How much do spend on shopping.
 

How much do you spend on shopping in Canada.

There is just me and my partner. We spend about 30-40 bucks every couple of days on food. I wonder sometimes if that it is a lot of money.

I just wonder how much others spend on shopping. :confused:

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

Probably $600 a month for 2+2kids

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

We budget all groceries for $350/month.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

So for 2 people $360-$380 a month on food is a lot of money. I'm glad I don't have to budget. It must be hard here if you have too. I have always wonder if Canada was expensive for food and basics. You see I've been lucky i guess. You do loose the sense of money when you don't struggle and always have money to pay all the bills without much of a dent. I remember in England in 1994. I used to spend around 30 pounds a month. But I was very poor then. :D

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

Holy crap. I'm not doing very well with $900 or so a month for two adults and a baby then. :eek:

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

We can afford more I just like to budget everything.

In fact here in Canada my whole paycheck is liquid earnings but at the end of the day we need to save money for rainy days/home improvements/holidays.

I don't like to rely on credit.

All we do is write down the weeks menu and buy what's on that menu should we need it.

In the UK our budget was 120/month

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

In general I think canada and the UK are a wash, some things are cheaper here, others more expensive.

For example Beef seems a lot cheaper, but chicken and dairy more expensive. "Cheap" Bread seems a lot more expensive here too.

There's been a lot of previous discussion about why...marketing control boards, Quota systems, Logistics, Seasonal availability etc all come into it.


We dont go crazy (as anyone looking at the receipts Ive previously posted here would attest too), but there is no way we could do all the groceries on $350 a month. I probably average about $120 for the weekly "no frills" shop, and then there are all the other miscellaneous bits and pieces that get bought during the week to add to that.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

How long is a piece of string?

What people spend on anything is purely personal choice.

There are so many variables it's impossible to generalise.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

How big is your family that you spent 120 a month?

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

Just two of us

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

I dont think there is a need to aggressively cross examine anyone here...the question wasnt "How much will I spend", it was " how much do you spend, cos I spend this much"

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Eating like kings!

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I don't mind Iain,

My grocery list in the UK was very simple.

Bread, Pasta, pasta sauce, rice, Potatoes, Mince, Chicken Breast. not much more than that.

Most items weren't a weekly purchase I.E. Pasta, Rice and Potatoes would last almost a month with one purchase.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

eating in very very nicely (one of my hobbies is cooking)

2 adults and 2 kids

$800 per month

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

Dont know how much we will spend when I eventually get there but I do like the idea of only getting what you want for the week rather than just going and getting whatever you think you will eat as we do here.

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We've always shopped like this.

Impulse buying at a supermarket is a dangerous thing. :rofl:

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

You are so right:rofl: But now my husband is in Canada I must admit my shopping bill has halved. Just me and my son here now. I am not really buying sweet treats that my husband loved so much anymore. My son does'nt have a sweet tooth.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

I wasn't cross-examining anyone, it was a genuine question. How was it asked in an agressive manner??

Back to the OP, we spend about $800 a month for 2 adults + 2 kids and I would say we eat well, meat, fruit+veg, treats etc, etc. Nothing elaborate but not scapping the bottom of the barrel either.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

But it is interesting and can give you a generalize Idea. It is not something that you can ask someone in person. I like to know if I'm wasting money. This morning I thought I was spending too much. I have since learned perhaps not. so even tho, it is generalize its been helpful even with the responses so far. :)

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

I spend between $850 (being careful) and $1100 a month - depending on whether there is a CostCo shop thrown in ! 2 adults, 2 children.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

Stevo,

I think Iain is just remembering how the last 'shopping' thread turned out more than anything.

Probably didn't want a repeat.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

Don't really keep track of it to be honest, but a reasonable guesstimate would be $650 p/mth for 2 adults. Rarely seem to leave a supermarket without having spent $100, and a cart full of groceries with whatever other household items are needed (washing powder etc) generally comes close to $200.

That doesn't take into account the beef, buffalo and lamb we buy from our neighbour, which helps reduce meat purchase costs considerably.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

Who said it was directed at you?

Actually I found the other Steves post a bit odd as it didnt really apply to this thread...

:thumbup:

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

My apologies:o

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I guess our shop is around $800-$900 a month, but that is for a family of 5 (one still in nappies - sorry diapers!).

That doesn't include gas or OH's cigs.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

We don't though. It may be a case of me just monitoring it closely and knowing the true cost. We quite often spend $120-$150 a week in Superstore, which doesn't seem too bad. But when I look through the bank statements at the end of the month for all trips to Superstore / Sobeys / NSLC, it adds up to $900 very consistently.

