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how to spend less on food piggy bank in a grocery cart

How to Spend Less on Food—Even When You’re Busy, Broke, or Both

/22 Comments/in , , /by Mary Hunt

If it feels like your paycheck disappears before you even get it, food spending might be the culprit. Between school drop-offs, work deadlines, and everything in between, it’s no wonder drive-thrus and delivery apps start looking like lifelines. But those quick fixes? They’re quietly draining your budget. Whether you’re juggling a busy family, catering to picky eaters, or just trying to get through the week without another dinner emergency, I’ve got simple, real-life strategies to help you cut costs without cutting flavor. No gourmet skills required—just a little planning and a fresh perspective.

how to spend less on food piggy bank in a grocery cart

Here’s a wild thought: what if, instead of handing over chunks of your income to restaurants and takeout joints, you redirected some of that money into savings—automatically, from every paycheck? That weekly takeout habit might just be the reason building an emergency fund feels impossible. Don’t just take my word for it: in 2023, Americans spent a record-breaking 55.7% of their food budgets on meals away from home, leaving just 44.3% for groceries and home-cooked meals. That’s a staggering shift—and a big opportunity for those of us ready to do things differently.

Imagine being strategic with your grocery list, stocking up on basics, and whipping up easy meals at home. Not only can you eat better for less, but you might finally see your savings account grow—without feeling deprived. I truly believe that no matter your lifestyle, with the right strategies in your pocket, you can spend less on food and still eat well.

Lifestyle #1: More Time Than Money?

Ideal for: retirees, stay-at-home parents, or anyone on a tight budget with time to cook from scratch, plan meals, and shop sales.

senior couple laughing and baking cookies

If you’re in a single-income household or finding yourself at home more often, you know how challenging it can be to balance the budget and get everything done. But here’s the good news: time is on your side. With more hours at home, you have the flexibility to take advantage of money-saving strategies like meal planning, cooking from scratch, and shopping sales. It takes a little extra time and effort. But the payoff? It’s worth every minute.

Shop Multiple Stores

Most supermarkets roll out weekly sales that include jaw-dropping prices—especially on “loss leaders.” These are products so deeply discounted that the store actually loses money on them, hoping you’ll toss a few full-priced items into your cart while you’re there. You’ll find these deals in weekly flyers (online and in print), and they rotate often. The trick? Shop the best deals across multiple stores each week. Yes, it takes effort—but it’s like giving yourself a part-time paycheck in savings.

Eat the Sales

Build your meals around what’s on sale, especially those loss leaders. Don’t worry—you won’t be stuck eating crackers and canned corn. These sales span every department, from produce and dairy to meats and pantry staples. Get creative, and you’ll be surprised how much variety you can enjoy. Just remember: a good deal is only good if it fits your budget and you’ll actually use it. Don’t let a sale price tempt you into overspending.

Make a Plan (and Stick to It)

Before heading to the store, make a detailed shopping list based on the sales and your meal plan. Set a budget and treat it like it’s set in stone. Shopping without a plan is like tossing money to the wind—don’t do it.

Coupon Like It’s a Hobby

Matching coupons to sale is your best weapon against rising food costs. Sites like TheKrazyCouponLady.com make it super simple to find the best coupons and match them to current deals. They’ll even walk you through how to stack deals, use cashback apps, and time your purchases for maximum savings.

Lifestyle #2: No Time or Money?

Ideal for: students, single parents, or anyone juggling long work hours and a limited grocery budget.

family around dinner table with semi homemade chicken french fries

If you’re in a dual-income household with kids, you know how precious time is—and how fast it slips through your fingers. Between full-time jobs, school drop-offs, extracurriculars, church, and those frantic weekend marathons just trying to reset for Monday… who has the time to run around town chasing grocery deals? And yet, the grocery budget is still painfully tight. It’s a tough spot—but there are ways to make it work.

Pick One Go-To Store

Your best move? Find the one grocery store or supermarket in your area known for consistently low everyday prices. This becomes your home base. Download the store’s app, sign up for emails and loyalty rewards, and keep an eye on digital coupons or special app-only promotions. This cuts down on the chaos while helping you catch deals you might otherwise miss.

Plan Backward

Don’t start with your menu—start with the sale flyer. Take a few minutes to check what’s marked down this week and build your meals from there. Avoid tossing full-priced items into your cart unless absolutely necessary. With a little practice, you’ll get familiar with your store’s sale cycle—most departments rotate sales every 10 to 12 weeks. That means when a favorite pantry staple or go-to dinner ingredient is on sale, buy an extra or two if your budget allows.

