Buy Price Series: Part 2

In Part 1, we talked about why knowing your “buy prices” is so important for sticking to a budget. This series is taking a look at some of my buy prices and how I determine them. Remember these three important things as you read:

1.       These are my buy prices!

2.       Your buy prices will be different!

3.       Buy prices are constantly evolving.

If you missed the beginning of this series, be sure to read Part 1 (fresh food products). Part 2 will look at my buy prices for pantry food products, as well as for drinks and snacks.

Pantry Food Products

::Baking

• Oil: 2.00 or less for canola, corn, or vegetable oil. 3.00 for olive oil (17 oz. – I buy mine at Aldi).
• Sugar: 1.50 for 2 lbs. of powdered or brown sugar (Aldi or Dollar General sell both at this price every day). Around 2.00 for 4 lbs. of white sugar.
• Regular flour: 1.50 for 5 lbs.
• Gluten free flour: I usually buy Bob’s Red Mill blend. The deals on this vary – I try to look for opportunities to stock up, usually online. Most recently, I used a $20.00 credit at thenaturalstore.com to get 4 bags for about $5.00.

::Canned Goods

• Soup: I don’t buy these too often. I won’t spend more than 1.00 for a “hearty” soup (for my husband).
• Vegetables: I almost never buy canned vegetables. Aldi likely has the best price.
• Fruit: I never buy canned fruit, either. Again, I refer you to Aldi!
• Tomato products: (I use Aldi as a base for all these. I also try to buy these items when they’re “bent and dent.”)
• Tomato paste: 0.39 or less. I buy Muir Glen at Walmart for about 0.20 when their 0.75/1 coupons are available.
• Tomato sauce: 0.25 or less per 8 oz.
• Diced tomatoes: 0.55 or less per 14.5 oz.
• Crushed tomatoes: 0.89 or less per 28 oz. (I usually buy these because my husband doesn’t care for chunks of tomatoes.)

::Cereal: I basically refuse to pay any more than 1.00 per box of cereal, no matter what kind. I eat General Mills Chex cereals and my husband will eat just about anything. With the incredible cereal deals at Copps (for examples, see here and here), I have not paid more than 1.00 for cereal since we moved here!

::Pantry Items

• Peanut butter/jelly: Around 1.00 or less for 16 oz. peanut butter. I never buy jelly because someone gave us freezer jam, and we really don’t use it anyways.
• Mexican food products: 1.19 for corn tortillas (30 ct.), 0.99 for flour tortillas (10 ct.). I get both at Aldi usually. I don’t buy taco seasoning since I make my own.
• Coffee: We don’t drink coffee but I keep some on hand for my in-laws. I try not to pay more than 1.00 for the 11 oz. Folgers.

::Pasta and rice

• Regular pasta: 1.00 or less for one pound.
• Gluten free pasta: 2.00 or less for one pound. I usually buy mine at Trader Joe’s. I noticed that Walmart has a GF pasta for 2.00 now, too.
• Rice: 1.35 for 14 oz. instant rice (Aldi) and 1.39 for 3 lbs. regular rice (Aldi).

::Sauces and Dressings

• Salad dressing: 0.50-1.00 for Kraft (I stocked up, thanks to a deal at Copps). Aldi sells many salad dressings for 0.99 every day.
• Pasta sauce: 0.50-1.00 for a large jar. I usually buy Ragu and have gotten it for 0.50. I'm going to work on making my own this year!
• Condiments: 0.69 (Aldi) for mustard. Ideally, 1.00 or less for ketchup (20 oz. or so).

::Spices and seasonings

• Single spices and herbs: 1.09 at Aldi (sizes vary depending on spice).

Drinks and Snacks

::Beverages

• Juice: We try to buy 100% juice. I usually get it at Aldi, around 2.00 per bottle. Also, watch for Old Orchard frozen concentrate to go on sale for 1.00.
• Orange Juice: We are self-confessed OJ snobs. I will only buy Minute Maid; I get the frozen concentrate for about 1.50 at Walmart (every day price).
• Soda: 0.50-1.00 for two liters, 2.00-3.00 for 12 packs.
• Water: We basically never buy bottled water. We have a Culligan system in our rental house and then we filter through a Brita pitcher. If I buy bottled water for some reason (like when the water is orange at church!), I aim for about 0.10 per bottle.

::Candy: I don’t buy a lot of candy – I try not to give into the temptation. J I have noticed that the deals on candy are not plentiful in our area, especially without drugstores nearby.

::Chips

• Potato chips: 2.00 or less for name brand chips (like Lay’s). I usually buy Aldi’s chips for 1.29.
• Tortilla chips: I love Aldi’s tortilla chips, 0.99 per bag!

::Cookies: I almost never buy cookies for my husband (and never gluten free for me!). I’ll pick them up every once in awhile if they’re less than 1.50 per package of name-brand cookies.

::Crackers

• Regular crackers: I stocked up recently on name-brand crackers for 1.00 per box. Otherwise, I don’t buy them. My husband has gotten some yummy crackers courtesy of Kraft First Taste!
• Gluten-free crackers: I don't buy them for myself. I tend to get gluten-free food as gifts, which is all right by me!

Stay tuned - next Monday - for my buy prices on many different household products!