How Our Family Saved Over $1000 a Month on Food
This expense was “eating” up a huge chunk of our monthly budget… and we had no idea! With this one change we were able to save enough money to live comfortably on one income.
Updated March 2024 — Originally published in 2015, this post detailing our family’s easy weekly food budget is still our #1 most visited blog post of all time! Keep reading to learn exactly what our family did to save money on our food budget and live comfortably on one income.
How Can I Afford to be a Stay at Home Mom?
As a member of mommy support groups, I frequently see the question posed: how can I afford to be a stay at home mom? Â
I’ve been a working mom, so I get it that some of us crave “adult time” and enjoy career accomplishments. Â But I also know what a crappy feeling it is to leave your kids in the care of someone else all day.
Ultimately, I made the choice to leave the corporate world and I wanted to share the one lifestyle change that made it possible.
Note: This post contains affiliate links to the products and apps that helped make our weekly food budget successful, so you can try them too. Read our disclosure policy here.
The One Lifestyle Change That Allowed Me to be a Stay at Home Mom
In November 2015, I quit my job. The plan was for me to enjoy the holidays with my family and start the search for a better employer in the new year. I did that, and things went so wonderfully that my husband and I decided it would be best for our family (and my health) if I stayed home indefinitely.
There was just one problem— we cut our income in half.
While I was working, I always stressed about money. Even with two solid paychecks, it never felt like enough. How would we be able to make it on just my husband’s income?
Aside from monthly non-negotiables (housing, utilities, insurance), there was one expense that dwarfed them all. Once we seriously reevaluated our spending in this area, it freed up a huge chunk of our budget.
I’ll give you a hint: it wasn’t our cable bill…
It was FOOD.
My husband has always loved to cook, and did so on a regular basis. However, we never planned out meals for the week. As a result, we were forced to pop in to the grocery store on multiple occasions throughout the week for whatever he decided to fix on a whim, or pick up take-out when we were short on time.
It seems hard to believe that food could have such an impact on the budget, so to prove it, I’ll show you what we used to spend.
Our former food “budget”
Wait!! Before you read the numbers below, keep in mind that I originally wrote this post in 2015, almost 10 years ago. As we all know, groceries and restaurant meals cost more now. In 2024 money, these numbers would probably be almost DOUBLE!
Here were our food expenses in 2015:
- $240 – We made at least 3 grocery trips every week, spending about $80 each time.  Going to the grocery store without a list means you’re likely to forget items and end up having to return later.  Multiple visits make it easier to succumb to impulse buys, as you are tempted over and over.
- $160 –Â We ordered take-out about four times a week. Â Whether for lunch or dinner, with tax and tip it’s about $40 for our family.
- $50 –Â While working, I spent about $10 per day on lunch.
- $50 –Â Hubby also would order out food at work.
Add that up and you get $500 in one week!  That’s $2000 every month — wow! This doesn’t even take into account any occasions where we would go out to eat in a restaurant.
It was money we spent without even thinking — we had to eat, right?
And again, in 2024 money, that would probably be more like $4000, which is just wild!
The Weekly Food Budget That Saved us Over $1000 a Month
It was actually my husband’s idea to start weekly meal planning. Amazingly, a commitment to this one concept was the key to a budget that worked.
On Sunday evenings, my husband and I sit down and talk about what we’d like to eat for dinner each night.  To make it easier, we’ve designated days such as “Salmon Mondays,” so all we have to decide is sauce and sides. Other days, my husband might have a new recipe he wants to sample. When the week’s menu is determined, we make the grocery list so we know exactly what needs to be bought.
Want to start meal planning…but not sure where to start? Grab The Ultimate Meal Planner Bundle and make keeping track of your weekly meal plan and food budget a breeze! It’s only $6 and worth every penny!
Why meal planning works
- No more inefficient daily trips to the store. We figure everything out in advance, which allows us to grocery shop once a week.
- Impulse buys are a thing of the past. We go in with a plan and don’t end up buying things that aren’t on our list.
- Bye-bye-expensive restaurant meals. Since we’ve got a meal planned for each night of the week, we don’t need to order take-out because we’re hungry and unprepared.
- Lunch is no longer a separate expense. My husband cooks for an army, so there are always plenty of leftovers for lunch.
Here’s a look at our weekly food budget now:
- $150-200: One grocery shopping trip for the ingredients needed for dinner every night of the week.
- With our couponing experiment, we slashed our weekly grocery bill to only $100-140, so our monthly food total averages less than $600!)
