How to use Microsoft Excel to cut down your grocery bill!

As promised, here is my post about how I have used Microsoft Excel to help cut down our grocery bills. This will be a long one, folks. Hopefully you stick with me! If there are any questions or suggestions, please feel free to leave them below!

So here goes!

First of all, the key to making all of this work, is... receipts. 

That's right. Keep your receipt from everywhere, for anything, keep it. I went to Staples and bought a small, coupon-sized expanding file for about $7 dollars. I organize every receipt I get (and I get a receipt for everything, now) alphabetically - except for gas station receipts, which are all filed under "G."

I came upon this idea one day while meal planning. I always try to pick meals that will make at least two dinners or a dinner and lunch. For example, I use this recipe very often:

Easiest Dinner Ever!

I don't actually call it that, or else I'd never remember what it actually is. It's a crockpot recipe, which automatically makes it a winner in my book. You can read the recipe for yourself, but it consists of chicken, corn, black beans, Rotel (I use hot for extra oomph) and cream cheese. You can serve it over rice, as a standalone, or in burritos. 

The reason I like this recipe so much is that it is A) Very easy, B) Very cheap, and C) Makes great leftovers!

One night, you can serve it over rice and the next night or for lunch the next day, you can stick it in burritos with some shredded cheese, lettuce, whatever you have on hand and BOOM! You've killed two birds with one cheap stone. 

So, you get the picture. Pick cheap meals that will stretch. The fewer the ingredients, the better. Now that doesn't mean your food has to taste boring. I have built a respectable amount of spices and I always am adding my own spin on recipes. I add minced garlic to almost everything. Here's another tip... WalMart sells minced garlic in a 32oz jar for $4.78. That thing will last you a good long while, I promise. It's well worth it, if you love garlic as much as we do.

Side note: Pinterest is amazing and has helped me so much to add new dinners to our rotation. If you haven't already, try it out and follow me!

My Pinterest!

This is turning into more of a food post than anything... so back on track we go!

So, you've started saving your receipts - specifically and MOST IMPORTANTLY, your grocery receipts. The idea to do this came to me after I thought about how nice it would be to be able to write up a grocery list and know exactly how much I was looking at spending for what I wanted to buy. The whole time, I had the answer to that problem crumpled up in the bottom of my purse.

That day, I fished all my crumpled receipts from the depths of my purse and figured out that if I made a spreadsheet on Excel, I could, at any time, look up a specific item and instantly have the price. So, that's what I did. In the beginning, I had a column labeled "Item" and a column labeled "Price."

It's really that easy. Sort of. 

Every single time I made a grocery haul, I would sit down with my recept afterward and go line by line, adding new items to the spreadsheet, checking to see what prices went up, etc. If I noticed items going up in price, I make a separate column with the date of the trip at the top and the new price listed in the cell beside the old price, for reference's sake. 

This is where Sam's comes in. If you don't know what Sam's is, it's a big box store, where you buy everything in bulk. I got a dual membership with a friend of mine, so we ended up paying $20 each. Let me just say, that $20 has been absolutely well worth it. 

With these types of stores, you must exercise a TON of caution. Don't go when you're hungry, don't go on a whim, don't go without a list. Don't stray from the list. You're probably going to stray from the list... because who can resist Gushers in bulk? Not me. 

Now here's the key with big box stores. You can rack up a huge bill very quickly if you're not careful, and you'll look in your buggy and think, I spent THAT much for so little?!

Not if you listen to me, you won't. 

Here's what I did on my last grocery haul. I'll preface by saying that I had decided to buy groceries to last us at least a month, hopefully more. I'll tell you right now, I have meat and food enough in my house for another few weeks - minus things like orange juice, milk, etc. Here's the awesome part - I went shopping almost a month ago!

I usually spent about $150 per two weeks on food. The military gives us a bit over $350 per month in a food allowance, and I try to stick with that budget. So, that was the amount of money I was working with. 

I made up my list for Sam's and Walmart and set out. Let me stop here and give a few more tips.

1. Never, ever, never go on pay day (if you live in the city I live in). 
2. Wear comfortable clothes and shoes.
3. Have a few hours to dedicate to shopping. I often will change my mind about an item after seeing a better sale on something else, but it takes time to browse around. The point is, don't rush yourself. 
4. It's easier not to rush yourself if you go when it's less crowded. Early morning, late at night. Weekdays, before noon. 
5. Take your printed out list with a column added to check off your item as you put it in your buggy. This will insure that you have everything and won't have to dart out one night to pick up taco seasoning. Sigh. 
6. Obviously take a pen. If you don't care what people think, take a clipboard. I've been trying to find a small one to strap my list into. I'm already that weird person walking around with a massive list and scribbling furiously... why not add to the crazy? I should. 
7. Always ALWAYS double check the price. You may have "$2.88" written down next to an item on your list, but the price has gone up to $3.19. That makes a difference in the end, so write it down on your list. 
8. You don't HAVE to do this part, but I always do. I calculate the whole thing up before I get to the register, to make sure I'm on track. If you've got your list, it doesn't take long and it gives you peace of mind. No one likes unwelcome surprises! 

On this particular trip, I set out with a couple separate lists. A meal plan list, a Walmart grocery list for all those meals, and a list for the items at Sam's I would be buying in bulk.

Here's a screen shot of what my list looked like:

I turned down the volume when I took it so the shutter sound wouldn't wake my snoring hubby. Yep, that's right, I'm blogging in bed. :)

There were a few things at Sam's that I planned to buy, that I had never bought and didn't know the price, so I had to guesstimate. The more you use this method, the better you get at guessing how much something will be, especially at WalMart. They like to end things in 8. 

