Do you love food? I know I do! We need food to live but the variety we have makes it a delight. As a result, food costs end up being one of the largest household expenses for families. So, how do you save money on food? The key lies with the type of expense food is.
Saving Money on Food, a Variable Cost
Most of our expenses are fixed and there is little we can do to change them. Expenses like mortgages, rent, car payment, insurance are examples of such. The only variable expense is food. So, to save money, we must focus on cutting food costs. How? Here are 3 easy steps.
Track Your Food Costs
This means you track the amount you spend on food including groceries and eating out. You can track either weekly or monthly but have enough of a sample size to give you a good idea of your spending habits. Once you have done that, find your average food spending costs.
Reduce and Save
Once you have your average food costs, take 10 percent of that amount and immediately put into savings. You will do this every time you need to spend on food(either weekly or monthly). The other 90 is what you will spend on food. So, is that it? Not quite!
Use Cash, Save More Money
The next thing you need to do is take that food budget as cash. Why? Because once your cash is gone, there is nothing else to spend. If you use a debit or credit card, there is always the temptation to spend beyond your budget. Cash takes this away. Also, you will be more mindful of what you spend on and might have cash leftover. If you do, put that into savings too!
Conclusion
It seems pretty easy and it is! Most times the simple solution is the best solution. So try it out, you might be surprised on how much you save! Saving money is important; eating food is very important. But you can have the best of both worlds. So eat, drink and save!