We could all do with knowing how to save money on groceries in 2024. I have been using these secret money saving hacks for years and have managed to save at least £200 every month!
Every week it seems like anything and everything is increasing in price.
Gone are the days you can feed one person for under £100 per month!
Whilst I love budgeting and cutting out unnecessary purchases… groceries will always be necessary. So in order to save money we will have to dive deeper than a simple budget plan.
Don’t worry! I’m a firm believer that you shouldn’t have to cut everything that brings you joy out of your spending.
So here I’m going to spill all the secret hacks I have found to help you save money on groceries in 2024!
Get Cashback!
Did you know you can earn cashback on your regular food shop? When I found this out last year I quickly realised it was a Gamechanger!
By earning money back on what you would spend already it is essentially like earning free money!
I have outlined the 4 apps I use to earn cashback when doing the food shop below.
GreenJinn & Shopmium
Firstly, I have grouped these two apps together as they both help you earn cashback on your regular, supermarket grocery shop in the same way. But each one offers a variation of products, so it is worth downloading both.
How do they work?
Check each app for what products they currently have offers on and save them. You can then just shop as you normally would at your favourite supermarket. Once you get home simply take a picture of your receipt with the app and BOOM, you will get cashback on certain items once the receipt has been approved.
Shopmium may ask you to scan the product barcodes as well as the receipt.
I have found that Shopmium currently offers more items that I am likely to buy. Occasionally, they even offer 100% cashback on certain items which means FREEBIES!
Whereas, Greenjinn offers cashback at a wider range of supermarkets and boasts a saving of up to £1,500 per year!
They are both free to use so if you download both you can double your ability to save money.
TopCashback
TopCashBack is arguable the most popular cashback site available and for very good reason. They have been running since 2005 and offer cashback at thousands of online retailers. With their average user earning £345 per year, it is no wonder they are one of the best when it comes to cashback!
If you currently do your grocery shopping online then this is a great option. You can simply go into TopCashBack, search for the supermarket you use and click through using their link. When you checkout through the supermarket, TopCashBack will then be able to track your purchase and give you cashback. The cashback earned takes a while to appear into your account, but it is very reliable.
However, the main reason I have included TopCashBack in this list is because it has just launched in-store cashback.
This is a very exciting development because it means you can do your regular grocery shop instore and still earn cashback- something that has been widely requested for years but not readily available.
Once you have TopCashBack you then have to register for instore cashback by linking your bank card. Don’t worry, there is a secure system in place to do this called TrueLayer and if you have any doubts I would recommend reading the in-store cashback Terms and Conditions.
Then simply activate the store you want to go to and shop as normal with your chosen bank card. Your purchase will then be picked up by TopCashBack and cashback will be added to your account automatically.
TopCashBack is free to join and if you sign up with my referral link you will get a £10 bonus (once you earn your first £10). I will also get a little bonus so if you use my link, thank you!
Cheddar
Finally, we come to the last of the cashback apps, and quite possibly my favourite app too!
Cheddar is a new cashback app that is rapidly changing the game!
It offers automatic cashback at a growing number of online and instore retailers.
Simply connect your bank account and that’s it! When you shop instore or online with one of their selected retailers you will automatically earn cashback which will appear in your account in just a few days!
I absolutely love this app because now it is set up I don’t have to even think about it. All I have to do is shop and I’ve earned cashback!
Currently the main supermarkets they offer are Sainsburys and Co-op (along with many other retailers such as JustEat, Caffe Nero, Greggs, McDonalds and even TrainLine) but this is always changing and growing so make sure to check it regularly.
You can download and join Cheddar for free today! (referral).
Supermarket Loyalty Cards
One of the easiest ways to save on your grocery shop is by making sure you have signed up for every supermarket loyalty card.
I know this one sounds simple but it is one of those things that I seemed to put off. When you have your arms full of shopping bags, it’s not convenient to stop and sign up for another loyalty scheme.
As it turns out, delaying signing up was a very costly mistake!
Once I finally signed up for every loyalty scheme available, I quickly saw how much money I could be saving and in turn how much money I had wasted!
Every supermarket’s loyalty scheme is different, each with their own benefits and rewards system. I would highly recommend signing up for every supermarket that you regularly shop at. Here is a list of my current favourites, and what sets them apart from the rest.