- We also stock up on pantry essentials and save money buying in bulk. Click here for our free pantry checklist!
That’s it. We’ve gone from spending $2000 a month on food to no more than $600.
It’s an incredible change and all it took was setting aside 30 minutes on Sunday night to create a meal plan.
If you think about all the time saved by consolidating grocery trips, it might actually be less time to meal plan than to try to go through the week without one.
Of course, we’ve made other adjustments to our lifestyle since I left my job, but none as significant as the meal plan. Maybe it sounds overwhelming to cook every single night, but just look at how much money you can save (for us it was more than $1400 a month!)
An added bonus is that when you cook your own dinners, you know exactly what you’re getting — it’s healthier! (This helped me with my weight loss after baby).
Even if you don’t aspire to be a stay at home mom, you could put up to an extra thousand dollars in the bank every month. That’s a weekend vacation!
If you take a realistic look at what you’re spending on food, you might find that you don’t want to “eat up” a large portion your income any more.
And yes, this even works in 2024.
Our Meal Planning Essentials:
Here are some of the tools and apps we’ve used to help save money on groceries and our food budget:
- Money-saving apps to get cash back on groceries — My absolute favorite is Ibotta — I save more with their rebates than I do with coupons and I get the cash back right away! Plus you get $10 just for signing up!) Click here to sign up for Ibotta through my special link and claim your $10 welcome bonus!
- The Ultimate Meal Planner Bundle — Our customizable printable set makes it easy to keep track of what you have on hand, plan shopping trips and weekly menus, as well as save favorite recipes for years to come… and it’s only $6! Click here to grab one and make meal planning a breeze.
- This magnetic dry erase calendar is awesome for keeping your menu handy on your fridge & these magnetic hanging dry erase markers (you’ll never lose them!)
- Gallon Freezer Bags (Not only do you save money buying them in bulk, but you’ll be less likely to run out! These are a must-have for freezing meat when you find it on sale & stock up!)
- Plenty of storage containers for keeping leftovers fresh
- Vacuum sealer for maximum freshness and even more savings! We have the Food Saver brand!
- eMeals meal planning app which provides weekly menu plans, builds your shopping list, and integrates with your favorite grocery store’s pickup and delivery apps!
More Money Saving Tips
- 7 Ways to Make Meal Planning Easier
- 5 Steps to Save $10,000 in One Year
- How we Lived Well for a Year on $30,000 – A Yearly Budget That Works
- How to Have an Awesome Christmas on a Budget
- 4 Keys to Living Well as a One Income Family
- How to Stop Worrying About Money
This really has changed our lives and I’m so excited to share it all with you! There’s no reason you can’t start saving money right away too!
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I love the idea of meal planning. The hard part is my husband…he says he’ll never know what he’s in the mood for until the day of. drives me crazy to go to the grocery store every day.
See if he will agree to try the meal planning for a week– once he gets an idea of how much money it saves he might be more enthusiastic! Plus, a meal plan is not set in stone. You can always move things around depending on what you feel like eating. Good luck! 🙂
I am a about to quit my job and going to try to build my clientele as a stylist so I can have more time with my daughter. Your story sounded like mine and I am so scared quit, but for my mental health and for the sake of my only daughter, she deserves to have a mamma that can be present. I am reevaluating our money on spending with food. We also love FOOD! And my husband and a wonderful cook, but i know we spend a lot when it comes to food. Thank you for sharing you have really gave a me a better outlook on my decision!
If your work environment is toxic (which it sounds like it might be) you will not regret the decision to get out. What you said is SO true: your daughter deserves a mama that can be present (and happy!) Feel free to browse my money-saving tips question or message me by email, the Facebook page, etc. if you have any questions. I also wrote an ebook which details step-by-step what we did after I quit my job to make our new budget work, along with a full week meal plan to get started. You can do this! 🙂
I totally agree! Meal planning is so awesome. Since I have started I have never regretted it. It makes meal time less stressful more prepared and usually much tasty less thrown together meals.
Absolutely! It seemed like it would be a lot of work at first, but it is so much easier in the long run. Thanks for reading and for sharing Grace!
It is incredible the impact food and groceries can have on the budget. My partner and I eat the same meals all the time and have cut our budget significantly and are eating so much better.
So true! Having favorite meals takes a lot of the planning out and lets you buy in bulk, so you save time and money.
