9 expensive mistakes you make when grocery shopping
Inflation keeps hitting you from all sides, you walk to the checkout hyperventilating every time you fill up your car and groceries keep getting more expensive too, really. But you’re not falling for it anymore: you’ll never make these expensive mistakes at the supermarket again.
Groceries: shockingly expensive
Shocking: according to the Nibud report Money Matters in Practice 2024, around 1 in 3 households in the Netherlands struggle to make ends meet—around 33% of households. Expensive groceries are largely to blame. A one-person household (not receiving a state pension): an average of €300 to €350 per month; a couple with children: an average of €600 to €750, depending on the number and age of the children.
Yes, that’s how much we all spend at the supermarket every month. On average, that is—some people make it even more expensive. How can you make sure you spend less than average? By avoiding these pitfalls from now on. Easy.
Mistake 1: you don’t claim your money back
Is there a deal offering 3 for the price of 2, a free sixth can or a freebie with a certain purchase? Take advantage of those offers, even if it means mailing in a receipt or filling something out on the producer’s website. People often buy the products included in the promotion, but they quickly forget the second step: claiming the discount back. Cash in!
Mistake 2: you turn your nose up at store brands
Hello, snob—the store-brand coffee is just as tasty as Douwe Egberts (maybe because they come from the same factory?), and the store-brand Cola Light even came out as the tastiest in a test. At least give it a try, because store brands are generally much cheaper than name brands.
Mistake 3: you’re too good for a loyalty card
Discount cards, collecting points at the butcher, sticking stamps to earn a grocery package: no, you can’t be bothered with any of that. Too bad, because it can save you a lot of money. Activate your loyalty card, family card or whatever all those loyalty programs are called—even if necessary with an anonymous email address. Just see how much discount you can rack up. And are you also keeping an eye on Too Good To Go? Cha-ching!
Mistake 4: you’re starving
If you go grocery shopping on an empty stomach, you’re unlikely to make sensible decisions. Your inner caveman takes over and you hunt through the aisles for something quick, fatty and sweet. The result: you leave with pudding rolls, two hundred grams of smoked sockeye salmon, a wedge of expensive cheese and those delicious air-fryer bitterballen, while the budget items remain untouched. Eat a cracker at home first, then head to the supermarket with a shopping list. Boring, but it works.
Mistake 5: you buy all the ingredients for a recipe at once
You buy all the ingredients for the dish you want to cook tonight in one go. It’s unlikely that they’ll all be on sale, so you end up paying too much. Cook from your pantry and keep it stocked by buying items when they’re on sale. That way, you make maximum use of all the deals—and your own imagination.
Mistake 6: you only go to the supermarket when everything is gone
The last roll of toilet paper has been hung up, there’s no milk left in the fridge and the cat is hungry, so now you have to buy everything. That means paying full price. No—next time, keep an eye on when your favorite products are on sale and stock up then.
Mistake 7: always going to the same supermarket
You always take the same route through the same supermarket. But variety is good: look around another chain to see what the prices are like and what’s on sale, and you’ll be surprised. Don’t forget the Asian grocery store and the Turkish supermarket either—fruit and vegetables can be considerably cheaper there!
Mistake 8: you never calculate the prices
Always look at the price per kilo or per liter. That’s the only way to compare prices properly. And don’t be fooled by the size of the packaging: sometimes the bag of chips is bigger, but contains fewer chips. Shrinkflation—ever heard of it?
Mistake 9: you don’t understand the deals
Check the terms and conditions of the offers in the store and in the flyer. Is it four for the price of two, or does the discount also apply if you buy just one? Are all varieties of the same product included, or is only part of the range discounted? It’s annoying to find out at the checkout that you misunderstood the deal—and there goes your discount out the window.
Tip: watch out for the latte factor
One last tip: skip that daily coffee to go, Sultana bar or bag of licorice at the gas station. That’s another way your money can quietly leak away. There’s even a name for it: the latte factor.
Better next year?
For 2026, the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB) expects inflation of 2.3 percent. ‘The difficult thing about inflation, of course, is that this really is a prediction, and in recent years we’ve seen that inflation can follow a very erratic path,’ says Nibud director Arjan Vliegenthart. ‘But if nothing unusual happens, most people’s incomes will rise faster than prices at the supermarket and elsewhere.’
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Source: Money Talks News
