11 Ways I Cut Down on Grocery Bills

One of my biggest expenses are groceries next to utilities. I'm always finding ways to save even a nickel or dime wherever I can, yet live on a decent diet. My goal is to have as much fresh fruit and vegetables in my diet as financially possible.

The diet around the house is more grain based, lots of fruit and vegetables, some poultry and the occasional red meat. This means that the coupons that I use are far and few between, so I have to find other ways to save money.

Find the dent and mislabel area:
I shop at the local King Soopers(Kroger) store and occasionally at Safeway, both of these chain stores have an area in the back of the store where they put reduced items or items that are about to expire, mostly bakery items.

These areas aren't as large as I would like, but they are handy if you don't have a salvage store in your area or within decent driving distance.

Some other places to look for greatly reduced items are dollar stores and their cousins. There is a Big Lots near me and Dollar General, these stores seem to be best for general merchandise and not food, but yours may be different.

Know your grocery circulars:
Circulars come in handy with stores that will match prices of other stores. The first thing I did before going forward was to calling around to the stores I frequent and find out if they price match.

Price matching doesn't seem to be a chain decision but a store by store decision so calling is best and sometimes calling on different days/hours as you can get different answers if management isn't available or they have multiple managers.

Clip coupons that you might use:
Over time I have said to myself, "darn I wish I had grabbed that coupon." Something always seems to come up that I buy something I didn't know I would need. Now I clip coupons that I know I will use and others that I think I MAY use. If I don't use them, that is fine, at least I have them just in case.

Double up on coupons:
You can't use two manufacturer coupons on the same item, but you can use a store coupon and a manufacture coupon together.

I'm not great in this area, because I rarely find items to use both a store coupon and a manufacturer coupon. But on occasion there will be a Target coupon or Walgreen coupon that I can use with a manufacturer coupon that is an even better deal than a cheaper brand.

Find stores that double coupons:
King Soopers(Kroger) doubles coupons and is the only store in my area that does. Because of this there are many times I will shop at King Soopers instead of Walmart. Even though Walmart may have an item that is 35¢ cheaper, the doubled coupon at King Soopers will save me more money.

Shopping loss leaders:
Every circular I get from King soopers, Safeway, and Albertsons have a few deals that are so good I can't pass them up. Stores do this on purpose to get me in the door in the hopes I will pick up more than I need, so they sell these few items at a loss in the hopes they will make up the cost when I buy other items.

These loss leaders are the ones I want to stock up on when I can and if I have coupons to go with them, even better. Many of these loss leaders are staples as well - recently I stocked up and froze 1.77 gallon milk, I also grabbed a few extra boxes of cereal.

Carry a calculator:
I'm a big fan of carrying a calculator around for two reasons
1. I can figure price per ounce or pound and choose the best deal
2. I can keep within my shopping budget

Always ask for rainchecks:
I love it when sale items are out of stock, ok, I don't love it when they run out, but I enjoy it when I can get a raincheck that allows me an opportunity. When I go to customer service they always ask how many I want and I always tell them a little more than I need, just in case. They usually get the item within 7-10 days so I have time to get additional coupons.

Write a grocery list:
This is handy for a couple of reasons
1. You don't forget anything and it helps you stay on target and not get sidetracked
2. You can write down the price of the item you bought

Check your receipt:
Since I can't expect to remember all the prices of the items I buy, I instead use the price on my grocery list and compare it to the shopping receipt, any discrepancies I can go to customer service and speak with them showing them my grocery list to get my refund.

Speak with employees:
At one store I go to they drop the meat prices down around 6am each day to sell off the meat that expires in a day or two. Another store brings fresh bread in around 5am, so it is handy to pick up bread and necessary meat on the way home from work.

The last few things I make sure to do are as follows:
- Eat before I go shopping - this drastically cuts down on junkfood shopping.
- Shop the outside ring of the store first and go to produce last - tired of bruised fruit.
- Keep up with coupons on the web -this allows me to buy multiples of a product.

I like to get my coupons from an assortment of places:
I have signed up with manufacturers, like Pillsbury and Kraft foods as well as used the links below.
CouponMom
boodle
CoolSavings
CouponBug
SmartSource Coupons

Some other sites used by others that cost
grocery game
coupon clippers
grocery coupons