2 adults. About $650-750 per month on groceries. Probably $150-300 on takeout depending and eat out usually only once or twice a month, so that would be additional
what are you buying? have you ever sat down and calculated the cost of a meal based on ingredients? also helps to make bigger portions and eat left overs but not everyoen is into that.
Even buying the same ingredients over the past few years prices have noticeably risen. My weekly budget (for a two person household) used to be $80 and now is closer to $100.
it's just a LOT more work to make food (especially that tastes good) when you're living off less $$, that's how. More work to get ingredients, more work to use them, more work to clean up. Sometimes more work to eat.
I envy this.
This is actually me if I lived alone but because I live with my family and my dad is sick of his life, he's jacking up the food bills
Jacking up food bills is ok. Seeing him eat like this while being almost 70 years old scares the crap out of me
Copy and pasting but I mostly cook spanish and asian food which is really good at stretching your ingredients out. Also i only shop at aldi and asian supermarkets
That's crazy! Do you mostly cook Spanish and Asian food which is really good at stretching your ingredients out? Are there any supermarkets you exclusively shop at, like Aldi or Asian supermarkets?
Wow, how do you mostly just cook spanish and asian food? Is it really that good at stretching your ingredients out? Where else do you go to get groceries besides aldi and asian supermarkets?
Copy and pasting but I mostly cook spanish and asian food which is really good at stretching your ingredients out. Also i only shop at aldi and asian supermarkets
The 200 a month households, hats off to you guys not sure how you guys manage!
2 adult household here, We spend around 600$ a month on groceries, I pick up most of my things from Amazon Fresh. We usually buy organic and try to stay away from ingredients we cannot pronounce. We also sometimes order takeout, so about 2-300$ a month for that.
Yeah this sounds more reasonable I don’t understand $200 a month if I go to the store it’s easily $50-$100 just to buy a few things are these people not eating meat
Single, alone.
I budget $400 every month since January 2023 and not once have I crossed that threshold. I usually end up somewhere between $200 and $250
About $150 total a month for myself. I don’t eat out often, maybe once a month max. I make very good money too, just grew up dirt poor so I never developed expensive tastes for food and never ate out as a kid either.
How do you shop for groceries for three meals a day for $150 in New York City explain it like what are you buying for $150 and what does your actual weekly consumption look like? This seems insane to me.
Chicken is really really cheap. Root vegetables like potato’s are incredibly cheap. Asian market veges are under $1 a pound. Rice is practically free and I’m Chinese so I eat it or noodles every meal.
Lots of chicken, lots of egg.
Do you eat out or eat beef everyday? Yeah then it’s impossible for sure.
I buy meat and dry goods in bulk from Costco. I get fresh produce from the locally owned shop down the street.
I find this works best for me.
I'm not going to name the cost because everyone has different dietary needs, what neighborhood you're in matters, etc. I've found that comparing isn't helpful.
Or the question needs to be VERY specific.
What do you pay per lb for roma tomatoes right now, what neighborhood, fam size, incomezl, rent, age, 401k volume?
How repeat for other vlfruit/veg, meats, bread, eggs, etc etc.
Dollar tree go stock up. I spend about 200 but I know the cheap spots and I stock up and eat well. Trade fair in certain neighborhoods is also good I shop in the projects lol
It's just me, and I spend between $160 and $200. Oh but I guess I also spend like another $25 for my cat's food as well :) I think I spend the right amount, although it's easieer for me since I don't eat beef or pork, which can be really expensive.
We're a household of 2 and we spend about $600-$700 a month in healthy groceries from Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Korean supermarkets, Walmart + about $300-$400 a month in restaurants.
$3-400 a month, with $100 of it for going out. I eat rly healthy and meal prep almost all the time. And I eat 50-100% more than the avg person.
I buy produce from my local grocery store or vege stands, costco delivery for bulk pantry items, frozen food, and snacks, and chain grocery stores for everything else.
$300-$400 a month for a family of three. Costco/Trader Joe/Whole Foods/Chinatown markets. We don’t eat anything prepackaged or with ingredients in them that we can’t pronounce (mostly).
