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GROCERY SHOPPING 101

Everything you need to know about grocery shopping, couponing to get cheap af food.  

Grocery Shopping 101

Grocery stores are designed to get you to spend as much money as possible. Popular items such as milk and eggs are put at the back of the store to force you to walk past as many products as possible, and stores use other tricks to get you to spend more money than you need. Use these tips to help you save money and outsmart the grocery store:

 

Before You Go

  • Have a snack before you shop! You’ll spend more than you need to if you’re hungry.

  • Make a list! Yes, your grandma used this same trick. And yes, it did save her money. Making and sticking to a list is the best way to avoid purchasing food you don’t need. A good list also specifies the quantity of food you need to buy.

  • When making a list, don’t plan out recipes for every meal. List basic staples that can have many uses. Some of our favorites are:

    • Apples

    • Raisins

    • Bananas

    • Milk (you can buy kinda cheap milk from Grand River CVS in a pinch)

    • Beans

    • Bread

    • Peanut Butter

    • Canned soups

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  • For the longer-term items below, keep your eyes peeled for sales and in-season items. Check out our guide for using coupons for more tips!

    • Rice

    • Fresh fruits and veggies

    • Baking goods (e.g. flour, sugar, and olive oil)

    • Frozen fruits veggies (much cheaper than fresh)

    • Pasta

    • Canned food (beans, soup, corn)

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  • Look through the coupon apps to see what’s on sale before you shop, and write on your list which items have a coupon.

  • Decide which grocery store you’re going to shop at. This can be based on weekly sales, or on where the closest store is.

    • Aldi in Meridian is the cheapest, but far away from student housing

    • Whole Foods, while closer to campus than most grocery stores, is also among the most expensive

    • Kroger and Meijer usually have mid-range prices, so check out the closest ones to your location

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  • Bring your own bags if shopping at Aldi. They charge for their paper bags. It’s also good for the environment, so bring bags in general.

 

In the Store

  • Don’t get distracted, and stick to your list. If you didn’t write it down, you don’t need it.

  • Use the store aisle markers to locate your products before going down them.

  • Buy store brand. It’s cheaper for the same taste.

  • Buy your staples first. It’ll help you stick to your budget and avoid extra items.

  • Buy in bulk when possible. It’s a huge money saver on snack and dry items.

Couponing in College

Couponing is a hobby that takes a small amount of time each week, but the savings can add up quickly. To start, download the mobile apps for your favorite grocery stores. The best for coupons are Kroger and Meijer, which offer coupons on top of weekly ads.

 

Paper coupons are disappearing quickly, and digital coupons are the most commonly used type. Use these tips when you want to use them.

 

  • BEFORE YOU GO TO THE STORE, log into your grocery store mobile app, which will show weekly ads and coupons.

  • Scroll through the options and add as many as you want to your store card. Shop by category, or hide categories that aren’t relevant to you.

  • At checkout, scan a barcode or enter your member ID and all those coupons you added will be discounted from your total.

 

Base your coupons on what you already like to buy! There are lots of seemingly cool coupons for products you wouldn’t normally buy, but if you buy something you don’t need, even if it’s on sale, you’re actually losing money.

 

Once you use coupons at a certain store for long enough, you’ll start getting special deals to entice you to keep shopping there. These stack on top of normal coupons, so you can save even more money.

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