Day 58: Groceries

I used to regularly track the grocery budget since I wanted to get a feel of what we (a household of 2 people, one with specific dietary preferences) spent each month. This was more academic than anything else. I had started tracking in 2020 since we had moved in together and while I knew my solo-girl budget, I wasn't sure about the budget for someone who wasn't as strict as I was.

(Yes, I realize having a strict grocery budget is laughable for someone who succumbs to the shinies, but I do have some self-restraint when I need to.)

Anyway, I'd only vaguely tracked it the past few years, mostly for our regular weekly purchases. I want to keep tracking restaurants and other miscellaneous purchases, such as the random grocery store we periodically go to, that big warehouse store, and the farmer's market in the summer. But mostly I track the regular local grocery store because we shop weekly.

So I went back and filled out my spreadsheet, using some estimates that sounded about right for anything I couldn't look back on the credit card. And our estimate is $830 a month, which includes restaurants. I think that's pretty good these days, considering how much food costs anymore.

For January, however, it was around $415. But there weren't any big splurges, like soda and snacks, since there wasn't a good enough deal and we still have a stockpile (yes, that word again) of soda and snacks from the last year whenever they went on sale. My partner drinks Coke Zero like it's their coffee, but I refuse to spend more than $5 a case!

I'm hoping these next few months will be lower than average, as we work through those random things that have been in the pantry and freezer, things we stocked up when it was a good deal or even as far back as 2020 when we weren't sure when we'd see it again. My goal this year is to not have anything left from 2020. Be free, my pantry!

While groceries and eating out aren't the budget-suck like all those silly shinies that I'm having to consciously choose not to buy, it's still interesting to see where there still might be weaknesses. Like realizing we buy pizza approximately once a month, when if you'd asked me off the top of my head, I would have said maybe every other month at most.

So sometimes it's nice to know that I do know how to be budget-minded and responsible when it really matters.