Take the Makeover

If you can carve out even a little time in the evenings or over the weekend, consider taking The Grocery Budget Makeover course. It’s packed with simple strategies that help you stretch your dollars and your time. You don’t need a second job to make the numbers work—you just need the right tools, and this course is one of them.

Semi-Homemade to the Rescue

On those days when you just don’t have the time to cook but eating out isn’t in the budget, consider a semi-homemade approach. This is when you mix pre-prepped or takeout foods with what you’ve got in your kitchen to create a meal that’s faster and cheaper than dining out. For example, a rotisserie chicken paired with some quick-cooked rice and a side salad can make a hearty dinner without the effort of preparing everything from scratch. Embrace the shortcuts when you need them—no shame in that!

Cooking for Picky Eaters and Special Diets

You’ve got the time. You’ve got the skills. What you don’t have is a family willing to eat what you cook—thanks to a long list of “nope, not touching that” ingredients and dietary restrictions that sound like they came straight from a medical textbook.

Let’s face it: when you’re juggling picky eaters and doctor-ordered diets, meal planning becomes a chore that’s all hassle, no reward. It’s enough to send even the most seasoned home cook straight to the drive-thru.

eMeals

If you’re looking for flexibility, variety, and sanity-saving help in the kitchen, eMeals is a gem. This meal-planning service won’t cook dinner for you (sorry!), but it will take care of the mental load: planning your weekly menu and even sending your grocery list straight to your favorite store for pickup or delivery.

You choose the plan that works best for your household—gluten-free, diabetic-friendly, heart-healthy, vegetarian, quick 30-minute meals, slow-cooker favorites, and more. Want to swap out recipes midweek? No problem. You’re in control.

You can try eMeals free for 14 days, and if it clicks, it’s just $4.99/month with a 12-month subscription—or $37.50 for three months. Bonus: eMeals users report saving an average of $2,000 a year on food costs. Now that’s something to chew on.

Lifestyle #3: More Money Than Time?

Ideal for: busy professionals, dual-income households, and folks who’d rather outsource dinner than juggle recipes and grocery runs.

meal kit home chef box ready to cook

If you’re a young professional or part of the DINK crowd (dual income, no kids), you probably don’t need me to tell you that time is in short supply. Between demanding jobs, grad school, long commutes, and trying to sleep at least six hours a night, grocery shopping feels like a luxury—right up there with folding your laundry the same day it’s washed.

Let’s be honest: a lot of folks in this lifestyle default to dining out, drive-thrus, and delivery—not because it’s indulgent, but because it’s the only way to avoid subsisting on energy drinks and peanut butter crackers. It’s survival, not splurging.

Home Chef

Before you scroll past thinking, “Meal kits are for people with time to burn and exotic taste buds,” hold on. Home Chef is different. I’m saying that as someone who loves to cook, has time to cook, and lives a mile from Costco—and I still choose Home Chef.

Here’s why: Home Chef meals are made with real, fresh ingredients you’ve heard of. Nothing weird or hard to pronounce. Each week, you get to pick from over 35 meals and 18 extras—from classic comfort foods to vegetarian, keto-friendly, carb- and calorie-conscious, and even Mediterranean options.

You choose how many meals you want for 2, 4, or even 6 people, and every box includes exactly what you need to make those meals. No wandering grocery aisles. No guessing portion sizes. No recipe rabbit holes. Just oil, salt, and pepper from your own pantry—and dinner’s practically done.

Let’s talk dollars. Eating out regularly, especially for two or more people, adds up fast. Here’s the math:

  • Home Chef Family Plan: Starts at $7.99 per serving. That’s around $32 for a meal for four—less than most fast-food runs and way less than restaurant dining.
  • Home Chef Plan for Two: Starts at $9.99 per serving, so about $40 for two people. Even at a no-frills diner, you’ll likely spend more—and lose time in traffic, waiting, and wondering what’s in your fries.

Here’s the cherry on top: If you sign up now, you’ll get 15 free meals, free shipping on your first box, and a free dessert for life (yes, really—dessert, every box!). You can also pause or cancel anytime.

So if your lifestyle is fast-paced and you’re juggling way more than feels sustainable, don’t skip meals—or settle for a sad vending machine snack. Give Home Chef a try. You might just discover that cooking doesn’t have to be a chore… especially when someone else does all the planning and shopping for you.

 

Question: What’s your go-to budget meal when money is tight and time is tighter? Let’s swap ideas in the comments below.

