200 Jours Moyenne Mobile Simple

Avez-vous déjà fait une résolution du Nouvel An Si oui, vous avez peut-être été assuré généralement par un soutien bien intentionné de votre tentative de transformation que vous avez seulement à Coller avec votre résolution pendant 21 jours pour qu'il devienne une habitude enracinée. Le numéro magique 21 rampante dans de nombreux articles sur la formation d'une nouvelle habitude ou de faire un changement, mais on sait peu sur les origines de la revendication de 21 jours. Les psychologues de notre département ont consacré beaucoup de temps et d'efforts à trouver ce qu'il faut pour former des habitudes (que les psychologues définissent comme des actions apprises qui sont déclenchées automatiquement quand nous rencontrons la situation dans laquelle nous avons fait à plusieurs reprises ces actions). Nous savons que les habitudes sont formées par un processus appelé répétition dépendante du contexte. Par exemple, imaginez que, chaque fois que vous rentrez chez vous chaque soir, vous mangez une collation. Lorsque vous mangez la collation pour la première fois à la maison, un lien mental est établi entre le contexte (rentrer à la maison) et votre réponse à ce contexte (manger une collation). Chaque fois que vous ensuite snack en réponse à la maison, ce lien se renforce, au point que se rendre à la maison vient vous inciter à manger une collation automatiquement, sans lui donner beaucoup de pensée préalable une habitude a formé. Les habitudes sont mentalement efficaces: l'automatisation des comportements fréquents nous permet de conserver les ressources mentales que nous utiliserions autrement pour surveiller et contrôler ces comportements et les déployer sur des tâches plus difficiles ou nouvelles. Les habitudes sont susceptibles de persister au fil du temps parce qu'elles sont automatiques et donc ne pas compter sur la pensée consciente, la mémoire ou la volonté. C'est pourquoi il ya un intérêt croissant, à l'intérieur et en dehors de la psychologie, dans le rôle des habitudes dans le maintien de nos bons comportements. Alors, d'où vient la magie 21 jours figure viennent de Nous pensons que nous avons traqué la source. Dans la préface de son Psycho-cybernétique de 1960, Dr Maxwell Maltz, un chirurgien plasticien devenu psychologue a écrit: Il faut habituellement un minimum d'environ 21 jours pour effectuer un changement perceptible dans une image mentale. Après la chirurgie plastique, il faut environ 21 jours pour le patient moyen de s'habituer à son nouveau visage. Lorsqu'un bras ou une jambe est amputé, le membre fantôme persiste pendant environ 21 jours. Les gens doivent vivre dans une nouvelle maison pendant environ trois semaines avant de commencer à sembler à la maison. Ces phénomènes, et bien d'autres phénomènes communément observés, tendent à démontrer qu'il faut un minimum d'environ 21 jours pour qu'une ancienne image mentale se dissolve et une nouvelle image se cristallise. (Pp xiii-xiv) On ne sait pas très bien comment les preuves anecdotiques des patients en chirurgie plastique ont été généralisées. Une possibilité est que la distinction entre le terme habituation (qui se rapporte à s'habituer à quelque chose) et la formation d'habitude (qui se réfère à la formation d'une réponse suscitée automatiquement par une situation associée) a été perdue dans la traduction quelque part le long de la ligne. Alternativement, Maltz a déclaré ailleurs que: Notre image de soi et nos habitudes ont tendance à aller ensemble. Changer un et vous changera automatiquement l'autre. (P108) Peut-être les lecteurs ont-ils raisonné que, si l'image de soi prend 21 jours pour changer, et les changements d'image de soi entraînent nécessairement des changements dans les habitudes, la formation d'habitude doit prendre 21 jours. Bien que 21 jours peut-être s'appliquer à l'ajustement à la chirurgie plastique, il est sans fondement comme base pour la formation de l'habitude. Donc, si ce n'est pas 21 jours, alors, combien de temps faut-il vraiment pour former une habitude Les chercheurs de notre département ont fait une étude plus rigoureuse et valide de la formation de l'habitude (Lally, van Jaarsveld, Potts, amp Wardle, 2010). Les participants ont pratiqué un comportement diététique ou d'activité auto-choisi par la santé (p. Ex., Boire un verre d'eau) en réponse à un signal une fois par jour (par exemple après le petit-déjeuner) se sentait. Les participants ont été suivis pendant 84 jours. L'automatisme a typiquement développé un motif indistinct: les répétitions initiales du comportement ont conduit à des augmentations assez importantes de l'automatisme, mais ces augmentations ont alors diminué en taille, plus souvent le comportement a été répété, jusqu'à ce que l'automatisme se stabilise. En supposant que le point, où l'automatisme est le plus élevé, est aussi le point où l'habitude s'est formée, il a fallu en moyenne 66 jours pour que l'habitude se forme. Il est intéressant de noter cependant qu'il y avait des différences assez grandes entre les individus dans la rapidité avec laquelle l'automatisme a atteint son apogée, bien que chacun ait répété le comportement choisi chaque jour: pour une personne, il a fallu juste 18 jours, et un autre n'est pas arrivé dans les 84 jours, mais il était prévu de le faire après aussi longtemps que 254 jours. Il y avait aussi une variation dans la force de l'habitude est devenue: pour certains, la force des habitudes a atteint son point culminant au-dessous du point milieu de l'échelle de 42 points de force et pour d'autres elle a culminé au sommet. Il se peut que certains comportements soient plus adaptés à la formation d'habitudes pour des comportements simples (par exemple boire un verre d'eau) que pour des comportements plus complexes (p. Ex. Faire 50 sit-ups) ou que les gens diffèrent dans la rapidité avec laquelle ils peuvent Les habitudes de forme, et comment ces habitudes peuvent devenir fort. Le résultat est: rester fort. 21 jours est une formation habitude de mythe prend généralement plus longtemps que cela. La meilleure estimation est de 66 jours, mais il est imprudent d'essayer d'assigner un nombre à ce processus. La durée de la formation d'habitude est susceptible de différer selon qui vous êtes et ce que vous essayez de faire. Tant que vous continuez à faire votre nouveau comportement sain constamment dans une situation donnée, une habitude se formeront. Mais vous devrez probablement persévérer au-delà du 21 janvier. Benjamin Gardner et Susanne Meisel Lally, P. van Jaarsveld, C. H. Potts, H. W. amp. Wardle, J. (2010). Comment se forment les habitudes: Modélisation de la formation des habitudes dans le monde réel. Revue européenne de psychologie sociale, 40, 998-1009. (Onlinelibrary. wileydoi10.1002ejsp.674abstract) Maltz, M. (1960) Psycho-cybernétique. NJ: Prentice-Hall. Je don8217t généralement croire aux conséquences, mais je vais commencer à se demander maintenant si vraiment le numéro 21 peut se produire si souvent sans raison. Si vraiment chirurgie plastique a besoin de 21 jours pour récupérer alors cerveau a besoin du même temps pour récupérer de quelque chose. Alors pourquoi les médecins disent toujours que les premières vingt-quatre heures sont importantes après un grave dommage ou une chirurgie par exemple. Je ne sais pas. Je suis confus et plein de pensées. Je vais le vérifier personnellement et je vais blog nouveau Cheers Je crois que l'évitement des aliments raffinés sera la première étape pour aider à perdre du poids. Ils peuvent goûter très bien, mais les aliments prêts à l'emploi ont très peu de vitamines et de minéraux, ce qui vous fait manger plus simplement pour avoir assez d'énergie pour obtenir tout au long de la journée. Lorsque vous vous nourrissez constamment de ces aliments, la conversion en produits à grains entiers et en glucides complexes vous aidera à avoir plus de vigueur tout en ayant moins. Great blog post. What8217s Un budget alimentaire appropriée à domicile pour une famille de quatre Dans mon article récent concernant avoir une nuit de souper hebdomadaire bon marché. J'ai fait la déclaration assez inoffensive suivante: J'ai examiné cette question pour ma propre famille récemment lors du calcul de notre estimation des coûts des aliments pour un mois. Au cours de la période d'un mois 8211 et cela comprend les coûts au prorata des aliments en vrac achetés plus tôt 8211 J'ai estimé nos coûts alimentaires pour notre famille de quatre à environ 770. Cela se révèle être une moyenne de 2,07 de la nourriture consommée en moyenne par Membre de la famille par repas. Cette déclaration simple suscité beaucoup de réactions choquées par les lecteurs. Voici un exemple. 770 par mois sur la nourriture pour une famille de 4 Est-ce une typo And - 770 par mois Vraiment Cela semble terriblement élevé, surtout depuis votre jardin. Peut-être que j'ai mal compris, mais 770mo semble comme un terrible pour 2 adultes et 2 enfants de moins de 3. Je pensais 770 était élevé aussi, surtout depuis Trent a un jardin. Lorsque j'ai vu cette réaction, j'ai pensé que quelque chose était hors de la base, donc j'ai réussi à retrouver mes reçus (et j'ai aussi ajouté dans mes propres estimations pour les coûts fractionnés des choses utilisées, comme les épices et les légumes du jardin) Numéro de nouveau 8211 juste timide de 770 pour les quatre d'entre nous par mois. Quelle est la facture d'épicerie moyenne pour une famille de 4 Après que, j'ai fait quelques recherches. Le premier endroit où j'ai regardé était dans les données publiques énormes fournies par le gouvernement fédéral, et il n'a pas fallu longtemps avant que je trouve les données que je cherchais. Selon le USDA8217s Centre for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, la dépense moyenne pour un plan de repas à faible coût pour une famille de quatre aux États-Unis est 786 C'est sensiblement moins que le régime alimentaire libéral, qui s'élève à 1 195 pour une famille De quatre pour un mois. En d'autres termes, mon estimation correspond à peu près aux dépenses alimentaires normales aux États-Unis. Cela me paraît raisonnable, beaucoup de nos agrafes sont moins chères, mais comme je l'ai mentionné à maintes reprises, nous nous lançons pour des choses comme le lait biologique, les poules et les œufs en liberté, les légumes biologiques, les fromages frais et la bouteille de vin assez régulière. Ce qui constitue un plan de repas modéré 8222 Les détails de ce qui constitue exactement un plan de repas peu coûteux8221 sont présentés dans la publication de l'USDA CNPP-20, Les plans à faible coût, à coût modéré et Alimentation libérale, 2007. Inutile de dire que si vous naviguez à travers elle, it8217s extrêmement détaillée. Mais est-il raisonnable de comparer ce que nous avons dans le plan alimentaire modéré et libéral à ce que ma famille et moi mange réellement au cours d'une semaine donnée et ils sont assez comparables, en fait. Le contenu diététique réelle du régime de repas modéré et ce que mange ma famille est assez similaire. J'ai également examiné les régimes à faible coût et les régimes alimentaires libéraux et je les ai trouvés très différents dans les choix alimentaires spécifiques, par exemple en choisissant des céréales de meilleure qualité. Est-ce qu'un pain de douze céréales au magasin est meilleur pour vous qu'un pain de blé entier normal Oui, mais est-ce suffisant pour que cela vaille ce coût supplémentaire Votre réponse à cette question et d'innombrables autres comme ça 8211 et il n'y a pas de bonne réponse pour Chacun 8211 déterminera une grande partie de vos coûts de nourriture. La question devient alors what8217s le bon équilibre entre les choix alimentaires sains et économiser de l'argent Voici quelques principes que je m'en tiens dans mes propres achats d'aliments. Parfois, ils ne produisent pas l'achat le moins cher, mais ils produisent des aliments sains et produisent en grande partie des aliments peu coûteux. Stick avec des ingrédients de base. Habituellement, l'achat de composants d'un article est sensiblement moins cher que d'acheter l'article préparé. Stick avec les éléments dans l'allée de produire et l'allée de viandes fraîches et you8217ll généralement être très bien. Acheter des versions saines de ces ingrédients de base. Cependant, je n'incite pas les gens à acheter la version la moins chère des ingrédients de base. Il s'agit d'une décision personnelle que vous devrez faire votre propre opinion sur 8211 I8217m ne va pas vous conseiller si un poulet libre est un meilleur choix qu'un poulet régulier, ou de boeuf à l'herbe est le bon choix pour vous. Sur la plupart des ingrédients, ma famille a tendance à payer une prime pour les ingrédients avec moins de traitements hormonaux, herbicides et pesticides, mais nous avons la chance d'être dans une situation où c'est un choix que nous pouvons considérer sur le mérite plutôt que d'être poussé par notre portefeuille. Faites vos propres recherches sur ce sujet et faites-vous votre propre esprit. Vérifiez votre magasin d'épicerie circulaire et imprimez des coupons en ligne Planifier vos repas selon ce qui est en vente cette semaine est un moyen efficace d'économiser de l'argent et d'être créatif avec votre planification de repas. Découvrez quelles épiceries ont les meilleurs prix et télécharger leur dépliant hebdomadaire. Prenez note de quels articles sont vraiment un accord qui vous fera économiser de l'argent et de satisfaire votre famille. Aussi, n'oubliez pas de vérifier en ligne pour les coupons fabricant8217s sur les articles d'épicerie. Le Simple Dollar Coupon Finder a des centaines de coupons mis à jour et coupon codes8211simply recherche pour ce que vous cherchez et imprimer. Certaines semaines seront plus efficaces, mais dans l'ensemble, vous pouvez économiser une quantité importante d'argent en mettant un peu d'effort de recherche. La chose importante à retenir ici est d'utiliser uniquement des coupons qui vont réellement économiser de l'argent de votre famille, pas acheter des articles inutiles simplement parce qu'ils sont en vente. Faites pousser certains de vos propres. Jardins ne produisent pas seulement des produits très bon marché, ils vous donnent un hobby très bon marché pour combler votre temps, aussi. Il n'est pas aussi difficile que vous pourriez penser, non plus. Et vous pouvez pousser ce que votre cœur désire dans votre propre jardin. Regardez un CSA. Si vous êtes engagé à acheter des produits sains, cherchez un groupe agricole appuyé par la communauté locale. La plupart des ACV sont fortement engagées dans des pratiques durables et saines (c'est-à-dire des aliments très sains), mais elles sont produites localement, ce qui signifie pratiquement aucun coût de transport. Beaucoup de CSA exigent que vous achetiez des actions à l'avant, ce qui vous donne droit à des allotments réguliers de nourriture au cours de la saison de croissance 8211 et la quantité de nourriture que vous obtenez est habituellement une bonne affaire. La seule prise Trouver un groupe avec un slot ouvert et de payer le coût à l'avance pour cette part. Recommandé pour vous Débarrassez-vous de la dette d'intérêt élevé avec une carte de crédit 0 transfert de solde Nous le faisons sur environ 300 par mois. Nous ne mangeons pas beaucoup de viande, ne mangeons presque jamais, achetons en vrac dans des clubs, utilisons des coupons et n'achetons rien s'il n'est pas en vente. Je pense que nous mangeons plus sain, parce que nous mangeons beaucoup d'aliments de base. Je viens de commencer à répartir mon budget alimentaire et je suis étonné de voir à quel point je peux le faire pour bien moins que ce que j'avais déjà dépensé. I8217m essayant de manger un régime plus sain, ainsi ceci isn8217t au sujet d'employer le menu de dollar ou les dîners encadrés. Hier, ma course à l'épicerie comprenait, par exemple, de la viande hachée maigre et du bœuf haché extra maigre (93), des steaks que j'ai taillés de graisse moi-même, du maïs frais, des poivrons frais, des pommes de terre rouges, des tomates biologiques en conserve, des framboises fraîches, du céleri, des oignons et 100 Jus de raisin, entre autres choses. Tout a été acheté à la Safeway locale et mon onglet était 95. Parce que I8217d utilisé leurs promotions hebdomadaires pour planifier par liste, j'ai économisé 40 sur le coût régulier de ces épiceries. Et ce que j'ai acheté me permettra de faire des dîners à faible teneur en calories et sains pendant la majeure partie d'un mois. (Je vis seul, mais divertir deux fois par semaine) La leçon pour moi est que prendre le temps de plan peut réduire les coûts énormément. Je ne vais plus dans le magasin et ramasser des trucs au hasard. Je regarde les promotions, magasin en conséquence, faire de la nourriture en avant et utiliser mon congélateur. Le résultat est grand, les aliments sains que j'aime à une fraction de ce que ma mauvaise alimentation m'a coûté. En fait, une miche de pain à douze grains est susceptible d'avoir beaucoup plus de farine raffinée que la farine de grains entiers. Multigrain est vraiment un label gimique. Le meilleur pari est de chercher 100 grains entiers sur l'étiquette. Je suis toujours surpris. Plus encore, c'est la moyenne américaine pour une famille de quatre personnes. 8216Les mensonges, les mensonges et les statistiques8217 me viennent à l'esprit. Nous (2 adultes) ont un budget alimentaire de 200, la viande est à peu près tous les repas, presque tous les repas est cuit à la maison à partir de zéro. Je pense que la réaction au montant démontre simplement que les gens ne font pas un bon travail de suivi où leur argent va. Mon budget alimentaire est toujours assez bon jusqu'à ce que je commence à ajouter et à prendre des lunches8230, puis il devient laid Nous le faisons sur environ 500 par mois, mais ont des petits, donc we8217re encore acheter des jus et des crackers et des choses que nous autrement wouldn8217t. Nous faisons des emplettes, employons des coupons, faisons des emplettes dans 3 magasins différents régulièrement, faisons le commerce Costco, et le marché de farmer8217s. Nous aimerions acheter un 8220share8221 dans une ferme, mais aucun n'est disponible (les listes d'attente sont longues). Nous achetons des produits biologiques à la vente, grandissons un peu, et préservons les fruits et légumes en saison. Nous essayons d'éviter d'acheter des aliments frais qui sont pulvérisés avec des pesticides, nous évitons également les sirops de maïs à haute teneur en fructose et les gras trans, plus les viandes guéries. Nous n'achèterons pas beaucoup d'aliments préemballés ou d'articles gourmands. J'ai la maladie coeliaque, et les farines et autres ont tendance à coûter plus cher. Pour compenser les dépenses supplémentaires que nous avons, nous mangeons presque jamais dehors, cuire nos propres pains et biscuits, et limite des choses comme des sodas. Nous cuisinons presque tout à partir de zéro. Nous mangeons beaucoup de grains et de haricots non gluten. Une grande partie de notre viande est de mon mari chasse à l'automne, et nous mangeons des repas sans viande pour étirer ce que nous avons. Si nous achetons de la viande, nous essayons d'acheter des produits biologiques ou exempts d'antibiotiques en vente. Nous avons un gel profond et nous stockons quand nous le pouvons. BTW: I8217m compter détergent, papier hygiénique, papier hygiénique, etc dans notre total. Si je les ai soustraits, je dirais que nous serons à environ 450.00. Sensationnel. Je peux imaginer ce que 770month pour 2 adultes et petits enfants est comme. Je vis seul, mais à la maison, ma mère gère environ 400 mois pour les deux adultes restants, un adolescent et un garçon de 11 ans à la maison. Le réfrigérateur, le congélateur et les armoires sont tellement pleins que je doute beaucoup plus de nourriture. Être entassés en eux. Légumes frais, de bonnes viandes, même un peu de malbouffe pour 8220fun82218230always tout ce que vous pourriez souhaiter. (Bien que nous n'avons jamais vu un bénéfice pour le lait biologique et de chickenseggs 8212, il a toujours été 8220 pourquoi bother8221, comme il n'ya pas de différence prouvée entre le lait de rbST traitées et les vaches non traitées.) J'ai appris à acheter en vente, obtenir des marques génériques , Et utiliser des coupons de ses habitudes d'achat. Mes achats mensuels pour juste moi-même vont maintenant de 50-100month. J'allais dire que nous dépensons environ 300 par mois en nourriture pour nourrir 2 adultes et 5 ans. But8230 Ajoutez 24 par semaine pour notre abonnement csa, plus un autre dollar pour les cukes quand ils ne sont pas dans le panier. En outre, supposons que 100 de nos 150 comptes d'argent fou sont consacrés à la nourriture. Et la plupart de notre compte de divertissement de 100 par mois est consacré à la nourriture. Cela nous met à 600 par mois pour manger. That8217s juste de la nourriture pas de produits de papier ou des fournitures de nettoyage. 