Save Money On Groceries With Kids

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Want to know how to easily save money on groceries with kids or a large family?

There are many ways you can save money on groceries with kids and still eat healthy and organic foods.  I do it with my family all the time!  Since I stay home with my twins and we’ve been living off of one income, we had to make drastic changes to how we bought groceries. 

We have a big family, so saving money on groceries is something I’ve become well experienced in.

Here I am sharing my tips to how I spend about $100 a week with a family of 5 full time.  Saving so much money on groceries allows us to spend our money on other things- like fun outings or put it into savings, or just pay other bills.

What would you do with the extra money you could save on groceries?  Even if it was $20 a week in savings on groceries – that would be about $80 a month, or around $960 a year.  That’s a lot of extra money to me!  I could pay for my kids’ activities, things to do with them, take a small trip to the beach that year, or put it in savings!

When I save money on groceries, I’m not sacrificing nutrition.  I believe the food we eat should be full of nutrients – and food is one thing I won’t sacrifice on because of money.  It’s the one thing I will spend money on to feed my family well and keep us healthy. I’ve learned how to still eat healthy and nutritious foods while keeping a tight food budget.

Related: 35 Healthy and Easy Snacks for Toddlers

Here are my tips to save money on groceries with kids:

• Tip #1 Buy clearance items or food on sale

  • Items I always check that are on clearance when I’m at the grocery store are meat, milk, cheese, yogurt, pasta, and bread and other various items we need for the upcoming weeks.

• • Usually when they’re on sale, it just means they’re about to expire (or packaging is damaged).  Which I’m fine with because I shop for groceries for that week and I know I’ll use it very soon – or I’ll freeze it if possible.

• Tip #2 Shop at the discounted grocery stores for super cheap food – you can usually buy organic at these places

  • Find what stores you have locally.  I have about 3 stores in my area that I can find super cheap organic groceries at.  A couple of them I heard about from word of mouth but you can usually find them by looking online.

• Tip #3 Shop frequently

  • I shop for groceries at least once a week and sometimes twice a week.  That way I can check the clearance and I’m only buying food we will use and eat.

• Tip #4 Stock up when things go on clearance for really cheap and things you know you will eat – like broth, tomato sauce, beans, pasta, etc.

  • I like to stock up on pantry items when they go on sale and things that won’t spoil.  I usually stock up on organic pasta and beans when they are on clearance because those last forever in the pantry and something we eat a lot of.

• • Only stock up on things you know you will want to eat

• Tip #5 Freeze things about to expire – produce, soups, etc.

  • I freeze fresh meat, yogurt, fruits and vegetables if they are about to go bad so I can use them for another time so we’re not wasting food/money.  These reusable bags work great for freezing fruit and vegetables.

• Tip #6 Only Buy What you are going to eat

  • Only buy what you are going to eat and the types of foods you want to eat.  I tend to not buy junk food – that way I know we won’t eat it.  Plus it saves money.

• • Even if something is super cheap I won’t buy it unless I know we will eat it.

Related:  Dinner Ideas for Toddlers the Whole Family Can Eat

• Tip #7 Don’t buy too many processed foods

  • I usually skip the snack sections in the store.  I usually just shop the outer edge in the grocery store – that’s where all the produce, meats, and dairy is.  If I make homemade snacks for my kids, like these date and nut balls, I’m less likely to not buy the processed snacks.  Although the ingredients for them seem expensive upfront – they last and go a long way – plus they are full of nutrients and unprocessed!

• • I don’t like my kids eating tons of processed food – and that food usually costs more than a bag of apples.  I would rather buy a bag of apples than a bag of chips for my kids.  When apples are in season I can buy a whole bag organic for $2-$3.  We will splurge sometimes on snacky and fun food, but that’s not a typical grocery trip for us.

• Tip #8 Make meals at home with cheaper and healthy items. 

  • I use quinoa, brown rice, beans, lentils, frozen veggies, and frozen fruit in a lot of the meals I cook.  These are staples I keep in my house that are cost-efficient and offer a lot of nutrients to my kids. I also use whatever meat I find on sale for that week.  I use a lot of herbs and spices to make them taste good and to cut back on the salt added.  This homemade vegetable soup you can make for cheap and my kids love it!

• • I always keep a bag of frozen blueberries in the fridge and stock up when they’re on sale.  They are cheaper than fresh blueberries and last, and a food my kids love – and I buy them organic when they go on sale.  They will just eat bowls of frozen wild blueberries for an easy snack!  

• Tip #9 Use store coupons

  • I use digital coupons all the time at Safeway and Fred Meyer.  It’s worth the time to load them up before I go shopping (I don’t spend more than 5 minutes doing this). 

• • I easily save around $10-$15 dollars with digital coupons on a big shopping trip!  I look for organic items with the digital coupons like bread and milk. I see it as I can go to Starbucks 2 times and splurge on myself – or just save it!

• Tip #10 Buy the store brand

  • It’s usually cheaper and they all have an organic store brand at the grocery stores I go to.  They also usually have digital coupons for the store brand.  I usually don’t pay more than $2.50 for organic bread with store coupons.

Things that will affect your grocery budget:

• • Where you live
  • If you shop sales/clearance
  • If you buy in bulk
  • If you shop your pantry
  • How often you cook at home
  • The size of your family

These are ideas that have worked well for me and my family for the last few years.  I don’t think I could ever go back to spending full price on groceries after the amount of money I’ve been saving! 

Do what works best for your family – everybody has what works for them and I hope this list has given you ideas that you can try!

What do you do to save money on groceries?  I would love to hear!