Average monthly spend?

kerri_gt

We are two adults and I budget £225 a month for us but that doesn't always get spent. I do try to buy reduced items where possible and rarely buy meat unless it's reduced (OH is veggie so I feel a bit guilty if I spend on meat ) on the other hand, he like Quorn range which can be expensive (I know lentils, pulses etc are good for veggies but he isn't overly keen on them and I can't eat too much as the bloat me terribly) we often tend to cook our own things as have different tastes and I'm sure we could get our budget reduced if need be.

Two things I suggest , first is batch cooking and freezing portions as already suggested, that way you and OH can still eat differently if needed and you just need to heat up a portion which is as quick as a convenience meal. Second is have a look at the book 'A Girl Called Jack' not sure if you've heard of her or not but she managed to feed her and her son on a very tight budget. Lots of rave reviews and even if you don't follow to the letter, it's good for ideas (I still use my student cook book as ingredients tend to be stuff you have in, or will use again and meals are pretty quick. )

Also , do a freezer / fridge inventory before you shop, that way you can plan what you buy to go with what you already have in, plan to use short dated stuff first, and prob find you already have items you thought you needed.

maman

tessie_bear wrote: »

i think u can get yogurt for 45p for a big pot in aldi...not sure on £1 fish but a big bag of value white fish may work out at a £1 a piece but you would have to buy the whole bag

I wondered about that. I don't like yogurt but I buy it for DH to pour on muesli. Plain, fat free is 55p a large pot I Aldi.

Always_after_a_bargin

I spend between 250 and 300. Trying to get it to 250 as we are trying to save as much as possible with plans we have in the works in next few years. On plan for 250 this month. I shop at Aldi, with a few purchases at main supermarket for a few branded staple products. I take out the cash at pay day, 200 in one purse and 50 in the other. The 200 is my grocery money and the 50 is my money for reduced products, bulk buy items etc.

Just changing a few things around with my shopping habits as made a massive difference, I could get it lower but my husband is on a good wage, we don't go out drinking & we don't smoke so am happy with 250 a month we enjoy our food and it leaves room for the occasional fillet steak. I baked a lot and now cook everything from scratch. A few years back I was spending 600 a month. Shocking amount x

[Deleted User]

Skogar I think we are twins :):) we buy and cook almost the same .I bought a piece of white fish at Sainsbobs (Hempstead Valley) the other week for a pound, it had been reduced as it was 4.00.p.m. on a Saturday afternoon, (best time for fish reductions I have found)and it was more than enough with additions to make me two portions of fish pie.I am also lucky enough to have a small wet-fish shop where I live and he will do off cuts of odds and ends of fish really inexpensively.I take a plastic take-away container with me when I go there and he will chuck bits and pieces in for me for a pound.I can drive to Whitstable on a Sunday morning from my house in less than 30 minutes and after a nice long walk along the beach (weather permitting I can buy fish so fresh its almost jumping off the slabs as its just been caught the night before.I will usually spend about £10.00 once every couple of months for my 'bulk buy' of fish as I do really like it and it comes home with me and gets washed patted dry and if not cooked straight away it gets frozen in portions at the bottom drawer of my freezer.I once had a huge salmon on a saturday afternoon from sainsbobs reduced to £12.00 and the fish monger topped and tailed it and chopped it into dcent sized portions for me I had around 12-14 steaks plus some odds and ends left over out of it.I am happy to cut back on meat when its expensive and try to replace with fish if possible.Kippers are a great buy and kipper pate is easy enough to make as a change from a meat pate and very full of flavour.I don't stick to one shop for my stuff and I do research prices on the net before I go out and see whats the best value for money.My shopping I have honed down to a fine art I think and probably know within pennies how much stuff is and where the best price is for buying stuff.I try not to use tesco very much now as I have found that its just got too dear and their prices are going up by the week.Lidl's Aldi's & sainsbobs are my favourite stores followed by morrisons for YS stuff.Even M&S do good reductions at times and often M&S food is such good value its well worth having a look at what's been reduced.as the quality is very good.At the moment on my shopping list for this week-end I have a cuecumber and a lettuce and some tomato's to buy and its been 11 days since I have been to the shops to buy anything.I have a small g'grocers locally, who on a Monday morning often sells of slightly battered carrots or veg at a fraction of the price and this makes excellant HM soups or will go into a casserole.As I say I do have the time and inclination for food shopping and no children to drag around with me which helps a lot :) I treat my food shopping almost as a business and try to make my budget streeetch as much as I can.

[Deleted User]

maman wrote: »

I wondered about that. I don't like yogurt but I buy it for DH to pour on muesli. Plain, fat free is 55p a large pot I Aldi.