It's easy to stop off somewhere to get one thing, and come out $30 lighter :blink:

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

For two of us and a little dog (a cute dog I will add :lol:) I spend $80-$100 weekly. My thing for 2009 is to really use up what is in the freezer/ cupboards/ fridge and it's amazing how you can cut back and not waste. I also shop at Sobey's Dollar Days and it's got some great deals once a month. Not a huge fan of their meat/poultry but everything else is good. I avoid Costco because obviously I don't need 48 rolls of toilet paper and all that bulk buying. Between Superstore and Wal-Mart I get the rest of the stuff. Sadly, it's now a game but I don't mind ... leaves me extra money for clothes shopping and holidays :thumbsup:

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

We cook most stuff from scratch, plan meals for the week so only buy what we need and still probably average £500/600 per month here in the UK 2 adults, 2 children.

We dont get ready made stuff except chips and odd bits of frozen.

Wont really know till we get to Canada how it compares, but we did 2/3 shops whilst on our recce and it didn't seem bad.

I would be surprised if we end up spending nearly $1100 per month, but we'll see:eek:

I would say that my average weekly bill has gone from £100 to nearer £130 per week in the last year or so and I am not buying anything different or anything extravagent

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LOL. Its so easy to do here. LOL it is too tempting when you see a 6 pack of king size fresh muffins for 180 and the odd fresh fruit pies for 3 quid. :)

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I know:rofl: will have to rein it in, we did go a bit extravagent when we were over, all the bakery stuff looked soooo nice:thumbsup:

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

we average ( i think as usually just go in a buy whatever we think we need ) between $900-$1200 a month as 2 adults and 2 kids.........cheers

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I always found having a huge meal before grocery shopping significantly reduced the bill. If you go hungry prepare to return with a cheeto mustache.

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At least $300 a week for the two of us, not including wine. It's gone down somewhat since The Boy moved out.

I have a sneaking suspicion we may not be entirely normal.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

$500-$600 a month is pretty much the norm...2+2.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

[QUOTE=Essex_Man;7510871]How much do you spend on shopping in Canada.

We go to Costco once a month and spend on average between $700 and $900, although it is mostly nearer $900, but I must say that includes the odd item of clothing thrown in. We then top up weekly with fresh from the Supermarket so I guess we spend another $200. We are a family of 3.We do skip a Costco visit every now and then as my freezers (2 small|) are bursting at the seams, but my OH seems convinced that we need to keep two months worth of food in the store room in case (:eek: in case of what I ask!)

Since he retired we have got into the habit of doing a 'big' shop every month and I am convinced, although he doesnt believe me, that we spend more doing the shopping that way than shopping weekly. First off you miss all the weekly bargains, and then how the hell do you know what you will fancy next week, and then if I want to try a new recipe I probably have to go out and buy other ingredients anyway. But I cannot convince him so we trundle on with doing huge shops! :)

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That's a fair sum Souv - filet mignon, salmon and asparagus, with tons of out-of-season extras? and quite what calibre of vino are you choosing anyway? ;)

I think I spend a lot but not entirely sure what I have to show for it (apart from that insulting figure the scales chuck out every week :lol: ).

Sounds like you eat and drink well dear - and good for you :thumbup:

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

I think it reasonable to say that we do spend rather more than most people on food. We like food. Good food that looks pretty. Nice veggies are expensive, as are nice breads. We love cheese, which is a real money-pit. I think we have about eight different ones in the fridge at the moment, including an enormous lump pf Parmesan (Costco). I dare not count how many sauces, marinades, dressings, oils, vinegars and mustards we have.

We have no objection to buying things because they are cheap though. The 0.9kg chunk of pork fillet in the fridge was less than $6, and the 3.7kg lump of AAA beef tenderloin for $60.... Well, we couldn't leave it in the store, could we?

We don't to restaurants more than once in a blue moon and we don't own a microwave. We did but only used it as a bread bin.

Decent wine doesn't need to cost the earth and we're lucky enough to be close to an SAQ Depot, where you get a 15% discount when you buy by the case.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

Our weekly shop ranges from $160-$200- depends if we need stuff like diapers, dishwasher tablets etc that week.

There's me, wifey and our two girls (2 and 3). We dont smoke and rarely drink.

Re: How much do spend on shopping.
 

When I first came to Calgary in 92 I was pretty sure groceries were cheaper in Calgary. I don't think that's the case anymore. In fact, I think it's now reversed - based on absolutely no scientific analysis of course.
People posting costs based on number of kids should ideally give ages since my 15 and 13 year olds probably consume an extra $300/ month compared to when they were younger (of course there's no diapers/ nappies anymore). So my total for 1 adult and 2 teenagers is around $600/$700 per month.

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Kids, particularly teenage ones, probably waste as much food as they consume. In my experience, they will always load more onto their plate than they can eat.