2015 Food & Toiletries Spending......April Update

*I am posting this a few days early since I am done shopping for the month.*

 Onward to April's food spending report.......

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for APRIL 2015.

I have posted April's totals on the Total Grocery Savings for 2015 Page located HERE and have updated the Yearly Totals there.  I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in March.  If you aren't interested in that much detail, just skip to the bottom for the Totals SumMy spending includes Food, Toiletries/HBA, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods & tax where applicable. We are a family of 3(2-3 at home this month). No kids under 19.

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DOLLAR TREE
OOP  $9.00
Value $18.50
Savings  51.35%

MAINE SOURCE
OOP  $112.79
Qs/Ads $80.63
Value $193.42
Savings  41.69%

PRICE CHOPPER
OOP  $27.64
Qs/Ads $20.03
Value $47.67
Savings  42.02%

RITE-AID *(see below)
OOP  $1.55
Qs/Ads/+UPs  $66.13
Value  $67.68
Savings  97.71%

 

SHURSAVE STORES(small local independent affiliated stores)
OOP  $13.23

Qs/Ads  $6.09

Value  $19.32

Savings  31.52%

TARGET
OOP  $33.76
Qs/Ads $33.41
Value $67.17
Savings  49.74%
 

WEIS MARKETS

OOP  $103.44

Qs/Ads  $85.65

Value  $189.09

Savings  45.30%
 

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My best 3 Store Savings Totals were Rite-Aid at 97.71%, Dollar Tree at 51.35% and Target at 49.74%.  My WORST savings rate was the Shursave store at 31.52%.



I shopped at 7 different stores this past month. 

TOTAL Out of Pocket........ $301.41

TOTAL Coupons & Store Sales Savings...$241.44

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased............$542.85

TOTAL Savings of...................................44.48%
TOTAL Savings WITHOUT Rite-Aid.............36.89%

This closes out the April food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....
I went into April wanting to do a $300 monthly spending and actually accomplished this....if you don't count the $1.55 I spent at Rite-Aid which put me $1.41 over.  ;-)

The monthly savings percentage went down by 25.28% in April to 44.48% compared to March's 69.76% average.
Didn't I tell y'all when I stopped buying stuff at Rite-Aid my percentages would plummet? 8-(

The savings rate for the year so far now stands at 65%.  That's a 3.70% decrease in savings over March's YTD total.  It's still hanging in well over a 40% savings rate for the year but will be going down further unless I jump back into Rite-Aid shopping at a savings rate comparable to before they ditched the +Ups Rewards Program.

I have spent a total of $1,233.86 on food/toiletries in 2015.  That averages out to $308.46andahalf per month.
I'm pretty happy with that.

LOOKING AHEAD To MAY.........

I want to continue to eat down some of our stockpiles of canned/boxed food and empty out the freezer a bit more. We will be back up to 3 adults for May since College Boy comes home on the 9th for the Summer.

I will mostly probably need to increase my food spending in May to accommodate another mouth to feed and buy items Hubs and I don't eat but that College Boy considers essentials.

I won't set a number yet but will play things by ear.  We'll be traveling for part of May so the eating out/vacation spending will increase and the food budget spending may actually not increase even with another person to feed.

What I am trying to say is that May will be a total crapshoot.  8-)
 

If you have other ideas or guidelines you follow please leave a comment and share yours with us all.

 

*  How much did you spend on food/toiletries in April?
*  Do you track your yearly food spending?
*  What was your savings percentage buying on sale and/or with coupons vs. buying at regular retail price last month, if you track that sort of thing?
 

Sluggy

Weis Catalina Results from Last Week or How to Destroy Your Food Budget in One Week!

So I did the Purina Catalina Deal 4 times and the Nestle Catalina Deal 4 times last week at Weis Markets, rolling the $8 Nestle Cats and the $10 Purina Cats one into the next.

Grand Total of what I got....

17 lb. Dog Chows....7
Cans of Mighty Dog...60
Cans of Alpo....19
Busy Bone.....1
Taster's Choice instant coffee...4
Coffee-Mate powder....1
Juicy Juice.....4
Nesquick.....12
Nestle Syrup...8

Cost OOP...$123.31 and an $8 Catalina left to use
Reg. Retail Value....$270.75

Not great but a 54.45% savings rate.
A full year's worth of dog food(when supplemented with the fresh veggies/meat I give them also) and a supply of coffee and chocolate milk mix to get the family through the summer or longer.

Add in the non Catalina items I bought last week at Weis Markets and the Restaurant Supply purchases and I've nearly spent my whole month's food budget for May already.
And the month is only one third over.
Geez....

Here's hoping I get some rebate checks in soon to put toward the food budget. 8-)

So how is your food budget going this month?

Sluggy