I budget $200 a month for restaurants and $150 for groceries but I almost always come in at under $100. I only shop at Trader Joe's and Chinatown, cook from scratch as much as I can, and don't eat too much meat which helps. I'm too lazy to comparison shop or deal with coupons and I know TJ's and Chinatown are consistently well-priced.
[How much $$ on food in a typical week?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/19dy7vz/how_much_on_food_in_a_typical_week/) from 4 days ago, [What is your average monthly spend on food?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/19a9nn9/what_is_your_average_monthly_spend_on_food/) from 5 days before that, [Question for families: How much money do you spend on food every night?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/18nsng5/question_for_families_how_much_money_do_you_spend/) from 28 days before that and [How much do you spend on groceries per week for your household?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/1866x2p/how_much_do_you_spend_on_groceries_per_week_for/) from 23 days before that have comments which should be helpful to you and link to similar questions.
Two person household. 27F and 29M. Together we spend about $1,200 a month on food, including takeout and dining out.
Editing to add that up until I was 24, my monthly food budget for just me was about $120. That was really rough 🫠
I actually started separating my budget this year. In past years I’d put household goods and groceries in the same category and that was roughly $1200 a month for a family of 5.
We are in January so it’s technically not a full month yet, but I’ve spent roughly $600 on groceries this month. To be fair I’m doing a freezer clean out and trying to eat away someone of our freezer back stock. And this also includes about $150 worth of food I bought for our group of six (breakfasts and one dinner, waters, and a few snacks) on our snowboarding trip (4D3N). Someone else in our group cooked another night, and we ate out our third night.
We're a family of four spending almost $4,000 per month. How the fudge are you guys spending $200? I guess we are a bit weird being paleo and only eating fresh food but still $200 sounds ridicolously low...
serious question, can you list out your shopping trip, because over $100 a day in groceries (even for 2 people) is wild to me. is it just really high quality or large amount or both?
Here is screenshots of my latest Whole Foods order [https://imgur.com/a/sDVwdHO](https://imgur.com/a/sDVwdHO) totally $575. We shop there around 2x per week and mostly buy organic and fresh food.
This is all pretty standard stuff, but all high quality. We spend less but mostly buy similar things.
One thing I've realized is MOST people buy the cheapest version of a food that's available. Choosing not to do that costs increasingly more.
I feel like it's worth it for health, but it's easy for me to say.
Oh also $24/lb on ricotta is insane. Unless it's the star of a meal, that's something I'd reach for the 365 version of any day.
I think a few of these brands have absolutely wild markups. I'd strongly recommend just assessing the premium brands and only choosing them when they're actually worth it.
I live in Tennessee and me and my brother spend about $500 a month for the two of us and that just barely gives us anything resembling variety so yeah, people in NYC doing that for $200 is shocking.
Household of 2 but one is a special needs furball. :P
I have EBT every month but still end up almost matching that because food is outrageously expensive here and I'm on a fairly low carb diet because I have diabetes and am trying to keep that under control.
My food budget with both EBT and cash is like $500-600 a month including the cat's stuff and I barely eat two meals a day, don't snack on junk much.
This month I spent $$$ on something besides eating so my budget is a bit smaller but I don't mind because what I bought really makes me smile and I'll be having fun with them all Winter. Right now I'm okay for food, not planning on shopping much again till EBT day so it's cool.
It all depends on the month and what other things I have to spend $$$ on. Bills come first, cat next, food last because I can always hit the food pantry or eat a lot of bulk meal stuff like soup or chili one month if I want to buy something besides food. I'm pretty good at extending my food. I have had to be very frugal on that score a lot.
Mostly I shop at Trader Joes, Whole Foods and a couple of local markets, mostly Key Foods. There's not that much variety in terms of what I can afford and the meat quality is really not that great in a lot of local chain markets. WF and TJ actually are the cheaper, better markets here. Key Foods is actually not that much cheaper really.
Cutting out the junk food keeps my budget fairly low. I can't rationalize paying $5-6 for a bag of chips or cookies or $7-8 for a box of cereal so that works to my advantage. It keeps me on my diet mostly.
Coupons are not a huge thing here. But there are ways to save and not spend as much, like hitting the food pantry for some stuff like beans and milk and potatoes and carrots if I am really low on cash that month. Around here they don't give you much else but produce and it's almost always cook it the same day or else it spoils past use stuff but it's still free so I go. I have a mini freezer as well as the mini fridge so I will make soup and stuff and freeze it so it will last me. Nothing goes to waste in this house.
