Meat
Many times, your local butcher shop will have bulk deals to save you money. In addition, the meat you’ll find at the butcher is much leaner and healthier than the meat you’ll find at the grocery store.
Batteries
These are almost always more expensive at the grocery store. It's better to buy batteries at a warehouse store or online in bulk for a cheaper option. Batteries, on average, can be stored and keep their power for five to 10 years, meaning they're good for a long time.
Pre-Cut Fruit and Vegetables
These items of convenience sure do look pretty, but they come with a price. They're often more expensive and can either be over- or underripe. Some stores take the fruits and veggies that haven't sold, cut them up, and put them in a container for you to buy - meaning you're getting something that's nearly bad (or has gone bad).
Granola and Granola Bars
Granola is one of those foods that are marketed as being healthy but in reality? Not so much. Granola in the stores is packed full of sugar, preservatives, and stuff that you probably don't want in your body. For that reason, it may be time to stop buying granola and granola bars at the store, and make them at home yourself.
Bottled Water
The better and overall cheaper option would be to invest in a water filtration system for your water faucet or a reusable water bottle instead of polluting the Earth with all those little plastic bottles. Not to mention, you're going to save a ton of money in the long run.
Toothbrushes
To save some cash, instead of buying your toothbrushes at the grocery store every three months, ask your dentist for a few extra samples at your next visit. Most dentists' offices are just happy that you're brushing your teeth and asking for more. This also goes for that nice floss ribbon or floss tape that they hand out!
Kitchenware
Most people don't get their kitchenware at grocery stores, so the prices for the items are insanely inflated. Not to mention, they've been there for a long time. You’ll find better prices at Bed, Bath, & Beyond than you would at your neighborhood grocery store.
Canned Fruit and Vegetables
Canned fruits and veggies can be rather unhealthy for some because of all the sodium and preservatives that are packed in with them. Sure, it's cheaper than fresh, but there's a reason canned vegetables are always so mushy (and it isn't the way you cook them), so stick to fresh produce stores.
Diapers
Grocery stores bet on the fact that you see something on the shelf and think, "Oh yeah, I need that!" It works out fine for food, but other times like diapers? You're going to pay much more than you should be. You can pay a lot less by ordering them online in bulk, rather than buying one pack at a time from the grocery store.
Party Supplies
The same decorations you can find at a grocery store can more than likely be purchased at the Dollar Store for much, much less as party supplies can become quite costly at the grocery store. Grocery stores can charge $5 for just 10 paper plates. A bit much.
Bread
If there is a local bakery or bakery outlet store nearby, we suggest you purchase your fresh bread from there instead of the grocery store. It is much cheaper at an outlet store, so you can buy more and freeze it until you need it. Alternatively, you can make your own bread.
Special Occasion Cakes
Getting your cake at Walmart, Kroger, or Kings is easy, but you're paying for that convenience. Unless you want a smaller cake, you're going to spend much more than if you want to go to a bulk store. Not to mention, it's the same baked goods! Go to warehouse stores for a much cheaper option.
Magazines
Grocery store magazines are obscenely overpriced. They're betting on you spending a little extra because you're enticed by the cover. Subscribing for one whole year can save you up to 75% off of the cost of buying them off the shelf at the grocery store.
Pet Food
While the grocery store isn’t the worst place to get your pet’s vittles, we suggest ordering online for a couple of reasons. First of all, no one has tampered with the bag. You'd be surprised how many people tear open pet food bags at grocery stores. Second, you're sure to get the brand you like best.
Pancake and Waffle Mix
It's just as easy - and cheaper - to just purchase the ingredients and mix them yourself. Most of the time, you'll have the ingredients in your pantry already. That means there's no need to buy the extra stuff at the store for more money. I just need some flour, egg, sugar and water.
Gift Cards
This is a well-known secret for those that buy gift cards regularly. Sometimes the big bulk stores will sell $100 worth of a gift card for just $80. Check these stores out before you head to the grocery store to pick one up!
Alcohol
Here's another time when those warehouse stores will save you a little extra. Buying alcohol in a grocery store can be up to twice as expensive for a much smaller bottle. The bottles at warehouse stores often are big enough for a football team! Or if you want something that's truly delicious and high-quality, you'll need to go to an actual alcohol store.
Cooking Wine
We're gonna blow your mind. All wine is cooking wine depending on what you like. The "cooking" wines that you get on the shelf next to the vinegar can be saltier, high in preservatives, and cannot be consumed like regular wine. Instead of doing that, just get a regular bottle of wine - something cheap like Two Buck Chuck.
