Home How often to you grocery shop and how much to you spend?

[blushingbride]

My DH and I were having this discussion the other night - we were trying to figure out what''s normal. We tend to go every two weeks and spend around $150 each trip (keep in mind, we live in NYC and we eat take out or go out to dinner in the neighborhood a couple times per week).

 

[aprilcait]

FI and I live in the DC area. We go grocery shopping once every week and spend between $60 and $70 every other week. The remaining weeks we spend between $80 and $100 (these trips are pricier because the list usually includes meat and hygiene products, which bump up the bill).

 

[Independent Gal]

FI shops for the two of us about every 10 days and spends about $80. We don''t buy any meat, but lots of cheese!

 

[LegacyGirl]

I want to say we don't spend more than $150 a month but my SO likes to eat out all the time and I usually pack my lunches. I need to get food now because there is none in my house

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I try to only go once a week and usually spend around $50. Of course it is Target that really gets me (diapers, shampoo, cleaning stuff, etc...) I usually end up going there one a week at $100 a pop. I only buy food at the grocery store.

 

[blushingbride]

Date: 2/20/2008 3:09:11 PM
Author: Tacori E-ring
I try to only go once a week and usually spend around $50. Of course it is Target that really gets me (diapers, shampoo, cleaning stuff, etc...) I usually end up going there one a week at $100 a pop. I only buy food at the grocery store.

That is SO true! I try not to go to Target unless it's absolutely necessary - I walk in needing 1 thing and walk out with 10 additional things that I didn't know I needed until I went in!

 

[CrownJewel]

BB, I''m also in NYC and my FI and I go once a week...averaging $80 a week. We buy a lot of produce and sometimes meat and seafood.

 

[ang3199]

Heavy duty grocery shopping is once a month at about $300 a pop. Here and there I stop at the store if I need perishables or something to make for dinner on a particular night. This is what gets me because I usually stop after work and I am usually hungry, so I buy a bunch of crap that really adds up in cost.

We also purchase our beef directly from a slaughterhouse because I can''t properly digest store bought meet. 1/2 beef usually lasts us a whole year at about $500. So that saves us some moolah.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

We buy only organic and there''s four in my family and we spend at least $1,000 a month on food. We eat out about once every two or three weeks, so that may be part of the reason I spend so much at the grocery store. I go to the store every couple of days.

 

[Elmorton]

For the two of us, we spend about $200 once a month (the big trip with cleaning stuff, TP, paper towels, cat food, litter, fire logs, etc), then a small trip of $40-80, and then another big trip of $100+, and that should be about the whole month. We''ve tried going once a week, we''ve tried going once every 2 weeks, and we can never find a happy medium. After about a week, we''re out of milk and all fresh food, but then we go back and spend way too much again. I try to meal plan, and then something will go bad and my plan will go out the window. It floors me how much we spend in groceries, but we only eat out 1-2 times a week now (when I lived alone, I spent about $185 once a month, because I''d eat out for 2 weeks straight between shopping trips). If anyone has a cost-effective shopping plan for 2, I''d love to hear it!

 

[door knob solitaire]

Try to do as MC does...but I can''t pay $4.99 for a head of lettuce yet...all veggie meat substitutes frozen things...we never eat out. Can''t trust the ingredients. (Maybe four times a year we do) I slave all the other times.

I would say $200 every week is a good average number...But it is just the two of us...that is just too much, isn''t it?

 

[lyra]

I''m not totally sure, but minimum $600 per month. Would you believe the produce is more expensive that buying meat?

 

[musey]

We eat at home (or take lunches) all except 3-4 dinners per week. We live in LA and most outings with friends revolve around whatever new restaurant just opened up

Anyway, I''m not great at consolidating our grocery trips, partly because the store is only 3 blocks away and very easy to just pop over. I''d say we average about $80/week, split up into 2 (sometimes 3) trips.

 

[ladypirate]

We try not to do takeout very often, and we budget $100 a week for food (excluding wine or if we go out to a nice dinner). Probably about $70 to $80 of that is spent at the grocery store and the rest goes to either him buying lunch at work if he forgets to bring food or if we do get takeout one night.

 

[fisherofmengirly]

We make a true grocery store run every other weekend, but have to pop in to buy fresh fruits and things like that on a more regular basis. We spend about $60-$80 each "real" shopping spree, and anywhere from $10-25 the other times. Our average grocery bill is about $220 a month or so. Give or take.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 2/20/2008 4:30:56 PM
Author: door knob solitaire
.

I would say $200 every week is a good average number...But it is just the two of us...that is just too much, isn't it?

Two hundred or more a week IS just too much! lol How in the world are you gals only spending that much A MONTH on food? You're eating out a lot, right? That must add up to the other hundreds that us gals who eat at home spend?

Maybe I should switch to Top Ramen!

 

[dani13]

We spend alot on food. I go the grocery store a few times per wk...One trip is a big one, where I get all the basics, and then I will make another 2 trips (about) to pick up something for dinner and other odds and ends. I would say I spend about $150 per wk just for the 2 of us. I cook often, and we only eat out 1-2 times per week.

