Survey: Your Grocery Budget

Nlongenecker

OK, so my DH and I just had another argument about grocery spending (one of MANY). And I would like to get some input from those of you that have only two people in your house to feed. We do not have kids, so I'm looking to compare apples to apples. (Although I will take input from just about anyone). He feels that we should be able to get groceries for $80/week ($100 on a good week). This is not just food, it includes laundry soap, dog food (small dog), dish soap, personal items, etc. I am SO frustrated because I am trying to eat healthy and I am so sick of Lean Cuisine and WW Smart Ones. But he views eating as "a waste of time and money" and will eat hamburger helper, lunch meat, mac n cheese, pb&j sandwiches, etc. and be perfectly happy (and skinny). This has happened several times: I plan my food for the week, and choose 1-2 new recipes to make and make a grocery list. But when WE (yes he insists on going with me, with a calculator) go to the grocery, it is inevitable - we don't have money for the things I've put on the list for my week and he says, why don't you just get some frozen meals and/or some soups?

Please help me with this - what is a reasonable amount for two people to spend at the grocery store a week? Am I the crazy one that wants to overspend? And if not, how can I help him see that $80/wk is just not enough at the grocery? This has been his view for the 8yrs we've been married, not just since the economy's bad.

Thanks for your help.

Nlongenecker

OK, so my DH and I just had another argument about grocery spending (one of MANY). And I would like to get some input from those of you that have only two people in your house to feed. We do not have kids, so I'm looking to compare apples to apples. (Although I will take input from just about anyone). He feels that we should be able to get groceries for $80/week ($100 on a good week). This is not just food, it includes laundry soap, dog food (small dog), dish soap, personal items, etc. I am SO frustrated because I am trying to eat healthy and I am so sick of Lean Cuisine and WW Smart Ones. But he views eating as "a waste of time and money" and will eat hamburger helper, lunch meat, mac n cheese, pb&j sandwiches, etc. and be perfectly happy (and skinny). This has happened several times: I plan my food for the week, and choose 1-2 new recipes to make and make a grocery list. But when WE (yes he insists on going with me, with a calculator) go to the grocery, it is inevitable - we don't have money for the things I've put on the list for my week and he says, why don't you just get some frozen meals and/or some soups?

Please help me with this - what is a reasonable amount for two people to spend at the grocery store a week? Am I the crazy one that wants to overspend? And if not, how can I help him see that $80/wk is just not enough at the grocery? This has been his view for the 8yrs we've been married, not just since the economy's bad.

Thanks for your help.

naugustyniak

I have 4 in my family so can't help there but a few questions:

do you clip coupons?
where to you shop?
do you ad match?

it takes a little more time but I have saved BUNCHES of money. I have a 17 year old boy and a 21 year old girl who eat LIKE crazy. I have a budget of less that $150 per trip (usually every 2 weeks) including non food items and very rarely go over. I am vegetarian but no one else is.

EmilyAnn89

i have an 8 month old. if i were to take out all of the formula, diapers, baby food, etc. we usually don't go to the grocery store every week, but i'm guessing we spend between $300 - $400 a month. we try to buy cheap.. i try to buy healthy. we just don't really have the money to spend on a lot of fresh stuff, so i usually buy frozen veggies and fruits! i'm trying to just get him to eat what i eat .. that way i can buy more healthy options and healthier snacks. see if your husband will eat what you eat.. that way you actually are spending less on food you BOTH can eat!

Nlongenecker

I have 4 in my family so can't help there but a few questions:

do you clip coupons?
where to you shop?
do you ad match?

it takes a little more time but I have saved BUNCHES of money. I have a 17 year old boy and a 21 year old girl who eat LIKE crazy. I have a budget of less that $150 per trip (usually every 2 weeks) including non food items and very rarely go over. I am vegetarian but no one else is.

I do not clip coupons. He doesn't want to pay for us to get the Sunday paper. I guess I could pick it up somewhere. I shop at Meijer and try to get everything Meijer brand. I do not add match. I have to admit, I find the whole coupon/add matching task a little overwhelming but I guess I need to give it a try. Thanks.