Just popped into the local tesco Metro to buy lettuce special offer for an iceberg 49p and a cucumber also on special offer at 49p plus a pot of their value yoghurt which is 45p a pot so my total spend this week is £1.43 and I have no more stuff to buy until next week now.I am out at my Dds for dinner tonight so I don't even have to sort dinner out for tonight.Having bought my essential salad stuff (I have five fresh tomato's in the fridge already ) plus my yoghurt I shan't now have to slog around the shops at the week-end ,instead will hopefully enjoy the forecasted sunny week-end either in my garden or at my DDs on Sunday afternoon:D:D:D

skogar

Thanks for replying the question about fish Jackie O. It was interesting reading. We can get fish bits on the market as well, good for a fish pasta and you don't need much although I'm not sure how much they are usually although seemed very reasonable last time I got some. My Mum has recently got a whole salmon well reduced. I've always meant to see what I can use the head for so she is saving the head for me so I can experiment as we can get fish heads from local fish monger very cheap. I like kippers too and find that smoked mackerel is excellent in a pasta sauce.

I've been trying out a few different meat cuts recently ox cheek is very cheap but needs a fair amount of cooking to tenderise it and seems to have a good flavour. I quite fancy trying trotters and tongue (fresh not pressed) but need to get hold of some first. I think I'll have to ask in the local farm shop. it becomes a bit of a challenge - what can I find which is both cheap and delicious. I've just got HTW's meat book out the library which quite a few people on the OS board recommend and has quite a lot of info on cooking the more unusual cuts so I'm looking forward to sitting down and having a good read of that.

Goldiegirl

somner wrote: »

Just wondering what other peoples opinions are on the £500 figure? Am I right that it is ridiculously high or am I just being tight?

My opinion.


If your household income was £1000 per month it would be ridiculously high, but if your household income was £5000 you'd be tight.


Really, it's best not to look to see what other people are spending, as everyone's situation is different, and some are more willing than others to make compromises in terms of portion sizes, ingredients and quality.


Look to yourselves, and work out what is right for you. Make changes gradually, and do things that are sustainable.


From the start of the year, I've been looking to reduce my supermarket bills. Last year, I averaged £325 per month, for a 2 adult household - this is food, toiletries, washing and cleaning products.


So far this year I'm averaging £275.00 per month. I expect this to drop a bit further, as I have been building a store cupboard too.


Things that have worked for me.


Big shops done online - less likely to pick up 'extras'. But make sure you get free delivery


Menu planning - then you only buy for the meals you have planned, less likelihood of waste.


If using branded goods, use supermarket own brands instead.


Freezer inventory - keep this up to date and you always know what's lurking in there.


Buy large packets - price is less per kg


If you see things you use on offer - buy them. Then you don't have to pay the full price later.


Batch cooking and cooking meals from scratch - works out cheaper per portion than pre-prepared foods.


I invested in a bread maker and now make all my own bread, rolls and pizza bases.


I still shop at the same shops, but by adopting the above methods I've already shaved off £50 per month, and as I said earlier, I think this figure will drop a bit further.


I haven't switched to a discount supermarket, as it wouldn't be convenient for me.


I'll be honest with you, it has been more work doing all this, but you start with one thing, get used to it, then add another thing, and build up gradually -- you can't expect to change overnight

rach_k

We're a family of four with children aged 2 and 4 as well, plus a cat.

I spend £85/week (about £375/month) on food, normal toiletries and cleaning stuff. Every couple of months I will spend an additional £50 on eco cleaning stuff that I get from a different shop. That doesn't include take-aways, trips out with the kids where we go to a cafe or one-off events like parties. OH takes lunch from home about 50% of the time - the stuff he buys at work isn't included in my total but I don't tend to buy extra when he takes it from home everyday, I just throw less away.

I don't buy nappies or any special child stuff other than 'baby' stock cubes and reduced salt beans etc. Oh and the occasional Kinder Egg!

I do a meal plan while doing the normal shop online with Tesco. I don't stick to it rigidly but I rearrange it as needed to ensure that everything gets eaten. Some things are Tesco value, some things are Tesco Finest - I just go with the cheapest option that tastes good and occasionally treat us! I've done online shopping for years so I know what deals are good and what just look good, so I really stock up when there are good offers, making use of the pantry and the freezer.

somner

Everybody, thanks for the replies. I'm not ignoring the thread and I appreciate the advice, just haven't had chance yet to write a reply nor read it all!

Sequeena

We are a family of 3. 2 adults and a 2 year old but we have 2 dogs and a cat to feed too.

My last monthly spend was £153. In August 2013 I realised we were spending too much - £300! So I joined the grocery challenge on here and slowly but surely I've almost halved our monthly spends. I find meat very expensive so I buy most of it reduced and put it in the freezer. Meal planning has definitely helped too as has freezing leftover food and making my own sauces.