Typically groceries are one of the most expensive parts of a large family’s budget.
How to save money when grocery shopping does not need to be complicated or difficult.
As the mother, saving money on groceries allow me to save money for things we enjoy, such as traveling.
Table of Contents
How to Save Money When Grocery Shopping For a Large Family
Track what you spend
Before you get started on trying to save money, I encourage you to track what you spend each month.
This can be done with a simple spreadsheet or a grocery list app.
There is nothing more motivating than watching the numbers go down and down.
You need to know where you start and set goals for where you would like to be.
Shop online
Shopping online doesn’t just give you the chance to find great deals.
It also gives you the chance to shop in your pajamas.
For me, the most useful part of online shopping, especially with groceries, is the ability to only buy what is on your list.
Walking the aisles of the grocery store gives you plenty of opportunities to pick up unnecessary or luxury items.
Resist the urge to browse.
Search for what you need.
Buy what you need.
This saves money.
Spend money to make money
I often hear parents of young, large families say that they can’t afford the membership fees to bulk wholesale stores.
Fees to stores like Sam’s Club are not only reasonable but you will make back your fees almost instantly.
For me, even in the first shop.
The other comment I hear from families who are not sure about membership is that they aren’t convinced they will get their money’s worth on a regular basis.
You will have no need to shop anywhere else and when shopping wholesale becomes part of your regular routine, you will not look back.
Buy in bulk
Buying in bulk does not mean buying 50 rolls of paper towel (although you can get them super cheap that way), buying in bulk can mean simply buying beef and splitting it into 4 portions.
Buying in bulk takes preplanning.
You need to be able to buy ahead of time as to not run out and need to quickly run to the corner store and buy that $5 jug of milk.
The other thing you need to keep in mind when shopping in bulk is storage.
With 8 mouths to feed, even with a large kitchen, I still find myself spilling into my dining room at times.
Consider this before making bulk purchases, plan ahead and make some space.
This is the only reason I don’t buy 50 rolls of paper towel at one time.
Consider the cost of convenience
I am not going to insult your intelligence and tell you that convenience foods are expensive.
All mothers know that.
Yet we need convenience.
Mothers with large families especially.
There are places where convenience can not only be cost neutral, but can occasionally save you money.
I don’t have time to change complete outfits with each diaper change, because that is inconvenient.
Also take some time to reconsider convenience food.
Fruit is convenient, crackers and cheese can be convenient, making a dozen hard-boiled eggs for the week ahead can be convenient.
Make a few simple changes to start is How to Save Money When Grocery Shopping
Changing your entire shopping practice or your family’s entire menu all at one time might not only cause frustration for you, but you might have an uprising of little people on your hands.
Make one or two small changes each week and watch your grocery bill go down.
Get yourself a wholesale membership if you don’t already have one and begin to shop in bulk.
Then slowly decrease convenient foods and introduce some less expensive options.
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We love to buy in bulk! Especially diapers because no sleep deprived mom wishes to run out and get those small packages of diapers that do not even last a week. I also love to purchase peanut butter and oatmeal from Sam’s Club. It so much cheaper! Plus we love Huggies (all 3 of kids used them) the fit was so much better and were the only diapers to hold the ‘mess’.