We also pack our own lunches most days....

 

[Rhea]

We shop every Saturday. By the end of the week we definitely need new veggies and fruit. We average £60/week including alcohol. We eat out about once a fortnight. I buy lunch groceries separately at the grocery near by work because I don''t have the discipline to pack a lunch every day but can''t afford to eat out every day and spend about £10/week on my lunch groceries plus one lunch out every week or two.

 

[Dreamer_D]

I live in Canada and we buy all whole foods, very little pre-packaged, lots of wierd expensive things like soymilk, organic cheese, etc etc and spend $600 per month for the two of us. We shop once a week to once every 10 days. Maybe some little filler trips occasionally (we run out of fruit or lunch stuff inbetween sometimes). We pack all our lunches and eat out at a cheapy place ($20 for two) once a week and a more expensive place ($60 for two) once a month.

I wonder if food prices are really different in Canada? I have noticed our food bills are often more then my friends, but we probably eat the best of all my freinds (in terms of whole grains, veggies, fruits etc) and I think that stuff really adds up.

DD

 

[lyra]

Date: 2/20/2008 5:08:48 PM
Author: MC

Date: 2/20/2008 4:30:56 PM
Author: door knob solitaire
.

I would say $200 every week is a good average number...But it is just the two of us...that is just too much, isn't it?

Two hundred or more a week IS just too much! lol How in the world are you gals only spending that much A MONTH on food? You're eating out a lot, right? That must add up to the other hundreds that us gals who eat at home spend?

Maybe I should switch to Top Ramen!

Yeah, my $200 a week does not include eating out, however there are 4 adults + 1 teen adult b/f to feed.

And yes, prices are higher here in Canada. I compare with my friend in TX, and on produce alone it's just an incredible difference. Plus our meats are extremely expensive too.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 2/20/2008 5:08:48 PM
Author: MC

Date: 2/20/2008 4:30:56 PM
Author: door knob solitaire
.

I would say $200 every week is a good average number...But it is just the two of us...that is just too much, isn''t it?

Two hundred or more a week IS just too much! lol How in the world are you gals only spending that much A MONTH on food? You''re eating out a lot, right? That must add up to the other hundreds that us gals who eat at home spend?

Maybe I should switch to Top Ramen!

I totally think that if many people added up the times they eat out then many would have food bills that come close to the bills of those of us who eat in most of the time. I also think that buying high quality foods or unusual international foods ratchets up the costs. A bottle of kraft salad dressing costs a lot less per volume than the home made salad dressing I always make, but I prefer the taste of dressing with just extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar and honey! I am vegetarian and hubby can''t drink milk, so the variety of foods we buy hikes up costs too I think.

Ah well, we don''t smoke or drink very much so maybe it all evens out to a degree?


DD

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 2/20/2008 6:05:17 PM
Author: lyra

And yes, prices are higher here in Canada. I compare with my friend in TX, and on produce alone it''s just an incredible difference. Plus our meats are extremely expensive too.

I''ve noticed that too when I visit... I console myself by thinking about how my health care is free! haha

Oh wait... taxes are higher... siiggghhh...

DD

 

[Mara]

typically i shop once a week at TJ's and spend about $100 a week there for us two.
then i'll go to a whole foods during the week for supplemental stuff for probably $50.
and sometimes a safeway or longs drugs for TP and other stuff that maybe is about $25 a week.

so about $175 a week total for us 2. which is much better than it used to be when i shopped more exclusively at whole foods. it was like $250 a week then i think. i am a total impulse shopper and rarely pay attention to costs..it's more like 'Oh i want some grapes !!'

this does not include eating out...we eat in about 4 days a week and eat out 3 days a week. i also eat breakfast at home every day of the week (unless we go out on a sunday for breakkie rarely). no Sbucks coffee habits. and i take my lunch to work probably 3 days out of 5. for us at night, eating out could be a $25 pair of burritos for us or a $100 dinner on a friday or saturday..just depends on what we feel like doing.

 

[Rhea]

Date: 2/20/2008 5:59:57 PM
Author: dreamer_dachsie
all whole foods, very little pre-packaged, lots of wierd expensive things like soymilk, organic cheese

That's how we shop!! We buy everything we can at the local farm shop - milk, cheese, eggs, potatoes and other veggies that are grown less than 2 miles from our house, and we get to pick our own fruit in the summer. Love it! I feel so dirty supermarket shopping now. Often if it's not local, or at least UK grown, we don't buy it.

But for us, in the UK, it's much much cheaper to do it that way. Soy milk is about £0.80/litre (about $1.60 US) and DH goes through 3 litres a week. Not that I can talk, we also go through about 3 litres of cow's milk a week at about $1.90/litre! It's because of the espresso machine and our love of coffee.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 2/20/2008 6:39:32 PM
Author: Addy

Date: 2/20/2008 5:59:57 PM
Author: dreamer_dachsie
all whole foods, very little pre-packaged, lots of wierd expensive things like soymilk, organic cheese

That''s how we shop!! We buy everything we can at the local farm shop - milk, cheese, eggs, potatoes and other veggies that are grown less than 2 miles from our house, and we get to pick our own fruit in the summer. Love it! I feel so dirty supermarket shopping now. Often if it''s not local, or at least UK grown, we don''t buy it.

