How Much Do You Spend on Groceries?

Over the weekend, I got entangled in a discussion about how much people spend on groceries, and it got me thinking.

The question posted online was: On average, how much do you spend a week on groceries, including paper goods and take out?  How many people are in your family?

Some of the answers:

Family of 6, $250/week.

Family of 5, $300/week.

Family of 3, $250/week.

Family of 4, $250/week.

Family of 2, $100/week.

Family of 3, $150/week.

Family of 6, $150/week.

Family of 2, $75/week.

Family of 4, $400/week.

Family of 3, $175/week.



I'd like to think I spend $150 a week, but it's been a while since I've actually added it all up.  I know when I was trying to cut expenses last fall, I deliberately kept expenses as low as possible, but I fell off the wagon as soon as I quit tracking every single expense.  I currently have all the kids home for the summer, so I'm positive our expenses have gone up, but I have no idea how MUCH they've gone up.

I know, bad me, right?  I'm trying to pay cash for tuition for two college students next month, save to replace a car, and save to remodel the bathroom.  It's irresponsible of me to not keep track of expenses when I am actively trying to keep our expenses as low as possible.

So, this week, I am going to track our expenses.  I'm not going to deliberately set out to spend less than I normally do.  Instead, I'm going to go about business as usual and add up what I am spending. 

I'm issuing this challenge to you, also.  How much are you spending per week on food?  Take a week, and keep all of your receipts and count it all up.  Fast food, Starbucks, the grocery store, candy bars at the vending machine, water bottles, etc. 

For the purpose of this exercise, let's keep our personal hygiene and paper products off of the list.  I know all of these expenses add up fast, but these are also really easy to pick up on sale, and I don't think most people pick those up weekly.  I tend to pick that up monthly, and on sale.  I'll keep track of it, but it's not going to be in the weekly tally.

So, are you willing to join me in this challenge?  Track what you spend on groceries for a week. 

I'm really curious to see how much we are spending on food.