14 Ways to Reduce Your Grocery Bill

How to Spend Less on Groceries

Here’s how to reduce your grocery bill without compromising food quality and nutritional value.

Build Your Meal Plan Around the Discounted Items

You’ve probably heard that meal planning helps save money on groceries, but few people talk about how to make the most of it. The key to a budget-friendly meal plan is moving from a recipe-first plan to a deal-first one. That means you need to check the sales through online or printed weekly store circulars before you plan anything.

Prioritize the food you actually eat to avoid unnecessary purchases and waste, but balance three main macronutrients: carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Pay special attention to meat and pantry staples on sale. Then, build meals backward from those items.

Before each grocery run, check your pantry and fridge to factor in items you already have and maximize savings. Planning around “super meals” can also help you reduce food spending. These meals should be cheap yet nutritious and repeatable for you. Different people like different things, so choose the one or several items you can eat frequently.

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My go to meals are like cheap hot dogs plus french fries, or a sandwich with 6 slices (1 serving) of meat, or plain oatmeal. My weekly grocery spend is about $35. If I didn’t drink soda it would probably be around $28,

Make sure you fill your plate the right way to follow proper nutrition recommendations. A good diet for most healthy adults calls for carbohydrates to make up 45%–65% of your total daily calories, while 10–35% goes toward proteins, and 20–35% goes to fats.

Organize Your Fridge and Pantry

Messy and cluttered pantry and fridge shelves create confusion in your shopping list and increase food (and money) waste. To keep them tidy, clean them out regularly, group similar items, and push older items front and center so you see and use them first.

Keep fruits in low-humidity bins, but store greens and herbs in high-humidity containers with adequate airflow to stop rotting. As vegetables go bad faster because of gases from fruits, store them separately. Another tip is to place raw meat and poultry on the bottom shelf to prevent cross-contamination.

When your fridge and pantry spaces are organized well, it will be much easier for you to see what you really have or do not have. Here’s another practical tip provided by the Reddit user snug666:

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Everyone seems to have basics covered, but I want to add that I take pictures of the fridge, freezer, and pantry before going shopping because I usually end up buying $10+ worth of things that I already have every time I go shopping. It doesn’t sound like much but adds up obviously. “Hmm do i need more ketchup? I don’t know… but I might as well get some just in case…” NOPE!!!! Check the pictures. Now I don’t end up with extras.

Set a Food Spending Limit

A grocery budget will help you stay within your means and not overspend. Start by determining your baseline spending. To do this, track your expenses for 1–3 months and assess how much you actually spend on food, taking into account both grocery shopping and eating out. This will help you determine areas where you can cut back. Then, set a strict limit that is lower than your previous spending but is still realistic.

Go for Store Brands

Store brands are often the exact same product as name brands, made in the same factory but with different labeling. The good news is that they are often way cheaper. According to Consumer Reports, private-label items usually have 25%–30+% lower prices compared to an average national brand’s price.

Let’s look at real price tags. 1 gallon of 2% milk from Target’s Good & Gather costs $4.29*, while you will spend $5.79* if you choose the same from Borden. 12 ct eggs from Walmart’s Great Value cost $1.47* compared to $4.62* for Eggland’s Best 12 ct eggs.

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Some things are worth paying for a ‘name’ brand, but for basic stuff like snacks, canned beans, frozen foods, bread, crackers? Challenge the average person to tell the difference and you’d prolly win all the time,

*Exact prices depend on the area.

Reduce Your Grocery Shopping Trips

Fewer trips teach you to plan ahead and use what you already have in your fridge or pantry. This also helps reduce transportation costs and keeps you from making impulse purchases. Try to shop for groceries once a week at most. If you do need something during the week, make a short list rather than browsing the aisles.

Limit Eating Out

Many Americans choose eating out over cooking at home for a variety of reasons. You may have a bad day and get tired, think you are bad at cooking, or simply not like it. However, restaurant meals are typically more expensive than those you can make at home. According to the 2025 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics release, Americans spent an average of $3,945 on eating out in 2024, or about $329 per month.

While eating out is not a problem in itself, doing it more often than you can afford may be a reason why your grocery budget does not work. How often you should eat out is up to you, but keep in mind that it’s typically one of the largest shares of your monthly budget. Always remind yourself of what you’re really trying to accomplish.

Another area to cut back is coffee take-out. When you drink home-brewed coffee, you spend around $26 per month, given the 12 oz bag of whole bean Dunkin’ coffee that gets you nearly 12 cups. This is much lower than nearly $90 (an average of $3 per cup) when you drink it in a cafe.

Avoid Aisles with Tempting Food

Stop browsing the aisles with the food that is not on your grocery list, especially when it comes to tempting items like sweets and snacks. If you cannot break the habit and keep buying unnecessary food each time you visit a grocery store, shop online to prevent impulse grabs.

