Do you think £400 a month for groceries is too much

[emodi]

We are a family of four, two adults and a 14 and 11 year old . Since the lock down our grocery and household bills have increased to approx £400 a month. I have tried to explain to my hubby that the kids are not eating in school so it’s 3 meals , snacks no restaurants or takeaways and he thinks I’m being extravagant. I think this is perfectly reasonable as this includes all food plus cleaning products etc . Is this reasonable or am I being hopelessly extravagant?

Live with my parents and my 9 year old so don’t do a full shop as such but between Tesco/Morrison’s/Home bargains I’m spending £70 plus a week with toiletries etc

Sounds quite cheap to me. We are usually around £100 a week but closer to £160 in lockdown, but ours kids are only 5 & 2 so don’t eat much.

I think that's pretty reasonable. Ours is about £350 a month for 2 adults and 2 toddlers (3yr and 10month)

That seems about right too me. I spend about that much on food for our family of 3. That's dh, dd (10) and me. Dh keeps saying it's extravagant, but I have to keep reminding him that when he used to get the weekly shopping for £60 we would do at least one top up shop of about £25 and also pay for lunches at work. So we're saving money, it just doesn't seem that way because it's all in one go rather than spread out over the week.

Another family of four here, dc12 and dc10 - we’re about £150 per week, sometimes more depending on how much meat we eat and how I’m feeling when I do the supermarket shop!

That sound really cheap. My weekly shop shot up to 150 when the kids stopped school. They’re ravenous all the time!

Your husband is being unreasonable.

Food costs have gone up hugely in the last few months.

If he is unhappy with what you are buying then let him do the shopping.

2 adults and 2 teens here. Shopping once a week in Tesco with no top ups, but we get milk and some other bits delivered by the milkman. Tesco bill is around £350 per month and the milk bill is another £60 so I’d say you’re spot on.
Lockdown shopping has been good for me. I’ve re-learnt how to meal plan and be less wasteful. And the rest of the family have learnt once you eat all the snacks, there’s no more til next week.

We spend more than that. Quite a bit more, and I wouldn't say we are particularly extravagant

That's modest right now. We are about £500-600 month for 2 adults and 2 kids. Up by about £50 a week

£100 a week for 4 is modest, to be honest. That's £25 each.
For me alone, the food bill is around £15-30 a week (depending on what I buy) so it sounds like normal amount to me.

I think you'd be clever to only spend that to be honest.
We are a family of 5 including a 6 month old and we spend £150 a week excluding alcohol. No names brands.

I think it's time for him to do the food shop and cooking for all meals for a month OP!

See how he feels then

Tell your hubby to do the fucking shopping then.....honestly food prices have gone up and you have four people to feed. Times have changed.

That seems more than fine OP. We're up to £200 /£250 per week here for the four of us. That does include quite a lot of wine though!

Mine is that a week at the moment. Sheilding and so cant go to the supermarket. 4 adults plus 2 elderly parents who cant get deliveries most weeks and the local food bank. No takeaways - includes alcohol.

I keep trying to cut back but worried that I will disadvantaged someone.

Family of four here....two dc, 9 and 12.

About £100 a week..so £400 a month. No alcohol included in that.

That's is shopping at Aldi/Lidl.

Four people, at home all day, every day...I think £100 is pretty frugal really. I could easily spend more to be honest.

That is all toiletries as well, 1 dog.

Same situation as you. Prob about £110 a week. Have stopped buying lots of treats though. They can make biscuits if they want more! My hubby is worse than me though - I’d quite like a few basic meals (cheesey pasta) he wants a proper meal. But, he cooks so I can’t complain!

No, I'm spending about £70 a week at the moment for me and one 6yo.

Sounds about right to me. I'd tell him he needs to do the shopping if he thinks he can do better.

Another clueless DH when it comes to food shopping...I don’t know how on earth you keep to £100 a week for (effectively) 4 adults and have a healthy diet. I think I could do it only if we gave up meat/fish/alcohol and all treats! Let him take over the shopping and see how far he gets.

I agree that he should do the food shopping once to see how expensive food is now.

I do all the shopping and dh never questions what I spend but on a rare occasion he did go, I remember him coming home really shocked at how expensive a packet of ham was.

No, I think that’s pretty good

Sounds very good to me!!! We’d be happy if we could get it down to £100/ week. We usually spend £150.