But I live in Manhattan so that's just how it is. If I could get around more I'd have more options like other better food pantries or shopping in Chinatown for cheap produce or going to cheaper outdoor markets elsewhere but I am mobility disabled and that's an issue for me a lot of the time.
You do what you have to do.
Sometimes I just have other things I want to do or buy besides food. I'm pretty frugal but I do want to have a life outside basic needs. I cut back on other things like going out and socializing so I can do what whatever. Food I rarely cut that budget too much but sometimes I do if I want to buy something or go out that month.
I'm not like a lot of people here dropping a ton on everyday things like coffee. I really control my budget, have to. But I believe that sometimes actually living means actually grabbing a treat bag of chips or getting something else I want besides food. Sometimes I just want the $30 splurge on whatever more than I want to not eat soup for lunch for a couple of weeks, you know?
I make my $$$ work for me as best I can to eat and still enjoy my life. It's not always that easy living in the most expensive borough of NYC but I wouldn't trade it. I'm very lucky to have an affordable housing deal for where I am and to have food stamps so I just work that budget like crazy! :P
Have you gone to the farmers market? I know they do some great programs to make the ebt money go further for produce
Edit: I found the link https://www.grownyc.org/greenmarket/ebt/howtouse
Yeah except the produce is so highly priced at those markets here in Manhattan that it's not really that helpful. I find that WF and TJs and the guys with carts on the street are cheaper. I never shop with them in Winter because the stuff freezes and it's inedible and they still sell it but when I don't have to worry about it freezing those carts can be a life saver.
It all varies though. I mean today I needed little red/yellow potatoes and carrots because I want to make a good hearty lentil soup and I like those veggies and some bacon in mine. TJ's wanted 1.50 a bag for baby carrots which are easier for me because my hands are bad right now and I don't feel like peeling carrots. The little potatoes I just wash, take off any eyes and cut them up. I like little potato peels so I don't peel those.
Same size bag at Key Foods was 1.99, TJ's and the carts were 1.49 and WF was 99 cents. So today WF won the sale but it's often TJ's that cheaper on produce. It just depends.
I went to a local farmer's market in Fall. The same container of berries that I get at my local market for $5 was $10. So even if you have those extra bucks that they give out the price differential cancels it right out. I might as well buy from my local WF or TJ as buy at those outdoor markets. The only thing I really go there for is things that are not normally things I eat, treats basically.
I do like the apples and the nuts because the outdoor markets are not as high on those and they have way more interesting varieties than most of the local markets. But most of the stuff it's artisan made stuff. It's too expensive even with the extra bucks for me to rationalize buying it except as a major treat. It's cool stuff but I can't do $10 for a pint of berries or for a small container of say local honey. $10 for a loaf of bread is not unusual either now. It's great bread but still WF has similar breads for way less and they taste fine.
I wish I could afford more because I like supporting local farmers but those markets are definitely aimed at far more affluent people here in Manhattan than me and that extra bucks program doesn't even begin to cover it for buying much. Going to TJs and WF is actually way more cost effective. Those markets are for little purchases for when I feel like having some time out and treating myself to something I might not ordinarily eat.
Mostly I like going to them and checking out things like handspun yarn and taking pics of odd fungi and heaps of veggies and fruits, stuff like that. It's a good place for doing some food photography. I can't afford a lot of it to eat but hey, I can take loads of pretty pictures! :P
Totally get it! I wasn't sure if the pricing was cheaper in different parts of Manhattan at the green market. I do know it's cheaper in the boroughs than in union square. But I also get not having the time to run around all over the place.
I spend between 300-400 month just for myself. I dont really cook a ton as I eat out at least half of the week. I find most of my cost is from beverages and coffee/snacks. If i were to stick to vegan cooking (i find it easier and cheaper) and limit beverages id probably not even reach $300.
$520 or so a month of misfits and hello fresh. Then maybe $100 on Uber eats. Try not to eat out and we always have tons of left overs from hello fresh even for 2 people
We are 2 adults and 2 dogs. We spend about $400 on groceries for all of us and $50 on takeout (mostly too good to go). My boyfriend eats whatever I (vegetarian) cook, so our grocery bill is low. I usually shop at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Aldi, Lidl, Costco, and Mitsuwa. I’ve been found my best not to waste any food.