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During the week I add whatever we need to my cart plus a few regular items. It’s kinda like my list. Then I send it. By not browsing around the store I seem to only get the essentials that are on my frequent buy list. I calculated that I spent probably 30% less, even after paying for delivery,

Use Coupons, Store Apps, and Loyalty Programs

Coupons allow you to get an instant discount on a specific item right at checkout. They are usually printed in Sunday newspapers, e-newsletters, weekly store flyers, or right on product packages or store shelves. You can also find digital coupons through apps like Flipp. They typically provide deals across multiple retailers, helping you compare prices.

Another great option is Catalina coupons. Here’s how they work: once you purchase a Brand A’s item (say, its orange juice), it triggers the program of Brand B that also manufactures this kind of product. Once a cashier rings up the purchase, the system sees you like orange juice and prints you a coupon for Brand B’s version. That way, Brand B hopes you will buy its item with a discount, trying to win you over.

Store apps can help you track best prices for the items from your shopping list, while stores’ loyalty programs may offer larger discounts, cash-back options, and special offers to returning customers.

Buy in Bulk

When you purchase items in large quantities, you are likely to get a lower per-package price, allowing you to save on food that you often eat. However, not all products have a long storage life, and buying items you do not need leads to food waste. Choose non-perishable and frequently used staples and plan ahead how you will use them.

Choose Versatile Staples

Buy affordable staples that adapt to many meals. Items like bread, pasta, beans, oats, and rice can be used for a wide range of dishes, and they are easy to tailor to your taste. They are also non-perishable, allowing you to buy them in large quantities when you see discounts or special deals.

Cook from Scratch

Preparing meals from scratch is much cheaper than buying pre-made food, and it often turns out to be tastier. Start with something that is easy to cook and try to make your own sauces, dressings, or yogurt.

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I bought a jar of pasta sauce for the first time in forever (preggo and tired) and I was floored at how much it cost to taste pretty bloody average. Way better off with a tin of good tomatoes and some onion, garlic and dried herbs for probably half the price. Same with stir fry sauces – it’s mostly just salt, sweet, acid (soy, honey, vinegar of various types and combinations),

If you are good at baking, make your own bread and cookies. Another tip is to buy a whole chicken instead of pre-cut and use it for different meals. If you want to take your meal planning to another level, cook in advance and freeze extra portions to save both money and time over weeks. This strategy will also help you avoid impulse purchases or food deliveries when you are tired or pressed for time.

Try Gardening

If you have free space in your backyard or even inside your home, gardening can be a good way to lower your grocery bills. To maximize your savings, start your plants from seed and only grow what you really eat. If you are new to it, search for practical tips and advice from seasoned backyard gardeners online and choose beginner-friendly crops. Here’s what the Reddit user YeahNoYeah333 said:

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Some of the easiest items to grow are herbs. Fresh basil at the grocery store is about $5-8 for just a little bit when you can grow these outside or inside in a pot and spend less than $3 on seeds that will last you a long time. I last bought green onions 4 years ago, planted the root ends and now I have more green onions than I know what to do with

Even better, make some pesto and freeze it to have fresh tasting pesto all year. I also dry herbs and use in cooking. I’ve grown dill, thyme, cilantro and parsley and had enough dried to last all year. And you’ll often get seeds from your plants to grow more next season.

You can also find local garden swap Facebook groups, so if you have an abundance of something, you can trade for variety. Even if you can’t garden, you can find good deals there.

Look Into Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs)

A CSA is a community of consumers who support a farmer financially. People pay for a share of the farm’s production before each growing season in exchange for large amounts of seasonal food at peak freshness.

This is typically much cheaper compared to buying the same items in a grocery store, and you are likely to receive high-quality organic produce. A weekly share typically costs $20–$25 during the growing season (roughly 20–26 weeks), translating to $400–$650 per year, depending on your area. The Reddit user WishieWashie12 shared her experience and strategy of cutting grocery costs with CSAs.

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CSAs are like an annual subscription to your local farms. You get your big bucket of produce weekly, straight from the farm. Some offer delivery or in town pickup locations. Some can accept snap, or receive city grants for reduced fees for low income families.

For years, I would use part of my tax refund to buy my share for the season. So mid summer, no matter how broke I was I knew I had some food each week. Our CSA had a freebie table of ugly, small, or leftovers from the previous week’s deliveries. These were free in addition to our weekly bucket. I’d snag stuff for soups or to prep for canning or freezing. I also expanded my knowledge of canning, preserving, etc., because some weeks we simply couldn’t eat all of it fresh.

Keep in mind that you share the risk of crop failure or pest or disease problems with farmers. That means a refund will not be possible in the event that no crops are harvested.

Reduce Food Waste

Many people still buy food and do not use it or cook too much and throw away the leftovers. The 2019 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Wasted Food Report shows that 66.2 million tons of wasted food were generated in the food retail, food service, and residential sectors. Being mindful of what you already have helps you save money by reducing food waste.

To integrate it into your daily life, create a food inventory on your laptop via Google Sheets. Then, check your fridge, pantry, and freezer and list every item you have, ideally with expiration dates. As a result, you will be able to turn to this list every time you plan your meals or create a grocery shopping list.