What is the average grocery bill for one person?
On average, groceries cost between $290 and $548 per month for one person. However, expenses can vary depending on location, dietary choices and personal spending habits. If you don't budget for groceries and instead just buy what you need — and want — at intervals throughout the month, you could be overspending.
Question and Answers. The average weekly grocery budget for a single person can vary significantly depending on factors like location, dietary preferences, and income. However, a rough estimate might be between $50 to $100 per week. When are some times that eating out is cheaper than cooking at home?
According to the USDA guidelines, you might spend $979 a month on a thrifty plan, $1,028 on a low-cost plan, $1,252 on a moderate-cost plan and $1,604 on a liberal plan. The USDA guidelines can provide a starting point for a food budget, but they don't consider all the variables that can affect cost.
The average two-person household can expect to spend between $510-$820 per month on groceries. The average moderate cost between these two figures is around $655 per month. And broken up into weekly costs, here is what the average two-person household might expect to spend: Thrifty: $119.40 per week.
California has the highest grocery prices in the United States, according to a new report by HelpAdvisor. HelpAdvisor, a website focusing on health and finance, came to the conclusion after looking at the most recent U.S. Census Household Pulse Survey data.
The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals. Let's take a closer look at each category.
What is a realistic grocery budget for one? The USDA estimates that the average monthly grocery bill for one is between $229 and $419. Whether that's realistic for your household is entirely up to you, especially since it's based on preparing all meals and snacks at home.
* YES! It is possible to eat healthy for $200 a month. 30 Days on $200 shopping list is intended for one person.
An adult male from 19 to 50 years of age would account for $86.80 a week on a moderate food budget, and a 19- to 50-year-old woman would be allocated $73.20 a week.
The most recent estimate for a family of four, defined as a male and female between ages 20 and 50 and two children, ages 6 to 8 and 9 to 11, put the cost of the thrifty plan at $969 per month. Official USDA Thrifty Food Plan. U.S. Average, December 2023. Accessed Feb 9, 2024.
How can I cut my grocery bill by 90 percent?
- Shop at discount grocery stores like Aldi or Trader Joes. ...
- Compare prices between stores — even if it means driving to a few different ones at first. ...
- Plan your meals for the week based on what's on sale. ...
- Clip coupons and look for discount codes. ...
- Always, always, always eat your leftovers.
- Set a budget. ...
- Change where you shop. ...
- Space apart hauls. ...
- Buy staples & protein in bulk or on sale. ...
- Have an ingredient household. ...
- Buy store brand. ...
- Create a list. ...
- Meal prep.
The average household grocery cost per month is $475—which totals to $5,703 a year. And that number is likely to increase as overall food prices continue to go up. In fact, Americans spent 1.3% more on food at home (aka groceries) in December 2023 than they did in December 2022.
The cheapest states to live in are Mississippi, Oklahoma, Kansas, Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, Iowa, Indiana, West Virginia, and Tennessee. Mississippi is the cheapest state to live in in the US, with a cost of living index of 85. The second cheapest state to live in is Oklahoma, with a cost of living index of 85.8.
- Georgia: 4% sales tax rate.
- Hawaii 4% sales tax rate.
- New York: 4% sales tax rate.
- Wyoming: 4% sales tax rate.
- Colorado: 2.9% sales tax rate.
- Alaska: no sales tax.
- Delaware: no sales tax.
- Montana: no sales taxes.
Mississippi. Mississippi has the lowest cost of living in the United States. With a cost of living index of 83.3, expenses are nearly 17% less than the national average. Mississippi's housing costs are the lowest in the nation.
It is recommended that you spend 30% of your monthly income on rent at maximum, and to consider all the factors involved in your budget, including additional rental costs like renters insurance or your initial security deposit.
Consider an individual who takes home $5,000 a month. Applying the 50/30/20 rule would give them a monthly budget of: 50% for mandatory expenses = $2,500. 20% to savings and debt repayment = $1,000.
Are you approaching 30? How much money do you have saved? According to CNN Money, someone between the ages of 25 and 30, who makes around $40,000 a year, should have at least $4,000 saved.
The average U.S. household spends $162 per month on clothing, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, and you'll probably want to include personal grooming costs as well as any dry cleaning in this budget category.
How can I spend less on food?
- Make a meal plan.
- Shop alone if you can.
- Shop during the quietest days of the week.
- Swap expensive cuts of meat for cheaper options.
- Buy generic products.
- Avoid buying hygiene products at the grocery store.
- Stick to the store's perimeter.
- Pay with a grocery rewards card.
The Household Pulse Survey, which "is designed to quickly and efficiently deploy data collected on how people's lives have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic," shows that the average American family spends around $270 a week at the grocery store, but Californians top the list at nearly $298 on a weekly basis.
Remember that you can use grocery money for future weeks in one bulk shopping trip if that will cover your food for the weeks you're drawing money from. The average food budget for a single person is between $250 and $300 a month, but that's just a guideline.
If you haven't already been shopping for yourself and don't know where to begin, try a weekly budget of $50. This is half of what many frugal families with children spend, so it should be high enough for a single person to eat nutritiously even if you don't make every single meal from scratch.
Two meals per person per day, over a 30-day month, is 60 meals per person and 120 meals in total. At $200, that's a total of $1.67 per person per meal. This might seem Spartan, but with a bit of planning and practice, I believe that this is totally doable for most people.
