Saving On Snacks

Be careful about buying multipack offer as they are not always as good as they seem. Sometimes, the packets in multipack versions of a product are smaller than the individual versions. Have you thought about making your own healthier snacks instead? Dried fruit and low fat chips are easy to make at home if you have the time.

 

Our family household used to purchase a lot of junk and snacks, and within an hour or two of them being purchased, they would be gone, as there are six people living in this house. So we have cut down. If we buy snacks now, and if they get eaten off really really fast, then that it is. We don't restock up anymore.

 

I try to make homemade versions of the snacks I like the most, and end up saving a few bucks. If you buy corn you can make popcorns that are pretty addictive and fill you up, and it ends up being a lot cheaper than many snacks (just add salt, sugar, pepper or cheese). You can try dried fruit like lizzie said as well, or my favorite: caramelized nuts!

 

Same on the homemade versions of snacks. Popcorn is an excellent, cheap snack, and I find it more filling. It's also quite healthy so long as you leave out the butter, salt, cheese, and whatever else you might put on top.

I personally like making fried, doughy snacks, mainly homemade donuts. They're not too difficult to mix up and fry so long as you have a nice, wide frying pan and a decent amount of oil. They're sinfully unhealthy, but we're talking about snacks, so...

 

I like buying snack foods at Costco, I find they have the best prices on chips and their microwaveable popcorn is better than movie theatre popcorn. I know what you mean about eating more snacks when they are in the house but I just can't resist a good deal on Pringles. If the cans go on sale I'll say 6 and keep them in the pantry. If my kids find them they are gone in a few days. Lately I've been trying to buy healthier snacks like having tortilla chips and salsa or or pita bites and hummus. I don't feel like I'm having all junk food then.

 

I seldom buy snacks on sale. There was a time that I noticed a pack of chips that has a tiny hole. That means the chips are not fresh anymore, not crisp anymore and maybe not palatable anymore. But when the snack food on sale has a wide variety, I am tempted to buy because it is half-priced. However, I would inspect the packaging if it is intact before I put it in my grocery cart.

 

I like to make my own snacks, I bake cookies and muffins for the family. We eat a lot of popcorn and raisins and nuts.

 

The only way I know to save on snacks is to not buy as many. Simply because snacks are so good and we eat so much in one session. They are irresistible. So I just treat myself at intervals of time, go ahead and spend and enjoy them. Then, sacrifice and save during the other times.

 

I don't buy snacks in large quantities unless I know I am going to be able to eat them all before they go stale. For example, I wouldn't buy an extra large bag of potato chips because I will never finish the whole thing before they start becoming chewy and limp. Same goes for stuff like crackers, unless they are individually wrapped in smaller amounts inside the box to stay fresh.

I'm actually a big fan of Save-A-Lot's brand of potato chips and nachos. They sell a brand of potato chips called J. Higgs which I've been very pleased of the quality. Plus they come in a lot of fun flavors as well as limited edition flavors, just like Ruffles and Lays do. In fact it wouldn't surprise me at all if they were made by one of those two companies and just sold under this brand name for Save-A-Lot. Their tortilla chips are sold under the Tio Santi brand for the store, and are also of great value, plus they come in a variety of shapes too. Compared to the brand name chips which normally run around $3.50 a bag or more, these all sell for under $1.79. That's kind of a no brainer in terms of savings.

With cookies and cakes, I prefer to just make them myself since I can generally do that for a lot less. The only time I will cave in and buy some pre-made stuff is if it's selling for $1 for the mixes - which they do sometimes have at Save-A-Lot and Dollar Tree.

 

Sometimes, you need to just buy things you know you'll much on constantly in bulk. That way, even if you eat a lot of them, it will take longer to get down to the bottom of the barrel. Another good saving tip would be to cut certain snacks out of your diet. Need to cut some carbs? Bye bye, swiss cake rolls. (No, I'm sorry baby, please don't leave)

Another good tip would be to outsource your snacks. Try a provider like nature box that will get you healthy snacks for cheap delivered to your door. There is a subscription fee, but there's less actual buying involved.

 

I buy these things in bulk and split each pack. I'll put half in the cupboard and half in my "secret location" that only I know about. If I don't do this, you can guarantee that the SO will eat the lot within the week.

 

How about making a "schedule" as to how many packs of junk food that you allot yourself to eat? I think if you make that only 2 packs per week then you will eventually get to save a lot of money.

 

I usually get my snacks at the dollar tree I can pretty much get everything I normally get at Walmart there for only a buck. I usually go in with 20 bucks and get snacks to last me 2 weeks as I don't snack much either. I just don't see why I would go to Walmart and pay 3 bucks for the same bag of chips I can get for a buck at dollar tree & on top of them having the chips I like they also have tons of candy that is also only a buck.

 

I've been doing that for years but I stopped because, well you can only eat so much potato chips and junk food before you get tired of it. It is kind of a great strategy but sometimes those snacks are either smaller or doesn't have that much chips inside, that's why they can get away with selling it for cheap.