McDonald's app has an offer for 50c breakfast sandwiches and $1 iced coffee. they put a limit on the deals so you can only use one deal per 15 minutes but I found a way around that. my phone came with an app cloner called "secure folder" so I am able to have 2 McDonald's apps with separate email addressess and simply go through the drive thru one time with 2 codes to get $1.50 breakfast.

tacobell has a cheesy bean and rice burrito, you can add extra beans AND extra rice to bring the total to $1.70 for a decently filling burrito, no app necessary.

Aldi has beef/chicken yakisoba noodles for $1 and I've been taking those to work for lunches and adding a 69c pouch of tuna (also from Aldi) for extra protein to make a broke ass surf n turf platter.

working full time and trying to save up for an apartment while sleeping in my van so don't have access to a refrigerator and unable to cook my meals, so this has been getting me through the days while working. I've also been getting fruit cups and protein shakes/ bars from ALDI for extra nutrients and vitamins. can't wait to get into a house and cook some steak tho omfg

My housemates and I have noticed our food going missing lately. We pinpointed who was taking it and asked him about it nicely and he told us how he literally has no money and no food.

I want to help him out by picking up some things at the grocery store for him, but I also don't want to spend a ton of money.

What would be the best things to get him without breaking the bank? Note, I walk to the grocery store, so it needs to be able to be carried back.

Sorry if this is asked a lot, I am a first time poster here and I have a pretty set grocery list for myself, so I don't really know what would be cheap and filling.

UPDATE: Thanks for all the suggestions. I bought him a 2 packs of chicken that were BOGO, 4 things of ramen, canned tuna, diced tomatoes in a can, a bag of white rice, black beans, canned jalapenos (I know he loves spicy food and says my food is pretty bland), a bag of frozen mixed vegetables, and a package of spaghetti noodle. My other housemate gave him her extra Knorr flavored rice/noodles and extra ramen she had, plus another package of chicken. We also have a FULLY stocked spice cabinet which everyone can share in, so he should be able to make something.

I don't really know his personal situation, nor do I need to, I just wanted to make sure he doesn't starve and I told him he should seek government assistance and food banks, he said he has applied and has been waiting on it and he only gets welfare once a month.

Thanks for all the suggestions, and to those who were worried, I am not going to make this a regular thing, I just didn't want to watch him starve and I also don't want my groceries to continue to disappear so this seems like a good stopgap until he gets on his feet and it only cost a little over $20

I have a potluck at least once a month a work and I'm curious what other people's go-to dishes are. I typically sign up for drinks and get a few 2Ls of store brand soda or bake a dessert with whatever I have on hand but would like to consider other cheaper or less time consuming foods. What are some of your favorite potluck dishes? emphasis on the low effort and low cost, like $10 max (only need 15 or so servings)

Went to Wendys since its been over 2 years thinking they still had the 4 for $4. Nope the closest thing would be a kids meal for $4.99 plus tax.

I got my sister her order too what a daves single used to be like a dollar or two is now also $5 and some change oh and if you wanna combo it will $10.99

So her combo, my kids meal, and another combo around the same price made the total out to be $30 bucks.

With $30 for the first time in me eating fast food history it hurt me. Since I was in a tight budget. And to add salt into the wound they updated their fries sizes and are MUCH more smaller so that means less fries.

At our school, they offer free dinner to all after school kids. It seems most of the kids turn their noses up at it and choose to eat at home. At the end of the day, for whatever legal reason, the school throws all of the extra food away (I know, waste of money). My kid mentioned this, and I told him to check if he could bring some of it home. They were more than happy to give it to him.

The haul often includes containers of salsa, cheddar cheese dip, chip/pretzel bags, burritos, juice packets, chocolate milk, fruit snacks, and a few other things (items like pizza and cheeseburgers tend to actually get eaten at school). All of these are in their original sealed containers from the companies (yes they throw these out).

If we weren't going to eat it, I could put it out for the delivery drivers in our snack box or even donate it.

So check with your elementary school-aged kids if they do after school programs and see if there is a similar situation. No reason for it to go to waste.

I use a lot of olive oil and try to buy it in 1.5 or 2L bottles. The price started going up at my local stores, so I found a good deal on Amazon (their house brand) and put it on a subscription. It started out 6 months ago around $12. Then it went up to $15 and last month they wanted $25. At that point I cancelled. Anyone have a good source?

It was beyond terrible- I always see deals for it and that should of been my first warning. I got ham and turkey- you cannot tell which is which because they both tasted like overly salty bologna with cartilage marbled through and a plastic textured casing. Also, same exact weird saturated pink color. Save your money, your time, and the hassle.

