We are a family of 5, with two teen boy athletes. While my husband is furloughed, we challenged ourselves to $500 a month grocery budget. We’ve been sticking to it! We literally cut $700 out of our budget each month! It’s more work, but I see it as a game, a challenge. What can I cook from “nothing” tonight? We won’t ever go back to that high price budget!
The biggest tip I've learned from you for my family is planning the meals for the week first, than shop my fridge and pantry. It seriously helped me to not overspend at the grocery store.
Jordan you changed my life in so many ways I can't thank you enough for that. I've been living alone since I was 21 and all the money I was getting from my job used to vanish before I even realized it, but since I started watching all your videos my perception about money have drastically change. Because of you nowadays I have a decent meal plan for every week, get to pay in order all my bills and by the first time in my whole life I have some money saved for any emergency. Once again thank you so much Jordan, you were a blessing in my life ❤ (sorry for any misspelling I'm from México)
Oh hi I am from Argentina my english isn't really the best. But I love to recommend Rosetastone English it has help me improved my English .Still my English isn't the best I know how hard it can be. You can do it.
I can’t believe you have 8 kids and still make time to give great content to your community! We are a family of 4 with two teenagers who are very active and hungry all the time! You inspire me to stick as close to $100 per week as I can! 😊
I saw this video on your Instagram. I really enjoyed it. Meal planning, stretching our groceries & being frugal has saved my family so much money! It helped us get out of debt & now is helping us top off our emergency fund. The one tip that I took away from your video is that if you’re going to be under your weekly grocery budget (which I tend to be...thank goodness) then you can use the rest of the money you have left for the week & buy things that are on sale so that you can always be ahead of the game. I literally just took your advice about a half hour ago when I placed my online grocery order & was able to use $50 to stock up our freezer with meats & chicken so that I have a stockpile for the future. Wonderful job as usual Jordan!
Lucky girl! Meat and chicken is severely restricted here. 2 pounds of chicken max. I used to have a stockpile... Thank goodness where I buy my ground beef has not been limiting it yet!
I have GOT to get my grocery budget under control. And you're right, it's in the cooking. Right now we're doing the, "what's for dinner, let's go buy the ingredients" rut and it has to stop, thanks for the inspiration!
I’m single with a dog and I spend about $40 -$80 every two weeks on grocery’s. personally I don’t think it’s bad. I don’t buy anything extra and food is pretty expensive where I live. I also have to buy a lot of fresh fruits because of health issues.
I have slipped into old habits and pleased for this video. It works! In a year I’ve saved over £10,000 being frugal, still having family holidays and saying no to myself. I take that challenge up and see you in a month and see what has been saved. Blessings always 🙏🏻🕯❤️
I don’t really have leftovers (I’m living alone, and I’m italian, so used to cook from scratch) but I prepare in advance things I just lately finish cook, like boiled whole rice (more “sturdy” than white varieties), or chopped pumpkins, chopped tomatoes things I don’t even need to unfreez to use, I just put them in the pan and they unfreeze quickly (I don’t have a microwave). And I store with glass cans given with the food I buy. I already have those, and I don’t pile on plastic consumption or general waste so much.
I did the budget boot camp in May and I was shocked. I’ve cut my grocery bill in half. I’m not quite at the $100 per family member but really close to it. I’m saving about $500 a month this way!! ❤️
Since the whole COVID thing I started a new storage area in my guest room. I put up shelving units and purchased a good bit of extra food over a couple months time. It's not ideal but it works.
I just got home from buying groceries and the whole time I was thinking about you! I was like "I made a list and I'm buying things once every two weeks instead of daily, Jordan would be so proud of me" 😂 are you proud of me? ❤
I love ordering online for pickup! Then when I get to the end and see oh yikes I dont want to spend that, i can reevaluate my cart and shave off a few items. Or I see "oh wow I have some budget left!" And I can stock up more. Also, it is easier to price match online!
I’ve been shopping online and picking up with 2 stores for 5 years and love it! I make lists for both stores at the same time by checking back and forth between the apps - pretty much everything is on sale at one of the two and I seldom pay full price and I know which things I can get BOGO or Buy 2, Get 3 sales on and try to only buy at those prices. I spend 3 days on average making the list and buy on that 3rd day. I find that if I can wait overnight at least, I’ve generally realized I’ve left something vital off. But the best part is that when I go through my carts, there are ALWAYS things I see that I don’t need at all - they just looked good at the time. LOL I never hit the final button until I’ve gone through the lists at both stores 3 times!
What great ideas. Many countries add meat as a condiment instead of the focus to a healthy meal of whole starches and veggies. I've been plant based almost 20 years and my protein tested on the high side of normal. So dont be afraid to reduce meat I take, it wont harm you.
I consider myself very well researched and savvy when it comes to budgeting and your budget boot camp STILL surprised me and gave me new tips and ideas that literally worked and helped me stay within my means. Incredible Jordan thank you!
I was a solo mum of 3 before l was 20 so learnt pretty quickly how to live frugally, l have no food waste and only put out 1 rubbish sack a month. Meat is expensive so we only have 2 or 3 meat meals a week. My supermarket marks old stock down at 10am so my daughter in law rings me to te'll me what is being put out, she is butchery manager, l go in and get the markdowns. Last week l got near originally priced at $81 for $21 l portion out to meal size and freeze that amount will last for 6 weeks at least. I have a running list of what is in the cupboard and check before shopping. I put items on my list in the order they are on the shelves of the store. First l go around the edges as that's where the staples are then only go into aisles l need something and go directly to it. All the dairy, meats and fruits are on the edge so that is where the discounts are. I stick to $80 pw for myself and the 1 child left at home. I save what is left over for meat specials and my daughter in law uses her staff discount when any extra good deals come up. I go to the supermarket once a week and will not pickup any other time. Leftovers are saved and on Friday night's they are used to make a meal we call scrappy Joe they are either fried together or blended with eggs and baked as scrappy pie.
I’ve been following you for just about a year now as a newly wed and I have been using your grocery budget method since the end of last summer. I am never going back! My husband and I are lucky that $200 a month of groceries has been great and has forced us to be creative with our cooking. Thank goodness I found you!
This does work!! Jordan you have changed my life. I payed off my car early and out of credit card debt because of the simple tips and tricks you have taught on you tube. I am not perfect but I have far from where I was.
As an incoming single college student I have to say these videos are a CRUTCH for saving money! Thank you so much, these are just incredible. I'll be coming back to these for sure!!
Jordan, Thank you for all the grocery+budget help. I used to always beat myself up about the grocery budget, especially when we still needed stuff. When other bills are high, we have to cut back on groceries. With your help, I am a wiser + more comfortable shopper. We are especially thankful because our Church family looks out for us + gives us milk+ produce every other week or so. They give away free food in our community. We are truly Blessed.
