Another year is coming to an end, and for the 4th year in a row, I’ve gone over budget. Am I freaking out about it? Nah. Do I feel like a failure? Not one bit. Am I disappointed? Nope. I’m happy. Seriously.
Over the last few years I’ve spent about $165/month on groceries. Obviously that’s over budget, but you won’t see me changing the name of the site to One Hundred and Sixty Five Dollars a Month. Because I will always strive to save money on groceries, Shopping smart, buying in bulk, being well prepared, planning meals around sales and leftovers, experimenting with fresh and healthy recipes and genuinely sticking to a frugal budget is crazy fun to me.
So even though I might fail to hit that magical $100 price point, that’s okay. I won’t beat myself up over it because I’m doing the best I can. And that’s all we can do, right?
This year was a tough one that threw some unexpected curve balls. That’s what life does. It rains on you and then it’s awesome, and sometimes it’s all of that at the same time. And we make plans and break plans and set goals and fail at them. And we take a deep breath, pull up our big girl panties and do it all over again.
I’m proud of the budget I was able to stick to this year. I was able to fill bellies with healthy food and the occasional treat. I was able to find some great deals and cook up some tasty new recipes and check off some big goals along the way.
So I’m giving myself a big high-five and forging full steam ahead into 2017. And based on what I have up my sleeve, next year is going to be freakin amazing.
How about YOU? How’d you do with your budget this past year? Did you make any positive changes? Are you setting some goals to get your budget back on track next year? Are you giving yourself a pat on the back regardless of how much you spent on groceries because you survived 2016? Cause that’s something to be celebrated!
Go. Fight. Win.
Until next year…
~Mavis
In 2008 I spent $9,768 on groceries. An average of $814 a month.
In 2009 I spent $7,584 on groceries. An average of $632 a month.
In 2010 I spent $5,004 on groceries. An average of $417 a month.
In 2011 I spent $1,198.64 on groceries. An average of $100 a month.
In 2012 I spent $1,195.67 on groceries. An average of $100 a month.
In 2013 I spent $2192.32 on groceries. An average of $182.69 a month.
In 2014 I spent $1907.34 on groceries. An average of $158.95 a month.
In 2015 I spent $1798.07 on groceries. An average of $149.83 a month
In 2016 I spent $2059.07 on groceries. An average of $171.59 a month
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Lindsey says
oh mavis the anticipation! I can’t wait to hear your plans for next year… and I think you love torturing us!
Kari says
I think what you do is amazing. Thank you for all your stories and inspiration. I love it!
I do not even come close to your 165/mo. I regularly feed five of us, but in the summer we host minor league baseball players. Try feeding three hungry ball players for three months a year! On top of that, we host lots of company and throw several large get-togethers for co-workers, host families, and our large extended family. I managed to do this with a $600/mo average, feeding everyone nutritious food for the most part (besides a few unhealthy requests for junk like hot pockets and frozen burritos by a couple of the players. Yuck!) I will continue to strive to reduce that, but I also have to face reality–it will never be $100/mo!!
Delores says
I feed our family of 8 for about $850 a month. I finally started really, honestly 🙂 keeping track about 6 months ago. My goal for 2017 is to decrease by 10% by the end of the year. I once heard that the monthly average is about $25 per person per week. So I figure about $750 to $785 is a doable goal for me, especially because I don’t even really try right now. I think with using a price book and iBotta, I could for sure knock us down for $800 a month. Anyway, slow and steady is my philosophy and 10% seems pretty doable.
I am looking forward to hearing about your new goals!
Katelyn says
I think if you spent $165 a month and ATE all that food, that’s pretty damn good. I know you’re passionate about food waste, Mavis, so to know that you spent $165 and consumed it all – that’s money well spent.
Thanks for all your work on the blog; I’ve been reading for a long time and love it even though our lives are very different. You inspire me to think differently about my life and to challenge myself to improve where I can.
Happy New Year!
Carolina says
Well, Mavis, you still spent LESS on food for your family in 2016 than you did in 2014…and that in itself is truly impressive. Keep up the good work. You inspire me!
Carolina says
I meant to say in my above comment that you spent less in 2016 than in 2013!!! By bad, as the kids say. But still, YOUR GOOD.
Debra Basquz says
My food budget has been $400 a month for about 12-14 years now. I had 4 kids living at home and with my husband and myself, total 6. I haven’t done so well in the past few years, food prices have gone up and like you, I stopped the extreme couponing. it was junk we didn’t eat. I can a lot and still have 2-3 of my grown children living with us. One 22 year old boy in college who comes home on breaks and eats big meals. a 27 year old son who lives here and my 17 year old son still in high school. oh and by the way, daughter seems to show up at dinner time now and again and on Sunday for lunch. We have averaged $469 per month for the past two years. just did my food tally yesterday. I think we’ve done very good considering that food prices have gone up and we’re not couponing any more. Love reading your blog. Thanks and keep up the good work.
judy says
You have done very well! Those young people eat like horses and the food must be good because they stick around!
Katie says
I think $165 a month is FANTASTIC. We currently spend about $250-$300 a month on groceries for 2 adults and now a toddler. But that also includes dog food ($25 every 3 months) and household items (toiletries/cleaner etc). Our real problem is our eating out budget. We pretty much don’t do anything else for “entertainment” except go out to eat – it’s just what we like to do for fun. However, we currently spend too much on that. This year I really want to buckle down on that to save for other things (new baby on the way!). I also want to see if I can try a 52 week savings plan. I don’t normally budget for our “wants” – other than eating out ha. I’m thinking it would be fun to surprise hubs with $1,000 for a vacation or something next Christmas by squirreling away some money each week.
Ramona says
Don’t forget to add inflation to the cost of food now from when you started doing 100 dollars a month. For just 2 people in my family I average $200 per month. I rarely use coupons anymore. I plant only tomatoes and a few vegetables. I do have lots of raspberries,blueberries,strawberries,apples and grapes. I make lots of jam and freeze the fruit. Make my own grape juice. We eat out once in awhile and I make most things from scratch. You have inspired many and you have more will power than me. Like sticking to the challenge of eating survival food.
Sakura says
Your yearly totals are impressive and inspirational. This year I lost my funk and didn’t watch my spending and I didn’t garden. I’m ready to get back on track. You did an awesome job with your budget.