Saving At The Supermarket

The supermarket is a great place to really save money during these tough times. It shouldn't be hard for you to easily save $100 per month or more at your supermarket because they'll compete for your business with aggressive sales, coupons and other sorts of discounts. Here's what to do:

Choose one place to shop. Supermarkets in the same area tend to have similar sales cycles. So the same deal you get on spaghetti at one store will likely be matched by another store at roughly the same time. Shopping at the same store also lets you familiarize yourself enough to know when a "special" really is special.

Buy enough to last. Supermarkets typically cycle their rock-bottom sales over a 12-week period through every section of the store. Buy enough to last that length of time and you'll routinely save 30% to 50% discount off regular prices. For example, if your favorite cereal goes on sale every 12 weeks, and you use a box of cereal every two weeks, buy six boxes and you'll always get it on sale.

Use coupons. Manufacturers are now extending coupons to many more meats, vegetables, healthful foods, organics and household products. They're also making more "multi-purchase" offers that save $1 to $5 if you buy several different items from the same manufacturer. You don't have to do a lot of clipping because 90% of all coupons are printed in the Sunday newspaper supplements. Also, many supermarkets will double the value of any coupons you use or issue their own coupon for the same item with a higher face value.

Use coupons on sale items. The week a coupon appears in the paper is often not when the item is on sale at your supermarket. This is because coupons are the first wave of promotion, designed to entice you to buy the item near full price. By stacking a coupon on top of a sale you can often get it free.

Buy on the last day before a sell-by date. Meat, bakery, milk and even vegetables are put on sale on the last day of their "sell-by" dates, whether they are specifically indicated on the product or not. Some products have the dates on them. Others such as vegetables are marked down after they've been on the shelf a while. These products are perfectly safe to eat and are usually marked down by 50%. Talk to the department heads about when to get the best deals.

Same price, smaller size. Manufacturers know that price hikes will drive away consumers. Instead, they maintain the same price but reduce the size of products, hoping that you won't notice. Ignore the total price and check the tags on the shelf that list the price per ounce or unit cost when comparing similar products. Consider store brands, which typically cost 10% to 30% less than "brand names".

Skip prepared foods. If someone else does the work, you'll pay for it. Cut vegetables, sliced fruit, bagged salad are a few examples. The premium you pay, often 100%, is not worth the time you save preparing the food yourself. One exception is a roasted chicken. You can usually get one for less than it would cost you to prepare it at home.

Use your supermarket loyalty cards. You'll save on more than just groceries. Many supermarkets offer discounts on things such as gasoline, oil-changes, car washes and restaurants to name a few.