I'm a weird 18-year-old... I LOVE grocery shopping. 😂 And girl, you made my day today with a new grocery video! Congratulations on your new cookbook! 💜
Girl, start your own business grocery shopping and meal planning for people. I hate doing that. If I had money I’d be willing to pay someone else to do that for me. 🤣
@@averynmitchell Yes indeed, The wealthy people do that. I used to with for these very wealthy lady I organized grocery for her. She paid me good . You should get into the business especally at your age that you go to college.
THIS WAS SO EYE OPENING!!! THANK YOU! Where it really clicked for me was how critical it is to actually use what I've already bought--like you said, cooking matters even more than grocery shopping. Inspiring!
I have a 6' vegetarian teenager in the house. She's leaving for college in the fall and I feel like it's going to cut so much off my grocery bill, it's worth the cost of tuition!
This has saved my budget! I started cooking everyday and we have saved $200 in the last 2 weeks. I keep a tally on my phone calculator as I go through the store and if I get to my budget before I’m done I either just go straight to check out or I put things back I don’t need in order to get other things I know I need. Also I round up. If something is .$.88 I say $1 on my calculator JUST IN CASE.
I've been doing this shelf cooking for a year and it does save money and helps to not waste food. I have a family of 4 in a one bedroom apartment and we keep stock piled food stored in bins in a corner of our room. Eye appealing,NO having extra food you need on hand, YES. Thanks for the tips
I have literally been following a Jordan since I was 19 years old and she has been a life saver time and time again. 10 years later, I still learn new tips and tricks every time (even from the videos that don’t really apply to my current situation). Anyway, for digital lists I recommend Google Keep. There are tons of videos about it, you should check it out. One of my lists on Google Keep is a price comparison notebook. I prefer digital lists because I never forget it, it’s much more convenient than carrying a paper/pen, and it has a search function. I set it up to where it knows my location so it will send me a notification when I arrive at the grocery store or Costco. Now I never forget about its existence while I’m shopping and trying to figure out if something is a good deal or not.
When my husband and I were on a TIGHT TIGHT budget (I mean he had lost his job and we had 900 dollars a month for EVERYTHING) I use to pre-look at prices on line. Write down where I found it cheapest and would make a list according to what I found. That way places like Aldi that I couldn't see prices ahead of time I could look at my list and know if I was getting a good deal or not. I also tried to shop in areas that had the main stores I needed close to each other so I wasn't driving a ton to get the best deals and lastly I carried a hand calculator. I was in college at the time so I had one of this big fancy ones but now a days I just carry my phone to do the math. I also can price compare on my phone with the stores. So If I am about to buy something I am not sure of I quickly price compare. I like the idea of going to the store once. I fall into that lets go every few days trap.
With the online grocery shopping, I always add items to my Fred Meyer cart throughout the week as like my grocery list. It is great because like you said it shows the running total. Then when my weekly day to get groceries comes I know how much I will spend, have already added in the stores coupon offers for extra off certain items and just use the app as my list and clear items as I get them. It works so well!
I definitely love following your channel and saving myself money. Ever since I saw you on Extreme cheapskates I have learn to make every single penny of my budget worthy. I do all the meal preps you show to save myself time and money. I have 5 beautiful children so our budget is on track. We spend $700-800 a month depending on the products available in store. Moms all over the world need some Jordan tips in their life!! 💕
We have a family of 5 and, with your tips, I have not only cut our grocery down to around $150 a week (we also have 2 cats and 5 dogs so we needed just a tad bit extra), BUT the last 2 weeks, I have also included some shelf cooking because we're getting ready for back to school and needed more money freed up. The last 2 weeks I have spent LESS THAN $120, including paper towels, toilet paper, basic hygiene, and pet supplies! Thank you sooooo much for all your tips!!
Love these tips and love you and your family!!! My biggest bill next to rent is GROCERIES! We have NO pantry or storage closets in our rental house. But we have a nice sized 2 car garage. I bought 3 white storage cabinets and keep one to side of my kitchen and two in the garage for Pantry items. We also have metal shelving in garage that we use for extra toiletries cleaning items and drinks. Plus storage bins. I bought them all off craigslist or FB marketplace. So glad!!! I am trying to nail a deal for a good upright freezer.
Everyone should join the Shelf Cooking group on FB! So much inspiration! I was committed to not spending much money this week, so I made a lot of vegetarian meals this week. I had everything for 3-4 recipes, except the meat. I've been following you for 8 years and I have heard half of this before, but I still ALWAYS get something new to try! Can't wait for the book!!
I'm a 25 year old single dude who is taking on a mortgage payment. Probably not your primary demographic but your grocery budgeting videos are going to help more than you know. Thank you.
I love having a budget. Saving today means more money for trips, holidays, and general fun times. If I gotta get the apples that are on sale this week, it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make for a more fun Christmas, etc :)
I love your tips I'm a family of 4 in the UK with 2 high metabolism people, I can spend under £100 (almost $124) for just under 2 weeks worth of shopping, I love to shop every 2 weeks because I use everything I buy so theres no waste, I use the method of use one replace one so I've already got a pack up, I've turned a shelt in my cupboard to extra storage because I have 2 cupboard spaces in my kitchen! It is simple once you've got the hang of things.
My grocery budget has spiked since the pandemic. I can't shop at different supermarkets since I'm at risk. I try to minimize risks by doing grocery pick-up, but it's only available at 1 store which is not the cheapest. Firstly I just let go of a budget, but now I decided to set a new budget, a little higher. I decided to give myself grace.
These are all such great tips! We find food is MUCH cheaper in Germany, which I like! 🤑 I grew up on fast food and microwave dinners so Iike to cook everything from scratch for my kids. ❤️
I have a family of 6 and spend $300 every two weeks (we get paid biweekly so works with pay day). So $100/per person every month. Its worked for over a year. Got a little tough with kids being home due to covid, but I worked it out.
So....I just found you. I AM IN LOVE WITH YOU!!! You are amazing. Thank you so much for your tips and knowledge on this. I hate grocery shopping and I hate cooking, but with what I have been watching from your YT channel, I am understanding how to make it all work, especially now with the pandemic and going or not going grocery shopping and how much to spend, what ingredients do I need to get, etc. etc. It's just me and my husband, no kids but pets, and I have been challenged by you and am looking forward to grocery shopping tomorrow and getting all this down. I have been trying freezer meals, and making large meals to eat half of now and freeze later, which has worked, but I hate cooking all day. I am taking your challenge and will see how this will turn out. Thank you Jordan. You are a life saver.
Still learning how to do this. I have 3 teen boys with appetites larger than our current budgets. I've got to keep trying to get the hang of this. Thanks for the tips!
