Buying Groceries on a Budget: How to Determine a Budget - Saving Cent by Cent (2024)

FAQs

How to calculate a grocery budget? ›

The 50/30/20 budget can help you work out how much to spend on groceries based on your specific income and expenses. Following this framework, you spend about 50% of your monthly after-tax income on needs, 30% on wants and 20% on savings and debt repayment.

This simple and intuitive grocery budget formula suggests that you spend your net (after-tax) monthly income this way: 50% for living essentials (e.g., groceries, housing, transportation, healthcare, etc.) 30% for wants (e.g., restaurant meals, entertainment, travel, etc.)

For a family of four (including two children under age 11) in 2023, your spending on groceries should be around $975 a month. You can also look at your recommended grocery spending based on a percentage of your income. Try and aim to spend no more than 15% of your take home pay on food and groceries.

This includes purchasing items from your local grocery store or supermarket. On average, a family of four can expect to spend anywhere between $500 to $1,000 per month on groceries, depending on factors such as dietary choices, quality of ingredients, and location.

Total food cost percentage = (total cost of goods sold / total revenue) x 100. Before you can use this formula, you need to gather some information about your restaurant. Start by taking an inventory count with the costs for each item. Doing this on a regular basis can help you maintain consistent inventory reports.

Average grocery cost per month for 1 person in a household

Considering the Thrifty and Liberal plan averages, the monthly grocery cost for an adult male falls between $275.63 and $434.33, while the average for an adult female ranges from $238.46 to $384.93.

Keep grocery store receipts to get a realistic picture of your current spending habits. It might help to break down spending by category (via a spreadsheet or on paper), including beverages, produce, etc. Once you've done this, you can get an idea of where you need to trim down your grocery bill.

The 6-to-1 Grocery Method is a basic calculation (we're talking elementary-level math, basically counting), to plan your weekly grocery shop. Here's the system: Fill your grocery cart with six vegetables, five fruits, four proteins, three starches, two sauces or spreads, and one "fun" item for yourself.

WHAT DOES THE GROCERY BUDGET INCLUDE? Your grocery budget is going to include anything consumable that you use regularly and need to replenish. These are only things you would typically find at a local grocery store.

We recommend the popular 50/30/20 budget to maximize your money. In it, you spend roughly 50% of your after-tax dollars on necessities, including debt minimum payments. No more than 30% goes to wants, and at least 20% goes to savings and additional debt payments beyond minimums.

How much money do you save buying groceries vs eating out? ›

Facts & Findings. Americans save around $12 by opting to cook and eat at home, with the average home meal costing $4.23 versus over $16 per meal at an inexpensive restaurant. Annually, it costs over $13,000 more to eat out than it costs to prepare the same amount of food at home.

The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings.

According to a recent GOBankingRates article, average grocery costs range from $250 to $550 per person, per month.

The average grocery budget for a family of 3 can vary depending on factors like location and dietary preferences. A moderate-cost plan can range from $387 to $1,031 per month, while a thrifty plan can range from $287 to $764 per month.

Budgeting for food, both at the grocery store and eating out takes careful planning, but it can be done. A general rule of thumb is: $75-100 monthly per person starting at $300. So a couple would spend $300 (not $200) per month. A family of 6 would spend $700 per month.

The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals.

Food cost percentage is simply the cost of the ingredients you use to make your menu items, but described as a percentage of your restaurant sales. For example, if you have a food cost percentage of 30%, that means for every dollar your restaurant makes, you're spending about 30 cents on food.

On average, a family of five spends anywhere from $922 to $1,488 a month on groceries, according to USDA monthly food plans. If you're looking to curb your spending, consider meal planning, buying in bulk, and shopping at more affordable grocery stores.