How to Save Money on Groceries: 25 Tips That Actually Work (+ a Cheap Grocery List)

Groceries are one of the few big expenses you can change this week. Rent and car payments are fixed, but what you spend at the store goes up and down with every trip. The good news is that most of the savings come from a handful of habits, not from clipping coupons for hours. Below are 25 ways to save money on groceries, starting with the ones that make the biggest difference, plus a cheap grocery list and budget meals you can make from it.

First, know your number: a realistic grocery budget

You can't save against a number you don't know. Look at the last two months of grocery receipts or bank transactions and add them up, then compare with what the USDA says a healthy diet costs for a household like yours.

These are monthly costs for food made at home. Use the free grocery budget calculator to get the figure for your household's exact ages. If you're spending well above the Moderate plan, there's usually plenty of room to save without eating worse.

Plan before you shop

1. Set a weekly grocery budget

Divide your monthly budget by 4.33 and write the weekly number at the top of your list. A weekly target is easier to stick to than a monthly one, because you know by Sunday whether the week went well.

2. Meal plan the week

A meal plan is the single biggest money saver. When dinner is decided, you buy exactly what you need, there's no 6 p.m. takeout and the food you buy gets eaten. Start with dinners only: seven nights, including one leftovers night and one easy night. Our weekly meal plan template walks through it.

3. Shop your kitchen first

Before writing the list, look in the fridge, freezer and pantry. Plan at least two meals around what's already there, especially anything close to its use-by date.

4. Plan meals that share ingredients

If Monday's tacos use half a bunch of cilantro, put the other half in Thursday's rice bowls. Recipes that share fresh ingredients are the easiest way to stop paying for food that rots.

5. Cook once, eat twice

Double a chili, soup or pasta bake and eat it again later in the week, or freeze a portion. It saves money and a night of cooking. The free recipe converter scales any recipe in seconds.

6. Go meatless two or three nights a week

Meat is usually the most expensive part of a meal. Beans, lentils, eggs and tofu cost a fraction as much per serving. Black bean tacos, lentil soup and veggie fried rice are cheap family favorites.

7. Know what your meals cost

A homemade dinner usually costs $2 to $5 a serving; takeout costs $12 to $20. Price your regular dinners once with the recipe cost calculator and plan more of the cheap ones.

Write a better grocery list

8. Build the list from the plan

Go through each planned meal and write down every ingredient you don't already have. Add up repeated items: three recipes that each need garlic might need a whole bulb, not three.

9. Sort it by store section

Group the list by produce, meat, dairy, bakery, pantry and frozen. You'll walk the store once, in order, and skip the aisles you don't need, which is where impulse buys live.

10. Write quantities, not just items

"Chicken thighs, 2 lb" stops you buying the family pack you don't need. "Bananas, 6" stops a bunch of 10 going brown.

11. Keep a running list all week

When something runs out, add it straight away. A list on your phone that the whole household can add to beats a sticky note nobody can find.

Shop smarter

12. Shop once a week (or less)

Every extra trip adds a few unplanned items. One planned trip a week, with a short top-up for milk and fruit if needed, keeps spending down.

13. Don't shop hungry or rushed

It's an old tip because it works: hungry shoppers buy more snacks and convenience food. Eat first, and give yourself enough time to compare prices.

14. Buy store brands

Store brands of staples like flour, sugar, canned tomatoes, pasta, rice, frozen vegetables and dairy are often made in the same factories as name brands and cost 20% to 30% less.

15. Compare unit prices

The shelf tag shows the price per ounce or per count. The bigger package isn't always cheaper per unit, and the sale item isn't always the best deal.

16. Buy produce in season, and frozen when it isn't

Seasonal fruit and vegetables are cheaper and taste better. Out of season, frozen vegetables and berries are just as nutritious, cheaper and never go bad in the drawer.

17. Buy whole, not cut

A whole chicken costs much less per pound than breasts; a block of cheese less than shredded; a head of lettuce less than a bag of salad; whole carrots less than baby carrots. Ten minutes of prep saves real money.

18. Stock up only on what keeps

Buy rice, oats, pasta, canned goods and frozen meat in bulk when they're on sale. Skip bulk deals on fresh food unless you have a plan for every bit of it.

19. Use the store app and loyalty card

Digital coupons and loyalty prices at the big US chains often take a few dollars off a weekly shop for a minute of tapping. Load them before you go, and only for things already on your list.

20. Try a cheaper store for staples

Discount grocers and warehouse clubs can be much cheaper for pantry staples. Even one trip a month for rice, canned goods, oil and frozen items can lower the total.

Waste less food

21. Use it first

Put food that needs eating at the front of the fridge, and plan a meal around it. A "use it first" shelf or list stops forgotten spinach and half-used cream.

22. Freeze before it goes bad

Bread, bananas, cooked rice, grated cheese, meat and most leftovers freeze well. If you won't eat it in time, freeze it the same day.

23. Plan a leftovers night

One night a week, eat what's in the fridge. It clears the shelves before the next shop and saves a whole dinner's cost.

24. Store food properly

Keep herbs in a glass of water, wrap celery in foil, keep onions and potatoes apart and store berries unwashed. Fresh food that lasts longer is fresh food you don't buy twice.

25. Keep track for a month

Write down what you spend each week, and what you throw away. Seeing the numbers is often enough to change habits, and it shows you which tips are working.

A cheap grocery list for a family

These staples are among the cheapest foods per serving in US stores and make dozens of meals.

Budget meals from that list

• Black bean tacos with cabbage slaw
• Chicken and rice with roasted carrots
• Lentil soup with crusty bread
• Egg fried rice with frozen peas and carrots
• Pasta with tomato sauce and white beans
• Baked potato bar with cheese, beans and broccoli
• Peanut noodles with cabbage and carrots

Need more dinner ideas? The free random meal generator has a "budget-friendly only" filter and builds a whole week of dinners.

Let an app do the busywork

Most of the tips above come down to planning the week, building a list from the plan and using food before it goes bad. That's exactly what Simmer, our meal planner app, does for you. Plan the week from your own recipes and the grocery list writes itself, sorted by aisle with what each item costs. The pantry shows what to use first, every recipe shows its cost per serving, and the food budget tracks groceries against takeout week by week. Try the free demo with a sample family kitchen.

For the bigger budget picture, the 50/30/20 budget calculator shows where groceries fit next to rent, bills and savings, and our guide on how to stop impulse buying helps in every aisle, not just the grocery store.