Sandra A haha I’m in the same boat with 3 teen boys. I go shopping once a month cause we only get paid once a month. The boys have learned if they eat everything the first week they are SOL the rest of the month. They quickly learned to pace themselves
We have a lot of extra cabinets in our laundry room so we store our overload of dry and canned/bottled goods there. I think it's better than storing them in our garage which can get quite a bit hotter than the rest of our house. Love the only go grocery shopping once per week and googling a substitution tips, I need to do that more often! Two tips that work for me: 1. Check Amazon's prices compared to your most local grocery store. Sometimes I see that on dry/canned goods/paper products they can be cheaper than my nearby Safeway on price (even including when on sale) for per item or by unit etc. And if you have Prime it's obviously free to ship it to your house. 2. Jordan's previously shared tip I swear by: Don't buy bagged/precut fruits and or veggies - they cost more and have more chemicals to keep them preserved better in the store until someone purchases. Buy regular fruits and veggies and then do the prep work yourself when you're close to wanting to use them to save money.
I love that you are talking about principles. I live in Romania and 100$ is worth a lot more here. it can sometimes be the budget for a whole month. But the principle still applies.
Jordan Page, FunCheapOrFree I took your free boot camps in May and they have helped SO MUCH!! I cut my grocery bill by over HALF this month with all your tips! Love you girl! God bless💜
I love watching these videos and learning new tips. Our budgets been a little crazy lately, with my hubby losing his higher income, but we at least had a chance to pay off all our credit card debt which has helped us out. We tend to try and follow a meal plan through the week, but I never think to shop what I have in my pantry first. We created our stockpile pantry with a deep freezer we got on sale when Kmart was going out of business. We also bought one of their clothing stands with repositionable shelves we use to house most of the non perishable food (like pastas, soups, canned veggies, snack chips, etc) we stock since our kitchen doesn't have much room or shelf space. Which both are in off to the side in our garage.
Hey, Jordan! I found your channel a year ago just before moving across the country. We really didn’t have any food when we unpacked in our new place. I loved the idea of having a “store” of food in my house, so I started buying “one for now, two for later.” My husband found some used metal shelving and set up a little storage shelf in our basement laundry room. As the months went by, it got completely filled with food that we actually used on a regular basis. When the pandemic hit the US in March and the grocery stores were getting cleaned out, my MIL called me in a panic saying she’d send me a bunch of money so I could hurry and go buy food storage. I told her I already had food storage and texted her a photo of my shelves! It gave her (and me!) so much peace of mind during a stressful time. Thank you for all your helpful advice!
I heard this weekly budget for groceries advise from you a while back and implemented it right away. IT'S BEEN AWESOME!! I even do it for our Eating Out budget. I made seperate line items for each weeks grocery and eating out budgets in the budget app I use. Soooooo helpful!! Thanks!
Same here! Prices have gone up, and I have to improvise in the store because there are a lot of things stores are out of. I also find I’m having to buy more expensive brands when they’re out of generic. I also will grab an extra or two if I see the store is running low and I know we’ll use it soon. I’ve increased my grocery budget during this pandemic.
One thing you didn't mention was that every other week you go to Costco for non perishables and you use your other budget too,so you do spend more every other week.
I have 4 kids, three of them teens+ so they eat SO much, I get it. But, trust me, Jordan is doing a lot of what I have already been doing but I am still finding her tips super helpful even after all these years.
Thank you Jordan! You inspired me to use the online shopping tool to add up the total so I don’t go over budget and use THAT as my grocery list before I go to the store. Places like Smith’s let’s you develop a grocery list in the app. You’re awesome Jordan! Bless you!
I love your tips!!! Im usually good with grocery budgeting but I have totally been overspending during quarantine because I've been telling myself I have to keep buying meat so that I can last longer without going to the store. I definitely need to tighten up!! I don't have much storage in my kitchen at all but I have a short freezer like you talked about in my laundry room off of the kitchen. I find space in my kitchen for other groceries but if I stock up on something I have shelves in the laundry room (mostly filled with extra cooking appliances that are used less often like George Forman grill, blender, etc) but there's room on the shelves for extra groceries too. But I also have an unfinished basement if I needed more storage as well as a closet at the top of the basement stairs.
My husband and I bought a house with a tiny kitchen and no laundry room, so the washer and dryer are in the kitchen. I love to cook and stock up on food so not having a pantry really sucks. We ended up putting a chest freezer in the corner of our dining room for extra freezer space. We also replaced the old washer and dryer with front loading ones so we use the top of the machines now for extra counter space. And since that space is so deep we put some baskets against the wall that we can use to store food and such. It's not perfect but it works for us!
I have a bathroom/laundry room. There is a cabinet under the sink which is where I keep laundry supplies, extra paper products and other cleaning supplies. Above the washer and dryer are two large cupboards which is where is store my extra can good and boxed items. Any spot you can find, even if it’s purpose is for something else, is a great place to store extra food items
Your videos always get me excited to save and shop smart! The way you eat, with less meat, is likely a lot healthier too and better for the planet so win-win AND less food waste!
When me and my husband were newlyweds in a two bedroom small apartment we turned a coat closet into a walk in pantry. we got awesome click in shelving from costco so we could take it with us and shelved the entire thing for our food storage. Now we are in a larger house we have racks for canned foods in our garage and are saving for a chest freezer. You just have to get creative and think outside the box!
My biggest tip is to do grocery pickup! I always stick to my budget because I see what's there on the list and how much it all costs. If I'm going over, I just delete some things from my cart. ETA: I was typing this half way though the video, awesome that you added it lol.
I use half of my linen closet as a pantry because it's right next to the kitchen and it's big. Also, I have one large metal rack shelf in the kitchen and I store snacks, cereal, bread, and the appliances I use most often right there in the kitchen. I just keep it looking nice since it's basically just out in the open.
In a local nearby town, we have had an outdoor community “food pantry.” It was supported by some markets, local farmers, and even home growers and is not only for low income. We have been utilizing that during Covid because our employment has been effected and spend less on groceries but still buy quality meats/eggs. Check your local community or nearby communities, especially during the pandemic, there are WAY more programs and community supported ways to get free or discounted foods.
LOVE grocery pickup! It's all we do now. I did $100 per person grocery budget for June and stayed right on track! For reference I live on the East coast in MD. In our current home we didn't have an actual pantry but a random large closet in the dining room, so we converted it into a pantry. We also have a chest freezer, stand up freezer and an extra fridge in the storage part of our basement. I don't think I could function with one fridge and freezer again 😂
We got one of those 4 medal shelve things that are typically used in garages to store our extra shelf staple goods on. Works perfect. We also have bought two extra freezers one chest and an upright one. I am thankful for this video, i already do a lot of things you suggested but did learn a lot also
To make more space for food storage in my home, I converted my formal dining room into a pantry of sorts. The room was never used for any meals, ever. I had all the fancy dining room furniture, full of dust all the time, so I donated everything to Habitat for Humanity and purchased a huge wall unit that is now my stocked pantry.
I have 3 boys, 2 of them teenagers. I always make sure there is lots of carbs. Pasta, rice, potatoes, or bread. This fills them up a lot. One of the cheapest meals I make is pasta with tinned tomatoes, frozen Mediterranean veg or home grown veg during the summer, some seasoning and dried herbs, and little meat such as ham, pepperoni or chorizo which gives a strong meat flavour with very little meat.
