How much do you spend on groceries per month?

zazu13

I'm trying to get a hold of my budget. Im curious how others do it? For the poll, include formula/diapers in the grocery budget.

Teresa1896

Roughly $100/wk for a family of 4, but we don't buy diapers (ILs do). More if you include beer. :-)

ricekez

This is going to depend on a lot. Family size and food choices will play into these answers. I voted $500-600, for my family of 2 adults, 1 toddler, and 1 baby, who eat mostly organics. If our budget were tight, we'd shop more frugally.

AcaAwkward

It's a lot. Food is one of our spending priorities as we eat organic and local (if possible), and we only purchase meat that ranks high on the animal welfare scale. I would say it's upwards of $800 per month. But wee also eat all but maybe 2 meals a week at home -- so that's 19 meals a week x 3 people x 4 weeks. Comes out to about $3.50 per meal. Or really less as I factored in dipes and wipes.

kmos816

We spend $600 on food for two adults; this includes lunch during the week (for the most part), we buy mostly organic fruits and veggies and organic meats. Probably another $100 or so on extras; but I don't know- DH is an accountant and does our budget

cjpell0

We spend 500-600 for 2 adults. We rarely go out to dinner and we bring lunch to work every day.

RedDawnsRevenge

$100 a week. We CD and EBF. I've also been following the advice you gals gave me in my penny pinching thread and that has helped as well. My grocery budget is also my entertainment budget.

Merlyna04

$400 family of 4 lost of fruits and veggies and some meats for the men in the house lots of snacks for after school , and water.

nicole mackenzie

I've been going way over budget the last couple of months... My goal is $300 a month for 2 adults ( and exclusively breast fed baby)

I keep pet food and diapers seperate from that budget though.

katiedidthat

Our grocery budget is still on the lower side, apparently.  We're feeding 2 adults, 1 toddler, and the baby.  Now that we're formula feeding and don't have a washer for our cloth diapers, we spend around $50 a pay on formula and $50 a pay on diapers.  Our actual food budget is $150 a pay and that includes any times we eat out.   We buy a lot of bulk foods and don't eat 'healthy' by most people's standards all the time (kraft mac n cheese or 10/$10 hot dogs? yes please!).  We don't drink milk or soda at home and only my husband eats breakfast. 
Before my husband took his new job 2 months ago, we were spending less than $250 a month on food, including diapers. 

J&NL

How do y'all spend only a $100 a week for a family if four? Do you just eat the same thing every day?

J&NL

We spend like $500 a month. Sometimes more when we run out of stuff.

cnbean

We spend about $550 a month on groceries (including formula) for our family of 4. I shop as cheaply as I can and we rarely eat out, but food is super pricey here.

snowbound

Mines probably about $300 a month for two adults. I'm trying my hardest to shrink that to $200 a month, which is hard because of our food choices. I have $22 left of my "practice" budget for this month and it's only the 15th!

AmberLiz99

$300-400 including formula and diapers. Family of 4. We eat organic produce and milk, and only a little meat. We also cook from scratch and I know which stores have deals on different things

Abcollins57

About $400 a month for two adults, 8 year old and baby. I meal plan each week and we only eat out once a week. DH and I each take $50 a week out for spending money so all beer/wine/energy drink/whatever comes out of that.

lokimau

I could do it cheaper than $500 except DH is a soda fiend and goes and buys junk food constantly.

Sisimama10

$550-600 per month.

Cfvonfam

Wow I feel crazy.. We spend $800-$1000 per month for 2 adults, a 5 year-old and baby (EBF). We're in Canada though but damn. We almost never eat out, it's just food!

ChelK3

We spend about $130 a month with two adults and a baby. Cloth diaper, ebf, and coupons!

Smores730

We spend roughly $700-$800 per month on mostly organic and foods w/o controversial preservatives, fam of 4 + a baby, dog and cat. I'll say that my bill went up about 30-40 bucks per trip after moving states. :-/

BrittanyAmundson

We spend about $350/mo at big box stores on food/drinks, I make my own salad dressings and marinades, those things can eat up your budget and they have a lot of extra crap in them. We eat mostly organic produce and dairy, I would like to be 100% organic but the organic meat options aren't great at SAMs club.

Rrrrrachel

We spend around 400 and I do 90% of our shopping at whole foods.

zazu13

RedDawnsRevenge said:

$100 a week. We CD and EBF. I've also been following the advice you gals gave me in my penny pinching thread and that has helped as well. My grocery budget is also my entertainment budget.

