How to Eat Well With a $700 Monthly Grocery Budget

Let’s talk about groceries and budgeting. I originally published this blog post in 2015 and explained how my family of three eats well on a $300/month grocery budget. But oh how times have changed! Since then, grocery prices have increased and now we have a $700 monthly grocery budget.

By August 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics found the rate of inflation for food had reached 11.4%. Things are leveling out, but food costs are still up and like most families, we find ourselves spending a lot more.

Today, my family of three is comfortable spending around $700 – $750 per month on groceries. I still like to save where I can and some of our grocery budget strategies and food choices have changed as well.

In my opinion we’re still eating good, eating healthy, and keeping our food budget under control.

How My NEW Grocery Budget Works

My husband and I used budgeting software to track our spending and when we noticed costs going up, we were curious to see how much we were really spending on groceries. Based on the data and some frugal tips I’ll be sharing, we landed on a comfortable amount of $700 – $750 per month which breaks down to around $175 per week.

I used to advocate for bi-weekly grocery shopping but we switched to shopping weekly a few years ago. Some produce doesn’t seem to last as long anymore and we’ve done better at reducing food waste by shopping weekly.

Here’s what a weekly grocery shopping trip looks like:

Breakfast/dairy

Frozen waffles – $3.29

Land-o-Lakes Butter – $4.99

Can of cinnamon rolls – $2.59

Tennessee Price Breakfast Sausage (30 patties) – $10.99

Meals/produce/sides

Canned Chickpeas – $0.89

Salmon – $12.00

Spanish Rice – $1.79

Brown rice – $1.89

Taco seasoning – $1.29

Pizza crust (can) – $3.49

Scalloped potatoes kit – $1.89

Nacho cheese (x2) – $2.49

Wheat bread – $2.19

Kroger Brand Hard Salami – $4.49

Mozzarella cheese – $2.49

Fresh broccoli – $2.04

Fresh green beans – $3.11

Red onion – $1.11

Celery – $1.69

Zucchini – $1.77

Yellow onion – $1.24

Sweet potatoes – $1.01

Raspberries – $2.49

Snacks + drinks

Restaurant style tortilla chips – $2.00

Fresh peach and mango salsa – $4.29

Veggie straws – $3.49

Bag of lemons (for homemade lemonade) – $2.49

Lays Variety Chips – $10.99

Snack cakes – $2.79

Fruit cups – $2.50

Coffee K Cups – $4.50

Kroger Raspberry Tea – $1.99

Simply Blueberry – Lemonade $3.19

Subtotal: $111.94

We order 80% of our meat from a local farm

Weekly Total: $170.59

How We Eat Well with a $700 Monthly Grocery Budget

Stock Up on Essentials

You may notice that things like eggs, milk and other basic staples weren’t on my grocery list. We do get these items regularly, but sometimes it’s not just every week. For this particular week, we already had plenty of eggs in the freezer as well as a dozen eggs some friends gave us from their chickens.

We also like to stock up on pantry staples like rice, pasta, flour, oats, peanut butter, honey, chicken broth, etc. so we always have these things on hand. I find it helpful to stock up during sales and keep similar items in the pantry so the cabinets are never completely empty each week.

One of the best ways to keep a lower grocery budget is to build your meal plan and list on items you already have that need to get used up. Here is a great resource from FoodSafety.org that tells you how long you can store and freeze certain types of foods.

Buy Meat From a Farm

Another thing you might notice about the grocery list I shared above is that there’s not a lot of actual dinner items on it. That’s because we buy a lot of our meat from a local farm in Tennessee. They offer healthy grass fed and grain-fed options. Each week we place am order online then they deliver it to a local store and I pick it up – it’s that easy!

While it does cost a little more, sometimes there are sales and I don’t mind the tradeoff to eat cleaner. I’d rather know exactly what’s in my meat and how it’s prepared. We don’t buy seafood from the place we use yet because it is more expensive when you’re on a budget. But I do hope to save up some funds to buy meat in bulk toward the end of this year

If you don’t have a farm near you that does this, you can try delivery services like:

• Butcher Box
• Farm Foods Market
• Omaha Steaks

Limit Stores

We basically shop at Walmart and Kroger each months with an occasional trip to Aldi. We do have a Sam’s Club membership, but only go there once every 1-2 months.

So for the most part, we frequent Walmart and Kroger and it’s better this way because we’re not getting distracted by what every other store offers. I wouldn’t recommend trying to compare prices at five different grocery stores because you will get exhausted and planning and shopping for groceries is time-consuming enough.

Limiting where we shop has helped me better understand the pricing structure at each store, when they tend to restock, and how sales work. For example, I know that Kroger offers a lot of good sales on certain meats and seafood. I can usually get salmon on sale there and I paid $6 for an entire rack of ribs that we were able to grill for Easter.

