First Published:
23/06/2019
It’s the old chestnut that if something costs more it’s got to be better, right? Wrong! So many brands operate under this illusion but actually some of the cheaper grocery brands are far superior in taste. You could end up saving £520* a year by switching to value brands.
Here are some well-proven cost-saving tips to follow when doing your weekly grocery shop:
- If you don’t already, try shopping at one of your low-cost supermarkets; they offer a substantial cost savings but deliver the same quality you will find in the more expensive supermarkets.
- Look out for your supermarket’s own-brand products rather than the branded goods. Own-brand goods have got more sophisticated in recent years and more often than not you won’t taste any difference.
- Check out the ‘yellow label’ food section – every supermarket has one and you’ll find your savvy shoppers here towards the end of the end of the day when a lot of products get marked down.
- Plan ahead and draw up a weekly food menu so you can budget for the week. Planning day-by-day will cost you a lot more.
- Batch-cook your meals and freeze what you don’t use for another day. It saves you time, money and reduce your energy bills.
Watch out for…
- Don’t do your food shopping when you’re hungry! You tend to buy more.
- Don’t buy pre-chopped fruit and veg; they’ve never as fresh and you’re paying extra when you could do it yourself.
Don’t fall for supermarket tricks
Certain stores employ cunning tactics to encourage you to spend more, beware of the traps below:
- Check that multibuys, Buy1Get1Free offers and other deals are actually saving you money – often they deliver little saving at all. Always check the original price and work out if you’re making a saving.
- Supermarkets stack the expensive products at eye level and at aisle ends – making it easier for customers to grab them. We tend to buy less products if we have to bend down or stretch up high for them, so that’s where you’ll find the cheaper alternatives.
- Supermarkets tend to place our essential products in hard to find places to keep us in the supermarket for longer.
More ways to save
The art of couponing
Coupons and vouchers are a great way of cutting down on the final bill. You can start collecting vouchers right away from the following places:
Other useful websites
*Data from savethestudent.org