A no spend January with limited grocery shopping spend

[MikeRafone]

Im needing a detox from spending for January

Ive cancelled my amazon prime account - for now as I rarely use it until easter so it saves £35

all my bills will go out by direct debit and standing order by 2nd of the month

Im going to set a limit of £4 per person per day for the grocery shopping so £28 per person per week. We have a lot of left overs, some of which im going to freeze for January.

Coffee at home rather than out in a coffee shop, no hitting the sales for stuff no-one else wanted!

Im wanting as many no spend days as possible for January

anyone want to join?

I'm fully in.

I have 3 holidays this year, and I already know Christmas next year will be tighter than this year.

I have debts I want paid off this year.
I turn 50 in 4 years and I want to be able to say I've sorted financial stuff and am in a good place with those. That means sacrifices these next few years to get there.
I am guilty of filling freezer, but not using what's in there.
So I am defo shopping from cupboards/freezers before actually shopping and going back to meal planning. Also need to cook from scratch more.
I know I need to change my mindset, and am in a good place to do it so here goes nothing!
January will be tricky for no spend as there are a couple of big family birthdays. But if I can have some money left at end of the month rather than running on empty I will be a very happy person.

Going to use my 2nd bank account for money pots etc to see my savings build up as well hopefully for specific things.

One big change I am determined to make is to make sure me and kids take packed lunch. It's very easy to say can't be bothered to make it today have a school dinner. Mindset change needed drastically there.

One big change I am determined to make is to make sure me and kids take packed lunch. It's very easy to say can't be bothered to make it today have a school dinner. Mindset change needed drastically there.

I used to cook up chicken drumsticks on a Sunday night, pop two in a sandwich bag and then put everything else easy to grab, rice cakes, fruit chopped, babble etc. No need to make lunch each morning as it was all prepared on Sunday night ready for the next 5 days

Messed this up on week one! Scedhuled a small grocery delivery for the wrong day, ended up going to the shop anyway and meant to cancel - and then youngest DC got sick and everything else went out the window.

So now we have £70 worth of top of groceries, and enough oranges and apples to last a month. Face palm moment!

We have lots of Christmas food leftover so I'm making meals for the freezer. So far I have;

2 cottage pies, made with leftover roast beef, gravy, roast potatoes, parsnips and cauliflower.

3 boxes of beef cut into strips, frozen with garlic, ginger, soy sauce and lemon juice, to be made into stir fries.

Ham cut into slices and cubes and frozen, for sandwiches, stir fry, quiches, pie, omelettes, etc

5 'ready meals' for lunches. I had lots of veg that needed using so roasted some peppers, aubergines and onions with paprika. I cooked some rice then portioned it up with the veg, tinned kidney beans and flaked ham. It sounds a bit weird but will be lovely microwaved for lunch.

I really hate wasting food so am pleased with what I have so far.

I want to try making my own samosas, so welcome any recipes and/or tips from any of you.

I should have started this post by saying that I'm trying to limit spending too, and as part of this I have looked at the food we already have in the house.

I also have plenty of nice clothes and lots of toiletries and make up. I don't need much, except possibly more foundation when it runs out. Definitely no clothes needed for a while, possibly all of 2026.

I'd love to hear more about this if you're okay sharing?

I will join, I need inspiration, I have very limited funds now until January payday, around £400 to support family of 3 (2 adult children have eventually left home 😬), I still also have some outstanding bills which may need to wait until end January 😪

I got books for Christmas so plenty to keep me busy and going to try and do dry January 😂.

Also need to lose a few KG I have recently acquired, so I will be meal planning and trying to exercise at home - I bought a kettlebell about 6 months ago which has never been used and my DSD showed me some good people to follow on YouTube. I also buy a lot of bottled water so I am going to get a cheap refillable water bottle.

I am cancelling Sky Movies and Disney which will leave me with Netflix and amazon prime which i use for films and music.

I am also going to go through my wardrobe and get everything I don't use or doesn't fit on Vinted, try and get enough to pay those outstanding bills. I also have vinyl records from the 70's and 80's a may try and sell, just not sure where to start with that one

I've cancelled audible and apple tv.

I've downloaded borrowbox and libby for free audiobooks from my library and have already borrowed some books.

There are lots of things we want to watch on 4od, itv on demand and iplayer so am unlikely to miss paid for streaming for a while.

For Christmas my Dad asked what I wanted so I sent him photos of the shampoo and conditioner, shower gel, bath salts and moisturizer that I use. He went mad and bought me a huge pile of it all! I also got a beauty advent calendar from my DH so I won't need to buy any of that for a long time.

2 days to g and Ive agreed to meet a friend for lunch on Friday...

But I havn't been supermarket shopping since Monday 22nd December - Im still eating my way through bubble and squeak, cold meet. Ive put some stuff in the freezer this month so I think I can get away with just buying some fruit and very basic items for less than £20 on Saturday.

alexfurbison yes of course, I've reposted what I explained down thread for ease here.

Yes of course, basically i bought nothing other than essentials: food and things i'd run out of. Also books were exempt as I'm an avid reader :) but i do swap a lot with friends and buy in sales.

But it's amazing how little you need:

I have enough clothes.
I have enough shoes.
I have enough bags.
I have enough make up.
I have enough skin care.
I have enough perfume.

It was really liberating - I just didn't go into shops or online onto websites - there was just no need. It frees up a lot of literal and mental headspace let me tell you!!

Also very satisfying using stuff up and throwing the empties.