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22 replies
  1. Anonymous says:

    This is useful advice for people who are making enough to cut some fat from their budget.
    It would be nice if you also had some useful tips for people who are making just barely enough to get by.
    Cutting out small luxuries doesn’t help if we don’t buy the small luxuries in the first place…

    Reply
  2. Don says:

    The email that came with today’s column explained why February only has 28 days, which prompted me to share my idea for a new calendar. It would have 13 months. Each month would only have 28 days. Sunday would always be the 1st of the month, Monday the 2nd, and so on. During a leap year, an extra day would be added to one of the months. I suggest December since it’s the busiest month for most people. This extra day would always be known as “Leap Day”, and it would be a holiday, giving as many people as possible a day off. If this calendar was put into use, it would be so much easier to schedule things. People would know which date every day fell on without having to look at the calendar.

    Reply
  3. Margie M Shapira says:

    Hi Mary,
    I love your column as you know but this is one i really have to disagree as coupons seem to be a thing of the past; there are hardly any for food these days; most that come our way are all new “meds” and the others are new cereals, or items too expensive to buy. We do shop different places for the sales but for those who can’t, it’s going to be tough with the inflation we are now having. Please be careful out there. Thank you again for the heavy load you carry for us!!

    Reply
  4. Arthur Mantzouris says:

    I use a food saver and if no one knows what that is, it’s a vacuum sealer that u make bags out of a roll of bags and u seal the bags on one end and it allows you to vacuum the air out of the bag. I use it every time I get the chance to get food items on sale like meat or vegetables or other things. It is a life saver for me….and I also save money on food by ordering food from my insurance company who allows me to have some choices from a catalog they give me for the year. It has some items like bread or trial mix or other things….

    Reply
  5. Michelle Scholz says:

    I, like many others, live a low carb lifestyle. It is very difficult to save money because protein is a lot more expensive than carbohydrates. Perhaps you could address this lifestyle when writing about saving on groceries. I love your advise. Many thanks.

    Reply
    • Mary Hunt says:

      Michelle, it’s all a matter of choice. For example, a can of canned chicken on sale is a super cheap value! Even better when you buy an 8-can pack at Costco. However, if you choose fresh, line-caught yellow-fin tuna as your protein, you’re right. That is going to be pricey, even if you get it on sale. Beans and rice in combination create a perfect protein. I just nearly stole a case of black beans at a warehouse club recently, that’s how cheap it was! There’s a lot of protein in cottage cheese, often on sale at rock-bottom prices. Eggs are protein rich, cheap too. All that to say, I don’t buy it that proteins have to be more expensive than carbohydrates. Or that it’s impossible to eat healthily and live below our means. That’s an all too-encompassing idea that could prompt you to overspend with abandon. It all depends on the choices you make.

      Reply
  6. Rhonda L Morrison says:

    I have a system where I mostly shop Dillons (Kansas Kroger affiliate) using the pickup option. It’s free for orders over 35.00.
    I scan this week’s ad and if available, next week’s ad to make sure I don’t buy something getting ready to go on sale or for special promotions. Kroger Krazy will usually have access to the ad on Saturday/Sunday. I also go through the digital coupons and load those I plan to use. What’s nice about digital coupons on the store’s website is it shows you which products available for coupon use. I also scan my receipts to ibotta and fetch and get amazon gift cards to buy other non grocery store items such as paper and printer toner. I live in a very rural area so a good stock pile is a necessity. My best deal this week was 32 oz of Velveeta, not inexpensive by any means but in the ad, it was buy one, get two cans of Rotel tomato with green chilies, and a bag of Mission tortilla strips for free. I also found a digital coupon on the Dillons site for $3.00 off of two Velveeta 32oz. For $12, I got two Velveeta, 4 cans of Rotel, and two bags of Mission chips, just in time for the big football games. I think the best tip of all is the one about knowing prices of the things you use the most. If you do, you will be able to know when something is on an okay, good, or great sale price. With inflation being what it is now, it’s more important than ever to know a great price.

    Reply
  7. Birgit Nicolaisen says:

    We use Home Chef regularly. They have certainly kept us eating at home more often. I like that we can skip a week or multiple weeks so easily. Sometimes nothing sounds interesting or our schedule is such that we won’t be home to use them up. And now I like to eat salmon and green beans. Who knew that was possible?

    Reply
  8. Cally Ross says:

    I find Home Chef’s shipping ($13.99) to be out of my price range. The meals are good, they’re great for this widow who lives alone, the two servings are great for my lunch the next day or I’ve put them in the freezer fully-cooked for an even quicker meal. My kids gave me a gift certificate for Christmas, I already had an account so the gift was a credit on my account. I have quite a collection of recipes now from Home Chef and I have used several by getting my own ingredients. I will probably go to once a month after the gift runs out.