I'm in New Zealand, we have the same problem. We produce some of the best fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy in the world. The best stuff gets exported, and we pay the export price domestically for the lesser grade stuff. Makes the cost of living high!
Celia Nicoll That’s terrible! Much of the cheese and butter (and who knows what else since those are just the things I saw labels on - I’m thinking at least some of the meat, too?) that I’ve eaten in the Caribbean has been from New Zealand! And delicious!
Something I do is add items to the grocery pickup app so I can get a total before tax. Once I get it to the desired amount, I use it as my shopping list. If it’s something on sale, such as meats about to expire or veggies that are reduced, I now have even more room in the budget for other things or I save the “extra” for next week.
Our deep freezer is in our garage. We use extra shelf space in our laundry room for extra non perishable food/ household items and Costco sized snacks are hidden in the master bedroom closet. The kids get a small basket in the kitchen, and I refill it so that I can ration out those goldfish!
We have an upright freezer in the garage, our pantry has a few of each item, but we have a shelf in the garage for extra and a BIG black box (I think it is a wooden foot locker) for more extras!!!
When I give advice to people who have asked how I budget and meal plan, they always say they never buy in bulk for meat and that’s my #1 tip! People don’t realize they want 1 lb of chicken for dinner so they buy it not on sale yet if they bought it on sale in bulk and freeze, it’s $1.99 lb! I base my meals around what’s on sale so if sausage isn’t on sale that week and that’s what I wanted, I have to wait! And I agree with your rule of once a week shopping. I needed sour cream the other day and HAD to go to the store yet my normal shopping day is Sunday and I ended up spending $20 extra
As someone with a very restricted diet where maybe 90% of what I eat is fresh, I find it important to meal plan not only for money but also to avoid accidentally eating too much of one thing and causing a flare up. It also helps me waste less food. Looking at how much food you're wasting is a good measure of how you're doing in terms of shelf cooking. Yes inevitably some things will go off, we're all human after all, but if you have leftovers figure out a way to incorporate them into lunch or dinner the next day, or freeze them and have a plan for them. Freezing something without a plan for what to use it for in my experience usually ends up with it being left there for ages and eventually thrown away. I also only freeze in single portions (as a single person household) which is a lot less than you think it is. For example one portion of bolognaise freezes well in 200ml containers. You can also blanch fresh veggies and freeze them to avoid them going off before you eat them, which can happen often in a single person household otherwise. But have a plan for them. Eg I blanch and freeze spring greens (similar to collard greens) to have with fish or bolognaise or roast dinner. Then with that frozen and bolognaise frozen I have a super fast super easy dinner, which is great on nights I'm tired and I plan that into my week- I'm usually too tired to cook on Thursdays and Fridays so I use food out of the freezer. It's important to know your body and what you can manage when it comes to cooking. If you know you're always tired by Thursday, or Wednesday is going to be a crazy day, then plan ahead and have leftovers or something super easy to have that day. I also batch make pizzas that are suitable for me and freeze them, eating one that night of course 🤣 Then another day in 25min of sitting resting dinner is ready. They are my emergency meals. Since I can't eat out or get take away without horrendpus consequences that's how I manage it. I spend a lot of energy on my diet and making batches of food but it is 100% worth it for my health and bank balance :)
A weekly grocery budget has made a HUGE difference to my budget. I struggled so much previously with doing it monthly. Since doing BBC, I have never gone over budget. I shop online so I can easily adjust to stay under budget, and I treat each week as a challenge to stick to my budget. I also don’t do any top-up shops. It’s easier then as well to say to the kids, “we’ve run out of that snack until Sunday. You’ll have to grab something else in the meantime.” And it’s not too far for them to wait then either.
I have a second fridge and freezer in the detached garage. My late husband and I had power run to it for this reason. I also use part of my laundry cupboards for pantry storage as I have a small house and kitchen. I still don’t buy much in bulk anymore tbh. I just work off what meat and vege are on sale that week.
Interesting. I've found that for my husband and I, I spend about $350 a month, but that includes all my non-food items as well, like laundry soap, toilet paper, etc. If I have to, I can make do on much less, but it's more work with specific planning and cooking.
Jordan I love your videos. I have three hungry teens and I overspend and throw out so much food. I am now using what I have. My meals are planned based on what we have. I bake bread and make my own pizza dough. I just need to stick to a budget since I recently retired and I am on a fixed income. Thank you!!!!
If you are single, childless, a millennial, and or a college student, like me, you should still watch Jordan. She's amazing. Love you Jordan!
😭 Thank you so much for this. ❤️
I am a single childless millennial and I have been watching her for years now ha ha.
I agree! Learn early!
Agreed! She has so much to offer that can help in many different seasons of life 🥰
Yes!!! Love her!
We are a family of 5, with two teen boy athletes. While my husband is furloughed, we challenged ourselves to $500 a month grocery budget. We’ve been sticking to it! We literally cut $700 out of our budget each month! It’s more work, but I see it as a game, a challenge. What can I cook from “nothing” tonight? We won’t ever go back to that high price budget!
WOW! Well done 👏🏻
The biggest tip I've learned from you for my family is planning the meals for the week first, than shop my fridge and pantry. It seriously helped me to not overspend at the grocery store.
Jordan you changed my life in so many ways I can't thank you enough for that. I've been living alone since I was 21 and all the money I was getting from my job used to vanish before I even realized it, but since I started watching all your videos my perception about money have drastically change. Because of you nowadays I have a decent meal plan for every week, get to pay in order all my bills and by the first time in my whole life I have some money saved for any emergency. Once again thank you so much Jordan, you were a blessing in my life ❤ (sorry for any misspelling I'm from México)
Hey Cynthia.... Also read blogs Mr money moustache and early retirement extreme.....
Rgrds from India
Oh hi I am from Argentina my english isn't really the best. But I love to recommend Rosetastone English it has help me improved my English .Still my English isn't the best I know how hard it can be. You can do it.
@@bondjames-bond7664 thanks for the suggest!
@@amazingflowers92vaz38 thank you!
I can’t believe you have 8 kids and still make time to give great content to your community! We are a family of 4 with two teenagers who are very active and hungry all the time! You inspire me to stick as close to $100 per week as I can! 😊
I saw this video on your Instagram. I really enjoyed it. Meal planning, stretching our groceries & being frugal has saved my family so much money! It helped us get out of debt & now is helping us top off our emergency fund. The one tip that I took away from your video is that if you’re going to be under your weekly grocery budget (which I tend to be...thank goodness) then you can use the rest of the money you have left for the week & buy things that are on sale so that you can always be ahead of the game. I literally just took your advice about a half hour ago when I placed my online grocery order & was able to use $50 to stock up our freezer with meats & chicken so that I have a stockpile for the future. Wonderful job as usual Jordan!