Need to reread that thread! I think i even posted on it. Maybe I need to take my own advice

chichi589

Between 300-400$ a month for 2 adults, 1 toddler, & baby. EBF but now switching the formula. We eat a lot of the same thing since I have picky eaters in my house. Shop at target and wegmans.

strawberrytree

We spent about 4-500$/month for our family of four, which includes two kids in diapers. I meal plan, buy bulk, buy meat on sale and freeze it, eat at least 2 vegetarian meals a week, coupon, etc. We don't eat all organic but we do eat just almost all "real" food as opposed to stuff in boxes. (Except crackers and granola bars, we can't quit those.) Also in Canada where prices are a bit higher.

pbandjmom

$300-400 for groceries. $300-400 on wine.

Actually, we buy a lot if generic brands and my husband kills a lot of stuff (not kidding)

Teresa1896

J&NL said:

How do y'all spend only a $100 a week for a family if four? Do you just eat the same thing every day?

I buy meat on sale and stock the freezer, buy produce on sale, stock up on pantry stuff on sale... Pretty much I only buy things on sale. Store brands of almost everything. Meal planning around sale produce. We don't buy snack foods or pop (except for kid snacks sometimes). I make big batches of premixed dry oatmeal to eat for work breakfasts and make big dinners so we can take leftovers for lunches.
Oh, and I forget we have the milk delivered- that's another $30ish/mo depending on what we get.

I'm also not including paper goods, laundry soap, or other consumables.

lokimau

Let me says that when I go I spend about $300 or so plus diapers. We EBF. I eat mostly organic and I shopped markets. DH buys frozen pizzas for snacks, tons of chips, beef jerky & Mountain Dew. Our refrigerator looks schizophrenic, super healthy and super trashy.

allyandmike24

We spend about $75/week for two adults- breakfasts, lunches and 5 dinners. We budget takeout for two dinners per week (usually weekends). We buy as much organic produce as we can (farmer's market for the win!) and only eat meat once or twice a week. We are considering a meat CSA from a local farm to help with cost/sustainability. 

For breakfasts, we usually have oatmeal with fruit (cheaaap!) or a smoothie with oatmeal added. DH gets bagels occasionally and keeps them in the freezer. On the weekends we usually make pancakes or eggs. 

For lunches, we usually stick to healthy, hearty and cheap: quinoa and black bean burrito bowls with salsa, ff sour cream and guac. Yogurt and granola. Hummus, veggies and crackers. Chickpeas and lentil curry, salad jars with tons of veggies, beans and quinoa. We also love leftovers and take them to work as much as possible. 

For dinners, we meal plan on Sunday before grocery shopping. I try to "shop" our pantry first to see what ingredients we have on hand to use up. I love slow cooker recipes because I make a big batch of something and freeze half to eat later. Whole chickens are a good deal and are super easy in the slow cooker. 

momofmanyinthemitten

We spend at least $600 for 4 + baby. However, DH is on a diet for health reasons and his small loaves of bread cost $5 and boxes of crackers are $4. Because of his diet, we also eat a lot of meat/poultry/eggs and veggies. Good thing he has a job that can afford that food! Before we had kids, I would make all of his things from scratch. That doesn't happen anymore.

strawberrytree

@jodibolivar I am terrified of what my grocery bill will look like when the boys are teenagers. Props to you!

katiedidthat

Here's this week's menu- a typical week for us-
Disclaimer: Breakfast is rare in our house- DH has cereal or oatmeal, DS1 might have a little yogurt or some fresh fruit.  I don't eat breakfast, never have.  DH takes lunches to work on a 1 day delay (our Tuesday lunch is his Wednesday, etc) and eats at work in the cafeteria on Mondays. Neither of us eats large portions, especially meats.
Sunday
L- Ham BBQ, homemade fries
D- Roast chicken, pasta side and corn
Monday
L- Chicken salad sandwiches made with leftover chicken, canned fruit or cottage cheese
D- meatloaf, mashed potatoes, peas
Tuesday
L- ham sandwiches, box of mac n cheese
D- fish, pasta side, mixed vegetables
Wednesday
L- Grilled cheese, sweet potato fries, cottage cheese
D- Pasta bake
Thursday
L- meatloaf sandwiches, mashed potatoes, canned fruit
D- Homemade pizza
Friday
L-  hot dogs, baked beans, french fries
D- Homemade mac n cheese
Saturday
L- breakfast
D- Take out mexican or chinese

