Top Ten Grocery Shopping Tips
items, but mostly just store brands. Many of the store brands are just as good as their name brand equivalents. Afterall, a can of corn is a can of corn.
4) Stock up and buy in bulk. If the store is having a great sale on a non-perishable product, that is your signal to stock up. If you don't have the room to store extra can goods, make the room. I have an aunt that keeps canned goods stocked up in the bottom of her broom closet. A few months ago, I bought ten cans of Manwich sloppy joe mix that I thought would take forever to use. Then we decided to have an impromptu football party on New Year's Day. That sloppy joe mix with, together with the tons of venison hamburger in my freezer, and I didn't have to worry about what to serve. I also try to buy larger sizes or bulk sizes whenever possible. It actually is cheaper to buy the larger sizes than it is to get the smaller or economy ones. In most cases, it is a simple task to package the big box into smaller portions for easy storage.
5) Don't pay for convenience. Grocery stores are great about making meal preparation easy on you. Grated cheese. Frozen pizzas. Individually wrapped muffins. Pre-mixed cinnamon and sugar. While the convenience is nice, it comes at a price. I've found that I can save a chunk of change by grating my own cheese and peeling my own carrots. Homemade pizzas are better than the frozen ones anyway. So are homemade waffles.
6) Shop with your calculator. I keep a calculator in my coupon envelope so that I can keep track of the amount of money I am spending. I also use it to comparison shop so I can compare cost per unit better.
7) Pay attention at the register. Watch the cashier as she runs your purchases over the scanner. Many times, items ring up at a different price than what was marked on the shelf. Sometimes, sale items haven't been programmed into the register system so you're charged the full price when you think you're getting the sale price. Some grocery stores even have a policy of giving you the item discounted further, or even free, if you catch the register charging you the wrong price. Instead of reading the tabloid headlines, watch the cash register screen and question prices that seem wrong.
8) Use coupons only if it's the best deal. I
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