Overheard my neighbor bragging about her $600 monthly food budget for just herself

I was taking out the trash last week and heard my neighbor telling someone she spends $600 a month on groceries all for her one person household. I nearly dropped my bag. My household of three hits $450 total and we eat good include steak nights and fresh produce. I track every grocery trip in a spreadsheet and it takes like 10 minutes a week tops. How are yall keeping your food costs down without eating garbage?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_jamie25d ago

Dang, $600 for one person? That's like premium steakhouse levels of grocery shopping.

the_lee23d ago

...and honestly the numbers add up faster than people think. I lived alone for years and my bill was usually 450 to 550, and that was me being careful with sales and buying generic. The trick is to stop shopping for meals and start shopping for ingredients you'll actually use across the week. I also stopped buying things like premade snacks and bottled drinks, those killed my budget more than anything. Meal prepping on Sunday saved me a ton, I'd cook one big batch of chili or pasta and eat that for 3 or 4 lunches. Prices are just nuts right now, a carton of eggs alone feels like a luxury purchase. Your mileage may vary depending on where you live, but I'd bet most people are closer to that number than they'd like to admit.