UNITED STATES—Moving out of your home to pursue higher studies makes you realize how high food costs are. You might even start caring about the count of soda cans you buy, which you never did earlier. And it’s all because you want to save some extra cash from your monthly grocery budget.
Reports suggest that college students spend approx $670 per month on food, which includes eating out, groceries, and meal plans. The cost can quickly increase if you are not careful about your spending. Luckily, things can be under control with proper research and planning. Here are some suggestions you can follow to minimize your food budget and save more for personal expenses, like going on a weekend trip or hiring an assignment helper for personalized support with your complicated academic papers.
How to Save More from Your Food Costs?
Budgeting is an important life skill for college and university students because they have to manage multiple expenses with a limited amount of money. So one of the most important aspects of money saving is fixing your food costs. Let’s explore some proven ways to cut down on food spending in college.
- Be Realistic With Your Budget
When you decide to save, the first thing you should do is fix your budget. It will be difficult – no doubt – but you must. Add the money you get from different sources, such as parental support, loans, part-time jobs, and financial aid. Subtract the essential expenses like internet, housing, transportation, insurance, and utilities from the total amount. Based on the remaining, plan out your meals for the week and list out everything you need for meal-prepping. Look for food blogs to get ideas for cooking and make notes. While shopping for groceries, stick to your list and do not overspend on fancy items.
- Limit Eating Out
Eating out is a huge expense for college students. Even grabbing a Starbucks coffee for $1.85 a day will cost you $462.50 a year. That’s a lot! Now, the same coffee, if you brew your own, will cost you around $ 0.62 per cup and $155 a year, saving you $307.50! Isn’t that a huge save?
Of course, we don’t mean that you never go out to eat with your friends. Make it a once-a-week habit so you can grab breakfast, lunch, or dinner with your mates without exceeding your weekly budget. You can also use tools like YNAB, GoodBudget, and PocketGuard to ensure you stay within budget.
- Cook Your Meals
Surviving on ramen and frozen food may seem like a pocket-friendly option, but it could cost you your health. Fast food and frozen food items do not have nutritional value. A better way to save your pocket and nourish your health is to eat hand-cooked meals. You can lower your grocery bills by eating more in-season veggies and fruits and cutting down on red meat. Beans, lentils, tofu, etc., are better and cheaper substitutes for protein. If you are looking for easy-to-cook recipes that won’t break the bank, you can try out these suggestions to cook up a storm.
- Hone Couponing Skills
As old-schooled as it may sound, coupons are a great way to reduce your grocery bills. The first step to couponing is to sign up for the loyalty program at your favorite store. It will get you access to the store deals. Then, clip coupons from your weekly circulars and stack them for the next grocery shopping day. Furthermore, check online sites like Coupons.com, SmartSource.com, and Redplum.com to find offers on your regular products.
- Split Costs with a Friend
If you live with your friend or a roommate, consider buying groceries together and splitting the bills. You can each take turns to cook, clean, and get groceries. Living with a friend or a roommate will not only reduce the burden of your food costs, but you will also get company and steer clear of homesickness, which is definitely a win-win situation for you.
- Buy Store Brands in Bulk
Popular food brands generally cost more than store-brand products. For example, at Target, a 20-ounce bottle of Heinz ketchup costs $5.49, while the store-brand product is around $1.59. The more items you buy, the more dollars you will save. Most importantly, some food items cost much less when bought in large quantities. If you stay with a friend, take advantage of the buy one and get one free offer and purchase more items that last longer, which include oatmeal, cereals, pasta, and rice. Buying in bulk will not only save your food costs, but also your time, effort, and convenience expenses.
Wrapping Up
Food is expensive, but that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice on good meals. You can eat well on a budget. The secret is to plan, learn more about low-cost food items and easy meals for novices, and cut down on eating out. Also, bear in mind that many federal and private loans cover tuition fees and living expenses, which include food and grocery charges. Therefore, gather more information about your student loan funds to make the most of your budget.
