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I have written before that I could look at your grocery cart and find money to save and invest. Some people thought I was joking, but I’m not. My point isn’t about groceries, it’s really about finding money to save and invest, even small amounts over time. Groceries are just one example. I suppose I am promoting a bit of frugality and financial discipline in very modest ways.
Initially my conclusion about groceries was based on many hours of observation, but now I’ve done a little research with the help of several AI tools.
A USDA study found that for the average grocery shopper, categories like sweetened beverages, prepared desserts, salty snacks, candy, and sugar collectively account for roughly 22–23% of grocery purchases. That’s nearly a quarter of the cart on items most nutritionists would call non-essential.
The average U.S. household spends about $1,080 per month on groceries (probably more now), though the amount varies a lot by household size, location, and eating habits. For a rough per-person estimate, recent sources put it around $346 to $543 per month.
If I saved just 15% of $400 each month for 35 years at 6% interest, I would have about $70,700. Apply that to a family and it becomes $188,900.
Not much of a retirement nest egg for sure, but meaningful for a retiree now struggling to live solely or mostly on Social Security.
Of course, these are pie in the sky numbers, but the point is, for the vast majority of Americans saving is possible.
To me it boils down to the famous quote attributed to Henry Ford. “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t—you’re right.”
I totally get your point about finding hidden savings, and I suspect it applies to many, but it’s worth noting how subjective this can be.
Anyone could look into another person’s cart and find something to disagree with—whether it’s a six-pack of beer, a bottle of wine, or an expensive steak. Depending on consumption levels, and the consumer’s personal health, you could even argue some of these choices are unhealthy.
But the larger point is one person’s ‘non-essential’ prepared dessert is another person’s hard-earned reward. Budgeting is rarely one-size-fits-all because what we value is so personal.
Additionally, we never know the financial reality of the person pushing the cart. Many of those carts are being propelled by people for whom money is simply no object, making the exercise of auditing a stranger’s groceries a bit of a moot point.
This is my wife department, so I stay away from it. She only shop at Whole Foods or Central Market. The issue is there are only two people in the household, but she shop for 3 or 4. Personally, I think we waisted to much food.
Your article pointing out the long term savings is absolutely correct. A couple of other points I thought of were , (1) the short term benefit for all of the people that say they love paycheck to paycheck, and (2) it creates a good lifestyle habit that translates to all purchases.
We have three children. One shops at Kroger’s because of their sale prices, one shops at Walmart for their everyday low prices, the other shops at Aldi for their extremely low prices. We shop at all three for all of their reasons and because the three stores are in the same shipping plaza,
I don’t see the junk food spending as a source of investment money. That cash should be used to buy better food — fresh fruit and vegetables, good meat and fish. If there are a lot of empty calories in the cart, that’s stuff that’s being consumed instead of real food.
That’s an assumption, but it could well be junk is in addition to other spending. In any case, I’m thinking those who load up on junk food are not inclined to be more healthy eaters so why not try and save a few bucks a week.
Just like we don’t have a budget, my wife buys mostly the same groceries every week without paying attention to costs (maybe the only item sources of protein). We eat fairly healthy so it doesn’t matter what it costs because it’s what we eat weekly.
A friend of mine owns a small chain of convenience stores, which gives me occasional access to a perk I probably shouldn’t admit to, borrowing his trade card to visit a cash and carry. These wholesale warehouses are strictly retailer-only in the UK, so it’s not exactly above board, but the savings are hard to resist.
My garage tells the whole story. Walk in and you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d stumbled into a stockroom. Toilet roll and kitchen towel are stacked in bales six feet high, and I have enough laundry detergent and dishwasher tablets to see me through the next year at least. The rule is simple: if it’s non-perishable and the price is compelling, I buy for the year rather than the week. I apply the same logic at supermarkets too — a deep enough discount and I’m loading the cart.