9726172000

No you are not crazy about how much groceries cost now. I do alot of beans & rice, beans & ham, 15 bean soup, salads. 2 times a week I will have chicken, stews, ect. With only 2 of us and 3 dogs and 2 cats I average about $125.00 a week. This includes 7 breakfast, 7 lunches, 7 dinners and also snacks. I shop at walmart where they ad match and I also get no name brands when possible and also I use coupons. Also when I see a good deal on something I do pick up 3-4 of the items that way I can stock up for the times I have company for dinner or I just don't have the money or time to spend on groceries for the week.

naugustyniak

I have 4 in my family so can't help there but a few questions:

do you clip coupons?
where to you shop?
do you ad match?

it takes a little more time but I have saved BUNCHES of money. I have a 17 year old boy and a 21 year old girl who eat LIKE crazy. I have a budget of less that $150 per trip (usually every 2 weeks) including non food items and very rarely go over. I am vegetarian but no one else is.

I do not clip coupons. He doesn't want to pay for us to get the Sunday paper. I guess I could pick it up somewhere. I shop at Meijer and try to get everything Meijer brand. I do not add match. I have to admit, I find the whole coupon/add matching task a little overwhelming but I guess I need to give it a try. Thanks.

If you order th e Sunday paper you can usually get it for $1 per week instead of $1.75, sometimes less if you talk them down a little. To me it is really worth the $1. Walmart will take ALL ads including meat and produce but they don't double coupons. Meijer doubles coupons up to $1 but doesn't ad match meat and produce. Kroger/Scotts has the card that you can download some of the coupons on the internet AND the points you earn go towards gas. I also just got this HUGE envelope full of very useful coupons from Kroger (free salad dressing, $1 off cleaning supplies and more) in the mail the other day. Meijer and Walmart will also take CVS, Walgreen and Target ads all of which are in a Sunday paper. It takes a little time but it is worth it.

9726172000

also there is a site it is called www.freecycle.org (it is a site to keep things out of the dump that maybe someone else could be used) they are on yahoo you can ask for peoples sunday coupons that they don't want. I belong to it and every Monday someone is on there asking for the sunday coupons. Yes you would have to go and pick them up but they are free.

IUChelle423

I am in the same situation - just me, my husband and our small dog. I try to stick to around $100/week. I shop at Costco a lot and we've found some good staple items that I'll mix in. I do get salad stuff every week, though, and it gets costly, but it's worth it to me.

I typically try to have a mix of "cheap" and expensive meals. For example, there is a soup mix we get at Costco that is delicious and low cal and it comes out to something like $.50/serving. Once a week, we make something with ground turkey (which we also get at Costco) and that is a little pricer but can make 5-6 meals depending on what we make with it. We make chicken occasionally, but if I am making a casserole or something, I use canned chicken and it works great (especially because its already cooked).

For lunches, I have leftovers, veggie patties, low fat frozen burritos, PB & J (once in awhile).

I found that when I was trying to be creative with recipes, I was buying a lot of "one-time" ingredients, which got expensive. Now I stick with the staples and try to improvise with them.

LeanLioness

There are 2 of us in the house and 2 dogs. I spend between 90 and 120 a week.

I purchase as much organic as I can and almost never purchase any processed stuff. I shop the outer perimeter of the store for the things I purchase and my puppies eat raw with a bit of organic kibble also. They even drink filtered water also.

I use Seventh generation cleaning supplies, dryer sheets and dish washing soap. I use soap nuts and vinegar for washing my laundry.

kimber607

Hi

Family of 4 here and I TRY to keep our MONTHLY food shopping budget to around $600

Kim

Nlongenecker

Thanks for all the suggestions. Another problem I have is that I don't really know what a "reasonable" price is for the things I buy. He usually pays and keeps the receipt. I guess I need to tell him that I want to work on this together and if he give me the receipt I can start keeping better track of how much things cost and how I can save money.

sassiebritches

Your DH sounds cheap, and a bit of a control freak! I personally buy whatever I want and my honey agrees or doesn't...we don't discuss it. I do however limit what he buys ($30 steaks), cause if I don't then we spend way more then we should.

We are 2 people and on average, not including cat litter, cat food, soap and the like we spend between $100 and $150 a week. If I spend $150 a week it is usually cause I purchased bulk meats, so then the next week when I have to get produce it won't be even $100. Our grocery bill is about $250 - $350 per month.

I also shop at Costco and that's where I get our ground meat ($10/4 lbs) and Yoplait Smoothies - 10 paks ($11), carrot snack packs, bulk fruit, corn flakes, bananas, bread..all in bulk....I shopped there last night and spent $200, but I won't need that much next week.......so it evens out.

