An article on Richmond.com talks about budgeting your money wisely when shopping at the grocery store. Shopping for food definitely can add up, especially if you aren’t a conscience shopper and you buy things you don’t actually need. According to the article, “Americans spend approximately $150 per week on food—that’s 18 percent of the average American salary—most of which is dropped at the grocery store.”

In this article, there are five simple tips that you can do in order to help improve the amount of money spent while shopping at the supermarket.

The first step is to use coupons. Local sunday papers have exorbitant amounts of coupons that you can simply cut out and use. The hardest part of the process is taking the time to read each one to see what will best apply for your needs. There is a day that grocery stores normally double the value of their coupons as well. On this day it would be the most wise to shop because you will then receive twice the savings. There are also loyalty programs or shopper cards that most grocery stores offer as well. This will also help you save on your purchases.

The second tip is to create a shopping list before you go to the grocery store. A list creates order and gives you a visual guide for things that you actually need. It will help you from spending more than you allotted.

The third tip is to go to farmers markets for produce. Grocery stores charge more and the quality isn’t as good and fresh than if you were to by it from a local farm or vendor.

The fourth tip is to buy generic foods. Generic foods are priced more accordingly and more often than not are same in quality but are just package differently.

The fifth option is to shop at non traditional food stores. For instance, a Walmart or Target is technically a food store, but they do offer some products, which can be better priced than your average grocery store.