I hit $20 a week on groceries and it actually worked for 3 months straight

Back in January I decided to see how low I could go on my food budget. I live in a small town in Ohio so prices are not crazy but still not cheap. I set a goal of $20 per week for just myself. That meant no eating out at all and every meal had to come from scratch. I got really good at things like dried beans, rice, and eggs being the base of everything. I would buy a whole chicken for $6 and stretch it into 4 meals plus broth. The biggest surprise was how much I saved by making my own bread and tortillas. After 3 months I proved to myself it was possible but I will admit I got tired of lentils. Has anyone else tried a really tight weekly budget like this and stuck with it for a while?

2 comments

2 Comments

tarab541d ago

My friend Sarah tried something similar and got down to $25 a week for like 4 months straight. She would buy a big bag of potatoes and a head of cabbage every week and make those the base for everything, plus she'd get eggs from a neighbor for cheap. She said after the third month she started crying over a bowl of lentil soup because she just couldn't look at another spoonful of beans, so she quit and went back to normal grocery shopping.

ray_webb611h ago

A whole chicken for $6? Man, I wish I could find them that cheap around here. They're usually closer to $8 or $9 in my neck of the woods, even on sale. Still a good deal if you're willing to break it down and use everything, though.