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Old 03-31-2009, 05:46 AM   #1  
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Default Grocery cost for your family?

My family is on a budget and when I go to the store to make it stretch I'm wondering how much is reasonable to spend on grocery for an average family our size. We spend about 60 week. But still, it doesn't seem like quite enough sometimes. We have a family of 5, but the kids are 3,5, and then a baby who doesn't eat groceries. What does your family spend a week for food? (We live in WA, but not in Seattle so prices aren't that bad. But not as cheap as when we lived in Idaho either.) We get WIC, so that means we get probably 20 a week in milk and other groceries. So, I guess we would say we use $80 a week.
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Old 03-31-2009, 06:34 AM   #2  
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I have a family of 5 including 3 teenagers.Unfortunately I spend about 200 a week.But we have really tried to cut out almost all eating out so I think this is why our weekly grocery bill has increased, along with the "wonderful" economy situation.I also try not to take any children with me as I shop.This helps me not end up with unneeded junk food.I have also switched to mostly store brands and on sale items.I try to only shop perimeter of store, avoiding most prepackaged and processed foods.I also religuously cut coupons but only use them on items I would purchase anyway.
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Old 03-31-2009, 08:34 AM   #3  
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I spend about $150 a week at the regular grocery/produce stand with a monthly trip to Sam's Club just for meat that costs me about $175. We eat mostly whole foods. I have kids that are 7, 4, and 2. My husband and my 7 year old have hollow legs (I wish I could be skinny like them both & shovel down food lol j/k)

I also go shopping by myself at the store I have to or I'd go totally insane!
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Old 03-31-2009, 08:38 AM   #4  
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We have 11 in our family (4 adults, 2 teenagers, 10, 8, 6, 4, & 2). We've been trying to cut back lately, but our weekly grocery bill is usually around 300-350.
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Old 03-31-2009, 08:49 AM   #5  
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I feel terrible saying this but there is only me and my 14 year old son. I spend about 50 a wk. But since he is on spring break at his dad's, it has only been 20 bucks this week..lol
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Old 03-31-2009, 09:02 AM   #6  
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I need to start tracking this better. We are a family of 3 (my husband, my son and I) and since I'm not eating like 4 teenagers combine anymore I'll think I'll save more hehehe. Usually we go once every two months to Costco and buy everything we spend around $600, and the usual trips to the local supermarket if we are running low on something every one or two weeks. I think that's it.
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Old 03-31-2009, 09:12 AM   #7  
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We're right around $150/wk for the three of us (2 adults, 1 9 yr old son), but we'd be a lot higher if a) spouse wasn't a hunter and the freezer wasn't full of wild game b) we didn't can and freeze aggressively. Thank goodness spring is coming and we'll be able to get the garden in soon - that relieves a lot of economic pressure from fresh organic produce. It's truly amazing how much it costs to get away from processed food, but in my heart I really believe that we'll save some of that cost in future medical bills that won't need to be paid.
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Old 03-31-2009, 10:18 AM   #8  
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I have a family of 7 (2 adult, 4 teenagers and a 2 year old)

It's hard for me to track weekly, some weeks it's not much, some weeks it seems I'm at the store daily! I buy a full beef every year, (2 upright freezers) we catch salmon to freeze, and I can about 10 cases of salmon a year, so I have the basics here, and only need to buy veggies, etc. I hit costco, spend quite a bit, but I pick up big bags of noodles, rice, sugar, etc to stock in my pantry. And that will last me about a month. So my weekly trips aren't too spendy, about $100 each, but I'm not counting the Costco run, or the beef I already have.

Interesting thread, I'll have to sit down and actually do some figuring...
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Old 03-31-2009, 10:18 AM   #9  
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This year I have picked up clipping coupons and it's amazing how much of a difference it has made. It's like free money! I found a free site called couponmom.com that has been excellent. It's coordinates your coupons with your state's local advertised grocery deals, so that you can make the most of your savings. To sign up, you have to go through all kinds of special offers. I just skipped all of those, and registered for the couponmom site, and I really like it.
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Old 03-31-2009, 10:22 AM   #10  
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Just me and my dh ...we spend about 80 a week...before the bad economy we used to spend about 150 per week...but I have had to make cuts...
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Old 03-31-2009, 10:28 AM   #11  
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We're a family of 6 (2 adults, kids ages 12, 9, 7, 5) and spend about $200 a week. I do try to buy organics often, but here in CO they can cost the same as conventional... I just try to buy whatever's on sale. I wish ours were less- I sat down this week to figure up how much the current way I'm eating costs me each month, and I'm spending right at $200 for the month for myself. When I add in the family breakfasts, lunches (from home), snacks for school, afterschool snacks and dinner, it was another $600-700. Ack!!!!
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Old 03-31-2009, 10:36 AM   #12  
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Family of three here. 2 adults and a 4 year old boy. We spend around $60 on food each week.

Last edited by branflake; 03-31-2009 at 10:36 AM.
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Old 03-31-2009, 10:47 AM   #13  
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I wish I could grow my own fruits and vegetables, but here in NYC I can only wish for Spring to finally be here and hit the farmer's market at the Botanical Garden.
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Old 03-31-2009, 10:54 AM   #14  
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Just DH and me... we spend about $70 per week at the grocery store and $100 every 3 weeks at Sam's for other stuff. I'm sure we will be much more conscious of our bill once kids arrive, but it's also an expense we make room for in other areas.

The cost goes down during farmer's market season, too.
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Old 03-31-2009, 11:01 AM   #15  
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Fascinating thread...interesting to see what others spend, in other parts of the country...

Hmmmm, with 2 adults and 2 (large) teen boys, the weekly grocery bill varies from week to week. At least $100 - often twice that...but there are quite a few variables. Venison, trout & bluefish in the freezer; canned jams, pickles, tomato sauce in the pantry; bulk buys of grains, beans, lentils, oats (25# - 50# at a time); garden season, pick-your-own blueberries .... And, that weekly $100+ often has nonfood items included. So, all told, approximately $150 average. But, we rarely go out to eat anymore, so I "treat" us with high-quality food choices more often (i.e., great cheeses, shrimp, salmon, fresh fruits and berries). We don't buy beef anymore, just chicken, fish and pork. Eggs in things like frittata, quiches and egg sauce for pasta. And I try for a meatless meal at least once a week (tough to do when you're surrounded by carnivores!).
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