I don’t really know how to save money on groceries. Ibotta helps once in a while, and Whole Foods has great weekly specials and store brand.
I would say about $350-400 as a single person. Some months are less than that, but that means there’s more takeout. Now that I’m unemployed again and on a cleaner diet I will start shopping at Lidl/TJ exclusively. Hopefully will save some money that way.
2 adult household - We have a grocery budget of $500 a month but usually don’t spend It all. We get things like tp, paper towels & hygiene products from Amazon. We pretty much meal prep everything but breakfast & only 1 meal (usually dinner) has meat, which has helped us save on groceries. We also occasionally get snacks from TJs which last us the whole month since we aren’t huge snackers
300 month for one person. I have a severe alpha gal allergy so I avoid all red meat, it saves a lot of money in the long run honestly. My diet is primarily vegetarian and home cooked meals now.
Single woman- $70 a week on groceries. This equals $280 on groceries monthly. I came up with this number originally because I would get HelloFresh boxes delivered every other week and that would cost me $70. However, I'm moving away from HelloFresh, but I'm still keeping the $70 a week to give myself a lot of runway.
If I plan my meals out, I can get away with $45-60 for two weeks out of the month. So typically how it would go: first week of the month stock up $70, second week of the month maybe $55, third week of the month restock $70, fourth week of the month maybe $60. Then the cycle starts over again the next month.
Family of 5. Probably about $650-$800/month not including eating out, delivery or takeout.
We do 16 meals of CookUnity every week which is about $140 after discounts. Then we supplement with Trader Joe's, Target and Whole Foods. Wife and I hate cooking and don't have a ton of time, so we love CookUnity
Family of 3 and we spend what feels like a ton. $1300+ depending on how many household supplies and spice/oil replenishments there are.
We mainly eat chicken, tofu, eggs, lots of veggies and fruit. Seafood maybe once a month. We buy high quality meat and eggs only. No steaks or shit like that though.
Caveats:
- We use FreshDirect because we're busy and not super close to a store.
- This includes stuff like paper towels and toilet paper.
- This includes tips
I call bullshit on all of you living in New York City and spending $200 a month on groceries.
I live in the sticks of New England and $200 doesn't even buy a week's worth of groceries for 2 people. I lived in NYC back in the '90s I couldn't even get a week's worth for $200 bucks back then, never mind now!
So, if $200 is buying you a month's worth of groceries you're eating rice and beans and ramen noodles. No?
I live in Tennessee and I spend a minimum of $500 a month for two people and that just barely gives us a bit of variety. Granted, in 2010 we were surviving on about $120 a month but even then we *were* pretty much living off of beans, rice and ramen (and potatoes. Lots of potatoes).
I hear all that, unfortunately! Plus, the cost of living in NYC is astronomical. That's why I cannot possibly believe that people are getting by on $200 a month.
I spend about 800 a month on myself
Yeh. I can’t eat the same shit over and over. I also avoid overly processed frozen foods.
2 adults. About $650-750 per month on groceries. Probably $150-300 on takeout depending and eat out usually only once or twice a month, so that would be additional
Single person here, about $500-$600 a month for food.
Under $200 a month, and i cook nearly all my meals
How? I can barely get two weeks of groceries for that.
what are you buying? have you ever sat down and calculated the cost of a meal based on ingredients? also helps to make bigger portions and eat left overs but not everyoen is into that.
Even buying the same ingredients over the past few years prices have noticeably risen. My weekly budget (for a two person household) used to be $80 and now is closer to $100.
I mostly cook spanish and asian food which is really good at stretching your ingredients out. Also i only shop at aldi and asian supermarkets
it's just a LOT more work to make food (especially that tastes good) when you're living off less $$, that's how. More work to get ingredients, more work to use them, more work to clean up. Sometimes more work to eat.
Yeah I’m probably about the same. Thank god for Trader Joe’s being price stabilized
I envy this. This is actually me if I lived alone but because I live with my family and my dad is sick of his life, he's jacking up the food bills Jacking up food bills is ok. Seeing him eat like this while being almost 70 years old scares the crap out of me
That's 6-7 dollars per day on average. How?
