The impact of inflation on our food budget is no joke. Rising food prices make us look for cheaper alternatives. Find out how to save on food with these 10 tips to spend less at supermarkets and restaurants.
Establish a budget for the supermarket:
- Set a limit for your grocery shopping and look for deals before you enter the store. Plan your meals and snacks around the week's discounts. Try generic brands to save even more.
Be careful with sales tactics:
- Avoid marketing strategies that make you spend more. Don't shop when you are bored, tired or hungry. Stay focused and stick to your shopping list.
Here are some of the aggressive tactics supermarkets use:
Minimum purchases to receive a discount. Supermarkets advertise a cheap price when you buy a minimum quantity of a
product. Sometimes it's two, or three, or five. Often the store will honor the price if you buy individually. This is taken care of at checkout.
Anchoring. This occurs when the sale price is strategically placed next to the regular price, making you feel like you're getting a bargain.
Place impulse purchases at the end of each aisle and at checkout. You might add something to your shopping cart that you don't need.
Leaders in losses. These are items advertised at very low prices. While you might get a bargain on the sale item, the intent is for you to go into the store and buy more items at regular prices.
Use coupons:
- Take advantage of apps and browser extensions to find coupons and discounts on your purchases, such as Honey, Dosh or Ibotta.
Buy only the essentials in bulk:
- Buy in bulk only non-perishable and regularly used products, such as toilet paper or diapers.
Check the offers on the discount shelves:
- Look for discounted products in the meat and vegetable sections, as well as on the sale shelves of your local supermarket.
Check your pantry:
- Before you go to the grocery store, check what you have at home and create dishes with those ingredients. Use apps like Kiwilimon to find recipes.
Use apps to save on food:
- Apps like Too Good to Go allow you to buy surplus food at reduced prices. Misfit Markets, Imperfect Foods, and GrubMarket offer food with cosmetic defects or surplus at lower prices.
Avoid food delivery apps such as Grubhub, Doordash, and Uber Eats as they charge high fees and inflate prices for delivery.
Eat out during lunchtime or happy hour:
- Take advantage of special offers and special menus in bars and restaurants during these hours to save money.
Reduce the frequency of eating out:
- Limit your visits to restaurants and fast food, and focus on preparing meals at home. Meal planning can help you save money and eat healthier.
Space out your visits to the supermarket and choose a single store:
- Wait until you have consumed most of your food before going to the supermarket and choose a single store to avoid additional transportation costs.
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Saving on food is possible by following these 10 practical tips. Setting a budget, taking advantage of deals and reducing the frequency of eating out will help you spend less at supermarkets and restaurants without sacrificing the quality of your food. Start saving today!