Top 7 Ways to Cut Grocery Costs Part Seven

One of the easiest ways to cut costs and save money is to cut your grocery budget. Yes, you have to eat, but there are plenty of options. It is the one are of your budget that you can manage to the very cent without starving. This is hint number seven in the series.

Use your price book
The concept of a price book is most likely new to you. It's not something we Australians have used as a part of living the Cheapskates way until recently. But it sure makes shopping and saving money easy. Simply by recording the price of every item you buy in a little notebook, you have a ready reckoner of just where you'll be able to get the very best price. When you buy an item record the price. Then, when you go to buy that item again, check your price book. If the price is lower, buy it and record the cost in your price book. If it's higher then you'll need to decide if you need it immediately or can wait until it is on sale. When you make up your shopping list, write down beside the item how much it costs (based on the price book) and  tally it up at the end. This will help you stay within your grocery budget.

Tip of the Day March 2, 2009

Tracking is Not Just for the Supermarket

There are many everyday household grocery items that are available not just at the supermarket but at pharmacies, department stores, dollar stores and even markets that may not be part of your usual shopping routine. Most of these retailers put out sale brochures so be sure to have a quick look through them to see if any of the items you use are on sale. Then compare the price with the prices in your price book to see if it's worth purchasing from an alternate source. By keeping any eye out for sale prices everywhere you can maximize your savings.

Tip of the Day March 1 2009

Work Out the Lowest Sale Price and Stock Up

Start watching sales and tracking the prices of grocery items you use regularly or a lot of in a pricebook. You'll soon start to notice sales cycles and when the prices are at their highest and when they're at their lowest. The trick of course is to know when your favourite grocery items are going to be on sale and then buy when items are at their lowest price, stocking up to get you through to the next sale. By stocking up you'll avoid running out and having to buy at full price. This method of buying is called stockpiling. Stockpiling can save you a lot of money, simply because you track the sales cycles and know when your groceries are at their best possible price.

Get Prepared and Slash That Grocery Bill

Take the time to write up a grocery list and go through the supermarket junk mail. Start this week by being prepared with enough food to make quick meals at home. Take the time to walk through the supermarket to compare brands and prices. Make notes on the back of your shopping list so you can update your Price Book when you get home. You can easily save $20 or more each week by shopping the sales at the stores. As soon as you've put the groceries away, update your Grocery Tracking Spreadsheet. Seeing just how much you are spending in each category can be just the thing you need to rein in the food budget.