Mark, we do the same. During Covid we never had to worry about the toilet paper shortage here in the US b/c we had plenty. LOL! Chris
My Kroger receipt tells me that I have saved $489.53 through the end of May, by using digital coupons and buying sale items not requiring coupons. Add to that number, savings when using store brands (that have proven to be comparable to name brands). That’s at least $100/month left in the checking account that I can use for things I enjoy more.
I could save more if I ran from store to store, strategically buying those loss leader items, but I have better things to do with my time. Aldi’s would save even more, but I don’t really care for the Aldi experience.
But the key is also what you bought with those coupons, right?
Not sure if this answers your comment. I don’t let coupons trick me into buying something I do not ordinarily use. Chrissy gives me a little good-natured grief because, when shopping alone, I never come home with something not on the grocery list. I think it’s important to shop with a list, not only to remember all that you need, but also to not buy anything you don’t.
My dad used to do all the grocery shopping; I’m afraid I picked up my miserly habits from dear old dad.
I can’t claim such discipline. I always come home with something not on the list, usually it is something we use and I spot a sale, but sometimes it’s just something I want at the moment.
The other day I had a coupon that was $20 off if you spent $100. At self checkout I came up with a total of $95 and panicked so I left checkout and ran to the nearest shelf for anything to get over the $100. Not knowing the price of the items a grabbed, I went over the $100 with two bottles of cranberry juice and two bags of goldfish crackers.
The people in line waiting to use the checkout weren’t happy with me running about, but I got the $20.
Two packages of Goldfish crackers?? Should have invested the money instead. And I hope the cranberry juice didn’t have added sugar!
I did invest it I got a $20 return, perhaps $14 net of the juice and goldfish. If I hadn’t used the coupon it would have expired.
Does that mean I shouldn’t have bought two 17.6oz bars of chocolate at Trader Joe’s last weekend?
I don’t spend much on eating out, but when it comes to chocolate, I tend to splurge. Every time I go to Ireland I come back with a carry-on filled with chocolate – it usually weighs 35-40lbs. It’s a good thing they’ve never weighed it 🙂
Our household (of three) spends roughly $700 a month on groceries.
Does that mean I shouldn’t have bought two 17.6oz bars of chocolate at Trader Joe’s last weekend?
No way, David, you should absolutely buy those chocolate bars! “I’d rather die while I’m living, than live while I’m dead,” (Jimmy Buffett).
That’s how I feel about it! My wife sometimes says my mother-in-law should cut back on <whatever> food, and I say “She’s going to be 97 next month, let her eat whatever she wants”.
Except for things that aggravate her diverticulitis – last episode was like a scene from a horror movie in her bathroom. We don’t need more of that 🙂
100%, Dave
I guess that depends on what your IRA or 401k looks like😎
Investments were up $76,994.87 for the month of May. I think I can afford some goodies 🙂
Thanks for doing the math on this, Dick, groceries are going up every month. I recently checked the USDA cost of food chart for our family age and size. We are still doing ok, but I feel things took a big jump in April and May. We try to strategically buy ahead, but in reasonable quantities. Not able to do as much of that b/c a lot of times we need the $$ for other things on the list. Idk if our other HD friends are seeing the same or not. We haven’t had to raise our grocery budget yet, but thinking about it. Chris
I splurge for a particular brand of cherry tomatoes, which taste the way that I remember when I was a kid. Last week they were $10 for the larger package. OUCH. I’m told it’s a combination of transportation costs and tariffs.
Eek! Did you plant a garden this year, Dan? Cherry tomatoes are easy to grow, even in containers. Chris
Agreed. Cherry tomatoes grow like weeds, and birds eat them and leave seeds in the ground for the following year. I don’t even plant them anymore, they take care of it themselves. My garden went in late this year, as we were traveling a lot in May. My normal supplier for plants came through with almost all my “normal” plants – Roma tomatoes, Better Boys, okra, and peppers. No basil this year unless I find it elsewhere. That means less pesto for the winter. 🙁