to think that £500 is far too much to spend on groceries in a month?

[fartlek]

I just totted up what I spent at supermarkets this month and realised that this is why I am £20 away from the end of my overdraft the day before payday. DH has also bought groceries this month so this isn't even our entire bill! We don't share accounts so it gets a bit murky as to who spends how much on what (this is a whole other thread to be started in relationships, we won't go there just now) but I'm pretty sure this is extortionate.
I have never been much of a budgetter when it comes to food shopping, I just buy what we need and try not to go for the most expensive item. What do others spend if I may ask?

We were spending around 700 a months as a rough guess u till a few months ago we now have a menu plan and a shopping list and it's down to around 500 a month for 4 adults one 5yr old with sn (nappies included in the food shopping bill ) 2 cats a dog and a extra adult 3 times a week

Oh my I'm feeling dreadful reading this.

We are around £800 a month id say to include 2 adults 2 kids and 2 cars.

We buy from tesco and do a top up at local small store. Sometimes I'd say more than that. Especially if I buy fish from Fishman. That costs a bomb.

We buy wine and beer and go through periods of entertaining ( sometimes BBQ meat from farm shop is v expensive)

If I do the shop I'm much more careful but my hb is dreadful. He buys all of the 3 for 1 offers even if we don't need it just because it's on offer. Mainly non perishables.

But this thread has made me relook at what and how we spend.

I do cook a lot from scratch and my fridge is full of vegetables and fruit bowl is always being devoured by kids. We barely by CBT sweets or chocolate or junk/processed food.

Is that the issue? Or maybe my family just eat tons!!

About the same if not a bit more. Two adults, one child, one baby.

Only two of us at home now and we spend about £160 to £200 per month.

Is that the issue? Or maybe my family just eat tons!!
Look in your bin!
REALLY look in it, over a whole week, it's very telling.
We were buying the same stuff every week that we were throwing away because we weren't finishing it on time

Blissfullyaware ... I could have written your post, that's us exactly, I reckon some months we go over £1k

And I hardly throw anything away, I make meals from scratch. If something is getting that it needs using, I'll try to make it into a dish that I can freeze.

My foodbin this week consists of bread, few potatoes, celery and some grapes

Do you keep your receipts? sit and look at them some time in the week and stuff with stand out, like we were getting DDs cartons of smoothies which were massively expensive, we get them cartons of juice now which are about a 10th of the price

Think it's reasonable especially if it includes other household items like washing powder /toilet rolls /cleaning stuff etc etc -

www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3813909/Woman-s-600-grocery-bill-leaves-internet-horrified.html

We probably spend a bit less than that, but not much, 4 of us - 2 ds's that eat as adults.

We don't waste much! I buy what I want to buy: if I fancy pie, new potatoes and veg, that's what I buy. If I fancy ribs..... it's it in the reduced section I buy it and make a meal out of it. Plus a few bottles of wine here and there - soon adds up.

Daily Fail strikes again.

Poor Barbara - they really like your advice!

6 of us, including a DH & teen ds that eat way more than average and we easily spend £150 a week. I did notice what used to a big £130 shop 18m ago or so nor can be £40 more. This week just food + some laundry detergent came to just over £150. And I will probably need a top up of fruit & bread on Friday. I suspect I could reduce the bill by going to Lidl, no Aldi nearby though. But the driving around from shop to shop is such a hassle. We can afford our current level of spending, but I know I could get it down if needs must.

Crikey. We spend £150 a week on food essentials and wine. Four of us. But then both DH and I spend £40 a week each on lunch at work.

I could easily spend more. Love food shopping!

It's interesting on here to see how what people get varies so much. But honestly I don't know how you can spend that much every week. Recently Tesco sent me 6 weeks worth of vouchers with £8 off- each shop - which had to be at least £80. Decided that I would use a few of them, but really struggling to think of items I could get to push it up to £80. So I ended up getting a lot of stuff like tins of things, toilet rolls, etc., that can be stored until needed, to make it up.

And no, we don't live on beans on toast!

And we .have things like salmon and steak regularly. Actually DH (who can be a bit tight) was horrified at the thought of an £80 shop, I had to talk him round!

More Daily Fail fodder!

They need to start paying MN for providing stories for them. Lazy lazy researchers

*More Daily Fail fodder!

They need to start paying MN for providing stories for them. Lazy lazy researchers*

What makes you think they aren't? MN has never commented one way or the other.

We were at about 125€ a week for 4 adults 4 kids.

For those that think the familys that are spending alot less than them must be really scrimping on what they're eating we don't!

We have chicken breasts,steak,diced beef,diced lamb,whole chickens,leg of lamb,joints of beef,joints of pork,bacon we get all of those from the butchers.
I'm really glad we swapped from the supermarket to the butchers,the meat and poultry's so much nicer and some times it works out cheaper.
Things like sausages,burgers and sliced cold meats we only buy the one's with the highest quantity of meat in them.

Every week we buy fresh salmon,fresh mackeral and fresh prawns.

I was spending about £180 a week before we started meal planning,that was thanks to a parenting site.

I don't know where I'm going wrong on average I do £1,000 a month. 2 adults, 2 children, this doesn't not include take always or meals out!

It is facinatinating isn't it ? We are 2 adults, dd 9 and ds 12. On a "good week" it's £60 on a "I just Cba" week it's £80. That includes cleaning stuff and a bit of booze. Last week was £67 and we have eaten;

Home made pizza, garlic bread ,salad
Spaghetti Bol
Sea bass with roasted veg and couscous
Thai chicken curry and rice
Strange but delicious meal with cauliflower , feta cheese and onions on wholemeal pasta
Tartiflette ( cheeses, balcony, creamy potato bake)
Gnocchi with tomato sauce with black olives finished in the oven.

Dh and I both take left overs to work. Dd has packed lunch and ds school dinners. Cereal, toast or egg for breakfast in the week. Pancakes or waffles at the weekend. I usually do soup for lunch at the weekend with fresh or bake at home bread. I work to 2x veggie meals, 1x fish, 1x red meat, 1X chicken each week.

Snacks are fruit, pop-corn, home made cakes if there are any and veg sticks. What we don't buy are ; ready meals, biscuits, processed meat or air freighted fruit if I can possibly help it. We have pudding only at the weekend and that is usually a homemade fruit pie or crumble, sometimes ice cream and just 1 litre of juice ( for weekend breakfasts). Although this probably does make our shop cheaper I do it for health reasons.

70-100 per week here two adults, two kids, two kid.

This week's dinners:

Sat: Mozzarella, garden toms, antipasti, cous cous salad
Sun: Lamb chops, cous cpus salad, Greek salad
Mon: Salmon stir fry with noodles
Tues: Pasta, cheese sauce, salad, garlic bread
Weds: Chickn risotto with parsley and Caesar salad
Thurs: Pizza and salad
Fri: Turkey steaks with poultry gravy, cranberry jelly, mushrooms, shallot, parmentier spud and peas.

Plus: Muffins, eggs, bacon bread, salad stuff, cheese, garlic puree cereal, jar coffee, two bottles wine, 8 stellas, soft drinks, t bags basics water, bog roll, shwr gel, cat food, tealights, Cpl veg, fruit, yoghurts, cheese, crackers, kipling cakes, milk butter, cream cheese, salami, ham, pitta bread, hoummous Cpl lemons.

That sort of stuff - probs £150ish. If I didn't work full time I'd shop around and there wouldn't be luxuries. But all in all taking into account time and convenience this works.