According to the US Department of Labor, the average American family spends $ 6,443 of food – which is more than 12% of revenue

Here are 15 ways you can save money food, whether you eat in or out.

1. Cook their own food

It is easy to order in or go out to eat. The trouble is that the restaurant used to be a real budget buster. In the average American household spent 42% of its total food budget eating out. So, if you are serious about saving money on food, your first step is out to eat less. (this includes lunch at work.)

If the kitchen is foreign territory for you, get good beginner’s recipe , such as how to boil water from the food network kitchen or Anyone can cook from better homes and gardens. The site also recipes for beginners and experts the same treasure. Allrecipes.com and Epicurious.com is a good starting point.

2. Shares rose STAPLES

Watch ads on non-perishable food sales, and hoarding. In this way, when you need them, without having to make extra trips to the store to pay the normal price, you’ll have on hand your family staple.

Items, such as canned food, pasta, condiments, bottled sauces, rice, oil, flour and sugar is great for bulk buying, because they will not go bad, if you do not eat them right away.

3. SHOP planned

Before going to the store, take ten minutes mapping out your meals one week . Check your cupboards and refrigerator to see what you already have, then please list the ingredients you need to buy. Do not forget to include breakfast, lunch and snack items on the list, to help curb your impulse spending.

Eliminate distractions Shopping , to help you stick to the plan. For example, leaving children at home, do not fasting shopping.

4. Mind your math

Many grocery stores label will tell you how many units of a number of other project costs per ounce, pound or measured. Comparison of monovalent and store saved.

For example, if it takes a packet of the diaper 40 $ 13, is 33 per cent of the diaper. However, if you buy a box of 144 diapers for $ 35, or 24 cents per share, diapers, saving you nine cents each. This may not seem like much, but when you change a diaper six to eight times each day, amounting to $ 16 to $ 22 yuan per month savings.

In addition, carefully review the “buy two get one free” deal. In general, raise the price, so it’s not an incredible deal, you might think that is.

5. SKIP pre-packaged and PRE- calm

Stretch your dollars furthest, pay for food, rather than packaging . Of course, pre-washed bags of lettuce that is convenient, but it can cost $ 1 or $ 2 a head of lettuce to buy their own thousand and clean it. Really, how hard is it? Small food

The same applies to the individually packaged, such as package 100 calories. It is much cheaper to buy your favorite Munchie, and divided in their own little part.

6. LIMIT go STORE

How many times you go to the store to buy milk, and your wallet lighter by $ 50 to go out? No matter how you carefully craft your shopping list, you will buy a few extras. By the to make larger shopping trips less disappointed your impulse spending.

If you go to the store three times a week, spend $ 10 impulse purchases each trip, that add up to $ 120 yuan extra monthly fee. However, if you only go once a week, you’ll spend $ 40 per month of impulse buying. This can save you $ 80 per month or $ 960 per year.

7. Be careful

COUPON it is easy to go hog wild clipping coupons. But remember, if you are in yourIn any case intend to purchase items using these coupons just for you to save money. If you buy something you do not, you do not save money. you just bought something extra. Most coupons are brand-name items, so be sure to price comparisons against common brand .

Search for your coupons .COM at Coupons.com, CouponCabin.com and CouponMom.

And do not forget to ask if your favorite store to provide any two-day interest rate . A lot of people, but not quiet.

8. Separate food and non-food shopping

You buy your food may not be able to buy other household goods , such as paper products, health and beauty products, cleaning supplies cheapest place to place, and pet food. Large stores or pharmacies can provide up to a better deal. It pays to shop around. Many stores will match a competitor’s advertised price. Be sure to ask.

Do not know what a good deal of that? your favorite foods in a notebook than a month, so you’ll know a bargain when you see the price of a track.

9. Try Discount Supermarket

In grocery store discounts, such as Aldi, grocery outlet, SAV-A- lot or WINCO, the price may be running from 30 to 50%, lower than that at the local supermarket . These no-frills store brand items tend to be concentrated in the off or liquidate the backlog. bread outlet store can save you 50% or more baked goods.

You may also check out salvage grocery store non-perishable items. These markets may be close to selling food or expired, or its package may be impaired. You will want to be selective, but you can often score high quality food is a song, if you ðon’t take care of the box look like.

10. TRIM your restaurant TAB

When you go out to dinner, do not pay full price. On the Web search mealCoupons Office. Or go to Restaurant.com , you can get $ 25 gift certificates to local restaurants only $ 10. If you have children in tow, consider a restaurant, they will eat free. Looking transactions Kidsmealdeals.com of.

Ask yourself if appetizers, desserts and drinks are expensive is necessary. After all, you eat at home? Together, these extras can be easily doubled the cost of your meal.

11. BE SPICE SMART

Add flavor food can be expensive. You can pay as much as $ 5 a bunch of fresh herbs or spices dry jars. Prepackaged marinades and friction can be ripped to O operation.

Grow their own fresh herbs or window box planted in your garden. head of the National Food Store to buy your spices, where they are usually cheaper than the corner supermarket. Or find a place, the bulk tank selling spices – because you need a recipe, rather than shelling out several dollars a full tank, you may never use, you can try to buy less

12. Look at your oil

Do not be money down the drain.

Using a water filter , instead of buying bottled water. The Brew homemade cup of Joe instead of hitting the local coffee shop. jump in your office vending machine soda , and bring their own from home. (Better yet, skip the soda conducive to healthy thing.)

13. TAKE-OUT IN dine-in place

Really do not want to cook tonight? In order to remove from your favorite restaurant. In this case, you can have your own drinks at home, saving you $ 2 $ 5 pop music, and to eliminate 15-20 percent tip.

14. Shopping season

From the winter strawberry summer grapefruit –

You pay a premium to eat fruit and vegetables in the off-season

But it’s not just produce the following calendar. For example, butter, nuts and baking ingredients at the end of the holiday season is usually the cheapest, so share prices. Winter is also the season of crab and oysters. Condiments and barbecue projects often go on sale in July. In the days after Halloween, Valentine’s Day and Easter, you can embed in the sale of chocolate and candy.

15. Note

Even after all what you do, you may get an error overcharged at the cash register.

In fact, might not ring up the sales price, or cashier may accidentally enter your product errors , at a cost you some extra money.

Please note that your order was sounded, make sure that you or your receipt, before you leave the store.