400 par mois est sur les épiceries brutes qui incluent les légumes locaux ou or organiques, le lait, les œufs et la viande. Le reste est les repas. Suite Cet avis vous a-t-il été utile? Je cuis mon propre pain et cuire la plupart du temps à partir de zéro. Je fais de mon mieux pour planifier le menu week8217s à l'avance. Je n'ai pas de jardin potager cette année parce que je pensais que nous allions déménager maintenant et je pensais que si nous devions vendre la maison vide, les fleurs négligées seraient mieux que les légumes négligés. Finalement, je sais que nous avons dépensé 300 $ en nourriture parce que ce mois-ci nous avons utilisé de l'argent seulement et j'ai arrêté d'acheter des produits d'épicerie lorsque l'argent s'est épuisé. Retour quand nous avons chargé nos épiceries nous avons souvent allé et sont rarement sous. Et pourtant nous avons presque mangé le même ce mois-ci. Je pense que le niveau surprise pourrait provenir de ce site où vous écrivez fréquemment sur la frugalité, y compris les sujets de frugalité alimentaire tels que cuire votre propre pain, manger beaucoup de haricots, et faire des emplettes avec les circulaires, la mise en place de l'attente pour les lecteurs que votre Budget alimentaire serait inférieur par rapport à la plupart des Américains plutôt que dans la ligne avec eux. Au lieu de cela, il semble que vos mesures de frugalité conduisent à votre famille de manger le plan alimentaire libérale pour le coût du plan modéré. En fin de compte, comme vous l'avez dit, cela revient à ce que sont vos priorités culinaires. Je pense juste que, puisque je passe 250 par mois entre mon mari et moi (pas d'enfants), et nous avons de bonnes habitudes alimentaires, il semble étrange d'accepter des conseils de frugalité d'une personne qui ne peut pas dépenser moins que la moyenne nationale. Votre poste commence par la surprise partagée par de nombreux lecteurs qui peuvent comprendre comment vous dépensez tellement sur food8230 et se termine par des conseils sur la façon de dépenser moins Peut-être que les gens qui ont exprimé le choc à dépenser 770 par mois peut-être pas besoin de conseils. Désolé, mais même si 770 est la moyenne nationale 8222, il me semble encore très élevé. Escrevalolaescreva. blogspot Le montant de dollars dépend aussi où vous vivez. Je vis dans une banlieue de Cleveland où il ake 45 minutes de conduite dure pour obtenir à un Costco ou Sams. L'épicerie locale est ridiculement élevé. J'ai une famille de 5 (avec 3 adolescents), jamais manger dehors, manger de la viande à chaque repas du dîner, pas d'achats de la malbouffe, tous les déjeuners faits et emballés à la maison, pas de traversées, pas de lattes et notre facture d'épicerie pour 5 est 985.00 . C'EST avec être un shopper8212when très intelligent de marque de céréales de marque est en vente au K-Mart de tous les endroits pour 1.41 un box8230.I a acheté FOURTY-FIVE boxes8211no coupons8211many sort. Je pense que Trent a raison sur l'argent avec 770.00. Rob à Madrid dit: J'ai lu beaucoup de messages concernant la même chose que mon propre sentiment est ceux qui semblent sous 8220normal8221 probablement aren8217t suivi des numéros très bien. Ma belle-mère passe 350 CDN par mois pour 2 personnes âgées et magasin très très soigneusement. Ma belle-sœur passe environ 550 CDN par mois pour 4 adultes, et doesn8217t ont le temps de faire beaucoup de shopping de comparaison. Je passe environ 70 euros par semaine mais j'ai tendance à manger dehors beaucoup quand la femme voyage. Je ne sais pas. Je passe 30week pour une personne afin de mettre l'argent loin pour la retraite que je didn8217t quand je devrais avoir. Et comme vous l'avez dit, il s'agit de priorités. Je ne vois pas la nécessité d'acheter des choix biologiques, non hormonaux, etc. coûteux de viandes et de produits. Pour moi, c'est un autre gimmic d'avoir mon argent. Je mange de la viande (le bon marché, genre hormonal qui sont emballés dans des sacs séparés, réutilisables dans mon congélateur) deux fois par semaine, jamais acheter le déjeuner, ou des aliments préparés. Accepter produire heureusement des amis, des collègues et des voisins. Magasinez à des magasins à taux réduit et à des magasins de boulangerie. L'ensemble neuf verges. J'ai 2 plants de tomate et 2 truies de poivre que je ne l'eau 8211 don8217t paillis, de fertiliser et seulement vaguement mauvaises herbes. Bien que je ne le décompose pas en détails minutieux, je prends combien d'argent j'ai à dépenser pour le magasin avec moi et pas plus. Les choses remontent. Si les pâtes coûtent plus de 50 cents la livre, elles restent au magasin et je mange du riz. Donc, bref, donnez-moi une famille de quatre personnes et un budget alimentaire de 770 par mois et je paierai tous nos services publics avec 25 d'entre eux et 200 de plus entreront dans la banque. Salve Regina dit: Holy Smokes J'ai été nourrir sept8211including mes cinq enfants (dont trois mangent presque comme des adultes) sur 600mo Nous vivons dans NW VA8211not une partie peu coûteuse du pays dans lequel vivre8211and I8217m un chef à temps partiel qui aime bien manger . Je me suis senti un peu coupable que je vais probablement avoir à augmenter ce montant certains, étant donné la façon dont les prix des aliments sont en cours de toit, mais pas plus Alors, je vous remercie encore, Trent, pour un grand blog. Je reçois de bonnes info8211and this time82118220permission8221 pour dépenser plus. Cool, je dois dire qu'il me semble que ces chiffres sont toujours élevés. Je peux nourrir quatre, y compris un adolescent en pleine croissance et deux chiens en bonne santé sur environ cinq cents par mois. Cela comprend toutes sortes de viande, y compris l'agneau, principalement des légumes biologiques, de la soude, du café et des aliments pour chiens. Il ne comprend pas de vin ou de produits de papier. Évidemment, les prix augmentent. Nous n'avons pas de jardin. Cependant, autres que les produits laitiers et les produits que nous achetons uniquement les leaders perte. Nous faisons des emplettes pour stocker notre garde-manger et congélateur et cuisiner de là sauf pour les produits frais et le lait et le beurre et tel. J'ai appris que tout, même des étagères d'agneau ou de côtelettes de veau sont mis en vente à certains poitn et les mettre dans mon congélateur alors. J'ai une famille de 5. Notre facture d'épicerie toutes les deux semaines est de 200 ou moins. Notre budget alimentaire total pour l'épicerie et de manger des repas est de 550 pour le mois entier et nous ne dépensons jamais cela. Je ne peux pas croire que quelqu'un dépense 770. Nous utilisons des tonnes de coupons que ma femme commerces pour la vente en ligne, des articles à prix, et bien sûr, nous n'utilisons pas de dîners boîte. Nous achetons principalement de la marque de la marque ALDI et achetons chez 3 magasins différents. Nous ne mangeons pas de boeuf. Nous mangeons du poulet, de la dinde moulu, du porc, et parfois du buffle, ce qui est certainement plus cher. Nous mangeons beaucoup de riz, de pâtes, de légumes surgelés, et faisons habituellement de grands lots. Nos factures d'épicerie pour le mois sont toujours en dessous de 450 et nos factures à manger sont environ 100. alyssa8217s re droit. Multigrain mais it8217s difficile de coller à bon-carbo pain tout le temps. Donne-moi mon seigle juif. Quand j'avais 60 livres de poids excessif ma facture de nourriture était environ deux fois de ce que je passe maintenant sur la nourriture. Eh bien, au moins vous avez donné beaucoup de gens l'occasion de se sentir supérieur. -) Je pense qu'il est vraiment intéressant d'entendre comment d'autres personnes distribuent leur argent alimentaire, néanmoins. Je me suis battu dernièrement parce que j'ai eu du mal à rencontrer notre budget d'épicerie, même des coupons d'achat, des marchés de vente, des agriculteurs, etc. Mais en regardant la feuille de travail gouvernement8217s il semble que mes attentes sont probablement irréalistes et que je devrais juste être darned fiers de moi-même pour la façon dont j'ai fait Ainsi, merci pour le coup de pouce. Ça me semble juste. Ma famille de 4 (bien 3 parce que le plus jeune est un bébé) a passé une moyenne de 690month sur l'année dernière, et il ya beaucoup de mois où nous avons passé près de 800. Nous vivons dans la région de Boston où le coût de Vivre est assez élevé. Cela comprend tout ce qui a été acheté à l'épicerie ou au club d'entrepôt, mais pas seulement de la nourriture, mais aussi de tout, du papier hygiénique à la litière pour chat et au dentifrice. Je n'ai que le mois dernier de commencer à suivre ces sous-catégories, parce que je voulais voir combien de nos dépenses sont alimentaires vs articles de papier et articles de toilette. Peut-être que certaines des personnes ici comprennent les achats strictement de nourriture et pas ces autres articles Nous passons entre 700 8211 800month sur la nourriture. Mais nous achetons des produits biologiques et mange rarement. Nous apportons des déjeuners à l'école et divertir dans notre maison au lieu d'aller aux restaurants. Nous sommes également une famille très active de 4. (marathon en cours d'exécution, etc) donc nous mangeons beaucoup. (Mais aren8217t overweight8230I jure) La nourriture est l'un de nos grands plaisirs. Aussi, je pense qu'à long terme en mangeant en meilleure santé, nous espérons économiser sur les coûts des soins de santé. Peut-être que je vis seul dans Ma occidental. Et passer 200month sur l'épicerie, ainsi les nombres de Trent8217s semblent raisonnables à moi. Merci pour ce post8211 c'est un problème très pertinent pour moi. Ma famille de 3 personnes dépense en moyenne 640 par mois sur l'épicerie alimentaire de chien (toutes les mêmes recettes, et je ne les séparer.) (Cela ne comprend pas l'apx 100mo que nous passons à manger à l'extérieur.) Nous faisons des emplettes à la coopérative alimentaire locale , Acheter en vrac, et aller à la grande épicerie à stocker sur what8217s moins cher là-bas. Nous achetons très peu de viande, beaucoup de fruits frais, souscrire à un CSA, et ont aussi un petit jardin. Nous vivons à Austin, où il pourrait être un peu plus cher. Je pense que les produits organiques et les produits sont ce qui poussent nos dépenses vers le haut. Cette semaine, toute la semaine, nous avons convenu de manger haricots de haricots de riz (différentes variétés) comme une méthode de réduction des coûts. Mais je trouve vraiment incroyable que nous dépensions tellement pour la nourriture, et que cela soit aussi dur que pour nous de réduire ces coûts. Ce qui est bon pour les dépenses alimentaires et ce qui est juste, ce sont deux choses différentes. Je suis d'accord que, sur la base de ma propre expérience, les chiffres de Trent8217s sont justes pour ce que une personne décemment frugal (famille) peut raisonnablement réduire leur budget alimentaire à. En général, je suis sceptique vis-à-vis de la plupart des déclarations de gens sur combien ils dépensent sur quelque chose, parce que je vois que beaucoup de gens ne savent vraiment pas ce qu'ils dépensent. It8217s juste facile d'être trompé sur les coûts. Par nature, nous ne faisons pas bien de les évaluer. Par exemple, même si je suis au courant de toutes mes dépenses, j'ai remarqué que parfois je tiens toujours sur des estimations mentales inexactes de ce que mes dépenses sont. Pendant des mois, j'ai pensé que je pouvais passer 135 à l'épicerie et 35 par mois à manger, par exemple. Donc j'ai gardé la fixation de mon budget alimentaire basé sur ces niveaux. Regarder en arrière sur les 6 derniers mois de dépenses réelles montre que, bien que je garde sous les 35 sur manger à l'extérieur, mon total des dépenses mensuelles pour l'épicerie vient à entre 170 et 200 par mois pour moi. C'est même avec l'achat seulement des aliments qui sont à bas prix dans leurs categoties (4 un fromage de livre, le prix le plus bas des viandes, les légumes moins chers, etc, (toutes les agrafes, aucune substance préparée sauf peut-être un bain mensuel de crème glacée) Un garde-manger qui est principalement acheté à la vente (perte leaders) et qui pourrait probablement me nourrir pendant 4 mois. Peu de jardinage, je ne pouvais pas vraiment dépenser moins, et it8217s encore 40 à 65 plus élevé par mois que j'étais convaincu que je dépensais. Le temps pour moi d'accepter la réalité et de savoir que mon revenu actuel ne suffit pas, et peut aller aussi loin que je pensais qu'il pourrait. Une fois que j'ai des chiffres de dépenses cohérentes pour un an ou plus, je serai en mesure de voir mieux le coût moyen de l'épicerie , Mais il sera très surpris si jamais il tombe au-dessous de dire, 160 par mois, et si ma dépense globale tombe en dessous de 200 par mois (ce qui permet une assez pauvre 35 mensuel pour la nourriture out.) Un post antérieur a exprimé un choc à Trent8217s 770, 192.50 par personne, coût mensuel pour la nourriture. Le même poste a déclaré que manger des aliments cultivés localement et des marchés fermiers était moins coûteux. C'est quelque chose que je ne vois aucune preuve à l'appui dans ma propre vie. Farmer8217s marchés et 8220local food8221 don8217t semblent coûter moins, et en fait semble plus cher que mon supermarché Stop and Shop local dans tous les articles de base. Alors que it8217s plus amusant, est favorable à la communauté locale, et la nourriture est plus fraîche et de meilleure qualité, it8217s pas moins cher en termes de dollars. Pourtant, le même poste qui dit que le marché du fermier coûte moins, dit également que les chiffres de Trent8217s pour la nourriture sont exorbitants. A moins que les marchands de farmer8217s ailleurs que là où je vis sont très différents en termes de prix, je dirais que cette affiche peut avoir été victime de la comptabilité floue. Sur une note de côté, juste conduire à U-Pick et retour me coûterait probablement 4 ou plus dans le gaz, et beaucoup d'entre eux ne sont pas que prix bon marché de toute façon par rapport à ce que je trouve dans le supermarché. (I8217m ne disant pas qu'ils devraient être à bas prix8211es personnes méritent de gagner leur vie. I8217d ont à mais beaucoup de bleuets pour compenser les 4 dans le coût du gaz dans les économies de myrtille. Je fais donc un point de ne pas faire U Pick, Être conduire par, et je n'achèterais que ce que je pourrais manger en 3 jours. Si quelqu'un réussit à dépenser moins de nourriture par personne que, par exemple Trent ou moi ou quelques autres affiches et a quelques conseils à partager sur la façon de le faire, Que tous les I8217m disant est I8217m sceptique parce que j'ai vu que même quand je mange toujours à la maison, le projet de loi vient juste au niveau Trent est décrivant sur une base par personne. Bien, je suis sur le point de se marier et de sortir de la vie Avec mes parents donc je vais découvrir combien ces choses coûtent assez vite Je suis d'accord avec Trent8217s numéros aussi, nous sommes une famille de cinq et je budget pour 700, mais nous sommes vraiment à lutter pour rester dans ce budget. Le plus rare des occasions et je n'achète jamais 8220convenience8221 articles. Nous avons même pas acheter des céréales. J'achète des cages sans oeufs et des viandes qui ne contiennent pas d'hormones et qui achètent les fruits et légumes biologiques recommandés (ceux qui sont les pires à acheter dans l'allée principale), mais je fais beaucoup de haricots, et l'achat en vrac et honnêtement 700 pas plus Le coupe. J'aimerais voir comment ces gens-là le font qui pensent que ces chiffres sont si élevés, et si ils sont en fait l'achat d'aliments que je juste wouldn8217t mettre dans mon corps de familles ou sont-ils tout simplement beaucoup mieux à faire des emplettes que moi. Je dirai ceci, j'utilise très peu de coupons parce que franchement les coupons qui viennent ici est un tas de merde de préemballage et j'aime des nourritures faites maison fraîches. Si nous devions manger avec un peu plus de liberté, nous serions bien plus de 8005 personnes. Ma femme reçoit 180 semaines pour une famille de neuf. Cela comprend la nourriture, le papier, le nettoyage et les articles de toilette. Elle achète dans trois magasins principaux (Aldi8217s, Wal-mart et Wegman8217s) en utilisant très peu de coupons. La seule autre partie de l'équation fait partie de ma rémunération au travail est 12-34 d'un boeuf par an qui ne durera pas pour une année complète. Nous avons essayé un jardin pour la première fois cette année qui n'a pas été très réussie. Nous mangeons beaucoup de riz, et des plats de pâtes. Nous vivons dans l'État de New York Je suis d'accord que 770 est une estimation assez raisonnable pour quatre personnes. Nous passons environ 825ish par mois pour les produits d'épicerie (y compris le papier de toilette, etc.) Mais je pense que le fait que nous dépensons tellement sur les épiceries aide à économiser de l'argent sur manger à l'extérieur. Je pense que si les gens don8217t stock leurs maisons avec des articles qu'ils se soucient de manger, ils seront très tentés d'aller à des restaurants. En outre, les aliments sains peuvent être coûteux. Nous recevons des œufs biologiques (5 à douzaine), du lait biologique (4 pour un demi-gallon), etc. Il en coûte plus cher mais ce n'est pas un mauvais investissement. Nous faisons pousser un jardin, aussi, mais je ne sais pas combien cela économise quand vous facteur dans le paillis, l'eau, et tout le reste. Je pense que les gens sont de deux esprits quand il s'agit de dépenses alimentaires. Certaines personnes qui apprécient la nourriture comme une source de plaisir, de sorte qu'ils sont plus préoccupés par la qualité et la jouissance que le coût. D'autres personnes voient la nourriture principalement comme combustible et ne mettent pas de valeur sur la jouissance de la nourriture. Pour eux, la valeur est dans les dépenses aussi peu que possible sur les aliments. Après m'être tellement inquiété de mes dépenses alimentaires (environ 85-100 par semaine pour nous deux), j'ai décidé que nous devions dépenser davantage parce que je voulais être des œufs et des volailles locaux, en plus du porc et du bœuf. Et oui, nos marchés d'agriculteurs sont moins chers, parce que nous vivons en Californie où la plupart des produits du pays sont cultivés. Nos marchés d'agriculteurs8217s sont également ouverts toute l'année. Comme Trent, moi aussi, je suis un gourmand. Ce qui signifie que je tire beaucoup de mon plaisir de magasiner et de cuisiner des aliments de haute qualité. La nourriture est plus que que le carburant pour moi et je don8217t acheter nécessairement les ingrédients les moins chers. Cependant, une partie d'être frugal signifie que vous faites ce que vous avez étirement et je crois que Trent fait cela. Dépenses 770 par mois est raisonnable lorsque vous achetez fréquemment des viandes en plein air, lait