I'm in and do this every January. I am allowed to buy fresh goods we need feom bread, milk, fruit and veg. No treat items or yellow sticker bargains though. We have a ton of food in the freezer and enough things like rice and curry sauce.

I have more success some years than others. One year had a big dentist bill. Ds has a party to go to in January, so will need to take a present. I will buy things if needed, but not general wants.

Absolutely dying for a chippie tea today however for one they are not open and for two the cost of a fish and cheap meal with a drink is 14.50 per person (euro) so instead of that I have chipped up some spuds and thrown frozen fish on, have a couple tins peas and beans and a bottle of cidona in the fridge. For 4 of us had we all gone for same thing in chipper was 58 euro can you believe but from what i already have here costing me nothing cos its already in the house.

Fuck tho 58euro for 4 fish and chip meals is outrageous.

We’re getting Chinese takeaway for NYE. It doesn’t count as January and we are staying in, so it’s our final treat of the year!

Not Jan yet so spending doesn’t count yet here though not going mad as still need to cut back!

10.32 today on milk and bin stickers (am in channel isles and our milk is ridiculously expensive at between 1.78 and 1.88 a litre and we have pay as you throw for rubbish).

We were going to get a Chinese tomorrow night but will be at least £60 and we’d have to go collect so DH going to buy some nice fish from mongers and make some fish, probably with a posh sauce and home made chips. We have a couple of slices of parfait left over from Boxing Day so will have that as pudding (and plenty of munchy stuff in cupboards).

Probsbly need to get a prescription tomorrow so 5.40 there.

Not normally one for online shopping but looked at the Boots chemist online last night, it was obviously ment to be, my favorite perfumes are in the sale.
One coming in at £25 a saving of £28 the other a bargin £5 saving £24.50, as the challenge doesn't start until Thursday I really couldn't turn those down.

I am in!

just going over our finances and the amount I spent on takeaway coffees last year and festive hot drinks in the lead up to Christmas from coffee shops is ridiculous!

Almost £20 a week on hot drinks from coffee shops and that excludes catching up with friends and having coffee in the coffee shop. I am determined to stop this habit for 2026 and put the money I save towards something we/ I need next year this time!

I need to experiment with more own brands in our food shop alternate online deliveries from ocado and Sainsbury's. I work full time, so need to shop online.

I spend a stupid amount on branded laundry pods/ powder, fabric conditioner and stain remover- I have 3-4 loads minimum of laundry per day because I have a disabled child that needs their clothes and bedding changing frequently plus two other children.

Any recommendations for good own brand products, especially laundry stuff.

Like other people I still have lots of food in cupboards and fridge/ freezer, so only buying essentials like fruit/ veg, bread and milk until end of Jan.

I’ve saved a ton of money since changing washing liquid to the Lidl Formil one. I use the bio one and the Formil dettol equivalent as my family go to the gym a lot and their clothes need it at low temps. Their oxiaction equivalent is also just as good.

I spend a stupid amount on branded laundry pods/ powder, fabric conditioner and stain remover

For a few years now I've been using either Waitrose colour/bio washing powder or the same from Lidi, including lidi's Doussy fabric softener.

I also use a laundry cleanser which I was buying at Tesco until pricing started taking the pip, £4 now...started looking elsewhere and Lidi do their own as do Home Bargins same size, 1.5 ltr just as good priced and priced at £1.49.

@Norfolklass2428 we do a lot of washing - I use the Fill washing powder. I discovered it in our local refill store and then realised I could bulk buy which suits me down to the ground.

www.fillrefill.co/product/laundry-powder-5kg-home-refill/

I too can vouch for Lidl’s own laundry detergent. It’s such good value for money and no difference in effectiveness from normal fairy that I used to buy. An easy swap.

I buy Smol washing tabs, dishwasher tabs and kitchen and bathroom cleaner.

i tried Aldi dishwasher tabs and they are nowhere near as good.

you get one little pill you mix in water reusable bottle for kitchen / bathroom it last me a good few months so probably spend £7 a year on each bathroom and kitchen.

they have a free trial on some stuff.

Also haven’t used fabric softener for years, you don’t need it and I always get complemented on how my sheets / clothes smell.

Thank you to everyone who suggested laundry products.

I will try them all.

so far I haven't spent a penny since the 23rd (which feels more impressive than it is really!).

Dh has put £20 of petrol in the car & had to buy cat food & milk. I ran into Sainsbury's to get my mum a birthday card & not only manged to resist the habitat sale but had a nectar voucher that paid for the card - win!

I will have to do a supermarket shop soon but want to drag it out until Friday. I get paid tomorrow thankfully & will be able to clear the credit card & pay back some of the savings I used for Christmas. Suspect I have some car expenses on the horizon unfortunately 😫

@Norfolklass2428 I really like Asda own brand non bio. I get the pods and also the liquid for sometimes a.smaller load that I don't want to use a whole pod for.

I can't remember the posters name but I really want to try to do a 4 week meal plan (even just weekdays would be a start). Our ocado delivery comes on a Sunday so every Saturday morning sees me stressing about what to put on it. I also do a in person top-up shop at Asda on a Wednesday it I'm debating doing ocado for that aswell to save time and we pay for unlimited delivery so might as well use it.

I've actually gone with hello fresh for next week we used to get it every week but went off it after a while. Anyway they offered me 10% off and I already had £15 credit on my account so I got 3 meals for £27 which I think is quite reasonable. And frees up space in my head! I really need to do a 4 week meal plan tho, will try a rough plan over the next few days and then I could get all of January ocado booked in and feel very organised!