By far, your biggest food expense is probably from eating out at restaurants. Step one of any food budgeting should be to limit eating out.

I’m not saying not to eat out ever, but try to be more intentional about it. Only eat at your very favorite restaurants for special occasions or very busy nights.

You’re probably a busy working parent, student, or young professional. It is so hard to make time to cook everything from scratch. But the opposite extreme of eating out for every meal is not sustainable and makes a huge dent in your wallet.

There is a statistic that the average cost of food per month for the typical American household is $314-$516. This is a helpful starting point for your food budgeting goals.

Spending Comparison: If you spent $314 vs $516 on food every month, how much would you save on food to in 1 year? 10 years?

The savings would be $202 in a month, $2424 in 1 year, and a whopping $24,240 in 10 years!

Do you ever wonder why money just seems to be disappearing from your bank account? Small habits such as these build over time and lead to major differences.

If you start food budgeting now and being more mindful of your spending in general, imagine the savings over time. Imagine what you could buy with that kind of money!

Easy cooking instead of eating out

1. Buy fresh groceries and meal prep and cook in bulk 2-3 times throughout the week. Check out my easy chicken and veggies meal prep for meal-prep inspo.
2. Buy pre-made food from a grocery store. Costco rotisserie chicken anyone? Also shout-out to Trader Joe’s with their prepared salads and mixes!
3. Buy frozen veggie mixes! They are a dream when you’re in a time crunch and need to get some veggies in!
4. Buy frozen fruit and make a smoothie for breakfast. That takes care of at least 1 meal for the day. Smoothies are fast, easy, and affordable.
5. Subscribe to a meal kit delivery service. It is more costly than shopping for yourself, but may save you money compared with eating out for most meals.

2. Buy only what you need for the week

CNBC published a story that estimated that the average American household wastes $1500 in food every year.

So what does that mean for you?

Avoid over-purchasing especially on perishable food items!

Food waste is rampant in developed countries. Buy less food than you think you need, because the majority of people waste a large percentage of their food. Over-buying leads to more food waste, which leads to money draining from your wallet.

Buying less will automatically help you with food budgeting because you will be spending less on items you don’t need.

Try adopting a mindset of abundance rather than fearing you will not have enough to eat. Most of us are fortunate enough that food security is not a problem. But major food waste is.

3. Shop the sales

A key to food budgeting is shopping smart. That means shop the sales!

Due to the timing of grocery store shipments, most grocery stores in southern California have sales on Wednesday, midway through the week.

If you shop on Wednesdays, whatever was on sale the previous week is still on sale.

Plus, you get double the savings because the items on sale for this week are just beginning. Double the deals means more savings for you!

4. Buy more plants and fresh foods

In general, we pay more money for food that is processed and packaged. It also creates more waste if we buy more processed foods because of all the packaging involved. So for the sake of your food budget and the planet, buy fresh fruits and vegetables whenever possible.

Also, meat is very expensive and can wipe out your food budget. Not to mention, meat production is terrible for our planet. Spend more on veggies and buy only 1 meat-based protein a week to optimize your food budget.

5. Set a food budget

You cannot build wealth without making some sacrifices.

Sacrifices mean you have to learn to live beneath your means and save money.

That means you will have to learn to make a food budget.

Set a budget for how much you want to spend on groceries and eating out per week or month.

Aiming for $30-50 per week for groceries is a good place to start. The more generous you are, the less limited you’ll feel. That will curb your cravings to eat out, which will deplete your food budget even faster.

You can also set a budget for how much you want to spend on eating out per month. According to a Business Insider article, Californians spend $3,295 per year eating out. That amounts to approximately $274 per month. Set a budget for yourself that is lower- maybe $200 per month and slowly work to reduce that amount.

6. Buy seasonal

Have you ever tried to buy strawberries during wintertime? Or basil?

It is 2x-3x more expensive than what it costs in the summertime, which is its natural season.

Buy what is in season and you will reduce your overall grocery bill. Your food budget will thank you!

Search here to find what is seasonal in your area right now.

7. Be Flexible

Rigidity is the enemy of any new habit or goal. Create flexibility in your food budget. How?

If you ate out more during 1 week, then make up for it the next week by eating in more the following week.

If you blew your budget during a given month, make up for it the next month or next few months. Be kind to yourself and just keep trying.

Don’t give up. Your financial independence and wealth-building depend on it!