Anyway, I spent exactly $201 at Sam's, which was a dollar more than my budget for that round... for shame. 

I'm constantly calculating and thinking while shopping. If I realize that what I'm buying in bulk could be more expensive than what I could get the same amount of stuff for the same price elsewhere, I won't buy it. For example, I made a mistake at Sam's. I bought two loaves of name brand bread for $4.18. I normally but a single loaf of Great Value bread for $1.28. However, that day, I was on a buy in bulk spree and wasn't thinking. I didn't realize I could just go to Walmart and buy 3 loaves of Great Value bread for less than what I paid for 2 at Sam's. Ehhh... you live and learn. 

Side note: buying in bulk often means you need to freeze items to preserve them. Almost everything can be frozen. Except sliced cheese. Tried that... didn't turn out well. Don't do that. String cheese, shredded cheese, bread, etc. All of that will freeze and thaw just fine. 

Don't feel like you're limited to just Walmart or Sam's. Certainly not! Be a savvy shopper and check out what kind of deals the other grocery stores in your area are running. One week, the Food Lion right down the street - which is normally much pricier than Walmart - had an awesome sale on cream cheese and box cake mixes. I use a ton of both! The cream cheese was 5 for $5! The Great Value cream cheese is $1.78... so of course I was sold. You might ask, who needs five bars of cream cheese? Well look at it this way. You will eventually need it, if you use it as much as I do. So I'm going to buy it when I can buy it cheap! Point being, stock up when there's a good deal... but not just for the sake of a good deal. You know what you'll use and what you won't. Be a savvy shopper!

Coupons can be helpful, but let's be honest: unless you're a crazy couponing ninja who buys newspapers from all over, you aren't going to save hundreds per month. I will buy a Sunday paper and clip only the coupons I need, and maybe some I know I'll want eventually. Coupons can be dangerous. They can trick you into buying something you don't need and won't use, simply because you think you're getting a good deal. Not the case. Clip only what you KNOW you'll use. It may only end up being an extra $3.00 off your final bill, but every penny counts. 

So what have we learned so far?

1. Keep all receipts
2. Make an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of prices, and for use in making grocery lists in the future
3. Always double check prices before you put an item in your buggy! Some people have a favorite brand they refuse to stray from. I am not ashamed to buy the store brand. If I'm getting more for the money, and the price is better, I'm sold. 
4. Always take your list and keep track of what you're buying. (Keeping note of the aisle doesn't hurt either. Whatever gets me home faster!)
5. Don't impulse buy - that's why you take a list and stick with it. Impulse buying leads to a higher bill. Don't go hungry, either - this often leads to impulse buying!
6. Don't feel rushed - take your time, check out deals, do your thing. Be thorough. You don't want to have to make a million trips later because you forgot important things like milk and eggs. 
7. Be a savvy shopper! Check out all the weekly ads for your local grocery stores and know where you can get the best deal! Don't be afraid to make multiple stops. In the end, the goal is to spend as little money as possible on the same amount of groceries. 
8. Coupons are fine... in moderation. Don't clip every single coupon you see. Only clip what you know you'll use. It's fine to hang on to them all just in case, but don't buy something you don't need and won't use for the sake of saving a dollar you didn't need to spend anyway. 

Well, I hope all of that makes sense! I know some of you may be wondering, how did she cut her bill down by using this method? Well, here's the answer! 

When you have your meal planning all done and you've written up your list, go through and make a spread sheet for that specific grocery haul. When you're done, you can have Excel calculate the total. Here's the thing - you'll either be happy with that number, or not. If you're not, you can look over your list and cut out what you don't need. Or, what I do sometimes, is check out what meals I've chosen and how expensive it will be to buy everything to make it. Often, I will replace an expensive meal with something much cheaper - it usually ends up being something I already have most of the ingredients for. This is also where coupons come in. Once you have a set list, you can search for what you need.

Coupons.com is a nice website to browse through a ton of stuff and get coupons. Your local Sunday paper will usually have a few inserts. Also, a lot of grocery stores offer a free membership with a card that allows you to save money. Sometimes they even offer coupons on their website that you can load on your card, so at the end of your trip when the cashier swipes your card, your coupons will come off that way. 

Here's another little secret. Some stores, like Target, stack coupons - which means you can use an official Target coupon WITH a manufacturers. I believe in order for that to work, the Target coupon must be scanned first, followed by the manufacturers. This is a great way to save even more money! I would print off their coupon policy, just in case a cashier decides to get high and mighty. 

I once had a Walmart cashier tell me that if people who used coupons would just get a full time job, they wouldn't need to use coupons. I was so offended and hurt by that comment - which was totally unprovoked and undeserved (I had like 5 coupons!) - that I called the manager to complain. Now, I NEVER EVER do that. This lady crossed a line, and I wasn't about to let it get by. I wasn't rude, or nasty. I just expressed my feelings and that I thought she was very rude. The next time I went to Walmart, the first thing the cashier asked me was, "Do you have any coupons today, ma'am?" :)  

Hopefully you've stuck with me through this long post! If you have, thank you for hearing me out! I hope what I have to say helps! It's not a perfect system, but it's great for those of us who like to be in control and on top of everything. 

If you have any questions or suggestions, don't be afraid to leave them below!

ps - I'm still working on the desk! Got a second coat of paint on this evening. I think it may need a third, and there's some sanding to do in places, as well as the final touches. Hopefully it will be done in a couple days and I'll have a post up about it all!