From the last post of our series, how to save on groceries without coupons, I talked about 5 ways to cut your grocery bill in half. To me, those steps are essential and if you do nothing else, they will still help you save on your grocery bill, as well as save you more time than you even realize, week after week.
Those steps are truly at the heart of saving money on your groceries period, and they will will serve you well if you put them to work for you.
If you’re anything like me, once you start saving you don’t ever want to stop, and you may be looking to see how much further you can stretch your grocery dollar. That’s what this post is for. I will show you how to find “rock bottom” prices and how to use these to your advantage.
What are rock bottom sales prices?
They are the lowest recorded sales price for any given item in your local grocery store. They are the ideal prices that you want to hone in on when shopping for your staples.
Find out how rock bottom prices are determined
There is a rhyme and reason to grocery store sales cycles. I know that this is hard to believe, I had to see it with my own eyes to understand it too. Grocery stores don’t just put sales on for no reason, they have a pretty predictable pattern if you know how to look.
Rock Bottom Sales come around about every 6-8 weeks. That is the lifespan of most rock bottom sale prices.
Produce will be at it’s lowest when it is in season. So when apples are in season, they will be one of the lowest priced fruit available. Strawberries are not in season until (season) so until then they will be at a premium. Know when produce is in season so you can. The later in the season the better the price gets too!
National Food Holidays set the tone. Yes, there are food holidays. Did you know that January is national oatmeal month? Well, it is. In January you will get the best price for oatmeal pretty much all year round. Everyone knows that Valentines Day comes up in Feb, but did you know it is also national canned food month? This is typically the best time of the year to stock up on all things canned like; fruits, vegetables, soups and more!
I was even considering writing up a printable to show you all of the things you can get each month, based on the in season produce, food holidays, and more. However, I realized that one of my favorite match-up sites already has a pretty cohesive list, which I refer to often when I go shopping.
So why make more work for myself, right? You can see the list for each month over at Living Rich With Coupons.
Get to know your rock bottom prices
Rock bottom prices in your area may not be the same as mine. Once you know the rock bottom prices for your area you are able to take advantage of those rock star sales days and stock up on your staples.
Remember, typically they won’t come around for another 6-8 weeks. Some sites out there, that share their rock bottom prices with you. However, that doesn’t mean you will see the same prices in your area. Instead of sharing my rock bottom prices with you, I wanted to show you how to create a rock bottom price list, or “price book” of your very own.
I originally tried to do this when my husband and I got our first appointment, but having a clipboard in the grocery store made me feel uncomfortable, and it was so boring. It wasn’t until a couple of years ago, that I found a much easier way to do this.
How to Create a Rock Bottom Sales Price Book (easily and from your own couch)
Supplies Needed: Notebook, Pen, 6-9 Weeks of Sales Flyers, Wine/Tea and your Favorite Show.
Step One: Save up to 9 weeks of your local grocery sales flyers
Step Two: While saving up your sales flyers create a template for your price book. Mine goes as follows; Category, Item, Grocery Store, Unit Price, Rock Bottom Sales Price.
Step Three: Once you save up to 9 weeks of flyers (wait until you have at least 6 or 7 if you don’t want to wait), gather these up, grab your pen and notebook and get pricing.
To make this feel a little less dull I like to create mine in front of the TV with a glass of wine or a cup of tea. I originally aimed to complete one category a month. Just look at your category, one item at a time, and look through all of the flyers until you spot the lowest sale price.
The lowest sale price is what you will put in your price book. Continue this for each item, then each category/item following.
However, if you still don’t want to do the work, there is a great rock bottom price list over at Living Well Spending Less.
This is one of the biggest key factors in saving money on our grocery bill each week, not to mention saving time. I mean, why am I going to buy something today (unless I really need it) if I know it will be at it’s rock bottom price in just a couple more weeks. Hold off the urge to spend, and save instead.
Now stop wasting your time and money and get your price book started today. Share this post with anyone you know who needs a grocery budget makeover!