biologique, et ainsi de suite. Aussi, vous pouvez soit payer l'agriculteur, épicier, etc maintenant pour les ingrédients de meilleure qualité ou le médecin plus tard. Je paierai plutôt l'agriculteur. Il semble que le droit à moi We8217ve suivi de notre budget alimentaire onoff pendant des années, et nous don8217t juste acheter suffisamment d'articles qui ont des coupons pour réduire considérablement nos coûts alimentaires, même si nous ne clip et utiliser des coupons. Nous achetons des ventes et découvrons où sont les meilleures offres et achetons en vrac quand c'est possible. Notre facture d'épicerie est moins que cela parce que nous avons choisi de manger un couple de fois par semaine, mais si je cuisiné chaque repas qui est à propos de ce que j'attends à dépenser sur les épiceries seules. We8217re passent actuellement 500 par mois pour nous deux et un enfant de 3 ans à Minneapolis. Rien que de la nourriture, mais nous mangeons tous les aliments biologiques (ou locaux nourris avec de l'herbe, sans hormones, sans pesticide, bla bla) et le coût de la nourriture ici est au moins 30 supérieur à celui où vous êtes. J'aurais deviné vos chiffres à être plus bas, mais nous mangeons également quelques repas végétariens par semaine, aussi. Je pense que ça dépend si vous vivez. Je vis à Melbourne Australie Je suis une veuve. Je dépense 290 AUD par mois. Je pourrais réduire, mais je préfère dépenser de l'argent sur la bonne nourriture au lieu de médecins et de la médecine. Je pense encore 770 est élevé pour quelqu'un qui prétend être la frugalité prêcher. La Gazette Tightwad a un article entier sur les numéros USDA8217s, et je suis d'accord avec Amy Dacyczyn8217s prétend que it8217s facile de nourrir votre famille des aliments sains pour beaucoup, beaucoup moins. Je nourris notre famille de cinq sur les fruits et légumes biologiques, les produits laitiers biologiques, les grains entiers, et les pains très nutritifs, les légumineuses, les noix et les graines 8211 et même sans un jardin, je le fais pour moins de 400 par mois en moyenne. Nous avons du mal à garder nos dépenses à peu près la même chose avec un 3 et 6 ans 8211, mais notre bi-hebdomadaire Costco courir comprend les aliments pour chiens (gros lévrier), les aliments pour chats, les produits de papier , Et certains fournitures de papier (je travaille à domicile). Nous passons environ 300month à Costco, 60month sur les légumes de ferme organiques locaux, et 400month autre pour les fruits et les choses diverses que nous ne pouvons obtenir à Costco ou Farmer8217s Market. Nous mangeons beaucoup de pâtes et de haricots, aussi, donc ce n'est pas comme si nous avions un régime cher. En fin de compte, c'est le manger qui nous obtient constamment, et j'ai décidé que c'est bien parce que ces semaines nous avons besoin de 8211 que 45 minutes supplémentaires je dois dormir au lieu de nettoyer la cuisine vaut bien le coût, du moins en termes de . Être frugal isn8217t au sujet de ne pas dépenser de l'argent sur quoi que ce soit, it8217s sur PRIORITIZING it et SEULEMENT dépenser de l'argent sur ce qui est vraiment important8230 Je vois pas de déconnexion entre les dépenses alimentaires Trent8217s et son blog. J'imagine que ça coûte environ 70 euros par semaine entre le petit ami et moi, mais au moins 10 à 20 d'entre eux sont vraiment comestibles: it8217s pour la litière de chat et la nourriture pour chat, le papier de toilette et le dentifrice, et une fois dans un tout - des choses comme les huiles (olive, tournesol), une bouteille de port pour lui (relativement bon marché ici), et le nettoyage. 50-60 eurosweek sur strictement comestibles est assez close8211 et it8217s vraiment dur de dépenser beaucoup moins si vous don8217t ont une voiture pour vous emmener aux épiceries plus lointaines. Je fais déjà un circuit de 2 heures en vélo une fois par semaine, et autant de plaisir que d'aller à vélo est, it8217s pas si vous8217re chargé de 20 euros8217 de fruits frais, légumes, yaourts, fromage, olives, ou tout ce qui est un Bonne affaire que we8217ll manger cette semaine (it8217s beaucoup de nourriture). Pour être significatif, les dépenses pour la nourriture doivent être sur la nourriture et rien d'autre. Les articles en papier, les aliments pour animaux de compagnie et les détergents appartiennent à d'autres catégories (pour moi, cela 8217s 8220Maison 8221 pour le papier de toilette et détergent, 8220Pet8221 pour les aliments pour animaux de compagnie et aussi les graines d'oiseaux en hiver. those items all contribute to nutrition. In August my total was 186.80 for one person. RE: comment 32 about formula and diapers, formula is food. Diapers are not. If you have a separate category 8220Baby8221 for for formula and diapers, then you are cutting the baby out of the family where food and nutrition are concerned, and the food expenses are skewed. The categories need to be very clear for us to have a productive discussion. My family of four (2 adults and an 18yo and 11yo) spends about 350mo. on food. I track every penny I spend, so I know this is an accurate figure. I gasped at Trent8217s 770 figure too, especially since his kids are so young. I feel better about my grocery budget now, especially knowing that Trent likes to cook and eat good food and his kids are small. We are a family of 6 ( one infant) and I struggle to keep our budget under 800. We buy nothing organic except sunflower butter ( due to peanut and nut allergies), and very little that is prepackaged ( again food allergies). I do like fresh fruit and veggies though and my family will only tolerate just so many legumes. I agree with the people who commented that what makes Trent8217s 770month most shocking is the fact that his family of four includes an infant and a toddler. The 770 could seem more reasonable if he were feeding two teenagers in addition to him and his wife. I know that Trent does enjoy cooking with high quality ingredients, but 770 still seems high. I think the national averages include families with 2 teenage boys who eat much more. If you feel that you are getting your money8217s worth and can afford it, then that8217s great, but we eat very healthy on much less than that. I spend about 180 a month on food (approx 324), which is a lot for one person. In my defence, it8217s harder to buy for one, and I think food prices in the UK run about 10 higher than they do in the US. But, it8217s still an awful lot of money. I think a previous poster is correct8211that the reason for the shock was that most of your readers are already frugal and looking for tips to spend even less. For a lot of families, groceries is the first place to try strategies to save money. We have two adults and three kids (5, 2 and 2) and eat for about 300month. Although I coupon, it8217s mostly my weekly meal planning and shopping the sales (planning meals around loss leaders) that save us the most money. My grocery 8220budget8221 is nothing more than a recurring transaction in Quicken of 185week. This amount is intended to cover ALL grocery items 8211 food, toilet paper, laundry supplies, etc. for myself, my wife, two teenagers, and a dog. Some weeks we spend more, some weeks less (last two weeks, 100 and 140). If I have Costco8217s monthly coupon book, I8217ll go stock up, spending a 200-300 there alone, buying TP, paper towels, laundry, etc.. For my wife and I alone, I think we could get by on 14 of this amount. Not gonna happen with the teenagers however. I8217ve tried paring back what we buy, but if there aren8217t sufficient 8220grazing8221 foods in the house, the grumbling and threats of rebellion begin. I know, proper education, lead by example, blah blah, whatever, easier said than done. It8217s easier and less stressful to just buy the crap they want. Keep in mind also that Trent works at home. So (I8217m guessing) the 770 includes breakfast, lunch and dinner costs, too. Frugality is a very relative term. I8217m sure we could cut our grocery bill from pretty much the national average to something cheaper, but I don8217t think I8217d especially enjoy the diet. Also, my wife and I both work full time, so we don8217t necessarily have the time to make stuff from the true 8220staples8221. I think the 771month USDA average represents a typical family that overbuys at grocery stores with poor planning, allowing many perishables to perish before they are consumed. I bet these people have full trash bins each week. In other words, if you are reasonably smart about your grocery shopping, you should do better than this. 8220I think the national averages include families with 2 teenage boys who eat much more.8221 I provided the link, read it yourself. It includes a 2-3 year old child and a 4-5 year old child. Sounds totally reasonable to me. My hubby and I spend 400-450 per month on groceries for just the two of us. Like Trent, we buy mostly local andor organic foods, which are more expensive but are expenses we8217re willing to pay for. Good article. I8217m planning on moving out on my own soon and will need to be spending as little as possible to stay afloat. What would you say would be a good spending goal for food for 1 person per month That does sounds a little bit high but not outrageous. My budget for my girlfriend and I technically allows for 400mo but only goes that high if I buy something for a special occasion. For instance this past long weekend we went away to stay with friends and I spent a little extra on some ribs and chops for the whole group. Usually though we spend about 320 and put the excess into debt repayment. We follow sales to an extent but hardly ever clip a coupon. We eat pretty darn good for that too. we8217re only two and we spend 600. I shop at the farmer8217s market for all the produce and then a relatively upscale supermarket for the rest. we are vegans with a serious coffee habit, so that explains the high cost of our groceries. a lot of people claim that eating meat is more expensive than eating veg but I don8217t think that8217s necessarily the case. I started making some of my own vegetarian meat substitutes recently - TVP sausage and seitan, it8217s a big savings over the same thing purchased at the store (store bought costs 600 more than homemade) why are all these people having a fit about your grocery bill I appreciate these tips (we8217ve been considering CSA for some time now) and would love to have a garden and grow my own. Good food is very important - we might spend 600. but we never buy pre-packaged food and don8217t care to eat out because the food we have at home is better :) My husband and I spend around 112 a week on food for the two of us, plus two meals a month that we host my parents (they live nearby and cook Sunday dinner on the other two weeks). I know we could spend less, but we buy everything we can from a farmer8217s market, and only supplement from the grocery store. We could save money if we bought produce and meat laden with chemicals, pesticides, and dye, but that8217s not the kind of food we want to eat. I think it8217s strange that some people who complain that locally-grown, organic food is too expensive go home to a plasma TV and 500 channels of cable programming. It8217s all about priorities. I like to read about frugality, but the holier-than-thous annoy me. Good for you if you spend less than him. Trent8217s food budget works for his family, and frankly, I8217ve never seen a coupon for any food at the supermarket that I8217d care to eat. My fiance8217 and I have been keeping a budget of all food expenses for over a year now. I looked back, and we spend on average 140month. For 2. I can8217t even begin to understand how you could be approaching 200month per person. And it should go down per person for more people. 770month is a really disappointing number to hear. I eat healthy as well. Vegetables, grains, water, milk, fruit in every day. Buy huge bulks of chicken, hamburger, local produce whenever possible, etc. I use coupons all the time, and make a shopping list. I also buy a ridiculous amount of food when it8217s on sale. For just the two of us, I have a 5 ft3 deep freezer and freezer on the refrigerator stocked full of food, mostly meats. I8217m just so shocked8230. 770month is my house payment lol I am surprised to see so many people criticizing Trent8217s food budget. Yes, it may not be the cheapest way to eat, but Trent writes often about food, why he may or may not believe in certain types of food (organic, local), etc. I am a college student living in NYC, which is one of the most expensive places to feed oneself in the country, even if one cooks all meals at home. I am blessed to have a kitchen, but things around here are rarely on sale and I usually won8217t compromise8211I like organic produce and dairy, and am willing to pay a premium to have a diet full of fruits and vegetables, even when they8217re pricey. Everyone has to decide what they8217re willing to compromise on frankly, I8217ll take better food and spend less on other luxuries. After all, food goes into your body and has a very great effect on your general well-being. I8217m also surprised to see so much criticism of Trent8217s budget. DH and I spend 400-500month on food (mostly groceries, some eating out). We don8217t buy meats in bulk as we don8217t have an additional freezer or space for it. We do buy a lot of fresh veggies and fruit and free-rangeorganic meats, dairy, eggs and limit pre-packaged foods. I would love to see the grocery list and associated prices for those of you who have such low costs. We8217ve tried coupons, but find that the store brands are still cheaper for things we8217d use coupons for (paper goods, toiletries). I8217ve also found that the free-rangeorganic items we purchase are cheaper at Whole Foods than at the local supermarket, so weekly shopping often involves two stops. We have a family of four. We plan meals and use a shopping list. We pack lunches four days our of five on the workweek, and generally eat lunch in on the weekends. We bring breakfast to work. Yet we still reliably hit the 770 number. However, that8217s based in a large part on the TOTAL grocery bill. We don8217t necessarily separate out things like diapers, formula, toilet paper, kleenex, etc. Our fridge is generally pretty sparse by the end of the week. We might have one vegetable that we throw out, but that8217s about it. We have tried to reduce the bill many times, but find that we might be able to squeeze it down by 30-40month at most, then grocery prices increase again and all the savings are lost. Most of the stuff we buy rarely has a coupon, too. We8217ve tried that tack, as well, and at most saved 1-2week. We don8217t buy stuff just because it8217s on sale, either. We used to eat on 400-450 per month (family of four), but as food costs have risen and our own desire for a more healthy diet has come on strong here in the last few months, we8217ve seen our monthly grocery bill approach 600-700. I don8217t consider your 770 food bill excessive, and it is still much less than if you took your family out for one meal a day I noticed a 10 drop in our food expenses when we stopped buying at two supermarkets and started buying in only one of them. Going to two supermarkets, we would end up buying a lot that was 8220on sale8221, even if those included things we didn8217t really need. Anyway, Trent can spend as much as he wants on food. My point is that a frugality expert should spend much less than average 8211 especially when he recommends coupons, gardening, and making homemade things (diapers, bread, etc) to keep costs down. All these strategies don8217t seem to work, or else Trent would be spending much less, right Or you mean to say that, without coupons and gardening, his food costs would be even higher than the 8220average8221 770 a month Also, I would like to hear a better description, if possible, of what those 770 include. Eating out Anything bought at a supermarket (toilet paper, cleaning products, dog food etc) or only food for the four humans Personally, I believe it would be very easy to spend that much on food. The big challenge is to spend much less than average. It would be great if you, Trent, could write another post about all this discussion. But without getting offended or defensive After all, the beauty of interaction is that we all can learn from each other. Maybe, after some thought, you could reach the conclusion that you are overspending escrevalolaescreva. blogspot I guess I should clarify that my 320mo stated above includes all grocery store items (cleaning supplies, light bulbs, etc..) as well as food. I buy almost all my meat and produce from a market. Food costs vary greatly by region, and not necessarily the way you think they would vary. My family is from Cincinnati, Ohio. They are always blown away by the food prices (especially meat) where I live in St. Louis, Missouri. Using a cost of living calculator available from CNN Money, groceries would cost between 9 8211 13 less if I moved from St. Louis to Cincinnati, Kansas City or Des Moines, even though housing in all those areas would cost more I think some people just clearly like to get in drama. Keeping with my post from yesterday8212WHAT AREA of the country are these purchases made store competition in area It is substantiallly CHEAPER to live in the South than the North8212I know that firsthand as a recent transplant. I8217m a firm believer that if a nice variety is available at home, then you won8217t want to eat out8212with three teenagers I know. I realize that Trent has toddlers but also knowing 8211most of them are the worlds pickiest Just because Trent is a 8220frugality expert8221 as quoted by a previous post, you expect him to eat only beans I8217ve never thought of Trent as an 8220expert82218211just a normal guy trying to help others learn while he is also learning AND I8217m thankful for that I guess I feel relieved because we spend around that (and more) but keep feeling bad because people are posting that they are feeding a family of 4 on 400, as many of you seem to be doing. However like Trent food is one of the things we 8220splurge8221 on, especially as the 2 kids are young, I want to make sure they have a high quality diet. I8217m also curious what the food budget includes, if it includes toliet paper, diapers, wipes, dog food, other stuff get at grocery store that is not food but not seperated out. If so we may be even closer to Trent8217s numbers. Salve Regina says: I8217m with Anna up there, who said that the 8220grocery budget8221 cannot include TP or toothpaste. Unless you have that for supper once a week (and I had to put it in those terms for it to compute with the spousal unit). Our 600mo for seven (one infant who eats what I send down)is just food (including raw milk and pastured eggs at 6.50gal and 3.50dz). No cleaning supplies, diapers, etc. Our spending is easy to track because I have 300cash in my hands every two weeks. When it8217s gone, it8217s gone. Golly, I keep trying to get our bill for two down under 800. Of course that includes whatever we spend money for at the grocery, not just the food items. And it does include the beer and wine. - P Trying-Trying-Trying to stop throwing away food that8217s gone bad. That just galls me. I don8217t think people mean to criticize, it was just a very shocking number to see Trent write when he talks about saving a few dollars a month with CFL8217s and making your own laundry detergent like it8217s a big deal. He could save over 2000 a year on groceries without breaking a sweat and still buy organic healthy food but doesn8217t see the need. I think that undermines a lot of his frugal messages on this site. Now if that number includes diapers, formula, wipes, household supplies, then it makes sense. I agree with Sandra (comment 53). Trent