BTW. Food is not a luxury, it is a necessity, I would be sure to put my foot down on your DH's need to control this item of your relationship....not like your buying $100 shoes or something.

My Thoughts.............:flowerforyou:

JJeMitchell

I spend about $100 to $125 for groceries each week, and it's just me and my husband. If you want healthy food (fruit, veggies, juice, lean meat) it's going to cost a lot more than boxed food.

Maybe you could try explaining it like this: "I'd rather spend a little bit more each week NOW on healthy foods, than eat boxed processed foods and get sick later on down the road, and have to spend all our money on doctor bills"

The problem is that processed, boxed foods rarely have enough fiber, and not having enough fiber can lead to serious health problems. Not to mention the extra calories, fat and lack of vitamins.

Explaining all of this is what did the trick for me Good luck!

Also you can try buying frozen fruit, which is usually cheaper and you can make a little bowl to put in the fridge each night before you go to bed, so that you can have a healthy snack the next day!

dclarsh

I have 4 in my family so can't help there but a few questions:

do you clip coupons?
where to you shop?
do you ad match?

it takes a little more time but I have saved BUNCHES of money. I have a 17 year old boy and a 21 year old girl who eat LIKE crazy. I have a budget of less that $150 per trip (usually every 2 weeks) including non food items and very rarely go over. I am vegetarian but no one else is.

I do not clip coupons. He doesn't want to pay for us to get the Sunday paper. I guess I could pick it up somewhere. I shop at Meijer and try to get everything Meijer brand. I do not add match. I have to admit, I find the whole coupon/add matching task a little overwhelming but I guess I need to give it a try. Thanks.

Well that's just not logical... him not wanting to pay for the paper so you can get the coupons. I guarantee that you would save more than the cost of the stinkin' paper every week.

Anyway... I have a family of three, my son is 8. He's not eating us out of house and home yet, so we're probably pretty close to you and your husband. Except my husband is also trying to eat healthy and wouldn't go near hamburger helper with a 10 foot pole . I'm a vegetarian, they are not. I spend anywhere between $50-$80 per week on groceries alone. I do buy a lot of fresh fruit, especially this time of year when it's in season. I buy all of my boys' meat at Costco, which can save up to 20% depending on what you buy. I also stock up on non-perishables like cereal, coffee, pasta, spagetti sauce, beans, frozen veggies and the like when they're on sale. I also buy a lot of store brand food. I don't clip a lot of coupons, but that's mostly because I tend to forget them at home when I go to the store. But sometimes I get on a kick and I look for coupons online. You can find a lot of them, and many of the sites are free.

If you're looking to cut cost, try going vegetarian for a couple of meals a week. You can save a lot of money by replacing the meat with beans or tofu, or just making a dish that's vegetarian anyway, like spinach pie.

dclarsh

Thanks for all the suggestions. Another problem I have is that I don't really know what a "reasonable" price is for the things I buy. He usually pays and keeps the receipt. I guess I need to tell him that I want to work on this together and if he give me the receipt I can start keeping better track of how much things cost and how I can save money.

That's an excellent idea... it will help a lot when you plan your meals because you'll already know what it will cost before you get to the store.

Nich0le

Thanks for all the suggestions. Another problem I have is that I don't really know what a "reasonable" price is for the things I buy. He usually pays and keeps the receipt. I guess I need to tell him that I want to work on this together and if he give me the receipt I can start keeping better track of how much things cost and how I can save money.

BINGO! You can't agree on a budget if you don't share the information :noway:

Anywho, I asked my dad what he spends per week for him and my mom for you and he spends $90-$120 per week. He shops at several stores through out the week and he cooks ALL of their meals, and I do mean all of them plus bagels and other "treats" for my kids every other week. He does all of the shopping and the household budget so there isn't really an issue but if he buys something my mom puts on the list he makes her pay him back :laugh:

Also, they keep separate accounts for all their money and if a bill comes in that they agreed to split one of them writes the other a check. My aunt and uncle do the same. If you both work it may be a solution to your problem

Mom_To_5

Wow, i can't even tell you how much i spend on groceries a week for us there are 6 of us here ft and then my stepdaughter when she shows up.

I buy whatever i want for groceries as hubby doesn't care what i spend, i also pay all the bills so he knows i woldn't be buying stuff if we didn't have the money.........anyways i'm also am usually at the grocery store a few times a week picking up things whenever i'm have to go into town and when stuff i buy is on sale i usually stock up on it too.