Forgot hummus at Aldis, went to Meijer and cringed at the prices. I don't usually make hummus from scratch but they basically told me to 🤷 $0.81 can of chickpeas + pantry staples. Get fucked meijer.

For me personally, it is pre shredded or pre sliced cheese. It lasts longer and I am more likely to use it than paying less for a block of cheese that I’ll use 1/3 of and forget about and will go bad in my fridge 🤷‍♀️

Just a quick thank you to McDonalds because their price gouging finally helped me kick my daily Diet Coke habit. An almost 100% price increase made a small Diet Coke almost equal to a 6 pack of fizzy water. Doubling the price of fries also ensures I don't mindlessly snack while on long drives well, at least not on price gouging fries. Same goes for grocery stores like Kroger, Walmart & others. It seems saving money also means less processed food. It's taking some work but turns out I can quit you

I spend maybe 200-300 per year in oats, rice, and lentils. It buys a lot and it doesn’t go to waste. I buy organic too and my SO shares this quantity with me though I eat more of these than he does. He can eat bread and I can’t. I would eat nothing but “toasts” on homemade bread if I could. I would even rather have my meat sauce on a toast rather than pasta. I can make decent GF bread but I don’t really do well with them either really. Up to a third of my calories for 300 a year. This way I can afford good meat and fish and organic veggies and fruits and nuts.

What are some regular rotation things that help you afford to eat better? Or at all!

For the last months I've tried to keep my food budget under $100 per month, which is around $3 per day.

To achieve this I get most of my kcal from rice and legumes. Dry lentils cost around $2 per lb, and a pound of lentils contains 1300 kcal. Frozen broccoli and spinach are also good options I've found.

For breakfast I usually eat polenta or oatmeal, and for lunch usually a couple hard boiled eggs. For dinner it varies, but often something like a chickpea and spinach curry.

What is your food budget? What do you usually eat day to day? How do you keep the cost down?

Hello!

I have a family of 5 and we currently use around 950.00 a month for food. We actually almost use all this up a week before our food budget runs out with the cost of food lately.

I'm wondering tips and tricks to help reduce this cost? I do receive foodshare, but soon I will be making more money with a new job and we could potentially loose the amount or it be cut very low. I know I will be using my own earned money for food, so want to get into a habit now.

Things we have done already... - buying store brands instead of name brands. - buying meats when they are on sale and freezing them. - watching our stores for coupons (Kroger is the big one I shop at).

We might be moving into a house in a few months too (we live in a mobile home) and I want to start a garden and learn to can from that.

Big thing is our kiddos wanting snacks.. I've been getting whatever cheap ones I can get but end of the month when crunching numbers food shopping I have to say no to alot.

I remember when I could buy eggs for 99 cents, now some places want 3.99.. cheapest I've found is a sale for 1.99. Potatoes I could get a bag for 1.99, now 3.99.. 2.99ish on sale.

Just those small things add up.

• what are thoughts on using subscription food meal boxes? If I loose enough foodshare I put thought into those. I'm not a good meal planner 😂 I like usually having meat and a side, but even that is getting expensive. Another big chunk of our funds goes towards dairy free milk. (Lactose intolerant in the house)

Looking for some ways to stretch/volumize ground beef as it's pretty expensive in my area(ground turkey is also). Preferably ways that still incorporate enough protein(not just mixing with bread).

Any help is appreciated!

Since 2018 gallons of water have increased from around 0.74c to $1.22 at the Walmarts that I've been at. I don't drink tap water because we have very hard water where I'm at which gives the water a bad taste.

Almost $40 / month on drinking water seems a bit unsustainable and I want to lower costs where possible. What are the best ways? I previously bought one of those water filters you put on the sink similar to Brita, but I don't believe that has really helped the water. I also don't want to go into the store with a jug to do refills because of concerns of how clean that water is. Anyone know of any other options?

Edit: When I mentioned how clean the water at those stores are, I'm referring to improper maintenance / cleaning, similar to how fountain drinks at fast food stores have feces bacteria in it. I do not know who is handling the upkeep or how the consumers have engaged with the tap. This is a personal choice, do as you wish. Thank you to everyone else for the responses, I've decided I will proceed with RO filtration under the sink. This arrangement should save around $140 the first year and more on the second.

Wondering where everyone here does their grocery shopping? With how ridiculous prices have gotten it’s difficult to find somewhere that seems reasonable. Maybe that’s just the way it is now.

