Food expenses take a large chunk out of the household budget. Fortunately, there are many ways to save money on food. Frugal people can save lots of money on their food bills by using these tips.
Retirees who live on a tight budget can save money by using these tips as well. When you live on a fixed income, then your food bill can become the biggest discretionary expense.
Following these seven simple tips can save you hundreds of dollars on your food bills.
Buy Foods in Season
Many fruits and vegetables peak in the fall months and are cheaper than produce grown in other regions or stored in warehouses. For example, apples are a great food to purchase in the fall, along with pumpkins, grapes, mushrooms, cauliflower, winter squash, and brussel sprouts.
Learn How to Store Foods Properly
Storing foods properly ensures that they will last long enough for you to use them. Numerous food storage guides are available online that tell you how common foods should be stored for the longest life. You may be surprised to find which foods should be left on the kitchen counter, refrigerated, and stored in airtight containers.
Buy In Bulk
You will generally pay a lower price per unit when buying bulk food items. Only buy what you know you can eat before it expires to avoid wasting more money than you save, and make sure to freeze it or store it properly.
Buy Generics
There is little difference between name-brand foods and their generic counterparts. Try the generic brands your grocery store offers and see how they stack up against the brands you normally buy. Switching to generics can save you 15 percent to 40 percent on the price of the product.
Invest in a Slow Cooker
For less than $50, you can buy a slow cooker that you can fill with food in the morning to come home to a fully cooked meal after work. You will avoid spending money eating out on the days that you come home tired and can make enough for leftovers later in the week.
Take Advantage of “Kids Eat Free” Promotions
A wide variety of restaurants offer promotions where kids eat free when the parents pay for their meals. Plan your dining out around these promotions to save money. Use apps and sites like OutToEatWithKids.com to find deals in your city.
Avoid Extras When Dining Out
Extras like appetizers, desserts, and drinks containing alcohol boost the price of your final bill considerably, as they are often the highest-margin items on the menu. Stick to an entree and a basic drink and enjoy the free bread, bread sticks, or chips and salsa if they are offered by the restaurant.
15 Behaviors That Are a Dead Giveaways Someone Is Poorly Educated
We all like to think we are always acting at our most intelligent and rational. Yet, ignorance from a lack of education can sneak up on us or be on full display in others.
Awareness is key to preventing and correcting some of our worst ideas and behavior. Here are 15 signs of ignorance and poor education to look out for.
15 Behaviors That Are a Dead Giveaways Someone Is Poorly Educated
15 Things People Mistakenly Think Are Real but Aren’t
People believe all kinds of ridiculous things, and they believe some true-sounding things that are actually false as well. Some of these things have been repeated for ages and will probably never go away.
Others have sprung up more recently and spread fast, thanks to the internet. While you probably can’t convince the people who repeat such misinformation that they’re wrong, you can at least know the truth when they try to push it on you!
15 Things People Mistakenly Think Are Real but Aren’t
The 20 Most Successful Singers Of All Time
It’s easy to judge the success of an artist based on how many Grammys they’ve won or by how much money they’ve made. A better look at success, however, is to see how many singles they’ve released relative to the number of Grammys they’ve won.
According to BonusInsider, these artists are the most successful based on these metrics.