I don't buy shampoo, laundry soap, dog food, cleaning supplies etc.... at the grocery store, it is more expensive there, i buy that stuff at Zellers, WalMart or Costco.

Not that i really answered your question but i think $80 a week including all the other stuff you said you buy is not very much and if that is what you have been spending for 8 years, it definatley isn't with the cost of everything going up so much. My house is full of food, most of it healthy, need junk stuff for the kids....not chips or cookies though, just dunkaroos, fruit rollups and stuff like that for snacks for their lunches.

I also use coupons when i have them, we don't get Sunday papers here, but do get coupons in the papers, not that i get the paper but i get them in other publications and there is also a site called save.ca where you can pick out what coupons you want and the mail them to you in a couple days.

michlingle

Do you have an aldi near by? Love the store and the prices! I get all my produce there too...zucchini, romaine lettuce, citrus, avocados...so good and cheap!

12by311

Just me and the hubs....we spend between about 90-110 or so a week. I never buy red meat, because my parents have beef cattle.

JDHINAZ

Two of us in the household. I would guess we spend 80-100 a week. We usually do meat and household cleaning, paper towels, toilet paper, body soap, shampoo, vitamins at Costco, and I try to stock up when they send the coupons out. I've also found that some of the whole foods type stores (Not the Whole Foods chain, but stores like Sunflower Market, Sprouts, etc) often have less expensive fruits and vegetables, and sometimes meat. I signed up for email ads from Sunflower market and Sprouts so I can compare prices. I also try to buy bulk foods as much as possible. Saves major dough! Good luck.

erkuhns79

I find this all too interesting. Somehow, I only spend $100-120 every TWO weeks at the grocery store for two people. Personal items and cleaning supplies I buy at Target...where I might spend about $50-100/month (and that's buying the enviromentally friendly products like Method or Seventh Generation). So broken down, I guess I spend about $50/week between personal items, cleaning items and groceries.

I'm a mega coupon clipper and vegetarian (and although my partner is not vegetarian, there's still rarely meat in this house). So that has saved tons of money! I buy a lot of canned veggies, canned beans, rice, whole wheat pasta, canned pasta sauce, items for salads and campbell's soups (highly recommend their recipes - they make 5-6 servings, so there's leftovers for lunch or dinner the next day).

My ideas would be to cut out a few meat meals and substitute veggie, rice or pasta dishes or make meals that have a lot of leftovers (like casseroles or bean chili).

Also, clip coupons (you save more in coupons then you pay for the paper) or, find some sites that have coupons for free online (like couponbug.com).

havingitall

I'm sorry... I may not be seeing this right. Do you earn an income as well? And if so, do you not have some say as to what groceries are being bought?

We buy a ton of fresh fruits and veggiesfrom the fruit market, buy our lean meats at a butcher's and then get the other stuff at a grocery store ( yogurt, milk, sundry items) $100 / week did not cover when there were 2 of us

Cyndi1

80-100 is pretty good amount to spend-I can do that and eat healthy for a family of four. I usually spend 20.00 on veg/fruit 20.00 on misc like detergents, dog food etc 20.00 on some milk, juice can goods and I never really spend anything on frozen dinners, way to much chemicals in them. You should give hubby 40.00 to spend on food and you spend 40.00- trial- make sure you divide up the misc items so it's even then maybe he will see it different. Good luck.

RedHotRunner

We spend $100 or so a week for 3 of us including toiletries and cleaners. Most of the food is fresh, although i do buy some pacakged items. I shop around, checking the circulars for sales. If you have a Sprouts by you, they have great prices on fresh produce and bins so you can buy rice, etc. in bulk.

I also use coupons. My market doubles up to $1. Last week I spent $53, but saved $86 using coupons and sales.

sassiebritches

I'm sorry... I may not be seeing this right. Do you earn an income as well? And if so, do you not have some say as to what groceries are being bought?

