How to Combat the Rising Price of Groceries

Lately, across many news outlets and platforms, we’re hearing that the prices of necessities like groceries, food, and gas are starting to rise. Many sources attribute distribution and production slow-downs during COVID as the culprits, but no matter the reason, this is starting to hit consumers directly and noticeably. Here are a few ways to stay on the lookout for these price differences — and how to combat them and protect your budget. 

Pay Close Attention to Cost

Seems easy enough, right? However, it is entirely too easy to lose track of the individual costs of necessities like food items, toiletries, paper towels, and more. Take a day to go to a couple of different stores and compare pricing. Which store gives you the most bang for your buck overall? Don’t forget to look at the little details, like the cost per ounce of something. Is the bigger bottle priced better per ounce? 

Also, take note of what you’ve spent on your grocery bill in months past. Are you paying a bit more now than you were back then, but for the same items? Try to identify where these price differences are occurring already in your grocery haul, if you can, so you can scout for the best prices on those specific items. 

Shopping with a competitive mindset can help you immensely in the long term – don’t spend more than you need to for the items you need and always seek out the best deal. 

Plan Your Grocery Shopping Ahead

Self-evident or not, too many consumers shop with their stomachs and not with a list. Plan your meals and shopping before you even leave the house. Figure out what you need this week, what you don’t, and plan meals around what you have in the fridge and pantry already. When you shop, stick to your list! Don’t shop off-list or you and your wallet are bound to be victims of these rising prices. 

Use Coupons and Savings Apps

As always, make sure you use coupons and savings apps provided by big box stores. Most stores offer prime savings and deals for users of their apps in order to incentivize usage, so use them! Not only that, but most stores also digitize their weekly ads and include them in these apps. They update weekly so you can plan your shopping trip around what’s on sale or bogo this week.

Using savings methods such as these are easier than ever (no more scissors and paper cuts from clipping coupons) and they’re fast, efficient, and in tune with the modern consumer. Taking the few extra minutes each week to browse your store app for deals to take advantage of is one of the easiest ways to save. 

Choose Cost-Effective Meals

‘Cost-effective’ doesn’t mean that you need to eat instant ramen for dinner all the time. Things like ready-to-go frozen meals may seem cheap, but can be sneakily priced. They seem ‘cheap’ because of the time you might save in meal prep, but comparing the costs of convenient meals in the frozen section to the costs of produce and meats or canned goods speaks for itself. You probably have the majority of most ingredients for easy, quick, homemade meals already. Things like spices and olive oil are typically in your pantry. 

Also, consider how long you can stretch your dollar. Ten dollars for a single frozen family meal can equal a lot of produce and meat items that would have lasted several meals. These are all things to consider when you’re trying to combat the rising costs of necessities. Shop vigilantly and you won’t need to allocate more to your grocery budget.