Use Digital Coupons and Easy Rebates

I am by no means a couponer. I don’t search through newspapers or collect ads in an organized binder. But I don’t knock anyone who had been able to save money this way. It’s just not realistic for me since I’m already short on time.

However, I have no problem using a coupon or getting rebates if it’s super easy and convenient. Kroger has tons of in-store offers where you can save instantly at the checkout just by using your free Kroger Shopper’s Card.

Additionally, Kroger allows you to connect your shopper’s card to your account to clip digital coupons which can be applied at checkout. I never really check for coupons before shopping. But when I’m in the store and I see a sign under an item that says “Save $3 with digital coupon” I then scan that QR code to clip the coupon and load it to my shopper’s card.

At checkout, all I have to do is scan my shoppers card and the coupon savings applies to my order. It literally takes two seconds.

As you can see from this recent Kroger receipt, I was able to save $11 on my order from their deals.

The other thing that takes two seconds is using rebates apps that help you earn cash back for everyday items you need and will also pay you cash back for scanning each grocery receipt through the app.

Seriously, there’s no reason not to be using apps like Ibotta and Fetch Rewards these days. Many of us spend hours scrolling on social media each day so we can spare 5 minutes per week to redeem some savings with these free apps.

After your shopping trip, you can upload a photo of your receipt and you’ll be rewarded with cash back in less than 24 hours. You can earn a $5 welcome bonus when you first start using Ibotta within the first 7 days.

Related: How to Save Even More Money on Groceries With Fetch Rewards

Plan Meals, Make a Grocery List

Meal planning is essential if you want to cut your grocery bill down. Not to mention, making a detailed grocery list of exactly what you plan to buy can prevent you from spending too much time in the store as well.

I used to hate when I didn’t make shopping lists because I would always find myself wandering around the store for well over an hour picking up extra crap that I knew I didn’t need. Making a list keeps you organized and on track with your budget.

A few years ago, I bought one of those meal plan dry erase boards for cheap and never looked back. I absolutely love meal planning and with the dry erase board nothing is set in stone so we can adjust things as needed. But it does help to have a clear plan each week.

However, it takes a certain level of creativity to be able to switch things up so you’re not eating the same thing over and over. I check out food blogs for inspiration and I’m always up to try something new. This allows my family and me to eat a well-balanced diet with plenty of variety.

If meal planning and prep isn’t your forte, I’d highly recommend simplifying this aspect of your life by signing up for the $5 Meal Plan. For just $5/month (after a free 14-day trial) you’ll get healthy and affordable recipes and shopping lists delivered to your inbox weekly. The $5 Meal Plan also has gluten-free and picky-eater-friendly recipes, plus you can try it out for free for 2 weeks. You’ll love it!

Related: Frugal Meal Ideas That Are Easy to Prep

Best Clean Eating Grocery List for Newbies

Cook Most Meals at Home

I know this sounds obvious, but you actually have to cook your food if you want to save money on groceries. Buying ingredients and cooking your food is not only healthier than buying frozen processed food at the store, but it’s cheaper too.

I love to cook and discover new recipes but you don’t have to be an expert chef to do this either. Cooking doesn’t have to be a chore if you don’t make it one. There are plenty of easy and quick recipes you can look up online and you can even alternate cooking nights with someone else in your household.

You can even rotate cooking responsibilities in your household or meal prep and cook ahead. This is something I’m trying to get into the habit of doing more. My husband usually has 1-2 off days during the week and he takes over cooking responsibilities and some nights I just cook a ton of food for two nights so we will have leftovers.

During the summer, my husband grills a lot and he cooks double portions so we can have leftovers the next day. I also have a hard time cooking on Fridays because it’s usually a busy day or a relax day.

Buy Produce In Season

We love fruit in my house but let’s face it, there’s a season for everything. I love strawberries, cherries, and blueberries but in the winter they get super expensive, plus they don’t even taste good so there’s no need for me to spend extra money to buy over-ripe or under-ripe fruit.

Buying produce in-season is an easy way to save yourself a nice chunk of money each shopping trip. Sometimes I try local seasonal markets for produce as well.

Don’t Make Your Budget An Option

One reason why I was able to stick to spending around $300/month on groceries several years ago was because for so long is because that used to be all the money we had set aside for food.

Back when my income was lower and I wasn’t as financially stable, going over the budget wasn’t really an option. Now, we maintain our grocery budget because we like to save money and because we can. It doesn’t negatively affect us in any was since we’re still eating well and eating healthy.

If you set a grocery budget/limit, and commit to it like you have no extra room in your monthly budget to overspend, you will be able to successfully cut your grocery bill down to a reasonable amount for you and your family.

This an updated explanation of how we eat delicious, nutritional and well-balanced meals while maintaining a $700 monthly grocery budget. Would you try any of these methods? Are you comfortable with your current grocery budget and if not, what are you currently doing to cut your grocery bill?