Love this! You're going to love having up a stocked up freezer!
Lucky girl! Meat and chicken is severely restricted here. 2 pounds of chicken max. I used to have a stockpile... Thank goodness where I buy my ground beef has not been limiting it yet!
i’m literally 14 and not anywhere CLOSE to being married or a mom but i still love all your tips haha😂💗
same!!!im still in the 9th grade
same!! but i’m 16 haha
You guys got a really good head start then 👍🏼 share these tips as you grow with others because they really work!
This makes my heart happy! I wish I would of watched things like this when I was your age! Her tips will help you for the rest of your life!
Same😂😂 I'm 16 and subscribed at 14 too
You had me at “I’m coming out with a cookbook”😳 so.excited
I have GOT to get my grocery budget under control. And you're right, it's in the cooking. Right now we're doing the, "what's for dinner, let's go buy the ingredients" rut and it has to stop, thanks for the inspiration!
I’m single with a dog and I spend about $40 -$80 every two weeks on grocery’s. personally I don’t think it’s bad. I don’t buy anything extra and food is pretty expensive where I live. I also have to buy a lot of fresh fruits because of health issues.
Hope your health issues will get better soon!
you're right in line with her recommendation! That;s great
Country Girl King,
I think that's excellent!
You are below her recommendation btw
I would love to hear how your mother has influenced who you are today. It's obvious that someone greatly invested in your life.
Yes I agree! ❤️
I have slipped into old habits and pleased for this video. It works! In a year I’ve saved over £10,000 being frugal, still having family holidays and saying no to myself. I take that challenge up and see you in a month and see what has been saved. Blessings always 🙏🏻🕯❤️
I don’t really have leftovers (I’m living alone, and I’m italian, so used to cook from scratch)
but I prepare in advance things I just lately finish cook, like boiled whole rice (more “sturdy” than white varieties), or chopped pumpkins, chopped tomatoes
things I don’t even need to unfreez to use, I just put them in the pan and they unfreeze quickly (I don’t have a microwave).
And I store with glass cans given with the food I buy. I already have those, and I don’t pile on plastic consumption or general waste so much.
I did the budget boot camp in May and I was shocked. I’ve cut my grocery bill in half. I’m not quite at the $100 per family member but really close to it. I’m saving about $500 a month this way!! ❤️
Wow I've been thinking about doing it wondering if it would work for my family we spend way to much
Since the whole COVID thing I started a new storage area in my guest room. I put up shelving units and purchased a good bit of extra food over a couple months time. It's not ideal but it works.
I just got home from buying groceries and the whole time I was thinking about you! I was like "I made a list and I'm buying things once every two weeks instead of daily, Jordan would be so proud of me" 😂 are you proud of me? ❤
Girl, don’t know about J, but I am. You go, girl! You got it!
This is so cute, love it. I am proud of you, be proud of yourself!
I am!!
Wow! We all are so proud of you!
Heck yeah we are! You go!
I love ordering online for pickup! Then when I get to the end and see oh yikes I dont want to spend that, i can reevaluate my cart and shave off a few items. Or I see "oh wow I have some budget left!" And I can stock up more. Also, it is easier to price match online!
I’ve been shopping online and picking up with 2 stores for 5 years and love it! I make lists for both stores at the same time by checking back and forth between the apps - pretty much everything is on sale at one of the two and I seldom pay full price and I know which things I can get BOGO or Buy 2, Get 3 sales on and try to only buy at those prices. I spend 3 days on average making the list and buy on that 3rd day. I find that if I can wait overnight at least, I’ve generally realized I’ve left something vital off. But the best part is that when I go through my carts, there are ALWAYS things I see that I don’t need at all - they just looked good at the time. LOL I never hit the final button until I’ve gone through the lists at both stores 3 times!
THIS! I’ve Been doing grocery pickup since COVID started and WOW! Obsessed!
What great ideas.
Many countries add meat as a condiment instead of the focus to a healthy meal of whole starches and veggies.
I've been plant based almost 20 years and my protein tested on the high side of normal. So dont be afraid to reduce meat I take, it wont harm you.
I have become so creative with leftovers my husband looks forward to leftover dinner days.. So thankful because it really helps stretch things!
I consider myself very well researched and savvy when it comes to budgeting and your budget boot camp STILL surprised me and gave me new tips and ideas that literally worked and helped me stay within my means. Incredible Jordan thank you!
I was a solo mum of 3 before l was 20 so learnt pretty quickly how to live frugally, l have no food waste and only put out 1 rubbish sack a month. Meat is expensive so we only have 2 or 3 meat meals a week. My supermarket marks old stock down at 10am so my daughter in law rings me to te'll me what is being put out, she is butchery manager, l go in and get the markdowns. Last week l got near originally priced at $81 for $21 l portion out to meal size and freeze that amount will last for 6 weeks at least. I have a running list of what is in the cupboard and check before shopping. I put items on my list in the order they are on the shelves of the store. First l go around the edges as that's where the staples are then only go into aisles l need something and go directly to it. All the dairy, meats and fruits are on the edge so that is where the discounts are. I stick to $80 pw for myself and the 1 child left at home. I save what is left over for meat specials and my daughter in law uses her staff discount when any extra good deals come up. I go to the supermarket once a week and will not pickup any other time. Leftovers are saved and on Friday night's they are used to make a meal we call scrappy Joe they are either fried together or blended with eggs and baked as scrappy pie.
I’ve been following you for just about a year now as a newly wed and I have been using your grocery budget method since the end of last summer. I am never going back! My husband and I are lucky that $200 a month of groceries has been great and has forced us to be creative with our cooking. Thank goodness I found you!
Jordan you are my financial teacher! Thank you!!! I’m saving all these tips for when I go to college and have to live on my own.
This does work!! Jordan you have changed my life. I payed off my car early and out of credit card debt because of the simple tips and tricks you have taught on you tube. I am not perfect but I have far from where I was.
As an incoming single college student I have to say these videos are a CRUTCH for saving money! Thank you so much, these are just incredible. I'll be coming back to these for sure!!
Jordan,
Thank you for all the grocery+budget help. I used to always beat myself up about the grocery budget, especially when we still needed stuff. When other bills are high, we have to cut back on groceries. With your help, I am a wiser + more comfortable shopper. We are especially thankful because our Church family looks out for us + gives us milk+ produce every other week or so. They give away free food in our community. We are truly Blessed.
I'm a weird 18-year-old... I LOVE grocery shopping. 😂 And girl, you made my day today with a new grocery video! Congratulations on your new cookbook! 💜
Girl, start your own business grocery shopping and meal planning for people. I hate doing that. If I had money I’d be willing to pay someone else to do that for me. 🤣
Well, you are not alone. Single in here too but I love her.
@@lesliesheppard6112 Wait seriously?! I didn't know that even existed! 🤯
@@averynmitchell Yes indeed, The wealthy people do that. I used to with for these very wealthy lady I organized grocery for her. She paid me good . You should get into the business especally at your age that you go to college.
