Well, I try my very best here, but I’m not perfect. In this economy, saving any cash gives me a peace of mind. I live alone and spend on average £130 per month on groceries. I also budget separately for meals out, and this post will discuss ways to save money on groceries and food. But yeah, saving money can be tough. Every penny has to stretch that little bit further, and we want to make every penny count. So here are the ways I have tried to save money.

Bulk buy to save

It was highlighted during my uni days, that bulk buying is a good way to save money. I think it’s because, prices can fluctuate so bulk buying for a month, can sometimes mean you bag a deal. It also saves you making multiple trips to the shops, so saving time too. I don’t bulk buy everything, because the con of bulk buying, is having the space to store what I’ve bulk bought. I bulk buy (for the month) some shelf stable items like tinned foods, rice and cleaning products. It’s a reasonably big shop, but once it’s done it allows me to focus the rest of my grocery allowance, on my meals for the month.

Meal prep to save

Meal prepping is laborious and not for everyone. I really hate cooking after work, and that hatred fuels my motivation to meal prep. I have a very basic spreadsheet; with all the meals I like to cook and enjoy eating. There is nothing worse than spending money to cook a meal, that doesn’t taste good. Life is too short for that. So, I plan out lunch and dinners depending on what I’m feeling, and I buy groceries for those meals each week. I currently don’t plan breakfast, because I am still enjoying the same thing, which is a sausage bap with an iced coffee, and chia seed pudding.

Even if meal prepping doesn’t seem like an ideal choice for yourself, having meal plans is the next best thing. Food waste is not great for the planet, or your pocket. If you already know there are go to meals you like to have in moments of tiredness, then make sure you are stocked on those ingredients. The reason I don’t like cooking every day, is because my brain is so tired after work, I can’t think about what I want to cook, let alone find the energy to prepare a meal. But if you have a go to meal, that you are happy to prepare, even when you’re tired, keep that stocked. Because everyday life is unpredictable, and having a stable nutritious meal is better for your pocket and your health, than relying on fast food.

Plan meals out to save

Now, this is very dependent on the life that you lead. I plan my meals out. These are not take-outs. These are sit down meals in establishments, where I get to enjoy the experience. I plan these as solo dates and general ‘dates’ with friends. Each month I schedule 2 meals, and I budget £20-£40 per meal depending on the menu. I can sometimes plan what I will eat in advanced, because I am a fussy eater, but that depends on the restaurant.

Having a spending limit might seem over the top, but I have financial goals that I am focusing on. So, sometimes I choose a main course and a starter, or a more expensive main course (dessert is hit and miss for me). The thing is, just because I have been to the restaurant once, does not mean I can never go again. So, I can go back and try something else if I want to. I don’t have to break the bank on that one visit. Budgeting those meals means I don’t limit myself (ironically), because up until last year, I wouldn’t let myself eat out to save money, but now I save and still find ways to enjoy my money. Also, my friends and I have busy lives, so we are always planning when to get together, and rarely have last-minute meals out, but we do have last minute drinks. I don’t budget for drinks, since it’s always cheap, and I do avoid taking part in rounds.

Prevent wastage to save

I mentioned earlier about meal planning and prepping to prevent wastage. Shops also have a way to minimise wastage, by having clearance prices and being part of sustainable programmes. My family calls them the ‘Oopsies’ section, because the label says ‘Oops’ on it, which is funny. The discounts are pretty drastic because the sell by date or something is very close, and if they don’t sell it, then it has to get discarded as waste. They are normally well stocked on evenings and early mornings, as that’s after they have gone through the shelves and restocked them. I tend to get my meat products from them and produce.

There are sustainable programmes, that link restaurants and shops to consumers to reduce food wastage. I tried out one called ‘Too Good to Go’. You collect bags of food (you don’t know what’s in them), which are priced between £2 - £10, and it stops the places throwing them away, and you get a surprise of what’s in the bag. I only did it once, as the options in my area, weren’t interesting to me, or worth the commute. But I have talked to people who used it in bigger areas, and they were impressed. Greggs is a popular partaker in the programme, and you can get ‘Yum-Yums’ or ‘chicken bake slices’ and other stuff. Personally, I am not a huge fan of Greggs food, but if you are, get on the discounted mystery bags. However, it’s not always guaranteed, as you book in the morning and collect in the evening. So, if they sell all their food before collection, you get a refund and obviously no food (which is what happened on my experience).

Miscellaneous

I am not perfect, and roughly £130 per month and my meal prep is not always enough. Take outs happen, not as much as the used to, but they do. The credit card exists for that, but obviously what drives me to limit my takeout, is my credit card debt. I am not in debt because of takeout; it’s just been a rough couple of years. I talked about methods to get out of my credit card in this post.

This economy is not fun right now, but these ways of trying to save money do make the pennies stretch. It’s definitely not easy, and there are other ways to save money in this area that I have not found yet. But when I do, you know I will let you know. 😉

TL;DR

- Every penny has to stretch that little bit further, so here are the ways I have tried to save money, and my review of them.

- Bulk buying can be handy, but you need storage space for what you bulk buy.

- Meal prepping/planning, though laborious, can minimise food wastage and thus save money.

- Budgeting meals out means I don’t limit myself (ironically), because up until last year, I wouldn’t let myself eat out to save money.

- Taking advantage of clearance prices and food waste programmes, can be handy ways to get groceries and save money.

Things to do to save money: Food edition