather (and do at times when I think of it) hit the Mexican produce at the flea market/farmers market rather than go to either of those German brothers. At least I know I’m getting quality😁
 
mbalbritton said:
So, today we went to Sam’s and Publix to pick up a few items. Dinner for 2-3 nights and other provisions for the month. Paper towels, TP, shampoo, toothpaste, girly products, etc.

$160 at Sam’s and $185 at Publix. This won’t get us through the week for food!

This made me think it would be an interesting to start a thread of Food Cost Of The Day.

Is it the food selection and brands that we buy? Is it processed vs…fresher? WTF GIVES? But $340 for this is INSANE! (2 beach towels were returned so minus $20)
Click to expand...
Publix is really expensive. I only go there if there is no other choice. Grocery costs in Florida in general are higher, I saw that when I went to Tampa last year. We do a ton of shopping at Aldi and that helps hold things in check but in general we definitely spend more each month than just a couple years ago. I have one credit card dedicated to gas and groceries and that card balance every month is a couple hundred higher on average than it used to be.
 
OnlyOneDR said:
Publix is really expensive. I only go there if there is no other choice. Grocery costs in Florida in general are higher, I saw that when I went to Tampa last year. We do a ton of shopping at Aldi and that helps hold things in check but in general we definitely spend more each month than just a couple years ago. I have one credit card dedicated to gas and groceries and that card balance every month is a couple hundred higher on average than it used to be.
Click to expand...
I think Publix charges admission lol 😂 they seen what Harris teeter charges then said hold my beer
 
I got Walmart+ the other day when it was on sale.

Free delivery on groceries (but you do tip). That tip is well worth me never having to walk into Walmart. For some of the basics its really been nice and fairly cost effective so far.
 
DSM Turbos said:
I got Walmart+ the other day when it was on sale.

Free delivery on groceries (but you do tip). That tip is well worth me never having to walk into Walmart. For some of the basics its really been nice and fairly cost effective so far.
Click to expand...
My wife does Instacart and she says its saved a lot because she doesn't wander around and buy things that weren't on the list, haha.
 
DSM Turbos said:
I normally like going to the store since it gets me out of the house since I work from home. Walmart brings me to a new level of angry most times 😂
Click to expand...
We have a Walmart a mile down the road from my office. I still buy hand soap, paper towels, etc from Lowes right beside it just to avoid going in Walmart.
 
Ya, I buy laundry detergent and liquid dish soap at Lowes to avoid Target or Walmart, for both the hassle and the... unplanned purchase potential.
 
Back
Top