Shopping-Monthly vs Weekly or daily (merged)

jovichick123

Hiya,

I do a monthly 'top up' shop for all essential householdy bits (toilet roll, cat litter, cat food etc) and usually to top up the things that I have run out of throughout the previous month (tinned tomatoes normally lol) Also order stuff like pasta, rice and herbs and spices at the same time..

I have a veg box delivery once a week, meals tend to be planned around that - works out easier for me, and I waste less that way.. also ensures I have to vary the meals a bit as I can only make what I have in if that makes sense. Meat I buy from the local butchers once the veg box has been delivered and I know what I need.

HTH

Sarah xx

luckylukey

I do a monthly shop and have a basic idea of the meals that i plan to make and only top up fresh fruit and some veg

I buy bread and milk in the monthly shop as I buy enough for the month and then freeze what I am not using. This also reduces the cost as i buy multi deals

piratess

I usually shop from week to week! ... but have recently thought about doing a monthly shop! I have limited freezer space.

not really sure how to do it whether to buy all meats etc out of salary and then top up items milk,bread, etc during the weeks when i just do it out of weekly allowance! ...

Could any of you give any hints or advice on shopping monthly ? and also do you find it more benificial to do it this way or do shop weekly ?

thanks xx

Buffy_the_Vampire_Bat

At the start of each month I draw up a menu plan for the month (which is not absolutely set in stone but acts as a guide, and hopefully helps keep me in check!) and draw up a big shopping list from that. Then I do a small shop each week for fruit and veg, milk, yoghurts and such. I personally find organising my shopping like this helps me a) not spend so much, and b) encourages me to have a good variety of meals each month

HTH

piratess

Thanks for answering .. thats what ive thought about doing ....
have you noticed a difference in the amount your spending each month? and do you think its easier doing it this way ?

Ishtar

We used to shop monthly up until about 2 years ago. When we first moved in together we found it the best way to shop as we were on a very tight budget, so rather than taking four trips to the supermarket during the month, one visit meant we wouldn't make too many impulse purchases.

We used to spend around £120 for the month's shop, then top up with bread, milk and vegetables on a weekly basis. The main difficulty was restricting ourselves during the weekly top up shop and towards the end we found that we were easily spending £40+ per week on top of the 'monthly' shop. Now that I shop weekly, I average about £65 per week, so it does work out cheaper for us. (I also go during the day, when OH is at work, so it will always be cheaper!!).

One thing to watch out for is buying things you think you'll need - if you aren't strict with yourself you may find you have a storecupboard full of things that you never use (although this is more unlikely if you menu plan, as suggested above). Also, when you've got a larger amount to spend in one go, it seems easier to add in more 'treats' than you would normally buy. I remember we used to have 'discussions' about how much wine/beer to buy for the month...

D.

Newgirl_2

We shop monthly with top ups and it works for us, but the way we manage the small shops is OH walks to shop near work - he can only carry so much!!!

Whenever you choose to shop, best advice I can give to stop impulse buys is shop online.

The first month will be hardest as you are bound to forget something, but once you are in the habit, it is easy. We buy a certain amount of each thing regularly then mix how we use it, eg always buy chicken breasts, mince etc and then ring the changes with different dishes.

Newgirl

Debt_Free_Chick

Monthly? I only go to the supermarket (Lidl) every three or four months!!!! Mostly, to stock up on tinned/dry cupboard goods, which I store in the garage (have you ever bought 30 tins of toms in one go? :rotfl:

Milk - delivered
Bread - make my own
Meat - local butcher
Veg - grow my own or buy from the local farm shop

So my only real temptation is the butcher ..... hence, I have a freezer full of meat :rotfl:

moanymoany

I shop monthly. Over the months I've been reading this forum and also the books and sites on frugal living my shopping and cooking habits have changed completely. We rarely eat meat and eat lots of beans, eggs and cheese. I make our bread with my kenwood Chef, I use the Tesco value skimmed milk and DH buys his milk on his way home from work.

We have a top up shop for fruit and veg most months and that is about £30. Our allotment is giving us enough beans and courgettes, but I do use a lot of frozen veg, which I find economical. I use a lot of tinned tomatoes and sweetcorn.

I take a lot of trouble to make sure we have our 5 portions a day.

I always have the main shop delivered because I find it very hard to exercise restraint in the supermarket. DH often does the top up shop for the same reason. The only extra he will buy is a bar of choccy or a pack of value choc ices.

Frugal_Fox

Just to add my bit, I menu plan and shop weekly. I get paid weekly so this suits us best. Manage to feed 2 adults, 2 children, 3 cats and a dog on £55 per week - including paying the milkman. I tend to buy mainly organic, and make a lot myself from scratch, yes it does take a little longer - but costs so much less. Eg - we love lemon curd, I reckon I make mine for about 75p (never really costed it out) - using organic ingredients where ever possible. Tiptrees costs £1.75 and evidently mine tastes much better !!!!