I periodically have people ask me how I feed my family of four grain-free, high-quality, organic food on a budget. While our food costs are higher than some people, I manage to keep them within the realm of reasonable [to be read: not completely-out-of-control high] by working hard to buy the food we need at the lowest possible prices.

While this may seem obvious, there’s a bit more to it then that. Sure, it’s simple to say buy things when they’re on sale or shop at a couple of different stores to get the best prices. I do both of these things. But neither of them would be very effective if I didn’t know what constituted a good price on the items we buy.

Some items have a set price. For instance, I own a cow-share through which I buy our milk from a local dairy. The price I pay is fixed every month. It neither fluctuates nor goes on sale. My initial agreement with the farmer set the price. If you purchase a farm share through Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA), then you’ll experience something similar: you’ll pay the farmer a fixed amount at the beginning of the season and receive a share of the crop each week until the season is finished.

That said, the price of most items varies, and sometimes prices vary widely. When something is at a good price, I stock up on it. I’ll fill our pantry if it’s dry goods or our freezer if it’s perishable. Simply because a product is advertised as on sale doesn’t mean the discount is a good one. I have target prices for the various things that I regularly buy.  For example, the Organic, Extra-Virgin Olive Oil in the picture is regularly $13.99, on sale for $11.99, but I know that every 4 months or so, I can buy that same bottle on sale for $8.99 at another market.

I know what a good price is on apple cider vinegar, beef, chicken, maple syrup, frozen vegetables, almond flour, cheese, peanut butter, and a whole host of other things. I shop at a few different markets, and they each have better prices on some of the things that we buy regularly. One place has high regular prices, but amazing sale prices. Another has several specific items that we buy regularly (many of them bulk items) that are significantly less than the other places we shop. The third has the lowest overall prices, a fantastic all-organic produce section, and is where we pick up anything that is not on sale at the other places (plus, when they do discount things, they tend to be pretty good deals).

Sales tend to have cycles. For example, every 6 months or so the coconut oil we use tends to go on a great sale. While it may be on sale in between these times, it’s not at as low a price. When it hits that lowest price, I buy enough to last me for the next 6 months or so until it goes on sale again. Other items may be on a 3 or 4 week cycle. Every market and product is different, you simply need to know what constitutes a good price and be ready to buy the item at that point.

Granted, this kind of bulk buying requires knowing your usage patterns. It’s not a good deal if you buy the food and it goes bad before you can use it. It’s not a good deal if you buy a lot and no one in your family likes it. I don’t suggest trying this with foods you haven’t tried before.

The one type of item I don’t do this with is fresh produce, unless I plan to preserve it in some way. For that, we tend to eat relatively seasonally, and flex which vegetables we’re going to consume during any given week based on what’s on sale (which is typically what’s in season at the time). But again, knowing what a good price is on asparagus, broccoli, or kale is central to making these sorts of decisions.

So as you shop, start to pay attention to the prices you regularly pay as well as the price when those things go on sale. A little bit of paying attention and buying strategically can help lower the cost of real food tremendously.

How do you save money on your grocery budget?