We buy a ton of fresh fruits and veggiesfrom the fruit market, buy our lean meats at a butcher's and then get the other stuff at a grocery store ( yogurt, milk, sundry items) $100 / week did not cover when there were 2 of us

I don't earn an income, but still spend the $ for us. I think that he needs to be a bit more supportive and even maybe give her free rain to shop by herself..........

leann_m_olson

I just found my grocery store online and they have some great coupons on the website, better than I get in the newspaper, lately there hasn't been as many coupons in the paper. There are also a lot of good websites out now that tell you how to save money on your groceries, if I didn't have a full-time job I would have more time to spend on saving money, ugh, vicious circle.

smithiekat

my bf and i live together and every time we go to the grocery store its $80. we joke about it because it doesn't matter if we think we need a lot or a little its $80. we go every 8-10 days. we buy things when they're buy one get one free (or buy two get two free). i plan our meals AFTER we grocery shop (if i do before whatever i want won't be on special). we freeze whatever we can't use (breads and meats), we have a cupboard in our kitchen FULL of extra cereals and canned goods. we buy in bulk. we don't buy frozen meals bc i think they're a waster of money. we both bring our lunch to work. i clip coupons and wait until triple coupon weekend for the ones under a dollar. we're both pretty cheap i guess :laugh: .

oh yea: we don't buy our dog food at the grocery store, but everything else we get at the Harris Teeter (paper towels, TP, soap etc.) once again waiting until buy one get one opportunities as much as possible.

harleygirl6363

We also have two and a small dog in my family. I would say we spend about 100 on just the food for the other items I would add at least 20 more. Not sureif that helps so much. Good luck

Mom_To_5

I'm sorry... I may not be seeing this right. Do you earn an income as well? And if so, do you not have some say as to what groceries are being bought?

We buy a ton of fresh fruits and veggiesfrom the fruit market, buy our lean meats at a butcher's and then get the other stuff at a grocery store ( yogurt, milk, sundry items) $100 / week did not cover when there were 2 of us

I don't earn an income, but still spend the $ for us. I think that he needs to be a bit more supportive and even maybe give her free rain to shop by herself..........

I don't work anymore either, my husband is self-employed with our own business and i do the books for it, and i agree he should let her shop, especially if she does earn an income as well.

dmmarie21

Let me tell you, I'm in the same boat as you, to a degree. I do all of the shopping, and my fiance "holds" all of the money, yet he won't dare go to the store with me. I have to justify every penny I spend at the store :grumble: It's not as bad as it used to be, but, Since I've been shopping around and clipping coupons, an average "shopping" day is a little less than 4 hours. RIDICULOUS! but, I look at it this way. I get extra excercise, and time to myself :flowerforyou:

I usually spend about 200 and it lasts usually 3 weeks. This week, I had this wonderful idea that I was going to shop one day and spend the whole entire day (today) cooking food for the MONTH :happy: and freezing it. So far, My freezer is jammed packed, and I still have MORE stuff to cook. I decided to do this because I often find that my fresh veggies go to waste before we have the chance to eat them, simply because I buy too much. I spent about 250 this week, but, like I said, with all of the extra prep, this stuff will last over a month. I also bought dog and cat food, laundry detergent, fabric softener, kitchen sponges, freezer bags (about 6) boxes, freezer containers and numerous other misc ideas (all name brand). I bought a 3lb pork roast (for bbq beef sandwiches- with zero calorie bbq sauce!) :noway: a 2 lb lean beef roast, a big honeysuckle white turkey breast, 2 (3lb) bags of frozen chicken, tons of veggies and corn on the cob, ground meat for sloppy joes and tacos (I make all of the mixes so they are lower in cals). I can't remember what else off hand. I made subs (healthy turkey and ham and ff cheese on sub buns, wrapped in foil and froze to eat for lunches), I also did the same and made bfast burritos.
I just started shopping at Aldi too. I buy their produce when it's decent. I just got cucumbers there for 29 cents each! a container of grape tomatoes for 99 cents (was 2.99 at meijer). I got some things at Kroger ( they were having a special on the turkey breast, those big whole ones, for 99 cents a pound), their roaster chickens were .69 cents a pound, and 3 (I think) lb bags of chicken were half price (5.99). Strawberries were on sale 3/5, but meijer had them 4/5. Meijer has electrosol dishwasher det for 3 and I had a 2.50 off coupon, so they were 50 cents a box! It's unbelievable. If you print out coupons (for free) you can save so much money. I buy this magazine, all you, for less than 3 dollars and they have a TON of coupons in there. Plus the paper, you save a lot, especially if you don't buy the products that you have a coupon for UNTIL they go on sale. YOu will never pay full price for anything again! A couple of months ago, I got 250 worth of groceries at kroger for 65! It was CRAZY, I was soooo excited :laugh:

Let me know if you need help, I would be glad to help out :bigsmile: :drinker:

Sorry for the novel :blushing: Grocery shopping is jus mah thang :glasses: LOL