How much do you live on per month?

londoner1998

Lucy1010 wrote: »

I am definitely doing something wrong...

I have recently split with my partner which is heartbreaking and I am managing on my own, no kids. My vice is cigarettes but I am so depressed that I need them, seriously... I can't give them up

I am budgeting £400 p/m for food and general. I cook my own food and take home cooked lunches to work.

Every one is different, but we do it on a 'tenner per week each' basis- that is around 80 a month, but depending on the month, we might spend between 80-110 pounds a month on food. We take pack lunch to work and it is very rare that days we buy lunch (training, meeting, etc...). We put an Ocado order once every six weeks, more or less (normally with discount vouchers) and buy fruit and veg in the market on Saturdays. And that's it. No supermarket going until the cupboards are pretty much empty unless there is a genuine emergency (this morning we were out of milk).

I give myslef 50 per month for 'entertainment'and depending on the month this ends up being spent on a dinner or two out, a cinema outing , I tahve coffee/dinner with a friend once of twice a month... it also gos on photocopying or books for the course I am doing...
But yeah, I would sayd around 100-110 per month for two adults... and I knwo i coudl get it lower, but I just don't have the time to bethinkgin about it right now. This system works for us.

londoner1998

Lucy1010 wrote: »

I am definitely doing something wrong...

I have recently split with my partner which is heartbreaking and I am managing on my own, no kids. My vice is cigarettes but I am so depressed that I need them, seriously... I can't give them up

I am budgeting £400 p/m for food and general. I cook my own food and take home cooked lunches to work.

I just read the end of your thread- have you tried the local markets at the end of the day? They give perfectly fine fruit and veg much much cheaper because otherwise it goes to waste- it is a trick I used a lot as a student. You can make nutricious meals with chuncky vegetable,s potatoes and also check out rice, tomato tins and things like that in markets- we get rice by the sack and it lasts for ages, much cheaper than the supermarket bought little packets...

Lucy1010

londoner1998 wrote: »

I just read the end of your thread- have you tried the local markets at the end of the day? They give perfectly fine fruit and veg much much cheaper because otherwise it goes to waste- it is a trick I used a lot as a student. You can make nutricious meals with chuncky vegetable,s potatoes and also check out rice, tomato tins and things like that in markets- we get rice by the sack and it lasts for ages, much cheaper than the supermarket bought little packets...

I have never seen a fruit and veg market in my town, I dont think they exist, there is one a few miles away but I found it expensive.

I tried to go to Aldi yesterday evening but when I saw the line of a million people with overloaded trolleys with only one cashier serving I turned back.... I only needed a handful of items!

Naomim

We are a family of 2 adults 1 child age 5 and one toddler 16months. We spend about £500 on groceries and petrol. That includes household items too. I am trying to get the groceries down to £250 by meal planning and using mysupermarket but also have to buy nappies etc.

Petrol is a !!!!!! too. This month I am getting the train but the cost will be the same as petrol really. My travel card is £105 a month and I will need a tank of petrol to use in the month so £160 plus DH has to use his car to drop DS to school and get to work.

There is no Aldi or Liddl near me and as far as I know the fruit and veg market is open in the week.. I leave the house for work at 7.15 and bring the kids home at 5pm...no time to get to a market

At the moment I pay £280 off the credit cards although it will be going up in a few months once insurance is paid off. I put it on the credit card as cheaper than paying their APR!

Naomi x

Naomim

Now that made me check and although the nearest Aldi to me is 7 miles away, there is a Lidl 2.5miles from me. I may have to investigate

Naomi x

Lucy1010

It does amaze me how many of you live on so little compared to me and yet I still don't manage. Are you people happy too?

beachie

Had a lovely day with my mum having a day out as she came here.

We went to Harvester and she insisted on paying and then had to get a few bits in Tesco and she wanted to pay again as I had driven around all day using petrol.

Feeling very full tonight as ate alot so just had scones (homemade), jam (had already from a few weeks back) and cream (reduced - 19p and still fine).

I feel bad, but it all helps and had a nice time.

Got chicken out of the freezer today for Sunday roast all within £15 weekly budget.

kerri_gt

Lucy1010 wrote: »

It does amaze me how many of live on so little compared to me and yet I still don't manage. Are you people happy too?

For me I think there is a fine line between having to cut back/down to tackle a short term issue (like debt or redundancy where there is a light at the end of the tunnel, having to stick to a budget but in doing so, being able to see another side to life other than the consumerist world we live in, and then there are people like Mibbs (who I am most certainly not patronising) who I won't pass judgement on their happiness (only they could tell you that) but who no doubt would love the situation to be different just to ease the pressure.

I often think of my grandma, who had 4 kids to bring up, was a single mum on national assistance (before we had income support) she lived on black tea and scraps because that's all she could afford and died weighing just over 6 stone. That's not living, that's barely exisiting, and yet we live in a crazy world where a disaster for some people is not being able to afford the newest/latest x/y/z. Kinda makes you think.

ani_26

I'm single and i currently manage on around £5 ,max £10 a week on food, and have been doing for some considerable time. Its always been a standing joke, ( not so funny really ), when i've completed my soa's etc. I'm shocked how much you are ' allowed ' to spend on food, and that people actually spend such huge amounts on food. I may occasionally do a ' big ' shop, and spend £20 - £30, in one go, and then its topped up for the rest of the time by 50p spends, ie milk, bread, etc. But all in all, it does average out, more like £5 a week.

Having said that, i'm a master of bargains, reduced items, etc. I rarely buy food thats in date, and i always take my own food and drink to work, including a flask, if i'm on the road. I never go anywhere without my own teabags. Its surprising how many places you can scrounge hot water, from.

Lucy1010

kerri_gt wrote: »

I often think of my grandma, who had 4 kids to bring up, was a single mum on national assistance (before we had income support) she lived on black tea and scraps because that's all she could afford and died weighing just over 6 stone. That's not living, that's barely exisiting, and yet we live in a crazy world where a disaster for some people is not being able to afford the newest/latest x/y/z. Kinda makes you think.

So sad I feel pathetic in comparison