Grocery Shopping budget thread

Wantakitchen

A lot of these are zero for us to be honest as they are luxuries but I'll add a few figures for some that we do spend on:

Shopping Food and Household Shopping - £25-30 a week on average (sometimes a bit more but then save it the next week)
Eating Out - generally zero except for the odd special occasion

Coffees/Sandwiches/Snacks Drinks for Home Drinking Out - always packed lunch when you can!


IT/Computing (eg Anti-virus etc) - we use free AVG antivirus you can get it free online
Cinema/Theatre Trips - £15
The health stuff like dentists is essential so we just pay it but opticians you can often get a free sight test voucher if you look in the local paper or bizarely sometimes on the back of pay and display car park tickets!

We've got everything we can onto monthly direct debit (except when they make you pay more overall by doing that like AA and some car insurers) so it is easier to see what's what.

Our council (maybe all the same?) charge split the council tax into ten payments not twelve so charge us ten months of the year but don't take payments in Feb & March so we budget as if they are taking it but will set that money aside in Feb and March and use it for the car tax in May!

trolleyrun

Hi everyone,

I went shopping yesterday, to Aldi, Waitrose and Sainsbury. In total, I spent £120!!! :eek: It's just me and a small dog, I didn't buy any toiletries etc, just food. I will do a massive batch cooking session in the next few days though, which will fill my freezer with yummy soups and other dishes. Please forgive me :rotfl:

cornishchick

your forgiven. I dont think you wasted money as your going to batch cook and fill the freezer.

sinning against OS is buying takeaway for the 2nd time this month....:o ok my excuse is we are packing to move... OH is obsessed with packing everything, and has packed all my fave pans ect... and we dont have a move date as yet lol

Owain_Moneysaver

How?!? did you spend that much?

I mean, I go a bit overboard and have a £4 Finest Pizza about once a year ...

trolleyrun

A lot of veg and meat... A bottle of port for Xmas.. Part of what cost quite a lot is that I'm gluten free, so some things cost nearly double the normal version. I don't buy such things very often though.

I did get loads for my money and will have enough food for the rest of the month (I do spend about 7 nights away from home). And I got a whole chicken for £1.49 The fridge is full and freezer will be too :T

meritaten

then a month means you spent £30 per week. not that bad! not great, but not baddddd!!!!
forgiven - especially as you have to buy 'gluten free'!

Owain_Moneysaver

£4 a day for you and dog isn't too bad really. I thought you were going to eat your way through it in the next week.

[Deleted User]

I think you seem to have done very well I budget for £100.00 per month and thats just for me no pets or anything I do make everything from scratch and bake quite a bit as I have a tribe of permanantly hollow-legged grandsons :) whom I seem to be baking for constantly.I don't have to buy Sunday Dinner as I go to my DDs every Sunday so that helps.So far this month I haven't been to the shops as I have been shopping from my freezer and food store.But I will have to get some bits this morning as I am running short of cereals and fresh fruit and veg (I do eat quite a bit of those)I never buy a take away as I can cook a meal at half the price and I do have the time.Last night I had a chilli from the freezer with a jacket potato for my dinner with some of the last bits of salad.Today for lunch I will have some HM soup and crackers and for dinner tonight I will get some salmon from the freezer out for dinner.As I am shopping from the freezer I hope to be able to run it down a bit before Christmas so I can stock it up again with yellow stickered bits just after the holiday when the supermarkets are selling off their Christmas stuff.Last year I snaffled a lovely Turkey which went into the freezer and I got out at Easter for my DD and her family It cost me £3.00 and weighed around ten lb so it was a bargain.But I have to empty the freezer quite a bit to get my Christmas bargains in .So I am shopping from the freezer again this month to not only save some cash but to make some room.I think if you spent £130 and it will do you for a month you are doing well especially as you have a small dog to feed as well
Good on you for being quite far-sighted.Meat will increase over the next month I guarantee so you have probably actually saved your self even more cash
Well done
JackieO xx

trolleyrun

Thank you, JackieO I did feel bad initially when I spent all that money, but having thought about it and made recipes for everything, I'm feeling really good. I bought no junk (unless I call the bottle of Port "junk"), so I'm pleased with that. I don't eat out much and I don't get take-aways very often (2 months since last time).

What I'm making today: Carrot and coriander soup, shepherd's pie, bolognese sauce, roast chicken, butternut squash soup, sweet potato soup, turkey meat balls, beef meat balls, stuffed mushrooms and some roast veg. Tomorrow, I'm trying to make fish cakes again (last time was a disaaaster) and anything else I can think of.

The freezer has gained some pork escalopes (RTC), spicy veg and mince soup (sounds weird - tastes great), chicken bits and pork chops. It should be an interesting and busy day :rotfl:

Popperwell

Sometimes I think I haven't got much for my money(being on my own)Last night I spent £7.50 and when I was home it didn't look much but a couple of items went into the food store(Fray Bentos Chicken pies)reduced to £1 and ok until May 2014, mature sliced cheese approx 25 slices, 2 litres of milk, loaf of bread, watercress, potatoes. But I can stretch what I have towards meals/sandwiches so it brings it down to perhaps £1 or less daily...possibly longer.

But initially it seems expensive.

I cannot get another thing in the freezer so unless I makesome space and use up some of what I have I will have no room for any bargains that may be on sale as Jackie says...