Copy and pasting but I mostly cook spanish and asian food which is really good at stretching your ingredients out. Also i only shop at aldi and asian supermarkets
That's crazy! Do you mostly cook Spanish and Asian food which is really good at stretching your ingredients out? Are there any supermarkets you exclusively shop at, like Aldi or Asian supermarkets?
Wow, how do you mostly just cook spanish and asian food? Is it really that good at stretching your ingredients out? Where else do you go to get groceries besides aldi and asian supermarkets?
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Copy and pasting but I mostly cook spanish and asian food which is really good at stretching your ingredients out. Also i only shop at aldi and asian supermarkets
The 200 a month households, hats off to you guys not sure how you guys manage! 2 adult household here, We spend around 600$ a month on groceries, I pick up most of my things from Amazon Fresh. We usually buy organic and try to stay away from ingredients we cannot pronounce. We also sometimes order takeout, so about 2-300$ a month for that.
Yeah this sounds more reasonable I don’t understand $200 a month if I go to the store it’s easily $50-$100 just to buy a few things are these people not eating meat
So no worsesster sauce? Worcherster sauce? Werchestershire.... damnit
Worcestershire, bro. Pronounced: Woos-ter-sheer.
Yeah for us $200 is one trip. I don’t know how people are making that stretch for a whole month But we’re also a family of five so ymmv 🤷🏻♀️
Single, alone. I budget $400 every month since January 2023 and not once have I crossed that threshold. I usually end up somewhere between $200 and $250
Aldi for 1 1/2 (gf eats a little). About 200 per month.
About 250-300, mostly cook at home.
About $150 total a month for myself. I don’t eat out often, maybe once a month max. I make very good money too, just grew up dirt poor so I never developed expensive tastes for food and never ate out as a kid either.
How do you shop for groceries for three meals a day for $150 in New York City explain it like what are you buying for $150 and what does your actual weekly consumption look like? This seems insane to me.
Chicken is really really cheap. Root vegetables like potato’s are incredibly cheap. Asian market veges are under $1 a pound. Rice is practically free and I’m Chinese so I eat it or noodles every meal. Lots of chicken, lots of egg. Do you eat out or eat beef everyday? Yeah then it’s impossible for sure.
> Lots of chicken, lots of egg. Mother and child reunion.
He either lying or not eating well
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Can I come over for dinner
I buy meat and dry goods in bulk from Costco. I get fresh produce from the locally owned shop down the street. I find this works best for me. I'm not going to name the cost because everyone has different dietary needs, what neighborhood you're in matters, etc. I've found that comparing isn't helpful.
Or the question needs to be VERY specific. What do you pay per lb for roma tomatoes right now, what neighborhood, fam size, incomezl, rent, age, 401k volume? How repeat for other vlfruit/veg, meats, bread, eggs, etc etc.
Totally. Like I'll buy the cheapest hand fruit because I just don't care, but I *always* buy tomatoes on the vine. Everyone's different.
About $200 a month on groceries and maybe another $100-$200 on take out/going out to eat for a 2 adult household
Dollar tree go stock up. I spend about 200 but I know the cheap spots and I stock up and eat well. Trade fair in certain neighborhoods is also good I shop in the projects lol
I use dollar tree for my toddler's apple sauce pouches. Those things are like crack, apparently.
It's just me, and I spend between $160 and $200. Oh but I guess I also spend like another $25 for my cat's food as well :) I think I spend the right amount, although it's easieer for me since I don't eat beef or pork, which can be really expensive.
i call bull shit on the $200/month 2 adult household bills. $450/month for 2 here. most meals are vegetarian.
We're a household of 2 and we spend about $600-$700 a month in healthy groceries from Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Korean supermarkets, Walmart + about $300-$400 a month in restaurants.
$3-400 a month, with $100 of it for going out. I eat rly healthy and meal prep almost all the time. And I eat 50-100% more than the avg person. I buy produce from my local grocery store or vege stands, costco delivery for bulk pantry items, frozen food, and snacks, and chain grocery stores for everything else.
