Meal Planning on a Budget
I am sure you’ve heard about meal planning and have even considered trying it, but maybe you were worried that it would cost too much money.
Meal planning is an amazing way to cut down on food expenses if done right. It can be difficult when you are on a tight budget, but it’s not impossible
Meal planning should save you money not make you spend more at the grocery store.
Below you will find some quick tips for meal planning on a budget.
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Meal Planning on a Budget
Meal planning should save you money not make you spend more at the grocery store. Here you will find some quick tips for meal planning on a budget.
Before you get started, you can print a copy of my free meal planning template to help you stay organized and keep track of each meal you will be making throughout the week.
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#1 - Take stock
When you are ready to plan your meals for the week take a few minutes to see what food and ingredients you already have in your pantry. You don’t want to waste money purchasing items you already have, and making an inventory list will help you create recipes where you don’t have to go buy a lot of the ingredients.
#2 - Plan your meals based on sales
In order to save money on meal planning, you need to plan ahead and purchase ingredients that are on sale at your local grocery store. You don’t want to sit down and just choose meals that you want to cook that week because this is how you will end up spending more money.
Once you have your inventory list you can then look to see what is on sale at the grocery store to come up with your meals for the week. You can use this really cool site called SuperCook that lets you put in the ingredients you have to come up with recipe options. This will make it simple to see what you can cook with the ingredients you have on hand and what is on sale.
#3 - Check for discounts
Now that you know what is on sale at your local store, is there a way to get it even cheaper? Look for coupons and discounts to see if you can cut your expenses even more. Clip coupons or see if your store loyalty card has bonus coupons you can apply to your groceries.
I also like to use Ibotta. It is a really cool app that gives you rebates for purchasing certain items at your local grocery store. All you have to do is check out the app and choose the items you will be purchasing and then take a picture of your receipt to earn money. Click here to see if Ibotta is worth using.
#4 - Make your list
Now it's time to plan your shopping trip. Make a list of all the items you need from the recipes you picked. The key to meal planning on a budget is sticking to this list at the grocery store. Try to avoid making impulse purchases and spending money on ingredients that you don’t need.
You may even find out that it is cheaper if you stop at two different stores to buy all of your groceries. Make a separate list for each store to help you stay on track.
You can also check out 15 ways to save money on groceries. Meal planning doesn’t have to be hard and it doesn’t have to break the bank. Make sure you download my free meal planning worksheet so that you can stay organized.
Get this AWESOME freebie now!
Subscribe to get access to this freebie and our entire resource library filled with worksheets & downloads to budget and save money!
What tips do you have for meal planning on a budget?