Monthly food / groceries budget for family 2 adults, 1 toddler, 1 dog, 1 cat??? 20 September 2014 at 10:00AM edited 20 September 2014 at 10:09AM in Food shopping & groceries 7 replies 2.3K views

gearfreak

Hi,

I'm just wondering what people spend per month on groceries / food shop? And what would be a realistic budget for us based on 2 adults, 1 toddler (still in nappies), 1 dog and 1 cat. We live in quite a rural area and don't have access to cheap food markets, but do have access to Aldi, Lidl, Tesco, Asda & Sainburys.

I've just added up what I've spent on food, groceries, nappies and formula over the past month and its come to £455.46 which I think is way too much and we need to get a handle on what we are spending.

Thanks :0)

HappyMJ

Separate out the pet expenses and put it on a different line in your SOA/budget. Although you might buy able to buy it at the supermarket if you then say you spend an extra £100 on groceries per month than the average family it's because it's dog and cat food and supplies which isn't normal household groceries.

Don't skimp on pet food. Although you can buy value pet food at the supermarket you tend to have to feed twice as much to get the same nutrients as a much more expensive quality food from either a online store or a pet food specialist shop. You would also forever be following the animal cleaning up the waste that comes out the other end. Good quality food produces less smelly stools. You might not even know the cat has used the litter tray unless you look.

My personal aim is not to exceed £25 per person per week. You can do it for much less but it depends on what you like. If you like a good serving of meat with every meal it will cost more.

meg72

If y0ou want to compare and get an idea of what same size families spend then come onto the old style grocery challenge board, lots of lovely helpful people, loads of tips and recipes to reduce your shopping bill.

meg72

HappyMJ wrote: »

Separate out the pet expenses and put it on a different line in your SOA/budget. Although you might buy able to buy it at the supermarket if you then say you spend an extra £100 on groceries per month than the average family it's because it's dog and cat food and supplies which isn't normal household groceries.

Don't skimp on pet food. Although you can buy value pet food at the supermarket you tend to have to feed twice as much to get the same nutrients as a much more expensive quality food from either a online store or a pet food specialist shop. You would also forever be following the animal cleaning up the waste that comes out the other end. Good quality food produces less smelly stools. You might not even know the cat has used the litter tray unless you look.

My personal aim is not to exceed £25 per person per week. You can do it for much less but it depends on what you like. If you like a good serving of meat with every meal it will cost more.

Great advice there.

gearfreak

Thanks for the advice, I'll pop on over to the old style boards and have a look on there x

Towser

I have been converted to mysupermarket and I even mostly shop from Aldi now. I have been looking at the food forums to try and get it lower.


I just wish there was some kind of spreadsheet with all the cheapest foods per gram to buy. I would make up recipes with the cheapest foods with a recipe finder. There must be a shopping list for this somewhere.

I have been trying to find out what people buy per month when they are being frugal. Their basic shopping list.

sharond101

We are similar without the cat and no formula or nappies anymore but we spend around £80 per month on everything. We shop mainly in Aldi and top up in Asda (often buying yellow label bargains.) We cook from scratch and eat really well. We don't drink alcohol or fizzy juice which I think helps alot.

MrsSave

We are a family of 2 adults and a toddler (no pets), and our monthly budget is £160 doing the grocery challenge. I plan our meals in advance, we only buy what we know we will use. We don't use formula now, but do have nappies, etc. I usually buy when I see an offer.