is not a 8220frugality expert.8221 He is opening up a part of his life to his readers in the hope that it will help them in some areas. Also, the term 8220frugal8221 means 8220economical in the use of resources not wasteful.8221 It does not necessarily mean 8220cheap.8221 (Anyone remember The Frugal Gourmet He used to point this out all the time.) Trent seems to me to be very frugal. I would bet that very little is wasted in his household. The comments have been interesting, though. Families of four and five for under 500. Good for them I wish I could do it, but I can8217t, so I8217ll stick with what I spend and not feel bad about it. 770 sounds reasonable to me. Just my wife and I spend 400 8211 500 a month on groceries. Obviously these costs are going to vary depending on what part of the country you live in. People need to think about that a bit before they react in shock that some of us have to spend a bit more money for food. Wow. With a family of 3, we spend an average of 275 month for food. Add in dinners out, and the total is just over 400. Add in supplies, like TP and soap, and we8217re at 450 a month. Every receipt is recorded, so this IS accurate. We don8217t do much coupon-clipping. We do buy the store brand of almost everything. Of course, we8217re on a budget of under 2000 a month, total. Trent I honestly feel you are spot on. Me and my family of 5 live off around 500 a month. We buy EVERYTHING on sale and my wife is really the coupon queen. Literally every time shes in the supermarket the cashiers always give her the most amazed looks based upon the amounts we save. We have twin 7 month-olds and 1 nine year old. Once we get out of the formula and diapers phase I feel confident we can get that number down some more but maybe I8217m wrong. My 8217s include everything we can buy at the grocery store, any dining out, plus any stops at the convenience store for the occasional sodajunk food. My wife8217s dedication to research gave her the ability to find MANY coupon clubs (baby clubs were VERY beneficial) and trading coupons with her friends yielded great results. If you didn8217t count coupons we8217d definitely be around that national average. At first I was very shocked with Trent8217s budget. I8217ve followed 8220Tightwad Gazette8221 for years, shopped for all my gourmet bread flours and supplies at Mennonite stores and institutional wholesale centers. but I also remembered my own situation when I was in a family of four. One of us was at home, so that person did all of the from scratch recipies organic or not. Now that I8217m a divorcee with two teenagers, I depend a lot on school lunches so I dont have to make them and eating out on soccer amp football practice nights. Sundays I often spend cooking up a week8217s worth of meats so dinners are quicker and cheaper. One night a week I let the kids have fun with ramen recipies (they love the stuff. I can8217t stand it) and we eat a lot of oatmeal for breakfast still. My own budget would be a lot less if I had the time to do more. So yeah8230 Trent8217s budget is understandable. When you8217ve got a really busy life trying to meet your other goals, it8217s really easy to spend 770.00 on four with two young kids. You8217ve got snacks and sippy cups and juice instead of water, formula and milk instead of iced tea. Teenagers just eat volume, but little ones eat more expensive items. It8217s about the same budget wise really. i8217m not bashing you by any means (people should spend money on the things they want to and save where they can), but i just posted my august numbers and i spent 624 on all my groceries and household items combined (along with expenses for a party and many school supplies). this does not include our once a week eating out (ranges from 10 to 50). we have plenty of food (my cupboards are nearly overflowing) and we eat balanced meals with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. i only buy 100 whole grain bread. but i8217m also very committed to matching up sales with coupons so i stock up every week on different items. if 770 is what works for your family, great. but it can be done for less. My boyfriend and I budget for and spend about 400 per month on groceries. Most of our meals are vegetarian. We don8217t buy pre-packaged foods (frozen dinners, etc.) and buy about half of our produce organic. We only go out once a week, so 400 covers most of our meals (and the occasional friends that come over). That is 20 meals a week x the two of us 160 meals per month. 400 160 meals 2.50 per meal. That is a great deal for yummy homemade food. Your grocery budget sounds reasonable to me. Plus your budget is YOUR budget. If it works for your family, don8217t worry about what others say, but thanks for opening it up for discussion. We spend quite a bit less for our family of 3, but we also cuts lots of corners amp have time to shop at various stores. Kenny Johnson says: We spend about 700mo on groceries for a family of 3. But I8217m including non-food items here (laundry detergent, diapers, trash bags, cleaning supplies, toiletries, cat litter, etc). I typically buy all this at the grocery store, so I just keep my grocery budget at 700. In reality, we probably spend about 600mo on food. I still think this is really high, but we buy a lot of convenience foods because we8217re lazy8230 And we have a small kitchen that is hard to cook well in. I don8217t get home until about 6pm or later and I don8217t feel like spending an hour preparing food in our tiny kitchen. We8217re trying to cut our grocery bill further by including a lot more coupons. I already buy mostly generic and on-sale items8230 I just think our bill is higher due to the boxed foods we buy. Our problem lately is we tend to repeat the same dinners every week. The wife works 3 days a week and we don8217t have much time to cook when we get home before our one-year old gets hungry. Anyone have any good websites they could suggest with good, easy and healthy recipes that we could try out Last week I did buy a whole chicken, made it on Sunday in the crock-pot and had that for dinner. The leftovers were used for chicken salad sandwiches all week for lunch and BBQ chicken pizza later in the week for dinner. However, I think we8217d get sick of doing that every week. I have two children roughly the same age as Trent8217s and we easily spend 800month on food. My three-year-old has a huge list of allergies so we eat almost exclusively organic, no milk, no corn (corn syrup, dextrose, etc.). I am comfortable saying that we eat healthier than 99 of Americans. In addition, we follow a rotation diet, no foods may be repeated within a four-day period, therefore, we also get a healthy variety of foods. We could easily cut down our food bill by buying more processed foods but we would pay for it with doctor bills and overall comfort, so for us it is worth it, and basically a necessity. I think the point here is that Trent is feeding his family more healthy food than many get, despite the fact that many believe they are feeding their families healthy food. If it is processed at all, it is not healthy. To the folks who say 8220it seems strange to accept frugality tips from a person who cant spend less than the national average82308221, please re-read Trent8217s post. He says that he and his family spend MORE on some items on purpose, such as free-range chicken, grass-fed beef, etc. If he8217s adding these higher-cost items into his food budget, then yeah, he8217s spending more - but he8217s doing so conciously, choosing to buy some pricier items and spending less on others so he can fit them into his budget. Trent is a guy who has paid down massive debts in the last two years, so I8217d say yes indeed, we should accept tips from him - he8217s proven that he knows what he8217s doing Kate 8211 I agree that Trent has expressed a clear interest in food. However (I hate writing 8216about8217 someone) he also cuts coupons, comparison shops and presumably grows some food items in his garden, hence my personal surprise at the figure mentioned. Additionally and more importantly (live and let live for Trent personally), I just do not believe it is indicative of US spending in general. I have a family of four with children of 7 amp 8. This makes enough of a significant difference when it comes to appetite and calorie requirements. I8217ve just done my homework 8211 an infant aged 1-3 needs 1165-1230 caloriesday, whereas my children need around 1800 calories a day 8211 not far off the recommended 1940 for an average adult woman We have a full grocery budget of 400month which equates to 720month. We have been under budget every month this year so far 8211 by 150 this month alone. The budget is for everything from shampoo, toilet rolls, cleaning products, cat food amp other items. These non-food items would total at least 100month (except during Aug obviously otherwise we would have starved to death) No coupon clipping, bulk buying, low quality 8216meat8217 etc to stay within our budget, hence my personal surprise. And naturally food, like everything else, is more expensive in the UK than in the USA. Oh my First, I think we can agree that Trent positions himself as a frugality expert (he has this site with many well-researched posts, huge traffic and huge respect, and he8217s writingwritten a book too). But since when does being frugal mean one must spend the absolute least in every single category Regular readers know he has a ginormous savings account, moderate expenses, and I doubt he splurges on a lot of designer clothing or a string of mansions. So his family enjoys good food 8212 and plenty of readers sync with his budget, too. My favorite part of this post is the interesting comments that have added to the comparison. (And at our house, so far this year our average is about in line for a family of 3, although the number will go down over the coming months as big expenditures on a CSA membership and a quarter of a free-range, organic cow average out.) It sounds pretty close to me. Our family of 4 budgets 700 a month for groceries. Sometimes there is a little left over for a few meals out a month sometimes the meals out are over and above the 700. We eat clean and healthy so nearly all of that goes to buying fresh whole foods. We buy very little if any prepared foods but we don8217t skimp on quality when it comes to our ingredients. Range fed meats. Organic produce etc. We don8217t bulk shop or really try to clip coupons. We do try to buy whats on sale. That8217s in line with what we spend. I just checked my Quicken, and in an urban area in Texas, two adults and a 4 and 6 yr. old, we8217re averaging 706 a month. It includes some alcohol, some entertaining, some non-food items, and a decent number of splurges (good cheese, occasional ice cream, fancy condiments, soy meat substitutes, etc.), but not our dining out (which is a bloated budget category here). I use coupons, do some warehouse shopping, belong to a veggie coop (which I think is actually MORE expensive than standard grocery store produce bought on sale), and we are 85-90 vegetarian. Basically, we eat a lot of beans, grains, veggies and fruit. We could spend less, and I am trying to cut the bill through better planning and less waste. I dont think people mean to criticize, it was just a very shocking number to see Trent write when he talks about saving a few dollars a month with CFLs and making your own laundry detergent like its a big deal. He could save over 2000 a year on groceries without breaking a sweat and still buy organic healthy food but doesnt see the need. I think that undermines a lot of his frugal messages on this site. Now if that number includes diapers, formula, wipes, household supplies, then it makes sense. I just copied and pasted the best post. I don8217t think Trent has ever identified himself as either being or wanting to be a 8220frugality expert8221. And I don8217t need him to prove to me that he can get by on less than I can. I personally am not in a competition much I can cut things or deprive myself, and I don8217t expect Trent to, either. What I have taken from the Simple Dollar is that Trent is writing about the steps he is taking in order to set and reach his financial goals, which in turn are themselves only a tool for him to reach larger personal goals. For most of us, regardless of our income or assets, prioritizing and controlling our spending is an important part of meeting our financial goals. It8217s a misleading mistake to get overfocused on frugality and make a religion of it. Frugality is a tool, and should not be put up on a pedestal as the be-all-and-end-all of existence. The really important goals in life are much higher than that. One thing that should enter into the discussion a bit more is that cost of living varies dramatically across the country. I checked a couple of online cost of living calculators, and they show that Des Moines is maybe 30 8211 40 cheaper for groceries than the Bay Area, which is where I live. It did surprise me that Trent spent the national average, but that was more because he lives in Iowa, which is generally an inexpensive place to live. He clearly prioritizes healthy food for his family, though. Good for you on choosing to eat well for your family - each family has different areas where they spend more. I have found that we spend about 400 a month (2 adults and one baby) but I shop with coupons and buy only things that are on sale. My husband drives me crazy when we shop together because he chooses with his stomach and not his wallet - when I shop the sales and buy much more than we need and stockpile. If only we had the space for a chest freezer. Trent, you should write a post on the benefits of shopping at the farmers market. We live in the 8216burbs of DC, but there are tons of local farms nearby. We buy local farm raised produce, frequently for the same price at the grocery. It is better for us and supports the local economy :) I8217m not a family of four8230 more like a family of one I currently do the following: 8211 clip coupons for my 8220staples8221 (things like beans in a can, steweddiced tomatoes, tomato sauce, tuna, frozen veggies, etc) 8211 buy ALL meat in bulk from my local BJ8217s and freeze it (this is the ONLY thing in my freezer, that and frozen veggies) 8211 shop at my local farmers market for my producefruits (except bananas, as they8217re actually cheaper at my local grocery store 8211 same with granny smith apples depending on the time of year) Averaging out the meat puchase to 2 months (I spend about 150-200 each time I go) and my other purchases, I end up spending abour 120-150 on food for myself for the month. Nothing organic, I don8217t grow anything, and I also don8217t eat pasta, potatoes, or rice 8211 my main complex carb source is beans I could do it much cheaper if I ate cereal, mac n cheese, or ramen noodles, but I don8217t. My family typically spent about 400-600 when we were a family of 4 8211 sooo 4 years ago (the kids have since both moved out). Given how prices have escalated, I8217d say my parents would be spending 800-1000 for the same items nowmonth, and my mom is a modest coupon-clipper Trent8217s overall message seems to be that he puts his money where his priorities are. Investigate and practice frugality whenever possible, but if you feel that eating healthily is a priority for you, make you budget accordingly. Frugality doesn8217t modest in all areas for the sake of saving money EVERYWHERE8230 at least that8217s what I get from his posts (Perhaps I8217m wrong) 770mo for family of 4 sounds right to me. We are a family of three, two adults and a one-year-old, and we spend 600 or so per month (varies based on whether there8217s a bimonthly Sam8217s club visit or not). We enjoy good food, including locally grown andor organic where practical. We buy lots of store brands, too, though, and very few name brands, very few prepared foods or boxed mix type things, and meat in bulk. (Note that this amount includes paper products, personal care, diapers, formula, etc. If you can buy it at your local grocery store, shouldn8217t it be considered groceries) It would be less if I could convince DH that meat was not required at 5 out of 7 dinners per week. It was quite a bit more at one point, but we made a conscious effort to use what we bought and ended up buying less. I read all the time on blogs about people who feed their family of four on 300 per month. I8217d love to know how they do it. One thing that is cheaper for me at least, at the farmer8217s market, is eggs. I8217ve noticed that the store eggs are usually older. I live alone so I can8217t eat a full dozen of theose before they8217ve gone bad. But I can buy an 18 pack at the farmer8217s market for less than a dozen would cost at the store, and eat them all while they8217re still good. I spend about 300 a month on food just for myself. I eat out pretty often and buy almost everything organic, free-range, local, whole foods. I think that my frugality in areas like clothing and entertainment covers the cost of really good, delicious food for myself. It8217s all about your own priorities, right I think, Trent, that people are so used to you encouraging frugality that we were surprised that your food budget isn8217t more frugal. That said, with a little more thought we would have remembered some of the things you pointed out8211that you pay extra for some organic food8211and the fact that GOOD food is really, really important to you. You8217re frugal elsewhere, so you can afford not to be so frugal in this area. Right Trent8217s numbers are his own business (nice of him to post them) and should not affect whether you take his advice or not. Remember he 8220paid his dues8221 as a college student, so why should he go back to that minimalist level of diet How many of you remember that Trent likes a bottle of wine At 7-10bottle, 3 bottles per week, that8217s 84-120month. Hmm, adds up quickly (and I8217m not saying his family actually drinks that much or that they drink less) You know, what8217s frugal for one guy isn8217t frugal for another. 