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| list for price-matching |
Here is an example. You can see that at WDG turkey is $.88/lb. But, at WM it is the same price, so there is no hurry to buy it that day. I did not buy it at all, as it turns out.
S&S grocery had sugar at a price that made me decide not to get it. Actually, I more than plenty on hand. Do you remember when I found sugar marked down and a coupon for the same sugar, making my sugar $0.25/lb. ($1.25 for 5 lbs.)
Hopper's turned out to be a good deal all around. I bought oj, pineapple, and cheese with their prices matched at WM.
TSC is Tractor Supply. I don't remember what "stuff" was.
Piggly Wiggly is where I found cheap apples, but nothing else I wanted, even after making a list of items I might buy. That is all I bought from the list of things there.
Save A Lot--changed my mind.
Win Dixie was best price on onions. Bought some.
Dollar General and Target--did not need more flour. And, it was too high.
K Mart--decided I did not want or need black beans because I have a few cans. I don't eat that many black beans.
The only stores on this list that are right in town are Piggly Wiggly, K Mart, Dollar General, Save A Lot, WM, and Aldi. Actually, Piggly Wiggly is just 5 miles in the wrong direction, sort of out of the way. Target is 40 miles away and Winn Dixie and Publix are 50 miles away. Hopper's and S & S are 15 and 20 miles away, respectively. Sometimes, I get an ad from Kroger's (25 miles), but I can go online for that ad.
That day I bought from this list: oj, Dole's Pineapple, Kraft Cheddar, apples, oranges, onions, celery. I might have bought milk or something not on the price-match list, maybe not. I shopped at only Walmart and got prices from four stores. My lack of ability to get in and out of the car easily causes me to just go ahead and do all my shopping at WM. The real problem is the walking into the store and maybe finding that the two carts in a smaller store are in use.
I did not get a poinsettia and never got to KMart, both on my list. I was not going to buy a reindeer. I will explain that some day.
This list might look like a lot of trouble, but if I search through ads while sitting in the electric cart in the store, I block traffic. It is also easy to check out because some clerks demand to see the price in the ad. Searching through ads at the register takes longer than getting coupons in order. I used only one coupon on this trip--Dole canned pineapple.
So, that is how I shop every week. Some weeks, I am not so super-organized or really cannot afford the deals. If I only buy 1) price-matched items, 2) items on sale, 3) items on sale at WM, or 4) items at clearance prices, or 5) use a coupon on top of 1-4, I never have to buy anything and pay full price.
I have an in-my-head allotment of money for groceries and toiletries. If the end of the month is coming soon, like in a week, I check to see if I have enough money for milk and bananas. Then, it doesn't matter if I want something or it is reduced/sale-priced because I don't get it. One week, I may spend $50 and the next I spend $6, depending on whether there is nothing on sale that I want or I just have no more money.
Your turn
Do you make this kind of list to price-match? Or, do you make the list and stop in at multiple stores? There is no judgment. I do too, sometimes, but not the ones out of town. What does your list look like?
My list looks pretty much the same. I list each store and the items on sale that I normally buy under it. Then I usually go to the ones that have the best deals, and check the cheap rack in each while I'm there. It's a ridiculous drive to any store from here, so the extra few minutes up the road to each store is pretty inconsequential. I don't go every week though, more like every 3-6 weeks, except for the little store in the closest town, if I really need something.
ReplyDeleteWendy,
ReplyDeleteWhat I do can be adapted in order to get the best deals. I cannot walk much and you live far away from stores, so we cannot do exactly the same thing. Thanks for sharing.
I did put the French's fried onions on the list because they are so good, but I had the green bean casserole a few times during the holidays, so I decided to forego those.
My wife makes a list of what we need, so we don't forget to get anything and I just pick up what I want. We usually just go to one store for everything and do not clip coupons. The only coupon that my wife clips is the one for 30 percent off any one item at Hobby Lobby.
ReplyDeleteDizzy-Dick,
DeleteLists are wonderful. And, I like that you just stick stuff in the cart. I need to start using the HL coupon. Thanks for reminding me.
Publix just changed their coupon policy, not in a good way for the customer and Walmart then followed with a change of NOT matching BOGO deals. I have an on-going list of what I buy at Sam's Club, Walmart and Amazon Prime. I don't like our local Winn-Dixie and Sav-a-lot is about 10 miles away. Walmart and Publix are no farther than 2.5 miles so that's where I shop weekly. Sam's Club we go to once a month for Rotisserie Chicken, almonds, walnuts, large container of unsweetened cocoa, certain produce and a few other select items. My grocery list is pretty much the same all the time - I use the same ingredients but with varying herbs and spices for variety. Amazon has the best prices for herbs & spices, almond flour, nutritional yeast & sunflower seeds and I use the Subscribe & Save for even more savings.
ReplyDeleteBellen,
DeleteI just caught a bit of the coupon change at Publix and never heard it again. It seems I, too, do buy pretty much the same things during a month. You use a large container of cocoa each month. I could come by any day because it seems you must always bake something chocolate.
Linda - I hate oatmeal so I put a tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder in that every morning and my husband and I eat a cup of non-fat greek yoghurt every day and put a tablespoon of cocoa in that too - never bake because of my diabetes. The yogurt-cocoa is my sweet treat for the day.
DeleteBellen,
DeleteI understand how you could use so much. I thought you were baking...lol. If you hate oatmeal, why do you eat it? Is there a reason you flavor with cocoa so much? Sorry for so many questions about your choices. Do you put sugar on your oatmeal?
I go to 3 stores: HyVee, Aldi, & my BF's. From our house to each 3 stores it's a total of 1.9 miles. So 3.8 miles roundtrip.
ReplyDeleteI get all meat & milk from the BF for free. I get "specialty" items at HyVee (I use the rewards system too, so if an item I already planned to buy earns cents off gas, great. I don't buy things just cuz they're on sale unless I NEED them). And everything else, like cheese/bread/crackers/fruits/veg/broths/etc at Aldi. I don't shop based on sales. I create my menu for the week (things I know I'll like & eat), then look for ways to cut costs. i.e. substitute thyme (that I already have) for bay leaf.
I budget $200/month for groceries/eating out. The groceries make meals for me & the BF.
It is 3.5 to my fartherest store. One day, I commented to a friend that I wished I had a butcher for a boyfriend. Wellll, meat is high. I do the opposite--I look at sales and decide what I will eat. That way, meals are cheaper. $200+ milk and meat is a very generous budget. I try to keep mine to $120 to $130. So, I guess we consume about the same.
Delete