But for us, in the UK, it''s much much cheaper to do it that way. Soy milk is about £0.80/litre (about $1.60 US) and DH goes through 3 litres a week. Not that I can talk, we also go through about 3 litres of cow''s milk a week at about $1.90/litre! It''s because of the espresso machine and our love of coffee.

Addy yiouy are lucky that the climate is so temperate in the UK, I think it makes the growing season longer or something. I have family over there and I have noticed that access to local produce is much easier than in Canada where it is sub-zero 5 months of the year.

Soymilk is really costly here, and we buy organic dairy products which also hikes it up. I don''t drink much milk, but DH drinks about 3 litres a week too! I keep reading rumors about how too much Soy is bad for men, something about the soy having an estrogen imitator or something, but I haven''t looked into it yet. But he is really really really intolerat to milk so there isn''t an option! Maybe Ricemilk, but it was hard enough to get him onto Soy, I don''t think he will touch ricemilk!

DD

 

[EricaR]

Ohhh, I am crazy and compulsive when it comes to groceries! There are two of us and we live in Southern California. I cook four or five nights a week, and I eat at home every day for lunch. I spend about $250-300 a month, including cleaning supplies, etc.

I grocery shop with the help of The Grocery Game. I love coupons, and the site matches up store sales with recent coupons and helps me save money. I generally save 60-70% each shopping trip. When I almost a high when I use coupons! It is quite pathetic actually!

 

[cellososweet]

We go once a week and spend roughly $50. Some weeks are cheaper than others ($36 seems to be a reoccuring number). Some are more. We pack lunches and rarely eat out becaue I love nothing more than to cook a gourmet three course meal. We''re vegetarians, eat organic, and have pretty simple tastes. i love love love to cook and tend to make mostly everything from scratch, which suprisingly cuts down on our costs. Also, since I pick up produce fresh, it doesn''t spoil (no need to buy it twice because it spoiled).

I stock up on basics and a $50 run will usually include:
soup (3-4 containers), diced tomatoes (3 cans for home-made marinara), tomato paste, ricotta, fresh parmesan, fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, gouda, brown rice, whole wheat cous cous, one or two things of pasta (mannicotti, shells, whole wheat), soy creamer, soy milk, granola/cereal, extra firm tofu, bread, a pizza for a quick night when i have lessons, frozen veges (balsamic vinegar veges, corn, "asian" mixes- that term bugs me btw haha that''s the sociologist in me, ummmm. . . .spinach, peas), seitan, vanilla non-fat yogurt (the big container), bagels, water, and eggs (when i need them. about once a month i''ll pick up 6).

We spend about $40 a month on pinot noir, brie, and gouda for our special friday night wine and cheese parties (me, my husband, and our cats playing scrabble. well,the cats dont'' play. . haha). It gets more expensive once a month, roughly, when we get: coffee (has to be lavazza haha), raspberry jam, seventh gen dishwasher soap (that''s only about once every two months) and special things like desserts and flavored drinks like soda or teas in the winter.

I think the reason that our grocery runs are so low is because I like to cook things from scratch. I tend to over-prepare and have tons of leftovers. You''d be surprised how much more vodka or marinara sauce you can make from scratch and how tasty it is compared to the store. I bottle mine and refrigerate it and it gets yummier and yummier

Target on the other hand is another story. Haha. I''m usually ok and tend to really stock up on papertowels (target brand) and toilet paper so that I don''t have to go there more often than once every six weeks. Even though the pharmacies are more expenisive, i tend to go to rite aid or savon, just so i don''t buy clothes at target while shopping for deodarant.

it''s pathetic. haha.

 

[diamondfan]

I am bad. I end up at a market many times per week. Sometimes a big store, sometimes a gourmet or specialty store. I like to buy a lot of fresh fruits, veggies etc and we go through a lot with three kids, husband, and my nanny and sitter eating. My youngest also likes to bake so I get a lot of stuff for him. A lot of bottled waters and drinks too. I would say average bill is 750.00 a week, but it can go up if I am buying a lot of meat or fish. I am also not really counting cleaning supplies or paper goods.

 

[door knob solitaire]

Diamond Fan at $750 a week have you considered opening your pantry and hanging an open sign?

Man do I get off cheap! Woo Hoo!

 

[strmrdr]

Its just me and I budget 1.10 for Pepsi and 2.00 for food a day and $10 a month for cleaning supplies, shampoo, and TP. and usually I''m a little over that on average for a month because of buying a few treats.
Roughly $120 total.
Shop 2x a month for food, 4x for Pepsi.
Can and have eaten for a month on $30 but its not fun.