THIS WAS SO EYE OPENING!!! THANK YOU! Where it really clicked for me was how critical it is to actually use what I've already bought--like you said, cooking matters even more than grocery shopping. Inspiring!
I have a 6' vegetarian teenager in the house. She's leaving for college in the fall and I feel like it's going to cut so much off my grocery bill, it's worth the cost of tuition!
She can learn to grow her food (:
This has saved my budget! I started cooking everyday and we have saved $200 in the last 2 weeks. I keep a tally on my phone calculator as I go through the store and if I get to my budget before I’m done I either just go straight to check out or I put things back I don’t need in order to get other things I know I need.
Also I round up. If something is .$.88 I say $1 on my calculator JUST IN CASE.
I've been doing this shelf cooking for a year and it does save money and helps to not waste food. I have a family of 4 in a one bedroom apartment and we keep stock piled food stored in bins in a corner of our room. Eye appealing,NO having extra food you need on hand, YES. Thanks for the tips
All of these tips are SPOT ON!!! All of them are things I’ve figured out on my own, over years, and a lot of trial and error. 😅
I have literally been following a Jordan since I was 19 years old and she has been a life saver time and time again. 10 years later, I still learn new tips and tricks every time (even from the videos that don’t really apply to my current situation). Anyway, for digital lists I recommend Google Keep. There are tons of videos about it, you should check it out. One of my lists on Google Keep is a price comparison notebook. I prefer digital lists because I never forget it, it’s much more convenient than carrying a paper/pen, and it has a search function. I set it up to where it knows my location so it will send me a notification when I arrive at the grocery store or Costco. Now I never forget about its existence while I’m shopping and trying to figure out if something is a good deal or not.
I have done this for YEARS guys and it WORKS.
When my husband and I were on a TIGHT TIGHT budget (I mean he had lost his job and we had 900 dollars a month for EVERYTHING) I use to pre-look at prices on line. Write down where I found it cheapest and would make a list according to what I found. That way places like Aldi that I couldn't see prices ahead of time I could look at my list and know if I was getting a good deal or not. I also tried to shop in areas that had the main stores I needed close to each other so I wasn't driving a ton to get the best deals and lastly I carried a hand calculator. I was in college at the time so I had one of this big fancy ones but now a days I just carry my phone to do the math. I also can price compare on my phone with the stores. So If I am about to buy something I am not sure of I quickly price compare.
I like the idea of going to the store once. I fall into that lets go every few days trap.
I like that, “scrappy!” Yes- this morning my celery was lookin sad so it got chopped and thrown in freezer for a soup at some point.
With the online grocery shopping, I always add items to my Fred Meyer cart throughout the week as like my grocery list. It is great because like you said it shows the running total. Then when my weekly day to get groceries comes I know how much I will spend, have already added in the stores coupon offers for extra off certain items and just use the app as my list and clear items as I get them. It works so well!
I definitely love following your channel and saving myself money. Ever since I saw you on Extreme cheapskates I have learn to make every single penny of my budget worthy. I do all the meal preps you show to save myself time and money. I have 5 beautiful children so our budget is on track. We spend $700-800 a month depending on the products available in store. Moms all over the world need some Jordan tips in their life!! 💕
Loving these tips. When you talked about prices of chicken, I just bought fresh chicken ina 40pound box for $1.49/pound! Yay! Loving these tips!
We have a family of 5 and, with your tips, I have not only cut our grocery down to around $150 a week (we also have 2 cats and 5 dogs so we needed just a tad bit extra), BUT the last 2 weeks, I have also included some shelf cooking because we're getting ready for back to school and needed more money freed up. The last 2 weeks I have spent LESS THAN $120, including paper towels, toilet paper, basic hygiene, and pet supplies! Thank you sooooo much for all your tips!!
Love these tips and love you and your family!!! My biggest bill next to rent is GROCERIES! We have NO pantry or storage closets in our rental house. But we have a nice sized 2 car garage. I bought 3 white storage cabinets and keep one to side of my kitchen and two in the garage for Pantry items. We also have metal shelving in garage that we use for extra toiletries cleaning items and drinks. Plus storage bins. I bought them all off craigslist or FB marketplace. So glad!!! I am trying to nail a deal for a good upright freezer.
Everyone should join the Shelf Cooking group on FB! So much inspiration! I was committed to not spending much money this week, so I made a lot of vegetarian meals this week. I had everything for 3-4 recipes, except the meat. I've been following you for 8 years and I have heard half of this before, but I still ALWAYS get something new to try! Can't wait for the book!!
I'm a 25 year old single dude who is taking on a mortgage payment.
Probably not your primary demographic but your grocery budgeting videos are going to help more than you know.
Thank you.
This vlog was money people! If you didn't watch anything else she did, this is totally worth it. Listen to her. She's totally right ❤️
I love having a budget. Saving today means more money for trips, holidays, and general fun times. If I gotta get the apples that are on sale this week, it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make for a more fun Christmas, etc :)
I love your tips I'm a family of 4 in the UK with 2 high metabolism people, I can spend under £100 (almost $124) for just under 2 weeks worth of shopping, I love to shop every 2 weeks because I use everything I buy so theres no waste, I use the method of use one replace one so I've already got a pack up, I've turned a shelt in my cupboard to extra storage because I have 2 cupboard spaces in my kitchen! It is simple once you've got the hang of things.
So much valuable and helpful information!!! You are amazing, Don’t waste anything! 😊
I cook throughout the entire week, and we have a FFY day. (Fend for yourself) any leftovers is what we're having on Saturday.
My grocery budget has spiked since the pandemic. I can't shop at different supermarkets since I'm at risk. I try to minimize risks by doing grocery pick-up, but it's only available at 1 store which is not the cheapest. Firstly I just let go of a budget, but now I decided to set a new budget, a little higher. I decided to give myself grace.
Got a Budget and math lesson every time we went shopping as a kid, mum made us add up the total shopping cart as items were added.
i'm single in my 20s but this is preparing me for when i do have my future family. love your energy and all your tips! greatly appreciated!
These are all such great tips! We find food is MUCH cheaper in Germany, which I like! 🤑 I grew up on fast food and microwave dinners so Iike to cook everything from scratch for my kids. ❤️
OOOH so glad you like the tips! And yay for food being cheaper in Germany!
I have a family of 6 and spend $300 every two weeks (we get paid biweekly so works with pay day). So $100/per person every month. Its worked for over a year. Got a little tough with kids being home due to covid, but I worked it out.
