To not be able to food shop for cheaper?

[cheesetriangles]

I’ve tried all the supermarkets possible but can’t manage to get our weekly food shop for less than £100.

(£100 is inclusive of all food, toiletries, cleaning products, detergent, vitamins, kitchen/loo roll, tin foil etc)

It’s only two adults eating but we do have to buy some free from products in that. We don’t buy alcohol. I’ve been to all the supermarkets and just can’t do it for cheaper at any. We eat very little meat, maybe the weekly shop includes two meat products that’s it. I wish I could save on this but maybe that’s just not practical with the cost of living? AIBU?

Yanbu. Free from products are so expensive. Everything is double.

Have you tried having baked potatos and beans for a couple of nights a week?

Yep we do. Buy the cheapest price matched beans too and don’t really get much branded stuff, always look for what’s on offer or cheaper

Sorry @windypumpkin we don’t for tea actuwlly but for most lunches we have baked beans on toast.

You could if you had too. I shop for 6 for about that in a week. Some things I just don't buy as its off budget

Are you coeliac? some areas offer gluten free bread on prescription, might be worth checking with local chemist to see if you can get it, certainly helps!

I can do it for less and am gluten and dairy free (2 adults but other one can eat anything)
BUT we do eat almost anything, some weird food combos and rely on what is on offer or the clearance section
One night might be seared tuna with exotic veg stir fry the next might be home made soup or omelette and beans

Where do you shop? We spend £80-100 a week for two adults and two children but I do meal prep everything. We don’t buy free from stuff but we do buy oat milks which add up quickly!

Honestly it’s impossible to say without a breakdown of what you’re actually buying. It’s not surprising that you can’t get it under £100 all things considered.

You should be able to do it cheaper than this, at least some weeks. Our weekly shop is about £100-£120, and there are four adults in our house, and that includes basic toiletries. We don't have to buy free-from products, and I know they are expensive, but surely it wouldn't double the cost of the entire shop?

I guess it all depends on what you eat. We eat well, but never eat expensive cuts of meat, for example. We sometimes just have an omlette, or jacket potatoes with tuna/cheese etc. Or pasta with tomato sauce and bacon. We eat quite a bit of veggie food, or pad out casseroles with pulses.

I spend under that for me and three children

Noone can say without an itemised list really. Spendy skincare? Premade foods? Is the meat steak or cheapo sausages? Snacks? Any beans-on-toast or omlette-and-chips type basic meals? How much time do you have to batch-cook soup and freeze? I dont know how much more expensive "free from" stuff is, but could you buy less of it by changing what you cook, or is that impractical?

Can you screenshot your most recent receipt? Then we'd have an idea what you're buying.

(£100 is inclusive of all food, toiletries, cleaning products, detergent, vitamins, kitchen/loo roll, tin foil etc)

Can you cut back on non food items? Do you wipe and reuse tin foil where possible, use less than the recommended detergent, only wash clothes and bedding that need washing, use washable cloths where you don't need kitchen roll, and so on? Do you buy non branded products?

This would be helpful

I do buy non branded products but never reuse tinfoil so I could start there

£100 is inclusive of all food, toiletries, cleaning products, detergent, vitamins, kitchen/loo roll, tin foil etc

Do you buy all of these non-food items every week?

Can you post a receipt?

Haven’t one to hand

How about a typical shopping list?

Did you have to?

Household of two here also (me and a four year old). I’m vegan, my son isn’t. I managed to get my shopping this week JUST below £100, but by pennies. That’s because this week I didn’t need laundry stuff nor cleaning products. It is driving me mad how expensive things are, especially vegan alternatives. And I know people will come for us and say ‘eat beans and lentils’ as if every meal can just be that. I used to look forward doing my online shop each week and now I dread it and it makes me miserable trying to get it below £100 each week. Some weeks I’ve spend £140 when I’ve needed the entire lot of laundry, cleaning, freezer stock up etc which makes me tense up as it feels awful spending that just for the two of us.

It's impossible to say without seeing your receipts and knowing your appetites and lifestyle. But I agree, £100 doesn't go far anymore.

I shop for two adults (both WFH so all meals at home) and three young children (one in nappies) and spend an average of £100 a month. More if needing toilet roll, detergent, toiletries, less other times. Nappies and wipes on every shop.

We rarely buy alcohol and are vegetarian. We don't eat meat alternatives, we just eat lots of vegetables, tofu and halloumi etc as alternatives so it's cheaper (and generally healthier).

We buy a shit tonne of fruit each week; mini apples, bananas, grapes, plums and satsumas. I find it's the healthiest and most cost effective snack for the kids. All either the cheapest range or on Tesco clubcard offer.

We don't buy biscuits and snacks much anymore for health reasons. We do buy nuts and occasionally multipacks of crisps that last us a while.

You could definitely cut your shopping by £10 a week I think as there are only two of you. But it may not be fun and I'm sure the free from adds a lot to your bill.

My top tips are:

1. buy frozen veg
2. buy in bulk where you can - it's usually quite a bit cheaper
3. cut out the snacks and convenience food where you can.
4. think about what's already in your cupboards before you shop. The weeks I spend more is when I haven't checked what I already have in and planned around that.

If you buy milk alternatives then get them at Aldi. We bulk buy ours there as they are half the price of milks at other supermarkets.