Last Updated - November 11, 2025
Go with own brands – Often, own-brand foods taste just as good as the branded ones. Most importantly though, own-brand foods come in at a significant lower price and can slice pounds off your food bill in one go.
Only buy what you need – Before you head out to do any food shop, try to make a list of the things that you really need. This way, you’ll be able to plan how much you intend to spend on the food you eat, instead of coming back with wildly different shopping bills.
Use the freezer – Lots of food can be frozen and reheated at a later date. If you’re planning on cooking your lunches and meals ahead of time, consider whether you could do a big cook and freeze your food so that there’s plenty for you to eat over the week. This helps you avoid buying individual meals and lunches, which can often be expensive.
Beware of multi-buy – Sometimes multi-pack buys aren’t always as good value as they first seem. Multi-packs and two-for-one deals might seem like good value at first, but when it comes to leftover foods going to waste because you can’t get through them all, it can sometimes be a different matter.
Buy meat wisely – Meat is normally the most expensive part of all our meals, so cutting out on eating meat once a week (or more) can cut down food bills. Why not try a meat-free Monday, or have a day where you try something else?
Don’t shop when you’re hungry! Going food shopping when you’re hungry is a guaranteed way to spend over the odds on foods that you can’t wait to tuck into.