    Reply
    • Birgit Nicolaisen says:

      There is no shipping if you order above a certain amount. If we order two different meals of 4 servings, we pay no shipping.

      Reply
  9. Joan says:

    I like the advice to pick a store and shop their sales. It works well.
    I would have to agree with Ann-most food coupons are for processed foods and snacks that we don’t/shouldn’t have around the house. I know there are many great coupons for baby, pet and cleaning items but we have neither a baby nor a pet. Mary I make my detergent and cleaning items from your recipes and they work wonders. Just the daily shower spray alone has saved me tons of money and needless scrubbing!!
    Many times when people ask me where I got the idea or the recipe, the answer is “Mary Hunt”. Thank you for EC! You’ve taught this old dog some new tricks!

    Reply
  10. Nancy says:

    Totally agree, all mentioned are great sites I have been using for years! Also want to mention couponfleamarket.com if you like to but in bulk like I do. I just ordered a bunch of jollytime popcorn coupons for .75c/1 to buy popcorn that is $1.38 a box. I do not eat the popcorn…usually give it away at the store BUT I do use the free redbox codes on the boxes which saves me a lot in the long run. Also want to mention Grocery Outlet. If you have one near you it is worth checking it out. About a month ago I found one pound packs of organic butter for .99c. My freezer is now loaded with butter (LOL). Last week I bought 1/2 gallon cartons of vanilla silk non dairy milk for .25c each. Many items are near expiration so you have to check the dates. Just went this morning and bought 10 packs of one pound thickly cut bacon for .98c each. My husband is a very happy man!

    Reply
    • Sheryl Meyer says:

      It must be nice to have the space to store when you can buy in bulk. I just don’t have the space and have a very small freezer. I have to get my savings by checking out individual stores and comparing prices. I’ve read multiple books on couponing and gone to many sites I’ve joined as well as going through newspapers and I can count on one hand seeing a coupon for anything that I would actually want to buy or need. I’m talking food-wise. I believe I’m stocked up on paper products to last for quite a while. I find most coupons are for toothpaste, deodorant, makeup which most of those saving money have probably stocked up on a while ago. I just wish there were more coupons for regular food and animal food where I live. I have found at least in California it’s pretty difficult to be a successful couponer.

      Reply
  11. Linda Pries says:

    I finally took you up on your Home Chef offer and I really do enjoy their meals but I still find them to be rather out of my price range. I plan on continuing using them, but only one week each month. On my fixed income I only receive money once a month and after paying my bills I can’t be paying out $50+ a week for food. This, of course, is from someone who might eat in a sit down restaurant/diner once every year or two and fast food once every week or two.

    Reply
  12. Ann says:

    I save money on food when I avoid buying snacks and packages and concentrate on whole foods. (Maintain a healthy weight too.) I save when I go to the store less often and concentrate on using up what I already have.

    Reply
  13. June Willoughby says:

    I just tried Home Chef and you’re absolutely right about the meals being delicious and easy to prepare with their step by step directions. Unfortunately, they don’t work particularly well for someone who lives alone or is trying to watch caloric intake which I am. Their smallest subscription is 3 days or 6 meals (2 per day). I have managed to cut the meals into three servings from two and that means I end up with 9 meals a week. That certainly cuts down on the overall cost but is too much for me. Do you know of any similar services that are geared for singles?

    Reply
  14. Pat says:

    Some other free blogs are KrogerKrazy and Hip2Save. I live by them. They save me so much money and I couldn’t afford to not have them really. I work a full time job and a part time job and have been supporting my two disabled brothers along with my grand kids. I usually save 60% or more at Kroger when I use coupons and match them to sales. I got Huggies for my grandson and paid 78 cents for 4 bags of them($25.78 after coupons with $25 back at the register). Sale, coupon, and cash back at the register equal savings. Some people say buying generic is cheaper but I have never seen generic diapers for that price believe me. I would have bought them in a heart beat. LOL You can use the cash back at the register to pay for produce and meat even. Be careful cause prices can get so low that you want to buy it even though you would never use it. I have been caught up in that and then had to donate them. I love overage. I bought formula once and didn’t have any kids but the coupon was larger than the price and at that time Walmart let you keep the extra so that was money off my groceries. I bought diabetic cereal cause I had a $5 coupon and it was only $3.74 so free cereal and overage to use on my shopping (same way with the formula I talked about earlier). I donated the formula to a shelter and ate the cereal but added sugar LOL. If I didn’t have my brothers I would have more meatless meals which saves money too. Go forth and coupon and watch those dollars. My goal this year is to start an emergency fund. I am down to my last credit card to pay off so I will be able to have an emergency fund which will be nice when I have to replace my roof in 5 years.

    Reply

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