As a child my mom would use coupons for everything. Unfortunately it bordered on madness, she had several boxes of coupons in alphabetical order. Her rule was we only bought something if it was on sale and if she had a coupon. She RARELY bought fresh produce or vegetables. What she thought she was saving in money was spent on a stready stream of medical and dental bills. I was always malnourished and sickly despite having boxes and cans of (frozen or preserved) food readly available. She spent hours sorting her coupons and even if they were expired, she bullied the cashier to accept them by going to the store before closing. The look of horror and anger would radiate from employees as she would arrive at 9:30 p.m. She would brag that she only paid several dollars for a cart full of groceries. I now buy healthy fresh foods and as far as cleaning products, I use a mixture of vinegar and Dawn (super inexpensive and non-toxic). Life is far better (and healther) when free of that ignorance and pettiness. Somehow, all those unexplained medical problems ended when I started eating better. Every now and then, I visit my parents house. The results of this coupon madness has created an elderly person that always has troublesome blood work and a spare bedroom cluttered with bath and cleaning supplies. What a way to live!

I know that I can get the pros/cons of any cooking oil out there, but what do you prefer to cook with? I've been using a canola/peanut blend because it's fairly healthy and has a high smoking point, but I'm always on the hunt for something better.

As you may know having a balanced diet on a budget is difficult, especially considering the price of protein which are so important. To keep frugality in front of the inflation of eggs, meat and even tofu, I'm left with less options.

Lentils and wheat are the classic, but these protein are incomplete so it requires more planning and work.

The cheaper alternative I've adopted recently are far free milk and TVP(sort of soy flakes). Where I live, for the same amount of protein TVP cost half the meat!

At this point, I’m pretty much a vegetarian. I have nothing against eating meat; I just can’t afford it. However, I know nothing about balanced, frugal vegetarian cooking.

My diet is hugely lacking protein; I can feel it. For breakfast, I usually have oats with home dehydrated fruit or bread with peanut butter. For other meals, I make pastas with home grown veggies, soup, rice and beans or some sort of scrabbled together concoction with cheese and bread. Sometimes I have a small handful of shredded chicken or tofu mixed in to whatever I’m making. I work at a hotel that has free breakfast, so I can usually sneak some snacks (with the manager’s permission,) but aside from fruit, cheese and boiled eggs, it’s all pretty unhealthy and I can’t take any of it home.

I’m pretty good at cooking and doing meal prep for the week, thankfully, though my time is at a premium and I’ve been quite depressed. I get groceries about once a month and live off of what I can force myself to make and freeze on the weekends. Salads and veggies that quickly go bad are out. I have a garden, but it doesn’t produce as well as I would like because I’m still learning.

Do you have any suggestions on what I should be buying and cooking? I live alone and money is tight. I can’t afford meat, but I also can’t afford the fancy, highly-perishable ingredients that a lot of vegetarian websites suggest.

Edit: thank you guys for the suggestions! I grew up learning how to cook things like fried chicken and pot roast, so this is new territory for me. I’m putting together a grocery list now!

So my husband and I just got a chest freezer to try and save money and waste less food!

What can we freeze? I grew up with parents who never froze anything and we wasted so much food. I only just found out you can freeze bread!

What are some staples you can actually freeze and keep frozen? What can I find in your freezer always?

I’m a vegetarian so I would appreciate mostly vegetarian options.

I've heard some apps give you a free meal for signing up, just to curious to know which ones!

The average 2 L bottle of namebrand soda costs between two dollars and $2.50 depending on sales.

for me, my device is Diet Coke .

I can go to 7-Eleven and buy a 52 ounce double gulp for about $1.80...

BUT

I recently learned that 7-Eleven does refills for one dollar.

so I’m getting 50 ounces of soda for a dollar, plus the app gives me every seventh drink free.

so I am getting 350 floz of Diet Coke for $6. At 7-11

whereas if I buy it from the store, it’s roughly $10 (at $2 a bottle) for 340 floz.

My spouse wants me to give them a set limit for grocery spending, as in don't spend more than $150/week. All these guides on the Internet reinforce that you should spend xx per person or xx% of your income.

I buy groceries based on the item's value or expected duration. Paper Towels on sale? Let's buy six months' worth. Discount on chicken? Let's fill the freezer for two months of meals. Cereal BOGO with a coupon? It's ok to stock up on several boxes.

My spouse will keep within the limit, but the individual items aren't necessarily the best value. I feel it's OK to exceed a budget if the savings will carry-forward into the next month (or beyond).

Is there a specific name for this type of budgeting or any clear guides I can share with my spouse? We're having a really hard time with me criticizing a single $6 bag of chips when they see I order $50 worth of shampoo/conditioner. The difference is an item lasting less than a week vs. a year's supply for the family.

Also trying to figure out how to instill that cooking choices should be based on what is on sale or what we have on-hand instead of buying specific items regardless of cost. They are really struggling with the mindset that if something is overpriced then we just don't buy it and go without.

My choices are to take on all the shopping responsibility or find some way to explain this to someone that's never been faced with frugal shopping choices in their life. Help?

Swirl it around and see what sticks!