7 years ago, my husband and I were spending 450month on groceries and 400month eating out. This was with no attempt at being frugal. The best I ever did, consistently, was to bring that down to 280month for groceries and 100month eating out. FOOD ONLY (no alcohol). But with the increasing grocery prices, our grocery bill doesn8217t really ever go under 375 (with one toddler). That8217s with eating mostly vegetarian, buying sales, mostly staples, having a price book8230I8217ve been into keeping my grocery bill low for years now. 770 month seems high at first, but if that includes wine and free-range meat, and organic dairy, I have to adjust that. A free range chicken locally is 12. It8217s 2.50 on sale at the grocery store. Organic milk is 6.50gallon. Regular is half that. Trent CHOOSES to spend more on certain items, which doesn8217t mean he8217s not frugal overall. I choose to spend 20week on the local, organic CSA. I could buy enough produce for my family at local stores for half that 8211 it wouldn8217t taste nearly as good, nor would we have the variety. And finally, a lot of people REALLY don8217t know how location makes a difference. I live in So. Cal. I have shopped, fairly often, in rural PA and upstate NY (near our families). HUGE difference in prices. Those areas have regular sales prices that are often often 25-33 cheaper for staples. If you are shopping at Aldi and Walmart, you have a financial advantage that some of us simply don8217t have. YOU try finding dried garbanzo beans for less than 1lb in my town. Bonne chance. I8217m with JE (comment 31) 8211 I think Trent8217s number sounds really high. I feed and equip our family of about 3 and 12 (one is only 3) for 400-500 per month. (Equip meaning toiletries and personal care items.) I live in northern Virginia, in one of the richest counties in the country (though I am definitely NOT part of that rich majority) and a very high cost of living. That budget includes MAYBE one trip to Subway for the four of us each month. We don8217t do that every month. We eat very well 8211 very little processed crap, all whole grains, lots of fruits and veggies, legumes and beans, and very little meat. I know Trent8217s made a lot of people feel better about how much they spend, but you really shouldn8217t compare yourself to other people. There can be so many variations in situations that you should really take a look at your budget and challenge yourself to do with a little less every month. See how low you can take it 8211 get creative, start baking your own bread, making your own granola for cereal (cut down the sugar and fat from most recipes though), try beans for dinner. You8217d be surprised what you can do when you really put your mind to it. Wow-We are a familly of 6 and manage to buy groceries and soft goods(paper products, toiletries and laundry products) for 550.00 or lessmonth. We garden and can and make most everything from scratch and pack our lunches. I even pay myself each week out of my grocery fund for my work in saving us money with coupons and comparison shopping. I take 5.00 out of my grocery fund before shopping for my savings fund and then whatever else is left over after shopping goes in the fund as well. It is a motivator to play the game even better. I am an avid CVS and Walgreen8217s shopper so am able to get many of my supplies there for free or near free. There are websites devoted to teaching one how to excell in that as well. Finally, I glean whatever I can from field and tree to freeze and can. The men in our family hunt deer which helps as well. I have been doing these things for years and think I can excell still more. You can always get better at the game. Thanks for all the great info on this site. I am always looking for ideas on being a better steward of the resources I have. My personal food bill (17 year old girl who can out-eat my parents) is as follows. Breakfast: Pastry from day-old rack, glass of milk or juice: 1 Lunch: Granola bars, simple sandwich, bottle of pop or water (water is free, pop is 16.6 a bottle in a three liter that I pour into smaller bottles): 1.50 Dinner: High quality, huge meal cooked by my amazing mother, usually including chicken or pork (under 1.50 a pound at our grocer) salad, fruit, and side dish. 2.50 So I eat at about 2 a meal, but some days I skip lunch if I8217m not hungry, and if we go out, it8217s usually fast food (Last night I had water polo until way too late, so we stopped and ate dinner for about 2-4 a person I was starving so I ended up going back for seconds). My meal costs go up in the school year because of water polo and decrease substansially in the summer when I sometimes eat brunch because I slept until 9. I think people need to remember the huge variation in basic food costs in different areas of the US, and also to make sure they include everything they eat into their monthly totals8230many people forget if they buy lunch at work, or go out, and are only listing groceries. I used to feel bad about what my husband and I spend on food each month, because I would look online and read about frugal families spending 400 a month or less for a family of 4. We live in San Francisco, and the two of us spend at least 500 a month just on groceries. Neither of us buys any food at work, and I plan all our meals in advance for the week calculated for leftovers to take to work. If we eat out at a non-fast food place once a month, that raises our total by at least 50. It is a very expensive area8230much more expensive for basics than where I lived in Texas for the last 20 years As a side note, I am 27 and have been lurking on the simple dollar for about a month, and it has really really inspired me to change my habits and worldview of money and wealth. According to the US government, it only takes 80 per month, per person to eat a healthy nutritious diet. This does not include things like alcohol, toothpaste, toilet paper, pet foods, etc. The figure only includes things intended to be eaten by humans. Where did I get this figure from This is how much they give people on Food Stamps. About 2-3 years ago when my family was on Food Stamps, I actually got yelled at by my case worker because I wasn8217t spending the full 240 each month to feed my family of 3. This was in spite of the fact I was splurging on things I wouldn8217t have considered buying before, and my cabinets, fridge amp freezer were packed full, and I even had a laundry basket loaded full of snack foods (yeah, I know, but they told me I had to spend it and I didn8217t know what else to buy). The surplus just kept growing amp growing till I had to start giving away stuff to the local food pantry or face my apartment being so full of food it wouldn8217t fit my family. I even started shipping coffee to online friends that were college students, that couldn8217t afford any to keep themselves awake, to study for finals. I have no clue how to spend an amount equal to 770month on food, unless I invite all my neighbors over to help me eat it all. I8217m sure the cost varies by location. And it also varies seasonally. More fresh produce available in the summer. We also tend to eat lighter food now than in the winter. Also, here in FL, we don8217t keep our freezers full during Hurricane season. So we don8217t stock up until late fall. (Lose power for just a day or 2 and you8217ve thrown away hundreds of of food) I live in Minnesota where we have a very short growing season. I8217m trying gardening to stretch our food budget (about 350-400 for seven of us, with 3-5 extra visitors to feed usually 4 days a week). I love to shop our whole foods co-op and farmer8217s market, but rarely do since they are too pricey. I8217ve found mostly local, no hormone, free range chicken and beef (not always grass fed since we have a lot of winter here) that I buy from local parties and stock up. (I have 2 upright freezers). I buy local raw milk for 2.50gal and freeze between 8-12 gallons per visit to the dairy as it is 20 miles away to cut down on gas costs. I buy day old bread from the organic bakery and freeze them, along with muffins. Being a single parent, I try to combine shopping trips, stock up, and freeze to cut down on costs. This year we went to pick your own berry farms. I froze the berries to later make jam. We try to limit refined foods, and since I8217ve made that change, the variety of my purchases has become much more limited to shopping the outside aisles of the supermarkets. I think someone8217s budget depends a lot on their location and whether they buy organic or not. I hustle to find deals, but rarely can use coupons anymore because they usually are for highly processed foods. I8217m always looking for ways to cut costs, so I8217ll continue to use this site. For some folks, giving up perceived quality is simply not a good ROI. It really comes down to that. I found a feed-your-family-for-70week on Hillbillyhousewife 8211 you use all reconstituted milk, lots of maccheese, tea, corn-based baking goods. Not a terrible diet as it includes lots of veggies and legumes 8211 but DH would be miserable. Making peace in the family for us means spending a bit more on food. It8217s the one thing we haven8217t completely cut out 8211 and for my guy 8211 if I give him ravioli twice a week instead of beans yet again 8211 he8217s much nicer to live with Our compromise is I get the ravioli from Costco 8211 half the cost of Vons here (So Cal). I just can8217t see good food being considered any kind of vice, unless it is costing you longterm goals. It makes a BIG difference for some folks in their day to day well being. In the I8217m-cheaper-than-you olympics, this one isn8217t necessarily worth winning. Frugal Dad, Trent8217s budget isn8217t much less than if he took his family out to eat every day. It averages to 26day. My husband and I could eat at a sit down place every day for 750mo. Add in another 50 for lunches and breakfast at home. True, that doesn8217t include kids, but at their ages, they should be only eating a few ounces of food off their parent8217s plate. So Trent splurges on a few items with his groceries. He admits to liking to eat well and buy the occasional bottle of wine. I see nothing wrong with that since the cornerstone of frugality is to not spend on things that are unimportant to you so you can spend on those things that are. Could he spend less on groceries Of course, but it would lower his quality of life. To aim to spend the absolute minimum in every area would not be living frugally but living miserly. I think Trent8217s numbers make perfect sense. I was thrilled when we cut our monthly grocery budget in half 8211 from 1,000 down to 500 per month. That does NOT include eating out, which we no longer do. We8217re vegans, so we don8217t buy expensive meats and we no longer buy organics. No alcohol and no junk food. We shop at Food 4 Less, Dollar Tree and Trader Joe8217s and we stick to a strict list. We even grow a lot of our own vegetables and I8217ve been experimenting with baking our own bread, which is what originally led me to The Simple Dollar months ago (so far, just baking a few whole-wheat bricks, but I8217m not giving up). I would use coupons if I could find any for healthy items, but most seem to be for unhealthy convenience foods. I won8217t compromise my family8217s health to save a few bucks. Any tips would be appreciated. I live in the heart of Central California and we have no fewer than five weekly Farmers Markets nearby. However, they are MUCH more expensive than the grocery stores and seem to be geared toward the trendy and affluent. Why produce grown a few miles from me costs four or five times more than produce grown on another continent and shipped thousands of miles is beyond me. Very disappointing, which is why I try to grow much of my own organic produce now. When I read posts from people who spend 250 a month for a family of 6 and that even includes a few meals out, it makes me wonder what I8217m missing8230 Thanks for pointing folks to the USDA numbers. I often reference this site when helping folks set up budgets. They often underestimate how much they spend on food or need to spend on food. For example, my friend8217s husband wanted her to spend 200mo on all grocery items amp household goods (soap, tp, etc.) for the two of them. USDA thrifty plan is 350 for them and that is just for food8230 You can see where this caused some problems for them especially since he is over 6 ft tall, in the military and trying to gain weight I still think 770 is awfully high. We are a family of 3 (3-year-old, me and my husband), and we spend between 350-400 a month. We buy one weekly whole chicken8211it8217s amazing how far you can stretch that8211and eat a lot of rice and beans. Like Trent, though, we love nice cheese and wine, but unfortunately don8217t splurge on that stuff as often as we8217d like. I still think 770 is a LOT of money. Putting it in perspective: Trent8217s numbers are 2.17 per person per meal. If the kids didn8217t eat anything, it would be 4.34 per person per meal and, even so, that8217s pretty good value I routinely feed a family of 6 on 50 a week. It can be done, cheaper. What a relief to see those numbers I was feeling like a failure because my husband and I spend 400 a month on food. We brought that down from 500, but it still felt like a lot. Five years ago we were both Jesuit Volunteers. We had a budget of 420 for six people (70 a month each), so I was thinking that for two people we should easily be in the under 200. But now we eat meat and enjoy cooking fancy meals once in a while. I have found that our local Farmer8217s market doesn8217t save any money. I think your numbers are right on, even for the children being young. It is just me, my husband and an infant (on some baby food, mostly formula) and we probably spend the same as you. I like to think I am frugal with the grocery shopping, as I use coupons, work CVS for the household goods, buy the formula at BJ8217s, etc. but I also buy organic milk, eggs, meats, etc. which are much more costly. I think you8217ll find that a lot of the readers that are shocked at your spending are the ones using the grocery game to get free boxes of macaroni and cheese to feed their families. Not that you would, but don8217t let them upset you. You are obviously doing a good job in all of your other budgeting areas. Wow We have 2 parents and a 18 month old and squeak in between 100 and 150 every month. Granted, we are students and take advantage of every mooching opportunity for free food we get, it can8217t have that much of an effect. Maybe we just eat boring food all the time8230.I didn8217t think so, but hey, I don8217t know anything different. There seems to be a lot of criticism about how a 8220frugal8221 person could spend so much on food. I could eat for free if I really wanted to, by picking perfectly good food out of the dumpsters behind the grocery stores. I could feed my family off the dollar menu at McDonalds. But frugality isn8217t about giving up quality of life. Its about expanding your quality of life 8211 making your purchases meaningful, and stretching your dollar so you can get what you want for less. Some people have a priority to spend the absolute smallest amount possible on food, and you absolutely can do that if that is your priority. But, my priority is eating healthy, organic, local, fresh, and delicious food. Im not going to punish my body for the sake of saving a few bucks. There are certain things I am willing to do to save money8230 like fewer restaurant meals, and vegetarian options. But, its about making the changes you are willing to make, or getting the same thing for less money. Not abandoning your standards and basing everything on price. People also seem to be up in arms that 8220Mister Frugality Expert8221 seems to be unable to pare down his food bill to something you deem as acceptable. But just because he is offering options and tips for saving money on your groceries, doesn8217t mean that these are the things that he personally does, or that they are going to work for everyone. I personally won8217t touch coupons. It8217s cheaper to buy food that is not pre-packaged. But8230 you will find plenty of people who clip coupons and save money on their groceries because they base their shopping list on the sale items. Its all about what works for you. Yep8230this is one of those topics where 8220Your mileage may vary.8221 And there are lots of variables in food budgets: 8211 locationmarket prices (our farmer8217s market is more expensive than the store) 8211 perceived quality of food (I don8217t insist on organic) 8211 tastes (the kids won8217t touch a cooked bean, and DH doesn8217t eat anything with cooked tomatoes) So the name of the game is doing the best you can in a mindful and attentive way, which I think is what Trent proposes. But as I read people throwing our their numbers, we must note that there is a huge difference between a Food budget and a 8220Grocery8221 budget. In an ideal world, we would track our food spending separate from the household goods. In reality, I buy food and groceries from the same stores and I don8217t want to take the time to parse out the separate categories at the end of each trip. (I shop 2-3 times a week.) So I lump it all together8211food and household stuff8211and run 650-700 a month for 2 adults and 2 teens. We8217d be where Trent is if I bought better meat and more organic. Continuez votre bon travail. I think the USDA numbers are high. I remember before my husband and I got married during the financial part of the pre-marriage counseling we talked about these numbers and I told the leader we would be under even the 8220thrifty8221 section and he said it couldn8217t be done. Well, two years later we8217re still under the USDA8217s numbers. We eat meat in most dinners, eat a lot of leftovers and many fresh fruits and veggies. Our meals are based on what is on sale at the local grocery store and we clip coupons. I think it8217s possible to eat for less and still eat healthy. 770month. Sorry, but that is nuts. My family of 4 (one being an infant) spends less than 300 per month, and we live in Europe. We eat great, meat every meal, very balanced, no corner cutting. 7708230Wow I looked at the website and to feed my family of seven it was 1017 a month for the thrifty plan. I budget 500 but have been spending more towards 700 in reality (I need to both increase my budget and reduce costs) I have a 15 year old football player, 18 year old girl, 12 year old girl, 10 and 8 year old boys. I also feed my daughter8217s boyfriend most nights. Most weekends we have 5-8 kids friends(mostly teens) that we feed. This is why I am over budget. My 15 year old has football practice for 3 12 hours each day and comes home starving. He will eat 4 sandwiches at one sitting. I buy stouffers meals for 1.00 as a snack for him before supper. We are trying to get calories in him so he will bulk up some. My daughter8217s boyfriend also eats a lot. It is true that buying the health foods costs more and although I try to cook from scratch we do eat worse that if I had money to buy all the organic stuff. I cannot afford organic. I have a garden and am learning to grow some food. I bulk buy produce and meat on sale. I use CVS and combining sales and coupons and buy snack foods and brownie mixes and stuff that are not as healthy but they are almost free. I am the only one overweight - the eye doctor even complimented me that all of my children were of a good normal weight. He said he sees so many fat kids. I don8217t like all the preservatives in food but I cannot go overboard with it - I can only do so much to cook from staples and mix that with adding some boxed stuff when we are busy. It is good that Trent has the choice to spend more for healthier options. His budget seems high, yes, we could all do it cheaper, but it comes down to the choices we make in what we do with our money. When you live without debt and have more money you can choose what things are important to you and spend more in some areas and less in others. I choose to be a home where kids are welcome and being southern that means feeding them while they are here. The kids love to come here and I love 8220knowing8221 my kids friends. I would rather put a little more money into our food budget so that I can feed them than have them feel unwelcome or a financial burden. Dale, you8217d be surprised, I think, on how mooching free food can really make a difference. I am around a lot of grad students, so I see it In fact, I used to have a lot of mooching opportunities at work. They have ended now, and my food budget went up. (Free tea, free leftover pizza from a business meeting, maybe a donut leftover from someone8217s breakfast8230my husband gets free soda, and at least 3x a month leftovers from someone8217s meeting.) I keep a specific grocery budget, and track only food. This includes buying a soda or a bottle of water while running errands, but doesn8217t include pet food or vitamins. Looking at the link, I spend above the moderate cost plan but well below the liberal plan. I know that my grocery budget is high and that I could spend less, but I make the choice to buy some higher quality, more expensive items, and it sounds like that is something Trent does as well. I8217m impressed that Trent also gets a few bottles of wine into that budget, which can easily tack 40 or more onto your monthly food budget. 