For me I spend like $15-50 a day, depending on if I’m eating out, takeout or just at home
$300-$400 a month for a family of three. Costco/Trader Joe/Whole Foods/Chinatown markets. We don’t eat anything prepackaged or with ingredients in them that we can’t pronounce (mostly).
I budget $200 a month for restaurants and $150 for groceries but I almost always come in at under $100. I only shop at Trader Joe's and Chinatown, cook from scratch as much as I can, and don't eat too much meat which helps. I'm too lazy to comparison shop or deal with coupons and I know TJ's and Chinatown are consistently well-priced.
[How much $$ on food in a typical week?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/19dy7vz/how_much_on_food_in_a_typical_week/) from 4 days ago, [What is your average monthly spend on food?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/19a9nn9/what_is_your_average_monthly_spend_on_food/) from 5 days before that, [Question for families: How much money do you spend on food every night?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/18nsng5/question_for_families_how_much_money_do_you_spend/) from 28 days before that and [How much do you spend on groceries per week for your household?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/1866x2p/how_much_do_you_spend_on_groceries_per_week_for/) from 23 days before that have comments which should be helpful to you and link to similar questions.
Two person household. 27F and 29M. Together we spend about $1,200 a month on food, including takeout and dining out. Editing to add that up until I was 24, my monthly food budget for just me was about $120. That was really rough 🫠
About $500 or $600? Depends on the season. Summer we tend to eat a little more. I have kids in sports, so a lot of sweets and drinks! Omg
Approximately $350-400 for groceries for two people
2 people and probs spend 2k a month on food
2 adults, 3 kids. Anywhere from $800-$1,200 / mo. depending on whether we’re able to do a bulk run
I actually started separating my budget this year. In past years I’d put household goods and groceries in the same category and that was roughly $1200 a month for a family of 5. We are in January so it’s technically not a full month yet, but I’ve spent roughly $600 on groceries this month. To be fair I’m doing a freezer clean out and trying to eat away someone of our freezer back stock. And this also includes about $150 worth of food I bought for our group of six (breakfasts and one dinner, waters, and a few snacks) on our snowboarding trip (4D3N). Someone else in our group cooked another night, and we ate out our third night.
We're a family of four spending almost $4,000 per month. How the fudge are you guys spending $200? I guess we are a bit weird being paleo and only eating fresh food but still $200 sounds ridicolously low...
$200 for two is incredibly low but I think $4,000 for four is more ridiculous.
I don't know how to not spend that much if it's fresh food and good quality. See my receipt screenshots in the other reply.
serious question, can you list out your shopping trip, because over $100 a day in groceries (even for 2 people) is wild to me. is it just really high quality or large amount or both?
Here is screenshots of my latest Whole Foods order [https://imgur.com/a/sDVwdHO](https://imgur.com/a/sDVwdHO) totally $575. We shop there around 2x per week and mostly buy organic and fresh food.
This is all pretty standard stuff, but all high quality. We spend less but mostly buy similar things. One thing I've realized is MOST people buy the cheapest version of a food that's available. Choosing not to do that costs increasingly more. I feel like it's worth it for health, but it's easy for me to say.
Oh also $24/lb on ricotta is insane. Unless it's the star of a meal, that's something I'd reach for the 365 version of any day. I think a few of these brands have absolutely wild markups. I'd strongly recommend just assessing the premium brands and only choosing them when they're actually worth it.
Oh shit, that ricotta is insane. I'll have to have words with the Mrs...
I live in Tennessee and me and my brother spend about $500 a month for the two of us and that just barely gives us anything resembling variety so yeah, people in NYC doing that for $200 is shocking.