I was just looking at old videos of this same topic to reference to before I went grocery shopping 😂 yayyy, we have an updated video ❤️❤️❤️❤️
So....I just found you. I AM IN LOVE WITH YOU!!! You are amazing. Thank you so much for your tips and knowledge on this. I hate grocery shopping and I hate cooking, but with what I have been watching from your YT channel, I am understanding how to make it all work, especially now with the pandemic and going or not going grocery shopping and how much to spend, what ingredients do I need to get, etc. etc. It's just me and my husband, no kids but pets, and I have been challenged by you and am looking forward to grocery shopping tomorrow and getting all this down. I have been trying freezer meals, and making large meals to eat half of now and freeze later, which has worked, but I hate cooking all day. I am taking your challenge and will see how this will turn out. Thank you Jordan. You are a life saver.
So glad you found us and that you're finding help here! Welcome to Freebs nation!
IM SOOOOO EXCITED
Still learning how to do this. I have 3 teen boys with appetites larger than our current budgets. I've got to keep trying to get the hang of this. Thanks for the tips!
Sandra A haha I’m in the same boat with 3 teen boys. I go shopping once a month cause we only get paid once a month. The boys have learned if they eat everything the first week they are SOL the rest of the month. They quickly learned to pace themselves
Is there a way for them to buy some things for themselves? That helps a lot
We have a lot of extra cabinets in our laundry room so we store our overload of dry and canned/bottled goods there. I think it's better than storing them in our garage which can get quite a bit hotter than the rest of our house.
Love the only go grocery shopping once per week and googling a substitution tips, I need to do that more often!
Two tips that work for me:
1. Check Amazon's prices compared to your most local grocery store. Sometimes I see that on dry/canned goods/paper products they can be cheaper than my nearby Safeway on price (even including when on sale) for per item or by unit etc. And if you have Prime it's obviously free to ship it to your house.
2. Jordan's previously shared tip I swear by: Don't buy bagged/precut fruits and or veggies - they cost more and have more chemicals to keep them preserved better in the store until someone purchases. Buy regular fruits and veggies and then do the prep work yourself when you're close to wanting to use them to save money.
I love that you are talking about principles. I live in Romania and 100$ is worth a lot more here. it can sometimes be the budget for a whole month. But the principle still applies.
Jordan Page, FunCheapOrFree I took your free boot camps in May and they have helped SO MUCH!! I cut my grocery bill by over HALF this month with all your tips! Love you girl! God bless💜
I love watching these videos and learning new tips. Our budgets been a little crazy lately, with my hubby losing his higher income, but we at least had a chance to pay off all our credit card debt which has helped us out. We tend to try and follow a meal plan through the week, but I never think to shop what I have in my pantry first.
We created our stockpile pantry with a deep freezer we got on sale when Kmart was going out of business. We also bought one of their clothing stands with repositionable shelves we use to house most of the non perishable food (like pastas, soups, canned veggies, snack chips, etc) we stock since our kitchen doesn't have much room or shelf space. Which both are in off to the side in our garage.
Finally got the code worked and took the bundle , yeeeeeeeeeey.so excited to start the programs
Hey, Jordan! I found your channel a year ago just before moving across the country. We really didn’t have any food when we unpacked in our new place. I loved the idea of having a “store” of food in my house, so I started buying “one for now, two for later.” My husband found some used metal shelving and set up a little storage shelf in our basement laundry room. As the months went by, it got completely filled with food that we actually used on a regular basis. When the pandemic hit the US in March and the grocery stores were getting cleaned out, my MIL called me in a panic saying she’d send me a bunch of money so I could hurry and go buy food storage. I told her I already had food storage and texted her a photo of my shelves! It gave her (and me!) so much peace of mind during a stressful time. Thank you for all your helpful advice!
Love that this helped you and gave you peace of mind. It really is helpful to have a food storage.
I heard this weekly budget for groceries advise from you a while back and implemented it right away. IT'S BEEN AWESOME!! I even do it for our Eating Out budget. I made seperate line items for each weeks grocery and eating out budgets in the budget app I use. Soooooo helpful!! Thanks!
Great advice! My budget has increased because food is cost more. I do stock up on things when they cost lower and that really helps! Blessings!
Same here! Prices have gone up, and I have to improvise in the store because there are a lot of things stores are out of. I also find I’m having to buy more expensive brands when they’re out of generic. I also will grab an extra or two if I see the store is running low and I know we’ll use it soon. I’ve increased my grocery budget during this pandemic.
One thing you didn't mention was that every other week you go to Costco for non perishables and you use your other budget too,so you do spend more every other week.
My question as well. Very curious about that budget.
I have 4 kids, three of them teens+ so they eat SO much, I get it. But, trust me, Jordan is doing a lot of what I have already been doing but I am still finding her tips super helpful even after all these years.
Love watching you and Bubba! Glad you reviewed this topic.
Thank you for putting this on RUclips! I limit myself to this and Facebook to stay productive and love I can see this! Thank you 🥰🥰🥰
Thank you Jordan! You inspired me to use the online shopping tool to add up the total so I don’t go over budget and use THAT as my grocery list before I go to the store. Places like Smith’s let’s you develop a grocery list in the app. You’re awesome Jordan! Bless you!
I love your tips!!! Im usually good with grocery budgeting but I have totally been overspending during quarantine because I've been telling myself I have to keep buying meat so that I can last longer without going to the store. I definitely need to tighten up!! I don't have much storage in my kitchen at all but I have a short freezer like you talked about in my laundry room off of the kitchen. I find space in my kitchen for other groceries but if I stock up on something I have shelves in the laundry room (mostly filled with extra cooking appliances that are used less often like George Forman grill, blender, etc) but there's room on the shelves for extra groceries too. But I also have an unfinished basement if I needed more storage as well as a closet at the top of the basement stairs.
My husband and I bought a house with a tiny kitchen and no laundry room, so the washer and dryer are in the kitchen. I love to cook and stock up on food so not having a pantry really sucks. We ended up putting a chest freezer in the corner of our dining room for extra freezer space. We also replaced the old washer and dryer with front loading ones so we use the top of the machines now for extra counter space. And since that space is so deep we put some baskets against the wall that we can use to store food and such. It's not perfect but it works for us!
Just discovered you today and I’m loving this page!!!!
I have a bathroom/laundry room. There is a cabinet under the sink which is where I keep laundry supplies, extra paper products and other cleaning supplies. Above the washer and dryer are two large cupboards which is where is store my extra can good and boxed items. Any spot you can find, even if it’s purpose is for something else, is a great place to store extra food items
Your videos always get me excited to save and shop smart! The way you eat, with less meat, is likely a lot healthier too and better for the planet so win-win AND less food waste!
Going through all of your videos in preparation for our first baby coming in October. You’re an inspiration with 8 kids!
Congrats, Mama!!
I can't wait for your cookbook! That's so exciting!
When me and my husband were newlyweds in a two bedroom small apartment we turned a coat closet into a walk in pantry. we got awesome click in shelving from costco so we could take it with us and shelved the entire thing for our food storage. Now we are in a larger house we have racks for canned foods in our garage and are saving for a chest freezer. You just have to get creative and think outside the box!
