How much do you spend on groceries?

FrauSmith

I spend about $70ish dollars a week. That is for my husband and me. We eat mostly organic, fresh, unprocessed, humanely treated foods and still get by on $70 a week for both of us. You might want to try eating more basic meals (like chicken salad or chicken quesadilla on corn tortillas) or cutting coupons.

Umeboshi

Family of two + 3 cats ... anywhere between $100 and $180 a week depending on how many non-food items we need, but it ends up totaling maybe $400-500 a month since we don't go quite EVERY week...more like every week and a half? I'm sure we could get it lower than that but I've been unable to cook so frozen meals have been pretty much required. No idea how to do the coupon thing effectively though, as I'm with a picky eater so eating what's available from coupons would be met with a LOT of protesting. :P

zundelag

I'm in a family of 5 and I spend about $140 every two weeks give or take, depending on what we need at the time. I make a menu to cover two weeks, and shop accordingly. I also generally go for generic products, and look for the best unit price. Also for things like meat, I try to plan my menu around the left-overs I think I'll get from a particular dish, like roast chicken.

TrishJimenez

We are a family of 5 and we spend about 350-450 a month on groceries. Well I am sure it would be closer to 500 for the summer with them all home from school but the kids are with their dads for the summer. I keep my grocery budget so low by doing several things.

the meat I buy is always what ever is the lowest price usually it is a lot of pork chops, pork steaks and tougher cuts of meat, along with chicken legs I can find for 99 cents a lb and sometimes even less then that, and often food for less has boneless chicken thighs and even breasts for 99 cents a lb also. I try to keep the meat I buy under 2 dollars a lb but my goal is a dollar a lb. I buy enough meat to last us a month (I hate grocery shopping) so I do it all at once, takes me about 5 hours total. Next I buy what ever fruit is on sale for a dollar a lb or less, but sometimes I will spend more, a lot of bananas apples and oranges usually but also melons and other seasonal fruit in the summer. That is what me and my kids eat for snacks. They dont have to ask if they can have a peice of fruit or baby carrots and other veggies that they like to eat raw. As much as they want when ever they want so I buy a lot, I know it wont go to waste. So I buy what ever veggies are in season or on sale along with generic frozen veggies to last me a month for side dishes for dinner.
Next I buy generic gallon ziplock bags to portion up the meat into the portions we need for one meal since the packages I buy are what the grocery stores call family size. And it will fit into my freezer more easily this way as I can stack away, also hamburger and other things thaw more quickly if it is flat and thinner then how it is usually packaged.
I buy whole wheat pasta at costco that will last me 3-4 months along with huge bags of brown rice at the local mexican grocery, when I say HUGE I mean bigger then a kindergartner, but we love rice. Sometimes my oldest daughter will make a big pot and we reheat bowls of it in the micro for breakfast with milk and cinnamon and sugar or dress it up with butter and salt and pepper for a side for dinner.
I also buy what ever pasta roni and rice a roni when it is on sale for a dollar a box. So I would say most dinners cost a dollar a person or maybe a dollar 25 per person.
Cereal is the malto meal huge bags, always sometime that isnt candy bar on a spoon I call it. If WIC wouldnt let you redeem your coupons I didnt buy it, I dont have WIC but i know they focus on nutrition. And it tends to be higher in fiber and not as much sugar. And it is cheaper, lasts longer cuz they dont need 2 or 3 bowls to be full. And my kids even love frosted mini wheats, dont get me wrong they beg me for fruity pebbles sometimes lol. And bread, walmart has a awesome whole wheat genric bread for about 1.25 a loaf, I get enough for a month and keep all but one loaf in my freezer.
I get shampoo razors and stuff at costco alot but only if it would be cheaper then at walmart. I dont buy a lot of extra stuff, like candy bars granola, lunches are pb and j often or left overs from dinner. etc, nothing goes to waste. When I have a good week with tips I will stop and buy ice cream and other treats, if the kids were good and did their chores etc hope this helps

bbush18

We are a family of 2 adults, 1 toddler and 2 small/medium sized dogs and we spend any where between $400-$500/mo on groceries and the occasional need of toiletries and cleaning supplies. Every 3-4 months we make a Sam's Club stop (there is no costco near us!) and spend about $100-$150 there. I've switched to generic brands on dailly things because we're shelling out more money for organic, local, whole and raw foods--that puts a dent in our wallets!!