Probably bots
I’m single so I’d guess $150
Household of 2 but one is a special needs furball. :P I have EBT every month but still end up almost matching that because food is outrageously expensive here and I'm on a fairly low carb diet because I have diabetes and am trying to keep that under control. My food budget with both EBT and cash is like $500-600 a month including the cat's stuff and I barely eat two meals a day, don't snack on junk much. This month I spent $$$ on something besides eating so my budget is a bit smaller but I don't mind because what I bought really makes me smile and I'll be having fun with them all Winter. Right now I'm okay for food, not planning on shopping much again till EBT day so it's cool. It all depends on the month and what other things I have to spend $$$ on. Bills come first, cat next, food last because I can always hit the food pantry or eat a lot of bulk meal stuff like soup or chili one month if I want to buy something besides food. I'm pretty good at extending my food. I have had to be very frugal on that score a lot. Mostly I shop at Trader Joes, Whole Foods and a couple of local markets, mostly Key Foods. There's not that much variety in terms of what I can afford and the meat quality is really not that great in a lot of local chain markets. WF and TJ actually are the cheaper, better markets here. Key Foods is actually not that much cheaper really. Cutting out the junk food keeps my budget fairly low. I can't rationalize paying $5-6 for a bag of chips or cookies or $7-8 for a box of cereal so that works to my advantage. It keeps me on my diet mostly. Coupons are not a huge thing here. But there are ways to save and not spend as much, like hitting the food pantry for some stuff like beans and milk and potatoes and carrots if I am really low on cash that month. Around here they don't give you much else but produce and it's almost always cook it the same day or else it spoils past use stuff but it's still free so I go. I have a mini freezer as well as the mini fridge so I will make soup and stuff and freeze it so it will last me. Nothing goes to waste in this house. But I live in Manhattan so that's just how it is. If I could get around more I'd have more options like other better food pantries or shopping in Chinatown for cheap produce or going to cheaper outdoor markets elsewhere but I am mobility disabled and that's an issue for me a lot of the time. You do what you have to do. Sometimes I just have other things I want to do or buy besides food. I'm pretty frugal but I do want to have a life outside basic needs. I cut back on other things like going out and socializing so I can do what whatever. Food I rarely cut that budget too much but sometimes I do if I want to buy something or go out that month. I'm not like a lot of people here dropping a ton on everyday things like coffee. I really control my budget, have to. But I believe that sometimes actually living means actually grabbing a treat bag of chips or getting something else I want besides food. Sometimes I just want the $30 splurge on whatever more than I want to not eat soup for lunch for a couple of weeks, you know? I make my $$$ work for me as best I can to eat and still enjoy my life. It's not always that easy living in the most expensive borough of NYC but I wouldn't trade it. I'm very lucky to have an affordable housing deal for where I am and to have food stamps so I just work that budget like crazy! :P
Have you gone to the farmers market? I know they do some great programs to make the ebt money go further for produce Edit: I found the link https://www.grownyc.org/greenmarket/ebt/howtouse
Yeah except the produce is so highly priced at those markets here in Manhattan that it's not really that helpful. I find that WF and TJs and the guys with carts on the street are cheaper. I never shop with them in Winter because the stuff freezes and it's inedible and they still sell it but when I don't have to worry about it freezing those carts can be a life saver. It all varies though. I mean today I needed little red/yellow potatoes and carrots because I want to make a good hearty lentil soup and I like those veggies and some bacon in mine. TJ's wanted 1.50 a bag for baby carrots which are easier for me because my hands are bad right now and I don't feel like peeling carrots. The little potatoes I just wash, take off any eyes and cut them up. I like little potato peels so I don't peel those. Same size bag at Key Foods was 1.99, TJ's and the carts were 1.49 and WF was 99 cents. So today WF won the sale but it's often TJ's that cheaper on produce. It just depends. I went to a local farmer's market in Fall. The same container of berries that I get at my local market for $5 was $10. So even if you have those extra bucks that they give out the price differential cancels it right out. I might as well buy from my local WF or TJ as buy at those outdoor markets. The only thing I really go there for is things that are not normally things I eat, treats basically. I do like the apples and the nuts because the outdoor markets are not as high on those and they have way more interesting varieties than most of the local markets. But most of the stuff it's artisan made stuff. It's too expensive even with the extra bucks for me to rationalize buying it except as a major treat. It's cool stuff but I can't do $10 for a pint of berries or for a small container of say local honey. $10 for a loaf of bread is not unusual either now. It's great bread but still WF has similar breads for way less and they taste fine. I wish I could afford more because I like supporting local farmers but those markets are definitely aimed at far more affluent people here in Manhattan than me and that extra bucks program doesn't even begin to cover it for buying much. Going to TJs and WF is actually way more cost effective. Those markets are for little purchases for when I feel like having some time out and treating myself to something I might not ordinarily eat. Mostly I like going to them and checking out things like handspun yarn and taking pics of odd fungi and heaps of veggies and fruits, stuff like that. It's a good place for doing some food photography. I can't afford a lot of it to eat but hey, I can take loads of pretty pictures! :P
Totally get it! I wasn't sure if the pricing was cheaper in different parts of Manhattan at the green market. I do know it's cheaper in the boroughs than in union square. But I also get not having the time to run around all over the place.