Wow, the fact that I don’t have any kids probably has something to do with this, but $2000 a month on food is insane to me. My mind was blown. I think what’s hard about the advice in this post for me is that I already have a low food budget and it seems like one of the most obvious places to cut costs anyway. I guess from the title of the article I was hoping for something new. In any case I am glad you were able to figure things out and start saving more money:)
Hi CC, thanks for taking the time to read and share your thoughts! I’ve definitely heard from some that our previous spending was shocking to them (and it was shocking to me too when I put it all on paper!) Having a family makes a difference, but where you live can also have a big impact on prices for eating out as well as groceries. I came from a small town and I was amazed by how much more expensive was when I moved to a big city! That being said, if you’re already on top of your food spending then that’s awesome!
You are so right. When you are working outside of the home the number you have in your head is how much you make per hour but when you realize it takes money to work. When you factor expenses you realize half of that wage is expenses, gas, work clothes, lunches, lattes, gifts for co workers, etc. you realize wow is it really worth $6 an hour for all the stress and to miss my kids every moment? I had to make some life changes when my older son was diagnosed with Autism and I was near a nervous breakdown. Stresses to the max, having migraines and my youngest got really sick and had to be hospitalized for five days. Enough was enough. I had to quit my job and work at home fill time. I didn’t know how I was going to do it but it all worked out. I now blog about my journey about creating multiple sources of income at home. Love your blog btw!!
Thank you for sharing Sandi! It sounds like you made the best choice for you and your family and I’m so glad it has worked out for you!
Hi! New reader! Love your blog!
We also used to spend so much on food and miscellaneous items. We added up our expenses last October and spent a whopping $2100 on just “stuff” (including food and gas). We’ve since been able to take that down to $1200, saving us $900 per month!! It’s really eye-opening to take a look at what you’re spending and is something I recommend everyone do!
Hi Sarah! It is crazy how much this “stuff” adds up! It is definitely a good idea to evaluate all of your spending, little things that you don’t always account for otherwise. Thanks for stopping by and sharing!
Wow, this is so inspiring! You all saved some serious money with some hard work and planning and I think that is awesome. Thanks for putting yourself out there to help other be encouraged- I know how vulnerable that can feel.
I knew meal planning was a huge money saver, but I admit, I didn’t realize that it would equal such huge savings. I think your experience makes it pretty clear that having a plan is so important.
Thanks for reading and for your positive comments– it does definitely make you feel a bit vulnerable to share personal finances! But it did save us a lot of money and hopefully by me sharing I can help others do the same! 🙂
0K you Soccer Moms: call your own Mom and Grandmom who think they don’t need to plan because they are feeding only themselves! I need to plan my meals ahead of time because I am eating out too much and that is very expensive and not healthy. I had bariatric surgery 6 years ago and have gained back some weight and I have to avoid green veggies because of tendency for blood to clot. So I have to eat protein first and use vitamins for the veggies. The comments have challenged me to plan my three meals a day AND my snacks. I challenge other Senior Citizens to do the same and save their money for a trip or the grandkids education or any number of things or experiences that you have always wanted.
That is such an excellent point Marjorie — thank you for sharing! My own mom had actually mentioned the same thing to me. She started a blog not too long ago (http://mythinkbiglife.com) and is mulling over the idea of creating a meal planning post for single adults. I’ll be sure to let her know that there are others out there who would love this!
One grocery suggestion to get through the store faster– I made a grocery list template in excel with sections of the store listed in the order of a store walk through — produce, bakery, meats, etc, however your regular store is laid out. I print out a bunch on the backs of scrap paper from work. This saves a lot of back and forth in the store and scanning up and down the list. Everyone in my house puts things on the list and we get through the store in ten minutes. Plus, you can make the produce section with many lines and the cereal section with just a line or two to encourage a more balanced, healthy list.
Hi Sarah, that is a great suggestion! We actually do this too (well, minus using Excel…I’m not a fan after having a past job with a spreadsheet-obsessed boss haha) and I mention it in my ebook which tells our entire meal planning/grocery shopping strategy. Thanks again for reading and sharing 🙂
I actually use a free app called AnyList which allows you to enter your grocery items; each item is automatically sourced into the category that it best fits (you can change it, if you want). It also automatically alphabetized the entered items so they are easily located on the list. Another cool feature is that you are able to mark items off as you purchase them, and there is an option to only show remaining items. The niceest thing about this app is the fact that you can share lists with others in your household, and any updates made by them automatically updates the primary list (great for last-minute additions by teens who told you that they didn’t need anything!). There are many other amazing things about this app, but I don’t want to clog your page!! Lol