Shopping Without a List
Heading to the supermarket without a grocery list is a recipe for overspending. That’s because you’ll likely end up buying things you don’t really need and forgetting things you do need. This will force you to make extra trips to the store, which will cost you time and money.
“People waste a ton of money when they don’t write out a list of what they need before heading into the store,” said Kelly Anne Smith, former writer and email content specialist at The Penny Hoarder. “Not having a plan before shopping is one of the quickest ways to blow your entire grocery budget.”
Shopping Without a Plan
Plan out your meals for the entire week — and check your pantry, fridge and freezer — before you head out to the grocery store so you can avoid making several trips to the supermarket during the week and blowing your budget.
“This plan has the added bonus of saving you more money by not dining out,” Fobes said. “Let’s face it, when you don’t have something on hand to make for dinner, it is easy to just go out to eat.”
If a family dines out one additional time a week due to not having a menu plan, the meal can easily run $25 or more, Fobes said. That can add up to $1,300 a year.
