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My husband and I live on a tight budget. We live on one income, so we don’t really have a choice. If we don’t budget, we don’t eat. Over the years, I’ve learned many ways to save money. Now, I’m able to buy all of groceries, plus toiletries (diapers included), on about 300 dollars a month. A few people have asked me how I’m able to do that, so I thought I’d share a few of my strategies with you here:
How I Feed Our Family on $300 a Month:
1. I plan my meals in advance and only buy what is needed for these meals.
Along with saving money, meal-planning has other benefits. First of all, it takes the stress out of the 5:00 hour. We no longer have to stare into the fridge every night and try to find something to put together for dinner. Now, we just look at our monthly calendar and choose an entree. Plus, when we are planning our meals, we can intentionally plan healthier options.
One thing I’ve done that has sped up the meal-planning is this: I made a list of 28-30 dishes our family enjoys. Then, we just rotate the meals in any given month. I typically throw in a couple of new recipes, but for the most part, we eat the same meals every month.
2. We rarely eat out.
In a typical month, we spend about $50.00 a month on eating out. Sure, it’s frustrating at times-especially when it seems like everyone else can eat out all the time and we’re always stuck bringing a sandwich to work or passing on a restaurant invite. But, as Dave Ramsey says, “If you live like no one else now, you can live like no one else later.” I’m looking forward to that day.
3. I buy certain items in bulk.
For us, that’s diapers and meat. My only caution is this: make sure you’re actually saving money when you buy in bulk. Check the price per ounce before buying to make sure it’s actually a deal.
4. We don’t buy beverages.
Other than milk, Kool-aid at 20 cents a package, and tea bags, we don’t buy beverages. No pop. No juice packets. Again, it’s not always fun. But it saves us a ton of money. Plus it’s healthier.
5. We don’t buy junk food.
If you opened our pantry on any given day, you’d rarely find cookies, chips, or any other junk food. We just don’t buy it. For our family, sweets and chips are a treat.
6. I buy generic.
I used to think generic wasn’t as good as name brand, but really, I can’t tell that much of a difference. The money you can save just by switching to generic is huge, so it’s totally worth a try.
7. I look for deals.
I’ve not gotten into coupons (yet), but I do keep my eye out for a good deal. And if I happen to find one, I stock up on that particular item.
I’d love to hear your ideas too. How do you save money on your grocery bill?
Thanks so much! I'll check it out 🙂
Natausha,I saw this post after you commented and thought you might be interested. It's for making your own shower detergent:
@ Crystal-Do you have any sites or suggestions on making your own handsoap/detergent? If so I'd love to know where 🙂
Sarah, it sounds like you're doing a really great job budgeting for your family! If I made it sound like it's easy for me, please forgive me. It's NOT at all! It is incredibly difficult. And there are definitely months when I go over. The most important thing is that you are making decisions about where your money is going, and it sounds like you are doing that. Awesome job!
We are a 3 person family and our budget is about 250 a month and it's hard. We don't eat packaged/boxed food so it's fresh fruit/veggies some frozen & meats. Thankfully this month a friend gave us meats because he knew we were having a really tough time. I watch for sales. I keep track of what I paid last time & if it's too much I don't buy it. I buy one laundry detergent a year. Ecos. I don't need bounce sheets as it already has that in it. I coupon when I can, cook from scratch. There are other ways I try to save but it isn't always easy. Some weeks that bag of chips my husband wants as a treat just has to stay on the shelf.
You're right! I totally forgot to add that:) We are feeding a family of 4 (one of which just started eating baby food). So yes, your budget would need to be more than ours with such a large family.
These are some great tips! Your juice comment reminded me of another thing I do. I dilute the juice with water. It helps it last longer and still tastes great 🙂 I like the paper towel tip too. Using less is a great way to save money.
Sure, Sarah:) I'd be happy to do that sometime. I'll have to get it all typed out, so it might be a few weeks, though.
I'm curious to know how many people you are feeding on $300 a month. I've been evaluating my grocery budget, and we are a family of 8, soon to be 9.
We have a $100 a week budget but we often spend more than that! We get a gift of $100 a month and that is usually spent on groceries. So, I'd guess we spend about $500 a month on groceries/toiletries/ect. It seems like a lot compared to your $300 but really we barely get by! To save money, here are a few things I do off the top of my head:Make most of our snacks (muffins, granola bars, quick breads)Meal planMake my own laundry detergent and hand soapCook from scratchWe also only drink juice, water or milk. My boys only get one cup of juice a day. It's better for them and cheaper! We're also working on using less and less paper towels. I haven't been able to completely get rid of them but we are using much less than before! I found you from The Better Mom!
Lindsey, would you be interested in posting a sample monthly menu you use?
What we did was join a CSA for meat & produce. It's $164/month for local, organic stuff + we supplement with eggs, fish, and the odd milk & fruit, about $40/mo. If I break down the bulk loose leaf tea cost, it's about $13/mo. I realize that this is 2 people living on $217/mo without non-grocery items factored in. I think this speaks to the feasibility of an all organic diet as the norm, though. Before we went with the CSA, we were spending $500/mo at Whole Foods for two people. Even if we double the costs to account for 2 more people, it's still doable on our currently single income.