120month for one. That includes Tillamook cheese and ice cream :) But all the rest is from scratch cooking and cooking for the freezer for the leftovers for lunches etc. This is NOT a cheap area. I go to Costco 8211 85 miles away about 3 times a year for bulk flour, rice, beans, cornmeal, powdered milk, etc. Just use the newspaper coupons 8211 nothing fancy and few rebates. ONLY buy when something is on sale, and stock up That8217s the secret. Seems like no one is factoring in the fact that he buys organic and free range items. These are usually much higher costs than the regular produce. Also if he is eating a healthy, whole food sort of diet again costs are higher here. If he were to throw organic, all natural out the window and begin to shop with coupons for ridiculously unhealthy processed garbage like Hamburger Helper for 50 cents a box then I bet he could get the grocery bill down to under 250 month. But why would any sane person want to do that Less processed garbage means less medical bills healthier person. 771 might be the average, but the average family also eats a whole lot of expensive junk and drinks a lot of expensive soda, bottled water, juice, and other unnecessary (and unhealthy) drinks. The average family also spends a lot on 8220groceries8221 that are actually expensive pre-prepared meals, if frozen. If you actually by ingredients and prepare meals yourself, you can save a TON. Now a lot of working parents don8217t have time to cook, and that8217s fine if your time is more valuable than the money you could save doing so. But if I had a family of four I would cap my monthly food budget at 500 (but I don8217t buy any drinks besides the occasional milk and I don8217t buy a lot of snacks or desserts either). My SO and I (who live separately, me in upstate NY, him in western PA) each spend nearly half of what Trent spends, just for one person. And, I8217m only counting food, bought at the grocery store. no toiletries or cleaning supplies, and certainly not the cost of eating out every so often. I consider myself fairly frugal. I buy the cheapest product that doesn8217t suck, and I use coupons when possible. I also do not buy organic produce. I mostly buy fresh produce (my lunch every day is a salad), dairy products (yogurt, milk, cheese), and tofu. And I8217m still spending 50-90 per week. My SO spends a bit more than that, maybe more like 100 per week, but he also buys meat, some organic stuff, and the occasional junk food. Neither of us buy things like frozen meals or other convenience foods. Wow. I really don8217t even know what we spend on food. It isn8217t that I don8217t try to keep track, but I have a check card for bills and one for groceries, my husband has a card for each of these accounts as well. So sometimes, to offset a huge and unforeseeable electric bill, replace a cracked windshield, have an injured or ill pet go the vet, have to call an electrician, etc, we may need to dip into the grocerygeneral expense account more than we want toshould, or even have to dip into the bill account which means that after all is said and done, there is very little if any, left in either account to go into extra savings, or into a vacationhome improvementetc account. We are a family of four in Suburban Atlanta. I am a stay at home mom, my kids are 8 and 11. My husband makes somewhere in the 120k-140k area, which after taxes, 401k, healthcare and dental coverage, and all the rest that most of us know gets funneled out of each paycheck plus the cost of gas, oh the gas8230Dh has a long commute and thanks to the housing market, we don8217t have close to enough equity anymore to be able to move further into the city near his job if we could even sell the house anyway, no one has sold a home in this area for almost a year, and not for lack of trying. His car is virtually costing as much as us to feed, just so he can get to work. It is just a mid size sedan, not a Hummer or anything. So basically, it is incredibly hard to figure what exactly we are spending on FOOD. Considering that there are nights my husband gets home too late for me to cook the dinner I planned, so he picks up something on the way home. Or the kids eat the tomatoes and cheese as a snack while I am in the shower, and so dh has to stop and grab replacements on the way home, and with our luck, the store will be out of at least one of the things I needed, so one of us ends up going thru a drive through for dinner that night. While dh is still in the store, he will grab some diet coke, maybe some beer, or if I have PMS, some chocolate ice cream. On top of that I will realize the dogs are out of food and the cat litter is getting low and call him to tell him8230 He remembers that he needs shaving cream and grabs it8230 Maybe he used the grocery card, sometimes the bill card, depends on if we are seriously close to being out of grocery money or not. If I had to use some grocery money on an uncovered rX, or to buy socks, shampoo, and underwear for the kids, a birthday gift for the party they are going to, some vaccum bags, or even a new vaccum because ours started smoking and repairing it costs almost the same as a new one those things would have all come out of the groceryexpense account, and therefore it maybe low, so borrowing from the bill card would be needed, assuming we know(and usually do)that we have a 8216cushion8217 in there, that if we are lucky can go into savings at the end of the month. Therefore, next time we go to see what we are spending, we have no idea what is going on. Total financial chaos. I know I usually get out of the grocery store spending about 350 for 8216most of 1-2 weeks of food8217. I say mostly because they are always out of the one key ingredient that I needed for a certain meal, because fresh fish and produce needs to be purchased within a few days of eating, so if we have Salmon and fresh asparagus for dinner, it needs to be bought within a day or so of when we are going to prepare it. We try to eat fresh fish at least twice a week, and fresh vegetables every time I cook (except spaghetti or cheese burger nights), so going back out every few days or so, or having dh stop and grab those items, means I don8217t know what that week may have run us until it is said and done, even then all I have is a vague idea. Even then, if I get a migraine there is no one else who can boil water here, so in comes more take out. I just cannot seem to get a good idea on what we spend on food, and thus I cannot decide on a budget amount, or have no idea if I am sticking to it or not. The last time I was grocery shopping at Walmart, we were out of vitamins, advil, almost all our cleaning supplies, and other necessities. I spent close to 400, and that only included breakfast for the kids, lunch for me (usually a Weight Watchers Muffin or a bowl of Kashi per day), and about four to five dinners. So it looks like we spend a ton on food, but I know that alot was spent on non food necessities. Does anyone else have issue with trying to grocery budget because so much bought at the grocery store are non food necessities How do other people figure that What about finding that after extensive meal planning, the store did not have the last ingredient needed for one or two meals, therefore you come up short on meals or have to make a special trip for those items and it not only gets confusing when you look at your spending, but also costs more because while at the additional store, some one will call and say we need milk, dish washing soap and toothpaste8230 Pet food Toilet paper Do I count that in the budget, or not If not, how then do we find a good way to budget those items, separately from food, even though they are bought in the same transaction as the food, and came out of the same account Also, I see a lot of people saying that they are taking a family of four or five out to eat for a 100 per month Where on earth can you take a family of five, just once for under 100, unless it is fast food. When my dh and I take the kids out it ranges from 50-125 depending on the restaurant, and averages 80 including tip, excluding fast food or all you can eat or cafeteria style restaurants that is for us to eat out one night No, we are not eating lobster either. We do try to eat healthy. Try to choose organic if possible. Always try to get the all natural super lean meats. What are people eating that they can spend so little at the store What restaurants are you going to that you can take the whole family 2 or more times for a grand total of 100. I use coupons, buy in bulk when needed or smart, usually buy store brand if the quality is good and the product is nearly identical to the brand name. Also, my husband eats out every day for lunch. He says that taking lunch is not an option and has a thousand excuses for why. Sometimes he uses cash, other times the grocery card. I know he pulls a lot of cash out, but often I don8217t know if he bought gas, his lunch, or my missing groceries with it. By the time we meet to discuss it, he doesn8217t recall where the cash went exactly, so I don8217t know what percent of his cash withdrawals are on food. He often has to attend business conferences where he has to pay cash to park - in one of the many fine Atlanta parking lots that charge you 5 on a good day, but upto 20 on a busy day where demand for parking is high. I don8217t like to harp on him because since his last promotion, he works 100 hours a week, and I feel bad telling him that he can8217t pull out cash so he can eat at the deli across from his office, or that I need receipts from everything he is struggling as it is trying to get sleep in, let alone worrying about every receipt. We do like wine with dinner 4 days a week, give or take a day. We almost always, with little exception get a bottle over 12, and strive to spend 8-10 most of the time, as we do have access to some great wine sales. A bottle lasts 1-4 meals depending on whatever. It sounds out of control, and it is How are you all doing it 8220Does anyone else have issue with trying to grocery budget because so much bought at the grocery store are non food necessities How do other people figure that8221 I actually buy very little non-food at the grocery, because it8217s generally cheaper at Target. However, I keep a list of how much I spend on each grocery trip, and if I bought something other than food, I make a little note with the cost. As for eating out inexpensively, it can be done, but it really depends on where you are. My city has a fantastic selection of restaurants, some of which are relatively inexpensive (but still yummy and fairly-healthy). At my favourite Mexican restaurant, two adults can have a delicious, filling meal for under 20 (slightly more if we get one of their giant 8 margaritas which is enough for two people, especially if one of them needs to be able to drive home afterwards). Last night, 40 paid for dinner for three adults plus leftovers for my lunch today at a Chinese restaurant (and I mean good Chinese. we could have spent even less if we8217d gone to one of the many take away places). I mean, yeah, there are certainly restaurants here where you can spend upwards of 40 for two adults, especially if you8217re drinking, but I try to balance it out with the less expensive places every so often. Judging from the responses on this list, I don8217t doubt a lot of people are sacrificing qualitytaste and eating so cheaply because they8217re going to diners or chains. possibly even fast food. But you don8217t necessarily have to. 360month for two adults, a six year old, three year old, and 10 month old. I can claim no credit for the low figure, that8217s all due to my wife8217s aggressive couponing8211buying primarily loss leaders, stocking up when things are free, etc. This is in southern CA, where the cost of living is pretty high. Local supermarkets have stopped doubling coupons, which will definitely affect us. There was this one time they tripled coupons for a promotion. Oh, man, what a day we had We did the research, and went through with two carts heaping with merchandise. Total before coupons must have been at least 300. The sizable stack of coupons took some time to process, so I was standing around, credit card in hand, waiting for the actual total. Which turned out to be something like 3.00. Bemused, I dug into my wallet for a few ones and handed them over to the patient clerk. I don8217t know if we8217ll ever top that, but luck favors the prepared. It does take research. I might add a couple of points to my previous comment: 1. We eat quite well, thanks. We have occasional meals that are quite inexpensive (spaghetti), and occasional meals that aren8217t (prepackaged, for example). 2. In my opinion, as long as you know where your money is going you8217re way ahead of the average, and really on the right track. 3. Trent, you guys should try couponing for a month, in the spirit of the one month trial concept. I8217m sure there8217s tons of commenters that could get you started. You don8217t have to commit forever, just try it a month. We eat on 65-75 a week depending on if our staples are on sale. Family of three and a neighbor who visits for at least 3 or so meals a week. We buy 98 organic and our meat we buy free range-vegetarian fed if the organic meat is not on sale. 770 seems extremely high to me because we shop at the expensive natural grocery AND we live in Portland(pretty pricey). I found your blog because I was searching for the government link in your post. I wanted to see where we fit compared to the average family of five. I agree that buying organic, fancy cheeses, and wine will definitely increase your grocery budget. If you were on a tight budget, those kinds of things would be the first to go. My family is on a tight budget so we do not buy organic. However, I do buy hormone free milk and provide my family with a nice variety of healthy, home-cooked meals. That said, we spent 438 this month on all food, household products, and baby products (diaperswipes) for our famly of five. In addition to that, we spent 70 to eat out three meals and 20 to take a friend out for a birthday dessert. I guess that means I8217ve succeed in living frugally. oh my gosh. We eat very, very well 8212 healthy food and spend maybe 150-200 a month for 3 people. I do the same as a previous post aggressive couponingbuying primarily loss leaders, stocking up when things are free 8211 yes you can get groceries (healthy) very cheap. Where I live there are no double coupons and I regularly get 80-90 off my bill with couponssales. It8217s all in the planning and knowing your prices. I simply can8217t image spending that much money a month. Quote from The Simple Dollar September 2006. Once I understood my budget both in and out, I put strong caps on all of my frivolous spending. I allowed myself to spend a bit on entertainment, but I strongly budgeted it. I also began to cut down on frivolous spending even on things like groceries, where I taught myself how to shop in a much more frivolous fashion using tools like coupons and shopping lists. How quickly we forget. Trent, if you used coupons in 2006 8211 why did you stop I live in the Midwest 8211 just quit my job in March and am trying to feed my family on a budget. We are a family of four wtwo teenage boys 8211 (adds to the bills) For food 8211 including all work lunches and school lunches which I pack at home, I have averaged about 700 per month, so I think Trent is about right. I use coupons, shop store specials, etc. We eat meat about 4-5 nights per week. We have a family of four. Two under three years of age and my husband and myself. And I figure that we spend at least700 a month at the grocery store. Plus we probably spend another 50 eating out a month. It is hard for me to believe how people say they spend so much less. Especially with more people in their family. I guess I have alot of food allergies, so some of the foods I buy are more expensive. Like quinoa is a staple for me (cause I have a gluten intolerance). Most of the really cheap foods I am allergic to (like eggs, bread, peanut butter, tomatoes, etc). But we still stick with low cost, but healthy foods and don8217t buy junk foods. We also drink mostly water. We eat lots of produce, meats, and whole grains. So 700 for a family of four seems about right to me, and when my little ones get older, we will be spending a little more. I8217m always looking for ways to save money in my grocery budget. We spend 125 a week for our family of 5. It could probably be lower, but we do love to eat. Trent: You spend that much because you have it to spend. I am a single mom w 3 teenage girls to feed. We bring it in at 350-400 month. After a breast lump, I was told: no more hormone-containing milkmeat. So, organic only. I think if we dared buy the cheap milk and the cheap meat i could bring this baby in at WAY less. I bake the week8217s bread every weekend, that8217s a way to balance out the high cost of organics. EVERYTHING we eat is cooked at home, period. I don8217t use coupons cuz we only buy bulk. And the bottom line is8211I JUST DON8217T HAVE MORE MONEY EVEN IF I WANTED TO SPEND IT. I only use cash. No credit cards. Also, my grocery bill includes TP, printer ink, kitty littercatfood, laundry soap, light bulbs. the works. My godsend is the extra freezer I bought years ago8211buycookfreeze in bulk. There8217s always food in our house AND8211we virtually never get sick and we8217re slim 8216n8217 healthy too. Hey hey. Wow, Trent, I8217m not gonna say you spend too much, but I have never had that much to spend on my family. I didn8217t see the first article, but does this just include food OR is it petfood, cleansers, toiletries, etc. I agree wLalina 8211 you have it, so you spend it. We NEVER eat out, don8217t have a garden (lots of times I get it from the mark-down bin in the produce dept.), and I use salesclubsand group cards. I don8217t want to sound like a reverse snob, but I guess since we don8217t have the money, my kids expect very little as far as steaks, or 8220fancy foods8221. It8217s just a lifestyle thing. If this is budgeting for you and your family, then great 8212 I think alot of people can8217t do it, tho8217. Some of you are clueless 8211 the cost of living varies depending upon where you live. Two adults and two boys are probably going to eat more than two adults and two girls 8211 two adults who have small frame and possibly work in an office are going to eat less than two adults that might work in construction 8211 the 8220average8221 is from all areas 8211 so sure, some will make it on 300 a month 8211 while some might need 800 a month 8211 anyone here have teen boys that play sports. I really appreciate your sharing this. I was beginning to feel guilty about my grocery budget: 220 a month for one person for all grocery items (food, household items, paper products, toiletries, etc.) When reading a lot of websitesblogs about this subject, it seems that many people spend a lot less on groceries than I do. However, this is a conscious decision I have made for several reasons. First, I am blessed with the income to be able to spend that amount (and still have a very good amount left at the end of the month to go toward my debt). Second, I am prioritizing my health and weight loss and therefore I would prefer to eat a lot lean meat and fresh produce and very little breadscerealsstarches that don8217t really fill me up rather than save 100 dollars a month. Third, I have also made a conscious decision not to spend several hours each weak clipping coupons, looking for deals, and shopping because many other things (such as having time for exercise) are more important to me. I do buy most of my groceries at Aldi so I buy the