Budget Spending on FOOD and basic necc for a fam of 6

amother

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 9:10 am

Husband works
I left my job and trying to figure out my budget.
(I won’t give out my figures how much he earns but would love to see the average responses)
Youngest in elementary school ranging till upper teens.

This isn’t for paying bills, tuition or any other expenses.

Edited. I live in a location where CY is easily accessible and reasonably priced. . I do use lots of disposables at this point in my life. I will include basic necessities like toiletries, kitchen cleaning supplies etc.

southernbubby

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 9:26 am

Without knowing where you live or if you are relying on grocery delivery or only use CY, PY, or heimishe cereals, canned goods, etc it's hard to give an answer.
Obviously cutting down food waste and checking ads for sales helps. Meat stretching recipes save money if the family actually eats it. Bulk snacks and making your own are usually cheaper than individual snacks. In some places, washing dishes is cheaper than throwing away disposables. I think that cheap detergent and shampoo is fine but that doesn't work for everyone. Those things are not food but are sold in grocery stores so are you including disposables and toiletries in your grocery budget?

amother

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 9:30 am

[quote="southernbubby"]Without knowing where you live or if you are relying on grocery delivery or only use CY, PY, or heimishe cereals, canned goods, etc it's hard to give an answer.
Obviously cutting down food waste and checking ads for sales helps. Meat stretching recipes save money if the family actually eats it. Bulk snacks and making your own are usually cheaper than individual snacks. In some places, washing dishes is cheaper than throwing away disposables. I think that cheap detergent and shampoo is fine but that doesn't work for everyone. Those things are not food but are sold in grocery stores so are you including disposables and toiletries in your grocery budget?[/quote]

Ok. I included that in my previous post. Thx!

southernbubby

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 10:05 am

While I am not in a position to give you a total, I find that doing the bulk of the shopping at Aldi's and meat, dairy, and fish at frum stores does save money but I also have a car. I use a lot of canned goods and these are the cheapest at ShopRite and have an OU. I don't have a Costco membership but Dollar Deals on 59 have Kirkland paper towels. Bingo is pretty good for other paper goods but these are Monsey stores.
Some people probably come out cheaper with Amazon subscribe and save.
How far are you from Walmart? This week, whole wheat Matzo was $2 a box. I get stevia cheap there as well as birthday party stuff like cake decorating. I use Walmart Keurig pods but we have them shipped.

amother

Amethyst

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 10:41 am

We are a family 6, my kids are a little younger than yours - toddler to early teens. We spend around $300-400 a week on food/household items/toiletries
(This includes lunch for all of us, my husband and I both work from home and school provides no lunches)

amother

Chocolate

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 10:46 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I have the same size family with the same age range. I don't budget exactly. I try very hard to only go grocery shopping once a week and place one order from walmart. I spend about $300 a week.

I used to run into stores frequently to pick up some produce we were running low on. But I'm not a disciplined shopper and instead of spending $10 for what I need, I'd see other things on sale and spend $80. So I stopped doing that and we just make do with what we have in the house. I save a good $500 a month like this.

I also don't use disposables often.

mha3484

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 11:03 am

I spend around 200-250 for 2 adults and 4 kids under 10 but I buy meat in bulk and I occasionally get some food from a local organization so if I did not do either of those things I would probably spend at least 300 a week.

This is just food. I am not counting Disposables, magazines, wine for shabbos, cleaning supplies even if I get them at the same time as the groceries.

southernbubby

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 11:31 am

You probably spend at least $10 per day per person if you are being careful and this can include non food grocery items if you are using the cheapest stuff and of course holidays and birthdays are more.
Eating out is also more.

saw50st8

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 11:38 am

We spend about $1,000/month for a family of 6 (kids are 7-13).

Asking that is really the wrong question though. You should be looking at how much money your household earns, what your fixed expenses are and see how much you have left over. Then you can budget your fluid categories based on what you have.

amother

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 12:02 pm

saw50st8 wrote:

Hey. I don’t think it’s the wrong question. I’m not basing / comparing it to anybody.
I find it helpful to hear others in the same situation / family size etc. it’s eye opening Smile

I love hearing suggestions and new ideas.

amother

Ecru

Fri, Apr 16 2021, 12:43 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Hey. I don’t think it’s the wrong question. I’m not basing / comparing it to anybody.
I find it helpful to hear others in the same situation / family size etc. it’s eye opening Smile

I love hearing suggestions and new ideas.

I agree. Not everyone has the same needs, circumstances, and values, but just because you have more income doesn't mean you have to spend more on food. You can still budget and save.