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Save Money with a Shopping List
Whether you love it or loathe it, most of us have to do the shopping. Most of us are also on a budget, be it from choice or necessity. To make the shopping experience a whole lot nicer, shop with a list.
You'll know what you're going to buy, which shops to visit and if you follow some of these hints, even how much it will cost you. So you won?t go over budget!
I have two perpetual shopping lists - one for summer and one for winter. As we eat basically the same ingredients made into different dishes it's a no brainer to have a list of those items already prepared.
Before I hit the supermarkets, I just need to check the pantry and stockpile shelves for what I need and tick those items off on the list. Then I can calculate how much the groceries etc. are going to cost.
My shopping list is in excel and consists of eight columns titled: Store, Item, Brand, Size, Quantity, Last Price, This Price, Total. This makes it easier to transfer prices to my price book, and yes, even now, 27 odd years later, I still update my price book.
Making the shopping list up this way works for me, I'm able to track when things go up or down in price and I know almost to the cent how much I will spend in each store, ensuring that I don't go over budget.
Other Cheapskates use other methods with the same excellent results. Here are some of their ideas and how they use them:
Using a Spreadsheet
I saw a tip of putting your shopping list on an excel spreadsheet, working out how much you will spend before you go to the shops, thereby ensuring you stay within your budget. Well, I have been doing this for a long time, but have taken it one step further ... I have also put into my shopping spreadsheet the aisle that each item is in. At the end of the week, I work out my shopping list, wort it by quantities needed, remove the empty rows, then sort by shopping aisle. When I go shopping, not only do I know I will stay within my budget, but I move through the shop with speed because my shopping list is sorted by aisle also. Saves me lots of running around, especially with my two littlies shopping with me. It is an added time saver in my busy day.
Contributed by Annie
Knowing the Cost
The hardest thing when sticking to a grocery budget is knowing when you've reached it! I have a simple spreadsheet with all the usual grocery items I buy listed and how much each costs, and before each shop I mark off each item I need and then check the total. This gives me a good idea of how much my shop will cost before I even get to the store. I also print the list off each shop and this becomes my shopping list. It takes a little time to get it started but is a great help once it's up and running.
Contributed by Mirella
Pantry Inventory Makes Shopping List
I keep a Pantry List of everything in my pantry and when I use something I add it straight to the shopping list. When I buy jars, bottles or packets of something i.e. tomatoes, taco sauce etc, I write the date of purchase on it so I know how long it has been in the cupboard. I have thrown away too much food over the years and I find this is a good way for me to stop the wastage.
Contributed by Stephanie
Shopping List Becomes Menu Plan
When I do my fortnightly shopping I have my pre-prepared list to include my ten dinners for the two weeks following. The core of the list is dinners, then other items follow in order of importance. I also try to duplicate the ingredients (i.e.: mince for lasagne in first week and i.e.: mince for hamburgers the second week as I have found that buying a larger quantity and splitting in two portions is cheaper, this is especially so with meat.) Being organised like this prevents you from dashing to the shops at the last minute to buy that one missing ingredient as I believe that is when you completely blow your budget by purchasing items not really necessary. Stick to your list, try to go without the kids and if necessary split your shop between multiple stores i.e.: butcher, greengrocer etc (preferably all in the one centre) to maximise both time and savings.
Contributed by Erin
You'll know what you're going to buy, which shops to visit and if you follow some of these hints, even how much it will cost you. So you won?t go over budget!
I have two perpetual shopping lists - one for summer and one for winter. As we eat basically the same ingredients made into different dishes it's a no brainer to have a list of those items already prepared.
Before I hit the supermarkets, I just need to check the pantry and stockpile shelves for what I need and tick those items off on the list. Then I can calculate how much the groceries etc. are going to cost.
My shopping list is in excel and consists of eight columns titled: Store, Item, Brand, Size, Quantity, Last Price, This Price, Total. This makes it easier to transfer prices to my price book, and yes, even now, 27 odd years later, I still update my price book.
Making the shopping list up this way works for me, I'm able to track when things go up or down in price and I know almost to the cent how much I will spend in each store, ensuring that I don't go over budget.
Other Cheapskates use other methods with the same excellent results. Here are some of their ideas and how they use them:
Using a Spreadsheet
I saw a tip of putting your shopping list on an excel spreadsheet, working out how much you will spend before you go to the shops, thereby ensuring you stay within your budget. Well, I have been doing this for a long time, but have taken it one step further ... I have also put into my shopping spreadsheet the aisle that each item is in. At the end of the week, I work out my shopping list, wort it by quantities needed, remove the empty rows, then sort by shopping aisle. When I go shopping, not only do I know I will stay within my budget, but I move through the shop with speed because my shopping list is sorted by aisle also. Saves me lots of running around, especially with my two littlies shopping with me. It is an added time saver in my busy day.
Contributed by Annie
Knowing the Cost
The hardest thing when sticking to a grocery budget is knowing when you've reached it! I have a simple spreadsheet with all the usual grocery items I buy listed and how much each costs, and before each shop I mark off each item I need and then check the total. This gives me a good idea of how much my shop will cost before I even get to the store. I also print the list off each shop and this becomes my shopping list. It takes a little time to get it started but is a great help once it's up and running.
Contributed by Mirella
Pantry Inventory Makes Shopping List
I keep a Pantry List of everything in my pantry and when I use something I add it straight to the shopping list. When I buy jars, bottles or packets of something i.e. tomatoes, taco sauce etc, I write the date of purchase on it so I know how long it has been in the cupboard. I have thrown away too much food over the years and I find this is a good way for me to stop the wastage.
Contributed by Stephanie
Shopping List Becomes Menu Plan
When I do my fortnightly shopping I have my pre-prepared list to include my ten dinners for the two weeks following. The core of the list is dinners, then other items follow in order of importance. I also try to duplicate the ingredients (i.e.: mince for lasagne in first week and i.e.: mince for hamburgers the second week as I have found that buying a larger quantity and splitting in two portions is cheaper, this is especially so with meat.) Being organised like this prevents you from dashing to the shops at the last minute to buy that one missing ingredient as I believe that is when you completely blow your budget by purchasing items not really necessary. Stick to your list, try to go without the kids and if necessary split your shop between multiple stores i.e.: butcher, greengrocer etc (preferably all in the one centre) to maximise both time and savings.
Contributed by Erin