cheapest possible of the things I do buy and I do still try to buy the produce and things that are on sale, but I just don8217t spend hours poring over coupons and sale papers. Fourth, I do spend less in other areas to make up for it. That said, I think your amount is very reasonable and it is a very personal decision based on your priorities and goals. I don8217t think being wise with your money means spend the absolute least amount possible in every area 8211 it means consciously deciding what you value and what is important to you how much it8217s worth. To me, it8217s definitely worth an extra 100month not to spend countless hours chasing every grocery deal and to be able to have very healthy, convenient foods available for myself. I like your budget number because it is a lot higher than mine. However, I think that unless you have diapers and (if you use it) formula in that calculation, you probably could count your children as one adult, which would put you a bit higher than average. For me, frugality in the marketplace is KNOWING that you are spending more for a given option, and deciding that it is still what you want to do. I have seen people just blindly saying 8220this is what8217s on TV, has the best, brightest packaging, or is just in front of my hand8221 and end up paying a lot more for identical items. Likewise, I have a friend who would die if she had to use margarine instead of butter and another who wouldn8217t dream of hand-me-down clothes for her family8230 but they both know the costs of those choices. I think a lot of people leaving these comments have a difficult time with math. 400month for a family of 4. That breaks down to 13day for the family, 3.33day per person, 1.11meal per person. It costs more than that for a head of lettuce and a tomato We8217re at about 800month. That is a little less than 9meal for 4, which seems pretty cheap to me. We have a total of 48230two adults and two children 8230we have a total of 120 a week for gas, necessities and food8230we don8217t buy any junk food, no can or boxed food8230we buy meat, veggies, fruit, grain(bags you have to cook up lentels, bean, etc.), eggs, milk, yogurt8230we are very simple WOW My family inlcudes my husband, son-10, daughter-8, other daughter-5. We spend aproximately 800 per month. I would need to track the in-between stops for bread and milk and add the school lunches I allow them to buy. And now I WILL. I have learned alot here. You think your doing something right and then BAM I almost had it right. I never by ANYTHING that isn8217t on sale or that I don8217t have a coupon for. If I really HAVE to have it I will buy the storebrand. I can see now that this is only a good beginning. Something I have noticed, the cheaper I buy the heavier we all get. When I prepare meals that include lots of fresh vegitables and fruit my grocery bill is higher and dramatically so. The local farm market is not much savings at all. We are talking cents per month. BUT I am trying to grow my own, seeds are very inexpensive. And I have a groundhog issue. aaargh NO I will NOT eat the groundhogs LOL I know a few of you were thinking it. The figure above does include toiletries and cleaning products. I stock up when these items are on sale and I have coupons at the same time. I will be taking bits of informationfrom here to help reduce my monthly grocery bill. I saw some great ideas. Merci. 770 is not splerging, but we MAY be able to do a little better. I am going to try. WOW - I got on this website to get some money saving tips. After seeing this I think I should start my own site. I have a family of 6 and my budget is 400mth. That includes all of our cleaning and paper goods too (shampoo, laundry, hygene, dish det. etc.). Even if we went out once a week at 50 each trip my amount for 6 is considerably lower than Trents. I did look up the amount we would get for food stamps if we were unemployed and for my famiy size it would allow up to 981mth just for FOOD. Do we wonder why Americans are so fat and lazy. GYM CHICK 97 says: I could definitely see spending over 700 a month on food, however, our new rule is everything must go before we food shop. I8217ll buy basics (milk, eggs, bread, peanut butter) but that8217s it. Once snacks are gone that8217s it We8217ve gone from soda to sparkling water at 0.68 a bottle and we love it. My food bill went from the over 700 to about 400 a month. i diligently clip coupons, make a list based on the supermarket add and plan my meals for 2 weeks so I8217m sure I have what I need and don8217t need to 8220run out quickly8221 for something. We all take lunches to workschool. We only let them buy lunch on Friday8217s when it8217s pizza day and that money comes from extra change during the week that gets put into a jar. I could spend upwards of 50 a week on food at work if I bought lunch8230.i refuse too. I8217m definitely getting alot of helpful tips from this website8230.Glad I stumbled upon it. Quick update for me. Family of two in Minneapolis, all toiletries included, about 45week (we eat almost exclusively at home). I suppose if we had two younger kids, we8217d be looking at perhaps 400month 700 sounds really insane to me unless you live on the coast or something I live in Minneapolis too, and we spend about 500mo 8211 we only buy local freerange meat amp grassfed milk amp butter, which is more expensive but 1) we can afford it and 2) I grew up downstream of here and don8217t to be responsible for manure spills anywhere. It8217s totally possible to spend less 8211 when I was a stay at home mom we spent about 13 less on food (same amount of cooking) and before that we were pretty much freegan for a few years 8211 in 2000 my grocery budget was 50mo for two people. But that doesn8217t mean you have to. I think the commentator who said Trent8217s family is eating the 8220liberal8221 meal plan on the 8220average8221 budget is spot on. I have a family of 4 in New York. I clip coupons and closely follow the sales in the store circular. It8217s rare that I buy anything that isn8217t on sale. I buy a ton of fresh produce. We eat a lot of meat but I am working hard to get more vegetarian meals into our diet. I recently let my warehouse club membership expire because I can (mostly) get the same good prices at the regular grocery store, although I have to pay more attention and wait for the sale to come around. I use a breadmaker every week (have not bought any store bread since June 2008 only hot dog rolls, although I really should try them with dough from the breadmaker) (When I run out of yeast, I will go with a friend who has a warehouse club membership because the yeast there is WAY cheaper than the little packets in the grocery store. The flour, too.) I use a credit card (have never carried a balance) and every so often I can redeem the 8220points8221 for a grocery store gift card. My monthly bill is about 380 and that includes all toiletries, cleaning supplies, medicines, soaps etc. Does not include cat food, I count that separately. Don8217t dismiss the infant. I assume food includes formula or infant food and those things are really expensive. We had twins and couldn8217t wait to get them off formula we were going through a large tin a week ( 25 8211 30 a tin). If 8220food8221 also includes non-food baby items 8211 wipes, diapers etc. then that baby is using their fair share of that 770. 770 doesn8217t seem unreasonable, though it definitely depends on where you live and the priority you attach to food and thus the types of food you buy. A lot of this sounds like people who are overweight saying 8220I really don8217t eat all that much.8221 It8217s very possible to spend way less than 770 a month on food for two adults and two preschool children, if you want to or need to. I can make six meals on one chicken, if I want to8211 12 breast for stir fry, the other 12 for fried rice, 1 leg and 1 thigh for enchiladas, etc etc etc, ending with tortilla soup from the carcass. May I suggest that Trent try a month with a lower food budget and see what happens I spend about 800 a month to feed 11-12 people, most of whom eat like adults. That averages to less than 300mo for the 8216average8217 family of 4, and I feel pretty good about that. I think one commenter, above, probably said it right that Trent is probably managing a 8216liberal8217 meal plan at a 8216moderate8217 price point. If I had to go cheaper with my food budget, I could. I think 600 would be doable. But when it comes down to it, I8217m not willing to sacrifice THAT much. And fortunately, because of frugal choices in other areas, I don8217t HAVE to. The really cool thing to realize about frugality is that is about HAVING choices. Being frugal in some areas often frees up the budget in areas where you are less willing to compromise. The trick is to make choices that work within your own budget. I have a hunch that Trent is doing just fine at that. Mary, mom to many author FAMILY FEASTS FOR 75 A WEEK Several people here have said that it depends on where you live. Since I8217m retired and could therefore live anywhere, I8217d like to know where the absolute cheapest place is I don8217t think 700 a month is that outrageous. Most of the stuff we buy rarely if ever have coupons. We try to eat from the local food shed when we can. It8217s worth it for us to spend more for quality food. When a teen age boy can taste the difference in the eggs from the organic pasture raised chickens then I know we are on to something. We choose not to spend money on new cars, lots of 8220toys,8221 or cable tv, for example. It8217s all where people decide to prioritize their spending. Food budget definitely depends on where you are in the country (mid-West suburban in a temperate climate has so far been cheapest for me) as well as how you shop and what you are willing to sacrifice. My husband and I buy generics whenever possible. We recently increased our budget from 50 a week to 60 a week since I8217m pregnant. This includes pet food and litters for 2 cats as well as paper products. We eat well, with plenty of meat, but are not into 8220fancy8221 meals, since my husband usually cooks at least half the time. We eat tacos, casserole, hamburgers, chicken stir fry, spaghetti, or 8220breakfast for dinner8221. He eats lunch out twice per month, and we usually eat dinner out together twice per month. I figure the cost of cooking those extra meals at home would be marginal if it were necesssary. He also buys 3-4 2-liters of diet soda a week. Milk in our area costs 2 a gallon and we can usually find hamburger for 1 a pound on the clearance rack and we cut up the larger packages, repackage, and freeze them ourselves. Why are we doing all this since right now we make 80,000 a year We recently paid off his student loans in less than 3 years (40,000) and plan to live on just his income when the baby comes in August. Is it for everyone No. Does it take sacrifices Yes. Do we eat healthy, filling foods Absolutely. No vegetable garden yet, since we live in an apartment, but definitely looking forward to that when we get our own home (we have 30,000 in liquid savings for a down payment, vehicles, medical expenses, emergency fund). And yes, we usually stick pretty close to the budget (we were 7 under last week and 10 over this week, but that included enough toilet paper and paper towels for 3 months). We do buy brand names when on sale and when the quality is better (I can8217t do generic toilet tissue, I use Charmin ultra strong and can usually find a really good sale). I would love for those who are feeding a family of four for 400-500mo to give us a food plan, I8217d love to see what they are buying and how much they are spending for it. We are a family of 4 and I8217ll tell you, I8217m not sure what we were spending, but I8217m sure it was 700-800mo. I was making some things from scratch some times, but my goal now is to make pretty much everything I can from scratch (mayo, mustard, the works). I8217d love to get our food budget down to 400mo. Wow8230 this is quite a discussion We live in an expensive area for food-the equivalent of a gallon of milk is almost 8, which I think it pretty high. Meat and veggies are bad, too. Unfortunately, the things I8217m trying to feed my family more of (fruits, veggies, good meats, fresher anything) are the things that never go on sale and NEVER have coupons available. Coupons just seem to be for junk. No farmer8217s markets closer than an hour8217s drive away - and if you factor in the 30 min. drive to get to a grocery store with good produce, it just drives the prices up even more. I used to think I did pretty well on grocery spending8230 until I really started tracking every purchase. Those quick stops for milk and bread really add up I8217m learning to keep costs down by planning meals and shopping less frequently, but I still throw out too much gone-bad produce (I buy vegetables with the best intentions, but nobody here likes them, even cooked really nicely) and too many leftovers. As for Trent, he8217s always saying that being frugal means you have money to spend on what8217s really important to you, and for him, food is clearly it. I don8217t think this 8220revelation8221 undermines his message. He8217s doing what he loves, enjoying his life without going into debt to do it. We live in Nebraska, a family of four (soon to be five). We spend 800 a month. We eat mostly produce based pastas. I cook every night, we rarely eat out. We do buy organic milk. We don8217t usually buy processed foods. My husband and I are very frugal, so when we moved, he disputed my monthly budget amount for groceries. We spent the next month saving every food related reciept (groceries, fast food, etc). If you do ittoo and are honest with yourself, you will notice how those small midweek trips add up. So I think the average is right on. I won8217t feel guilty for buying healthy food for my family, knowing that we eat and not let go to waste. However, I wonder if the national average is based on grocery bills that are full of cheap processed foods. I have a husband who works construction (big eater), a mom, an infant on formula, and myself. All of our groceries plus Enfamil formula plus diapers and other toiletries runs about 350month here in Minneapolis. We don8217t eat out often, and we all bring lunch to work. I have mixed feelings about the 8220average8221 figure reported in the post If you are feeding your family of four on 770 a month while buying local, organic, hormone-free food, Trent, you are doing very well. I would wager that the average moderate family of 4 is not spending the 771 on items that are as healthy. I have been on both sides of the fence on the issue of how much to spend on food. I have a family of 4. We have a 7 year old and a 3 year old. I used to spend 300 a month using Aldi, Walmart, and Kroger to get the maximum amount of savings possible. But I have changed my priorities recently. I have started going to a coop in town that sells local, organic, and healthful food. I have also joined a CSA and try to go to a farmers market as well. I don8217t buy much junk food and we make our own bread and pretty much every meal is from scratch. Our bill is a little closer to 600 per month now8211and we live in an area of the country where food is not terribly expensive. Organic food in the U. S. is not subsidized. That8217s why it8217s so expensive compared to non-organic items. So for all of the people who have criticized you bc they eat on a smaller budget, their food might cost close to the same as yours to produce but Uncle Sam is subsidizing it (mostly to farmers working for big corporations,) and the independent organic farmer relies on only his customers to foot the bill. So, a person8217s grocery costs might not all come out of hisher individual pocket, but society is paying for it just the same. Also, Americans spend an average of less than 10 of their money on food. In Europe and Japan, it8217s about 16-17. They don8217t eat stuff laden with corn syrup. They are more healthy overall and have less medical expenses, too. It8217s good to be frugal8230but not at the expense of one8217s health. Andy Baker says: Perhaps those of you who are feeding a family of seven on 600 (see 15 Salve Regina 5:01 pm September 1st, 2008) a month have a stay-at-home mom or dad who has time to cook the majority of meal from scratch and comparision shop. I8217d like to see more responses from young families of four with two full-time jobs and two kids under the age of five. More information on jobs and age of children would be very helpful. All of these messages have been interesting to read. I am a single parent of 3 kids. My 2 adult kids (18 amp 22) live with me, as does my 2-week old grandson. My youngest child (12) is here to visit for the summer. I bring home (after taxes amp insurance) less than 18,000 a year, and my daughter gets WIC and 200 in food stamps from the state per month 8211 and we make it on that. Our food budget right now is the 200 from my daughter8217s food stamps and I try to supplement our food budget whenever I can by doing cleaning amp painting jobs on the side. We do not have credit card debt, an expensive car (10 year old minivan) or a lot of luxury bills. Just the basics. Wow, I just did a search on frugal shopping because I8217m struggling with my 300month budget, and found this. I8217m absolutely sure that is all that gets spent on food (in answer to a couple old posts asking how people keep track.) My husband tracks every penny spent and where it goes, and I never use more than 150 at the grocery store (I go twice a month) and we don8217t eat out AT ALL. The food I bring home every other week is the only food we eat. My husband may grab a coke or candy bar at work IF he has change8230probably amounts to about 5 a year. Lol. PLUS8230my budget(which is for 2 adults, one 2-yr. old and one infant-I nurse so I eat more)8230that budget also has to cover all household items, hygene stuff etc, about 70month in prescriptions (asthma and eczema), 15month in dog food, cat food and litter, and any gifts for birthdays or extras. So basically, my 300month budget covers EVERYthing that is not bills or gas for cars. For food itself, I probably spend about 200month. (Which breaks down to just over a dollar per person, per meal.) Oh, and I stay at home, cloth-diaper my infant, and cook everything, we have oatmeal for breakfast every day, weekends we get eggs or pancakes. Lunches are whatever is left over from dinner, and my toddler doesn8217t eat packaged snacky foods (like crackers cookies juice etc.) We usually snack on leftovers. Basically I buy a little meat, lot of grains (lentils, barley, beans), lot of potatoes, try to throw in some fresh veggies, and some milk, cheese, baking ingredients, and pbampj. I don8217t buy soda or candy or any packaged foods. I do garden, but as we live in high desert, it only produces some tomatoes (which are cheap anyway) and a few spices and some squash. Doesn8217t make a dent in my shopping. Well let8217s think. We have three kids 2 4 and 10. I buy luvs diapers and only use pull ups at night. Two boxes of diapers and one large pkg of pullups and wipes is about 75 a month. 