Groceries For $250 a Month

I’m always curious about what people buy at the grocery store. If you’re curious about that kind of thing too, here’s what I bought over one month. We usually plan on spending about $250 per month on groceries, which also includes paper products & cleaning supplies. This particular list also includes pet supplies (which are a separate budget item). This makes the budget a little but more! We typically shop for groceries at two main Stores: Fry’s Food & Drug and Costco. I also pick up 2-3 things from Whole Foods and CVS Pharmacy about every 6 weeks for a total of about $4.30, although I didn’t have a trip to either of those places during this particular month.

FROM FRIES:
5 lb russet potatoes – 1.99
4 jars Prego spaghetti sauce – 8.00
2.59 lb bananas – 1.27
Cereal 5.29
Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce – 1.50
2 boxes Campbell’s noodle soup – 2.78
2.48 lb green grapes – 4.44
Wishbone dressing – 1.79 (abnormal purchase)
Betty Crocker brownie mix – 1.99
1.54 lb apples 2.29
Manwich 1.37
Barkeepers Friend 1.99
Bologna .99 (another abnormal purchase, and it was gross so we didn’t even eat it)
2 cans Contadina tomato paste 1.38
Precious ricotta cheese 2.59
4 lbs American Beauty spaghetti 4.00
Lawry seasoning mix (for fajitas) 1.19
.56 lb vine-ripe tomatoes .49
Taco-sized tortillas 1.29
3 fruit roll-ups .99
2 jars of bullion (for the dog) 1.50
Mozzarella cheese 3.67
Popcorn (several pounds of kernels) 5.00
Minute Maid orange juice 3.99
Shamrock Whole Milk 2.50
Cream of Wheat 4.29
Matzo 4.19
18 eggs 1.39
40 ct. Tampax 6.29
Colgate toothpaste 2.99
Tax 2.25
Total 87.18

FROM COSTCO:
4 cases of Arrowhead water 18.20
52 lbs of Pedigree dogfood 16.38
60 granola bars 9.59
12 cans of Contadina tomato paste 3.79 (just discovered they carried this; won’t buy at Fries anymore)
6 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts 16.69
Box of approx. 25 clementines 6.79
2 french baguettes 3.29
2 boxes English muffins 3.65
Apx. 5 lbs pork chops 12.92
6 lbs ground beef 13.36
2 loaves Roman Meal bread 3.59
2 lbs mesquite-smoked turkey breast 8.19
Tax at 8.10% 1.33
Tax at 1.8% 1.80
Total $119.56

NEXT STOP AT FRIES:
2 gallons of Dryer’s ice cream – 5.76
Chocolate syrup – 1.69
1.49 lbs bananas – .73
Iceberg lettuce – 1.69
Tax = .25
Total = 10.12

NEXT STOP AT FRIES:
French bread – .99
Hamburger buns – .88
Potato chips – 3.49
Tax = .10
Total = 5.46

FINAL STOP AT FRIES:
Kitty litter – 10.99 (normally bought at PetSmart for $7)
6 jars of Prego spaghetti sauce – 7.00
2 cans Contadina tomato paste – 0.00
Knudsen sour cream – 2.50
Greek pita bread – 1.99
Potato chips – 3.49
.75 lb Roma tomatoes – .97
.12 lb garlic – .24
Tortillas – .99
Tax = 1.27
Total = 29.44

Total: $251.76

Because of the way we shop, this isn’t a good example of what we eat all of the time, but it is a good example of HOW we shop. Rotating things in bulk, some basic odds and ends, and a few treats.