Croutons and Bread Crumbs
You have the ingredients you need in your cabinet right now. Take that old stale bread and turn it into croutons and bread crumbs, instead of throwing it out. They'll taste better than whatever you're going to get at the store. You simply need to mix in the herbs you want. Easy, right?
Frozen And/or Canned Pasta
Frozen and/or canned pastas are also another food that is loaded down with sodium and other preservatives that can be unhealthy for you. Making ravioli isn't easy, but the rest? Super easy to make, and there's often a boxed version that's cheaper and will taste fresher when made.
Hot Bar Food
Hot bar food can be tempting (as long as it hasn't been sitting under the heating lamps for several hours). What grocery stores don't tell you is that these foods are way more expensive than you think until you get up to the register. So it’s best just to go to well-known food chains for a little snack.
Greeting Cards
These are a bit overpriced at the grocery store. The grocery stores are betting on the fact you see the cards and remember you need one. What's paying over $5 for a single card? Answer: a lot. That's a ton for something someone won't keep long. You’d get more bang for your buck by ordering them online in bulk or even creating your own online.
Instant Oatmeal
It may feel like you're making the healthy choice by buying instant oatmeal. Has to be better than cereal, right? Wrong. Instant oatmeal can be packed with as much sugar as what kids beg their parents to get at the store - looking at you, Captain Crunch. Making fresh, steel-cut oatmeal is a much better alternative.
Single Serve Coffee Pods
Single-serve coffee pods are really only ideal for those that drink a cup a day or a cup every now and then. Financially, it makes more sense to buy a bag of beans, grind them yourself at the store, and brew it at home using whatever method you like best.
Minced Garlic
Minced garlic might seem like a time-saver, but it's kinda bad for you. If you read the ingredients, garlic is on there, but so are tons of other ingredients that help preserve the garlic so it doesn't go bad before you eat it. There's no reason to buy this stuff when fresh garlic is available at fresh produce stores.
Nut Butter
This one isn't necessarily for peanut butter, but all the other choices at the store. Nut butter is easy to make, but grocery stores jack up the price for things like almond butter because of the perceived "healthiness" of the product. Instead, get a bag of almonds and blend them up yourself to make your own nut butter.
Pesto
Pesto is super easy to make at home and - even better - you can season it to your own specific tastes. The only tough part is finding enough basil to make pesto with, but a big container can be around $5 while a teeny, tiny can of premade pesto will likely be the same price (and have a lot less in the jar).
Spices
Those little bottles of dried spices at the store can cost you upwards of $5 per jar! That's a little much for spices. Bulk food stores are the better option for these because you can purchase the amount you need, instead of buying a whole jar for one teaspoon.
Light Bulbs
Lightbulbs can be quite pricey these days and are even pricier at the grocery store. Expect to pay at least an extra dollar or two when you get them at the grocery store. We recommend that you order them in bulk online or maybe at a warehouse store to save some money.
Stock
Stock at the grocery store is easy to buy. We'll give you that. The only problem is that the cheap stuff doesn't taste as good, and the expensive stuff is well...expensive! You probably have everything you need to make your own stock at home. Honestly, it's easy to make on your own, and it tastes so much better.
Frozen Meals
Frozen and prepared meals or snacks are convenient when you’re on the go and have little time to prepare something for yourself. However, they’re also quite expensive and only give you one serving of what you want. Avoid these products and squeeze in time for meal prep to stretch your dollar further.
Books
Granted, we doubt many people out there are going to the grocery store to purchase books, but if you find yourself intrigued with one there, don’t buy it. Book subscriptions are incredibly affordable for most types of books, and you can buy books for cheap at thrift stores or even online if you have an e-reader.
Laundry Detergent
Doing laundry is no longer an affordable endeavor, especially if you’re doing laundry for the home family. It’s best to get your laundry detergent from Warehouse stores or even retailers like Target, especially when they’re having a sale on home products.
Cookware and Bakeware
The cookware and bakeware you might find alongside kitchen utensils in one secluded grocery store aisle are overpriced and poorly produced. Rely on home goods stores to give you better affordable cookware and bakeware options built to last.
Name-Brand Products
Name-brand products are more expensive yet rarely provide anything unique you can’t find in generic options. If you do have your heart set on certain name-brand products, there are some types you should avoid. Items like cereal, for which prices for name-brands have been rising exponentially.