10 toilet paper 10 paper towel 10 laundry detergent 5 dish soap and my monthly groceries are over 100 and I haven8217t even bought food yet. We drink approx 4 gallons of milk a week. A bag of green apples might cost 3 on sale strawberries2.50 and grapes. Now add in lettuce carrots potatoe corn and zuchinni. Oh and bananas. And that8217 just fruit and veggies. I spend 800 easily. Plus 50 a week in gas. Plus eating out clothes shoes and medical expenses averaging 1250 a month. I know because we charge eveything and pay it off every month to get bonus points. I8217m sure we could eat much much cheaperbut I value fresh veggies and fruit and outside of july and august here they cost a pretty penny. I spend about 450.00 a month for a family of four(three adults, one twelve year old boy). This also includes cat food for four cats, and two dogs, all paper products. (We do use microfiber cloths a lot. Also includes dishwashing products and detergents. We eat well, and have a varied and healthy diet. I only shop sales, and use coupons where I can. When I can8217t, I buy generic. I also rebate, when available. We always have a freezer full, and our pantry is over-flowing, most of the time. We don8217t drink alcohol or eat out. What we fix at home is always better. We shop several stores within about a seven mile radius. We do have a small garden. I understand if people have allergies or medical conditions and can8217t eat certain foods. I do belong to programs where I get discounts on pet foods.(large coupons) We also utilize any leftovers. I would love to have a budget or 770.00 a month. I would use the leftover money to add to our savings for said twelve year old8217s college account. We spend anywhere from 450-600 on food per month for two of us in the upper Mid-west. I have celiac disease so the coupon packs that come with the Sunday paper are largely useless to us. I have to be careful with meat - a local grocer was selling chicken breasts for 1.99lb last weekend, but the meat was treated with chicken broth - a common feature of cheap meat and a big no-no for someone with celiac disease (the 8220natural flavor8221 is often barley malt, which doesn8217t have to be labeled as it isn8217t one of the big 8 allergens). This means I end up spending more for either brand names like Jennie-O that will label all gluten or for organic meats. It also means that it is even more difficult for me to eat at others8217 houses or restaurants. All labels must be read at all times. Sale items are often off-limits and as a grad student I don8217t always have time to hit several stores to stock up on loss leaders. Special certified gluten-free flours are considerably more expensive than standard wheat-barley all-purpose flour. GF pasta is two to four times more expensive than standard wheat pasta. We don8217t fuss about organic butter and cheese, but we find that usually the organic milk keeps longer in our fridge, which is important because we don8217t go through it quickly. We cook almost all of our food at home (since restaurant meals are like Russian roulette for me) and we cook from scratch as much as possible, so we spend a lot on things like cooking oils, vinegars, spices and herbs. We buy GF grains (rice, quinoa), nuts and legumes in bulk which save money overall but up the grocery tab for the month in which they were bought. It doesn8217t help that my husband has a hollow leg and will often eat half or more of a meal that was intended for four servings - he has a freakish metabolism and has yet to break 150 lbs at 5821798243. We also like to have people over for dinner and tend to cook big dinners - much cheaper and safer than dining out, but that adds to the monthly bill as well. Given all this, I8217m totally okay with spending a lot on our food. Now that I know how to treat my disease, I don8217t get sick anymore. I8217m not dosing myself up with all kinds of pharmaceuticals to get through each day. I8217m not spending money on doctor co-pays only to be told 8220I have no idea what is wrong with you8221. Totally worth the expense. Salut à tous. We have really struggled the past couple years with job layoffs. After literally having no food in our house and getting down on our knees begging God for food, we finally applied for food assistance. The first month we got 280 and I fed our family of four better than I ever had before Food had always been last on my list. I paid all bills first and then bought food with what was left over which was usually not much. My poor active husband pretty much starved. I shopped at Save-A-Lot, Gordon Foods and Walmart and was able to make lots of casseroles and pasta dishes. A bag of frozen chicken breasts is usually 10 at GFS for 15 breasts. I strongly believe in healthy eating so I tried to cook as healthy as I could with canned foods. Then, unfortunately we lost some more income (believe me, we are desperately trying to figure out our situation. we live in a very rural area and there is not much opportunity) anyway, we lost some more income and our food benefits were increased to 475 per month Wow, we eat like kings And always have money left over We shop mostly at Super Wal-Mart and we are able to get all kinds of amazing produce we eat a lot of fresh spinach, peppers, strawberries, blueberries, asparagus, tomatoes, etc. and have more food than we8217ve ever had We spend between 300 8211 400 per month. I can8217t imagine spending 770 They must be able to eat pretty much everything they could ever want I already feel like I have that on 400 per month. But, maybe that8217s because we were used to eating nothing and pretty much starving ourselves. The only reason I sought assistance was because I realized that while I could get by on very little, it was not healthy to do that to my kids. We are trying everything we can to climb out of our hole and not have to use government assistance anymore I can8217t wait until that8217s our reality and we have money. Start by planning your meal around an inexpensive 8220base8221: Bread, potatoes, rice, or noodles. Pick one of those first. Then add some meat, veggies, fruit, dairy to round out the meal. Only make enough meat for 1 serving per person (unless you8217re planning to use leftovers for another meal or the freezer). If people are still hungry, point them towards the breadpotatoesricenoodles. Same goes with the milk consumption. Give the kids their 1 cup serving (use a measuring cup to see where 1 cup comes up to on the drinking glasses you use). If they8217re still thirsty, point to the water faucet. I8217m single and spend 50-60 a month on food (and yes, I do eat meat, cheese, dairy, etc). That would translate to 200-240 per month for a family of 4. I cook everything from scratch8211and work full-time. Even when I had kids at home I worked full-time (and at times had additional part-time jobs) and cooked from scratch. As I always say: If you8217ve got time to watch television (or spend hours on the internet), you8217ve got time to bake bread, cook from scratch, make laundry detergent, sew, etc. I find it interesting that people are willing to cut corners on healthy food. Of all the things to spend money on, this should be at the top of the list, and not the place to cheap out. Also, it would be extremely helpful to see where each commenter lives. Here in the Seattle area, the cost of living is pretty high. I have been shocked at my family8217s grocery bill, but haven8217t figured it out without non-food items. Will go and do that out of curiosity Thanks for the thought-provoking post. I found this article while going on my own quest for cutting our food budget. We make a small fortune and our savings is8230well8230 horrid. So I sat down a few weeks ago and started adding everything up. I8217m a stay at home dad with a 5,6 and 10 year old and I cook 100 of the meals here. Food is certainly a highlight of everyone8217s day here. My wife and I are both very healthy. She8217s 5821768243 and 130 and I8217m 6821758243 and 189lbs. The kids are all of equal size. With that said, prior to this month my grocery bill was around 1500.00 in a suburb of Indianapolis. I didn8217t change my menu much and reduced our bill down to around 650.00 a month. How I stopped going daily or every other day to the grocery store. Instead, I do a monthly menu and shop every two weeks for all the items only going back for milk bread and eggs. Why easy, daily shopping always adds a couple of dollars for extra items. Biweekly doesn8217t add anything if you have a list and stick to it. We8217re not eating any boxed meals, I won8217t feed my family that nonsense. We don8217t eat fast food, it8217s too unhealthy. My wife drinks soda, but me and the kids drink milk, juice and primarily water. The trick for us, was making a master menu in excel but paper would work. I listed all of the meals I cook, the ingredients for each meal and how balanced of a meal it was. from here, I8217m able to make my shopping list and not miss anything. Meals with ingredients that won8217t last two weeks I make first or make and freeze. For a month, we8217ve been eating much the same for much less money. The kids don8217t know any difference. My wife notices that we8217re coming up with almost 1k extra a month and is loving it. I found this by typing in 8220average food budget8221 wondering if I8217m still higher than needed, or lower. It appears I8217m doing well but considering I8217m in a state where my milk costs me 1.90 a gallon and my bread is rarely over .65 for 100 whole wheat, I think I can do even better. If I can offer one piece of advice, plan ahead Not just a week, but a month or more. Make a list and stick to it at all costs. Thx for this Trent. Frankly I don8217t know how anyone is making it on the numbers posted in this blog for less than your average. My wife does all the shopping weekly for all three of us in the household plus our large dog. She has a budget of 200week and this is inclusive of personal hygiene products (toilet paper, deoderant etc). We have a nine year-old who is very active. I8217m the only one in the household classified as overweight so I probably eat more. I8217m an accountant by trade and tirelessly watch our dollars and track everything in Quicken meticulously. At 200week or 800month divided by 30-days and then 3 persons - that works out to feeding and keeping clean at roughly 9 per day. Take that number and divide by 3 meals per day and we are eating at approx 3meal. We rarely eat out and generally cook our meals for 3-4 days in advance every week. I8217ve noticed that most of the products in our panty are Great Value (Walmart brand)since brand names have become out of reach. HOW THE HECK ARE PEOPLE EATING FOR LESSPER MEAL OR PER DAY I just don8217t see how that is possible. My husband and I first started working on getting a handle on our food budget (really, our finances in general) in 2006. We are two early-thirties, average-sized vegans living in Southern California. Upon calculating our food spending, we were surprised to discover that we were each spending around 600 a month on food, for a household total of 1200 on food a month. I8217m not kidding. For people who wonder how two people can spend this much, it8217s a combination of: over-buying groceries (we were throwing spoiled things out every week) not comparison shoppingpaying attention to costs of foods buying only really high-quality ingredients, often from an expensive health food store eating lunches and dinners out a couple times a week for about 6-12lunch and 30dinner and just generally having no clue what it was 8220normal8221 to spend. Four years later, after much effort and learning, and with zero reduction in the quality of food we eat, we each spend 160month on food, for a combined household total of 320month. This number doesn8217t include the around 100 we spend on staples like dried beans and quinoa at Costco every 3 months, though, so figure that kicks our cost up to around 354month. We made the following lifestyle changes to reduce our spending: carefully organized the fridge and pantry from top to bottom, so we always know what we have at all times, meaning no more buying excess and wasting it pack all lunches at home (we never buy them anymore) bake our own bread every weekend in the breadmaker I bought 3 years ago at a heavy discount switched from canned beans to dried beans (we cook a big batch in the pressure cooker every weekend 8211 so much cheaper) buy bulk oranges and make our own juice (we freeze small amounts in little jars and then move them into the fridge as needed 8211 delicious, cheaper, no added sugars or anything) make a large batch of brown rice every two weeks and freeze 1 cup portions, so they8217re always on hand we cook with the crockpot and in big batches more than we ever did before, so there8217s always food in the house we cancelled our CSA, which was 35week, and began going to the farmer8217s market every Saturday instead, which is much less expensive in our area (I understand the cost of CSAs vs. farmer8217s markets may vary by region) we made a price book and learned where our staples were cheapest, and began to only buy them there we eat out only once a week now at the very most, and only at our favorite restaurant8217s 8220happy hour8221 8211 all their healthy appetizers are 12 price before 6pm on Fridays, so we can share 3 big appetizers (things like salads made from local, organic produce, quesadillas made with caramelized veggies and vegan cheese, etc.) for under 12, and still have leftovers for lunch the next day, bringing the cost of this date-night 8220splurge8221 down to 3personmeal we never order alcohol or soda in a restaurant, and drink only so-called 8220two buck chuck8221 wine from Trader Joe8217s (2bottle) at home we buy organic for things on the 8220dirty dozen8221 list of pesticide-retaining foods (strawberries, apples, etc.) but less expensive conventional produce for the rest I never ever buy cleaning products 8211 we make our own from bulk jugs of vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, and baking soda, saving money, keeping toxic chemicals out of our home, and helping the environment rather than 3-4 trips to the storeweek, we shop just once a week now, under the theory that every time you walk into a store it8217s out of your pocket we routinely make our own salad dressings and vegan sausages instead of buying them, which is kind of fun and a huge savings we bought a few plastic food storage tupperware bins for a few bucks from Ikea, allowing us to keep all our fresh produce in either the crisper or a bin, and it stays fresh many days longer because of this and most importantly, we put ourselves on a cash only, strict food budget each week, and when the money is gone, it8217s gone, and we eat what we have in the house. I also looked into couponing, but it just isn8217t possible for the way we eat. I always see couponers insist that they buy 8220healthy8221 foods with their coupons, but when they list some of these supposedly healthy foods (sugary juices, chips, cookies, and other snack foods, mac and cheese, frozen dinners, etc.), I have to respectfully disagree. We don8217t personally eat things that aren8217t whole grain (we don8217t even buy non-whole grain pasta, let alone rice, bread, etc.), and eat only unprocessed, fresh, and vegan foods, so coupons generally don8217t apply to any of our items. That said, I can often find veggies and fruits on sale for under 1pound at our local Henry8217s Market, and our farmer8217s market always has 1 bags of things like onions, zucchini, squash, bell peppers, etc. that are an amazing deal. We eat lots of meals of simple, cheap things like roasted veggies (veggies roasted on cookie sheets with a little olive oil), chili, vegetable soups, veggie curries over rice, salads with beans and rice to make them more filling, and so on. Dessert in our house means either popcorn popped from kernels we buy in bulk, or a piece of fruit. Once in a blue moon, if we want a cookie or something, I bake a cookie with flour we8217ve bought in bulk and chocolate chips I8217ve gotten on sale. I think the key to managing this area of the budget without compromising quality is to track things carefully and thoughtfully, using a system that works for you, and to challenge yourself to eat the same on less every month, until you hit the level where doing so stops being possible. Then you know your minimum necessary food budget, and you can make an informed choice about how much to spend each week, fortnight, or month. Then develop a system of sticking to your budget that works for you 8211 for us, the key was going to an all-cash food budget, and to manage it in easier to track two-week, rather than month-long, intervals. Finally, I8217m sure that if all I had was 150month to feed a family of four, or whatever people are claiming they do, I could find a way to do it, but not without seriously sacrificing the quality of the food I was buying. Everyone has to do what they have to do to get by, but I don8217t really think anyone can tell anyone else what the 8220right8221 food budget is for their family, and especially not people living in different parts of the country with different food costs, and with different definitions of what 8220healthy8221 food is. I8217m both amazed that Trent is being criticized for his budget and amazed at the low numbers provided by families who are getting by on so little for groceries. Good for you, frugal families I have no idea how you do it Like Donny8217s wife, I have a budget of 200week for groceries and toiletriescleaning supplies. My boyfriend and I eat 400 in groceries and probably spend 100 in eating out per month. Since our goal was to get down to 500month in food costs for the two of us, our current budget makes us feel very thrifty We do, however, feed our friends and family members a couple times a week when they are low on cash or as a way of saying congratulationsthank youetc (we are pretty generous about helping them out with food), and we opt to go out to a 20 dinner and watch NetFlix movie occasionally rather than, say, spend the same amount on a theater movie. I wonder, respectfully, if the individuals with low food budgets are making up for it by spending more heavily in other areas An example besides the movie theater bit would be that we help our friends and family with food, but we do not donate to church or other charitable organizations. I8217m living in Souther California. My wife and I both work full time, I8217m out of town every other week, 7 days on home for 7 days. Our Home consumables FOOD Cleaning supplies Toilet paper and everything else you buy at the store runs about 3,000 a month. The wife doesn8217t seem to think this abnormal, I do. I have been cooking and freezing meals and trying to lead by example. I hope to at least save about a third of this money and put it towards home repairs and vacations. Oh yeah, we are a family of Four our daughters are 5 and 12 years old. READY FOR THIS I SPEND AN AVERAGE OF 100 PER WEEK FOR A FAMILY OF 5. THATS A 20 YEAR OLD GIRL, A 17 YR OD BOY AND A 14 YR OLD GIRL. TODAY MY CHECK WAS 99.42, WITH COUPON SAVINGS OF 78. THATS A SAVINGS OF 44. I ONLY SHOP AT ONE GROCERY STORE. I USE THEIR COUPONS AND ONLY BUY WHAT IS ON SALE THAT WEEK..BOUGHT 9 PORK CHOPS FOR 11. SAVED 8.33 ON THE PACKAGE. TWO PACKAGES (24 ROLLS) OF TOILET PAPER FOR 9.98, 2 1 COUPONS AND A COUPON FOR 2 OFF MY NEXT SHOPPING ORDE THAT MEANS I SPENT 5.98 INSTEAD OF 12. BTW, NONE OF US ARE OVERWEIGHT. I BUY NO SODAS, FRESH FRUIT AND VEGIES ONLY IN SEASON. MY KIDS MAKE THEIR SCHOOL LUNCHES ABOUT 2-3 TIMES A WEEK. THANKS FOR LETTING ME BRAG. ) I created a free calculator that will calculate your monthly spend based on the USDA averages (without requiring the PDF lookups and complicated adjustments based on how many family members). Advertising Disclosure: TheSimpleDollar has an advertising relationship with some of the offers included on this page. However, the rankings and listings of our reviews, tools and all other content are based on objective analysis. For more information and a complete list of our advertising partners, please check out our full Advertising Disclosure. TheSimpleDollar strives to keep its information accurate and up to date. 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