I love your budget methods and Ive been using it since April. Thank you for all the amazing ideas. ♡
My biggest tip is to do grocery pickup! I always stick to my budget because I see what's there on the list and how much it all costs. If I'm going over, I just delete some things from my cart. ETA: I was typing this half way though the video, awesome that you added it lol.
I use half of my linen closet as a pantry because it's right next to the kitchen and it's big. Also, I have one large metal rack shelf in the kitchen and I store snacks, cereal, bread, and the appliances I use most often right there in the kitchen. I just keep it looking nice since it's basically just out in the open.
In a local nearby town, we have had an outdoor community “food pantry.” It was supported by some markets, local farmers, and even home growers and is not only for low income. We have been utilizing that during Covid because our employment has been effected and spend less on groceries but still buy quality meats/eggs. Check your local community or nearby communities, especially during the pandemic, there are WAY more programs and community supported ways to get free or discounted foods.
LOVE grocery pickup! It's all we do now. I did $100 per person grocery budget for June and stayed right on track! For reference I live on the East coast in MD. In our current home we didn't have an actual pantry but a random large closet in the dining room, so we converted it into a pantry. We also have a chest freezer, stand up freezer and an extra fridge in the storage part of our basement. I don't think I could function with one fridge and freezer again 😂
We got one of those 4 medal shelve things that are typically used in garages to store our extra shelf staple goods on. Works perfect. We also have bought two extra freezers one chest and an upright one. I am thankful for this video, i already do a lot of things you suggested but did learn a lot also
Living on a Dime to Grow Rich. Best grocery savings advice out there.
To make more space for food storage in my home, I converted my formal dining room into a pantry of sorts. The room was never used for any meals, ever. I had all the fancy dining room furniture, full of dust all the time, so I donated everything to Habitat for Humanity and purchased a huge wall unit that is now my stocked pantry.
I have 3 boys, 2 of them teenagers. I always make sure there is lots of carbs. Pasta, rice, potatoes, or bread. This fills them up a lot. One of the cheapest meals I make is pasta with tinned tomatoes, frozen Mediterranean veg or home grown veg during the summer, some seasoning and dried herbs, and little meat such as ham, pepperoni or chorizo which gives a strong meat flavour with very little meat.
I love how you call out the export farming in Hawaii 😁
I'm in New Zealand, we have the same problem. We produce some of the best fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy in the world. The best stuff gets exported, and we pay the export price domestically for the lesser grade stuff. Makes the cost of living high!
Celia Nicoll
That’s terrible! Much of the cheese and butter (and who knows what else since those are just the things I saw labels on - I’m thinking at least some of the meat, too?) that I’ve eaten in the Caribbean has been from New Zealand! And delicious!
Something I do is add items to the grocery pickup app so I can get a total before tax. Once I get it to the desired amount, I use it as my shopping list. If it’s something on sale, such as meats about to expire or veggies that are reduced, I now have even more room in the budget for other things or I save the “extra” for next week.
Our deep freezer is in our garage. We use extra shelf space in our laundry room for extra non perishable food/ household items and Costco sized snacks are hidden in the master bedroom closet. The kids get a small basket in the kitchen, and I refill it so that I can ration out those goldfish!
We have an upright freezer in the garage, our pantry has a few of each item, but we have a shelf in the garage for extra and a BIG black box (I think it is a wooden foot locker) for more extras!!!
When I give advice to people who have asked how I budget and meal plan, they always say they never buy in bulk for meat and that’s my #1 tip! People don’t realize they want 1 lb of chicken for dinner so they buy it not on sale yet if they bought it on sale in bulk and freeze, it’s $1.99 lb! I base my meals around what’s on sale so if sausage isn’t on sale that week and that’s what I wanted, I have to wait! And I agree with your rule of once a week shopping. I needed sour cream the other day and HAD to go to the store yet my normal shopping day is Sunday and I ended up spending $20 extra
You know what Jordan? I've tried it like 4 months ago. I perfect it just by the start of June and I am very happy now that June is over.
As someone with a very restricted diet where maybe 90% of what I eat is fresh, I find it important to meal plan not only for money but also to avoid accidentally eating too much of one thing and causing a flare up. It also helps me waste less food. Looking at how much food you're wasting is a good measure of how you're doing in terms of shelf cooking. Yes inevitably some things will go off, we're all human after all, but if you have leftovers figure out a way to incorporate them into lunch or dinner the next day, or freeze them and have a plan for them. Freezing something without a plan for what to use it for in my experience usually ends up with it being left there for ages and eventually thrown away. I also only freeze in single portions (as a single person household) which is a lot less than you think it is. For example one portion of bolognaise freezes well in 200ml containers. You can also blanch fresh veggies and freeze them to avoid them going off before you eat them, which can happen often in a single person household otherwise. But have a plan for them. Eg I blanch and freeze spring greens (similar to collard greens) to have with fish or bolognaise or roast dinner. Then with that frozen and bolognaise frozen I have a super fast super easy dinner, which is great on nights I'm tired and I plan that into my week- I'm usually too tired to cook on Thursdays and Fridays so I use food out of the freezer. It's important to know your body and what you can manage when it comes to cooking. If you know you're always tired by Thursday, or Wednesday is going to be a crazy day, then plan ahead and have leftovers or something super easy to have that day. I also batch make pizzas that are suitable for me and freeze them, eating one that night of course 🤣 Then another day in 25min of sitting resting dinner is ready. They are my emergency meals. Since I can't eat out or get take away without horrendpus consequences that's how I manage it. I spend a lot of energy on my diet and making batches of food but it is 100% worth it for my health and bank balance :)
I always love & appreciate your budget tips.
Greetings from South Africa
A weekly grocery budget has made a HUGE difference to my budget. I struggled so much previously with doing it monthly. Since doing BBC, I have never gone over budget. I shop online so I can easily adjust to stay under budget, and I treat each week as a challenge to stick to my budget. I also don’t do any top-up shops. It’s easier then as well to say to the kids, “we’ve run out of that snack until Sunday. You’ll have to grab something else in the meantime.” And it’s not too far for them to wait then either.
I have a second fridge and freezer in the detached garage. My late husband and I had power run to it for this reason. I also use part of my laundry cupboards for pantry storage as I have a small house and kitchen. I still don’t buy much in bulk anymore tbh. I just work off what meat and vege are on sale that week.
Interesting. I've found that for my husband and I, I spend about $350 a month, but that includes all my non-food items as well, like laundry soap, toilet paper, etc. If I have to, I can make do on much less, but it's more work with specific planning and cooking.
Jordan I love your videos. I have three hungry teens and I overspend and throw out so much food. I am now using what I have. My meals are planned based on what we have. I bake bread and make my own pizza dough. I just need to stick to a budget since I recently retired and I am on a fixed income. Thank you!!!!
You are so lovely and you give so many useful tips!! Saving up to get your budget boot camp in the nearest future! Thanks Jordan.
Can't get enough of you!! I feel like we are already best friends!