Our grocery bill was:
Box of cheerios $2; 6 pack yogurt $3; bunch of bananas $2; 1 lb chipped ham $4; 5lbs white potatoes $4.50; roasting chicken $7; 2 boxes of pasta $2; 4 cans of vegetables $3.50; cottage cheese $2; loaf of bread $2; 1 lb ground beef $4; 2 jars gravy $2; box mac n cheese $1.25; .5 lb tilapia $4; package of american cheese $3; yam $2;  box of rotini $1; jar of pasta sauce $1.50;2 bags of mozzarella $3; pizza dough $1; pepperoni $1.50; small onion $.50; red pepper $1.50; hot dogs $1; hot dog buns $1.25; box of macaroni $1; half gallon milk $2.25; velveeta $3; pancake mix $2; bacon $3; dozen eggs $1.25.   Plus around $25 in take out and assuming $10 for incidentals (condiments, drinks, spices)- we come in around $100 for the week.

BiggerinRealLife

What @AcaAwkward‌ said, but with California prices. It's a lot.

Andrewsgal

AcaAwkward said:

It's a lot. Food is one of our spending priorities as we eat organic and local (if possible), and we only purchase meat that ranks high on the animal welfare scale. I would say it's upwards of $800 per month. But wee also eat all but maybe 2 meals a week at home -- so that's 19 meals a week x 3 people x 4 weeks. Comes out to about $3.50 per meal. Or really less as I factored in dipes and wipes.

Yep except we spend about $1000 a month. We eat all organic. My kids seriously eat $75-$100 in produce a week alone. They ate a pint of strawberries for breakfast then another for snack today alone.

Dixon813

Another Aldi family!!! $4-500 a month including wine/beer. EBF and haven't had to buy many diapers.

BiggerinRealLife

@acaawkward @poru I remember visiting a friend in texas and she got sick. I went to Walmart (it was Abilene - they only had Walmart) with her roommate to pick up provisions. I had a field day! I was like, "Campbell's homestyle select soup for $.99? That's $4.25 in California! Organic salad in a bag for $2.00? Whoop! What a steal!" Her roommates' eyes kept getting bigger and bigger as I filled my cart (Odwalla OJ for $3.29? Yes please!) and finally she half-joked "so, it must be nice being so rich." The rest of the trip she called me money bags and wore a faint air of resentment. 

speechie517

I would guess about $600 for EBF and CD baby, me and a DH who eats enough for 2 grown ass men. I'll make her food from what we eat when she starts solids next month. We use a lot of produce, meat, and eggs, lunch for me is usually leftovers and some of DH's meals are comped  in the dining hall on campus. Lots of beer and wine here too. 

LolaX2

Ugh way too much! We are probably closer to 800-900 or so. That is everything though. We have a 2 year old DS still in diapers and baby diapers and also have to buy him pediasure as he is a very bad eater and in like the 5 percentile for weight. EBF baby but I have to buy milk bags for pumping at work. We have 2 large dogs, 4 cats and fish and buy good food for them. Animal supplies for the month alone are 150-200. This also includes cleaning supplies, personal hygiene products, medications, wine/beer and DH's special protein powders etc for his extensive workout/nutrition routine. This also usually includes any extras as well, like this week DH needed new sneakers and I wanted some new sheets for the bed etc. 

If it were broken down to just food it would be closer to about $250 a month. Lots of fruits and veggies, milk, yogurts and planed meals,

Jenn06L80

A lot. Over $800. We are a family of five. We have 5 months twins that are formula fed, and an almost 4 year that has a great appetite. Then maybe $200 for eating out. Then another $300 for wine. We need to cut back but food and wine is our entertainment now.

I order groceries online and I am good about budgeting. However it adds up when I run into trader joes or whole foods.

AcaAwkward

BiggerinRealLife said:

@acaawkward @poru I remember visiting a friend in texas and she got sick. I went to Walmart (it was Abilene - they only had Walmart) with her roommate to pick up provisions. I had a field day! I was like, "Campbell's homestyle select soup for $.99? That's $4.25 in California! Organic salad in a bag for $2.00? Whoop! What a steal!" Her roommates' eyes kept getting bigger and bigger as I filled my cart (Odwalla OJ for $3.29? Yes please!) and finally she half-joked "so, it must be nice being so rich." The rest of the trip she called me money bags and wore a faint air of resentment. 

Are prices that much different at Whole Foods, etc? Hot Damn!  

(I should note.... I did not factor in the wine.  We drink... a lot of wine.)