Sainsbury’s Nectar Card
In my opinion Sainsbury’s Nectar Card is definitely “an oldie but a goodie”. You earn 1 nectar point for every £1 you spend, and then you can redeem your points to use on a future shop. Every 2 points are worth 1p, so 200 points = £1.00. This may not sound like a lot but you would be surprised how quickly your points total increases.
Using their app, you can also activate personalised offers which give you extra nectar points for buying products that you frequently purchase.
To help with the current crisis, Sainsbury’s have also recently launched “Nectar Prices”. These are tailored discounts on products you are likely to buy when you use SmartShop. Once you scan a product using Smartshop the discount will instantly apply to your shopping for that product.
I have to admit I do a little happy dance whenever I find a Nectar Price when I’m shopping! It has truly saved me SO MUCH money!
Tesco Clubcard
Tesco’s Clubcard is definitely a fan favourite. Similar to Sainsbury’s you earn 1 clubcard point for every £1 you spend. But each point you have is worth 1p meaning you only need 100 point for £1.
To redeem your points you have to convert them into Clubcard vouchers which have a minimum of 150 points (£1.50). Your points can be worth more however, if you spend them at one of their Reward Partners.
The best thing about a Tesco Clubcard is without a doubt access to Clubcard Prices. All you have to do is own and scan a Clubcard and you can get some major savings on various products in store!
I have often seen a 50% reduction on some items, so not having a Clubcard really is going to cost you more money!
Asda Rewards
Asda Rewards is my most recent discovery and I am already loving it! It is the most unique of the loyalty schemes because they don’t work on a points system. Instead, when you buy “star products” or complete “missions” you get cash straight to your Cashpot in the app. So in a way it is more of a cashback scheme just made specifically for Asda.
You just scan your card (in app) every time you shop and you will make progress towards “milestone missions”. There are also missions based on specific products or holiday promotions. You can even earn 10% cashback on any star product you purchase.
When you wish to redeem your cashpot you simply create a voucher in the app and scan it at the checkout to spend it.
I really love the simplicity of this loyalty scheme and I hope it will encourage other shops to develop something similar and slowly abandon the somewhat out-dated points systems.
Yellow Stickers
I couldn’t do a saving money on groceries post without mentioning the famous yellow stickers.
If you can plan your food shop for the end of the day, preferable past 6pm then you could be in for bagging some real bargains.
Supermarkets don’t want food to go to waste unnecessarily. So when it is getting to the end of the day, any products that are about to reach their best before date will get a sizable reduction in price, indicated by a yellow sticker.
So as long as you are happy to use the products in the next day or two, you can certainly save yourself many pennies!
BONUS- Too Good to Go
Finally, I would love to share one of my favourite apps with you. Although it isn’t specifically for grocery shopping, it could save you a lot of money on food over time.
Too Good to Go is an app that was made to combat the modern-day food waste crisis.
It aims to connect you, the customer, with various restaurants, cafes and stores that have leftover food at the end of the day.
All you have to do is browse the app to see which shops and restaurants near you are on offer today. You can then reserve one of their “Magic Bags” which they fill with their leftover food for the day that they can’t serve tomorrow.
You can then go and collect your magic bag at the time stated, and simply show your reservation in the app to the staff. And ENJOY!
Each magic bag varies in price, but I have found most are between £1.99 – £4.50.
Depending on which bag you select, you could easily get dinner for tonight, lunch for tomorrow or even some groceries!
The best part is, is that you never know what you’re going to get! I have found it is a great way to push myself into trying something new, as I usually get the same thing in every café and restaurant I go to!
For all of my fellow vegetarians, you can also filter down to vegetarian bags so you don’t get stuck with a selection of meat that you won’t eat.
I have had several magic bags in the last year or so and I have never been disappointed. For the small fee you pay, you always get so much more food in your bag than you expect! For example, in my first magic bag, I chose Starbucks and I ended up receiving 2 paninis, 1 sandwich, 1 roll and a yoghurt breakfast pot all for under £5!
So when you have no idea what to have for dinner, I would highly recommend downloading Too good to go and giving it a try!
There you have it!
How to Save Money on your Groceries and hopefully stretch your weekly food budget further.
You would be surprised how much you can save when you combine all of these methods together. Now I challenge you to use some of these tips to save £5 on your next food shop.
Soon you will be saving hundreds every month!
Do you have any other ways you love that save you money on your food shop?
Let us know down below so we can help each other save as much money as possible.
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