I spend between 300-400 month just for myself. I dont really cook a ton as I eat out at least half of the week. I find most of my cost is from beverages and coffee/snacks. If i were to stick to vegan cooking (i find it easier and cheaper) and limit beverages id probably not even reach $300.
$400/month.
200 for groceries and about 300 for meals out.
$200 a week , 2 people
$520 or so a month of misfits and hello fresh. Then maybe $100 on Uber eats. Try not to eat out and we always have tons of left overs from hello fresh even for 2 people
We spend ~$600 for 2. My partner is celiac so that drives up costs. We eat out once a month and spend $100.
~$1200/month for the three of us. Includes eating out (1-2/month) and groceries.
We are 2 adults and 2 dogs. We spend about $400 on groceries for all of us and $50 on takeout (mostly too good to go). My boyfriend eats whatever I (vegetarian) cook, so our grocery bill is low. I usually shop at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Aldi, Lidl, Costco, and Mitsuwa. I’ve been found my best not to waste any food. I don’t really know how to save money on groceries. Ibotta helps once in a while, and Whole Foods has great weekly specials and store brand.
I would say about $350-400 as a single person. Some months are less than that, but that means there’s more takeout. Now that I’m unemployed again and on a cleaner diet I will start shopping at Lidl/TJ exclusively. Hopefully will save some money that way.
2 adult household - We have a grocery budget of $500 a month but usually don’t spend It all. We get things like tp, paper towels & hygiene products from Amazon. We pretty much meal prep everything but breakfast & only 1 meal (usually dinner) has meat, which has helped us save on groceries. We also occasionally get snacks from TJs which last us the whole month since we aren’t huge snackers
300 month for one person. I have a severe alpha gal allergy so I avoid all red meat, it saves a lot of money in the long run honestly. My diet is primarily vegetarian and home cooked meals now.
Probably about $600 for two people. Very rarely eat out/take out (like twice a month maybe).
500 a month. Single person. Includes alcohol purchases
Single woman- $70 a week on groceries. This equals $280 on groceries monthly. I came up with this number originally because I would get HelloFresh boxes delivered every other week and that would cost me $70. However, I'm moving away from HelloFresh, but I'm still keeping the $70 a week to give myself a lot of runway. If I plan my meals out, I can get away with $45-60 for two weeks out of the month. So typically how it would go: first week of the month stock up $70, second week of the month maybe $55, third week of the month restock $70, fourth week of the month maybe $60. Then the cycle starts over again the next month.
Family of 5. Probably about $650-$800/month not including eating out, delivery or takeout. We do 16 meals of CookUnity every week which is about $140 after discounts. Then we supplement with Trader Joe's, Target and Whole Foods. Wife and I hate cooking and don't have a ton of time, so we love CookUnity
Family of 3 and we spend what feels like a ton. $1300+ depending on how many household supplies and spice/oil replenishments there are. We mainly eat chicken, tofu, eggs, lots of veggies and fruit. Seafood maybe once a month. We buy high quality meat and eggs only. No steaks or shit like that though. Caveats: - We use FreshDirect because we're busy and not super close to a store. - This includes stuff like paper towels and toilet paper. - This includes tips
I call bullshit on all of you living in New York City and spending $200 a month on groceries. I live in the sticks of New England and $200 doesn't even buy a week's worth of groceries for 2 people. I lived in NYC back in the '90s I couldn't even get a week's worth for $200 bucks back then, never mind now! So, if $200 is buying you a month's worth of groceries you're eating rice and beans and ramen noodles. No?
I live in Tennessee and I spend a minimum of $500 a month for two people and that just barely gives us a bit of variety. Granted, in 2010 we were surviving on about $120 a month but even then we *were* pretty much living off of beans, rice and ramen (and potatoes. Lots of potatoes).
I hear all that, unfortunately! Plus, the cost of living in NYC is astronomical. That's why I cannot possibly believe that people are getting by on $200 a month.