3 Ways to Spend Less on Food: Top Tips From Canadian Reddit

July’s Consumer Price Index numbers dropped this week: headline inflation is cooling, just as experts predicted.

Canada’s annual inflation rate rose just 2.5% in July. That’s the slowest pace of growth since March 2021, and down from a 2.7% increase in June.

But this doesn’t mean life is suddenly affordable again. Buried deeper in the data are stubbornly high shelter and grocery costs. That means essentials — you know, those things you can’t live without — are still too pricey for many budgets.

Food prices jumped 26% over the last five years, according to data from the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University. The average family of four will spend around $1,300 per month on food in 2024, the same report found.

Not eating obviously isn’t an option, and maybe you’ve already squeezed out all the savings you can from classic tips like “plan your meals” and “buy in bulk.”

To unearth some fresh cost-cutting strategies, we turned to Canadians on Reddit — folks just like you who’ve found new ways to trim their grocery bills.

1. Always price match

Price matching is a policy whereby a retailer drops their price to match a competitor’s price for the same item. If you shop at stores that price match — and have the time to compare prices — these policies can lead to significant savings.

“I started price matching earlier this year and probably save on average 10% off of every grocery bill. It’s not life changing but adds up,” a Redditor with the handle senexii wrote in a thread on r/PersonalFinanceCanada.

Several Redditors recommended the Flipp app as a tool that makes price matching more convenient. The app allows you to browse weekly digital flyers from local retailers, so it’s easier to find and provide proof of competitors offering a lower price.

Grocery stores that price match in Canada include (but are not limited to):

» Here’s a how-to guide for price matching, plus tips to help you save

2. Rescue surplus food

Nearly 60% of food produced for Canadians – or 35.5 million tonnes – is lost and wasted annually, according to statistics published by Second Harvest Canada.

Eating what others might prematurely throw away is a money-saving tactic that some Canadians are willing to embrace.

“There are 3 apps in Canada to help you save money by rescuing surplus food: Too Good To Go, Flashfood, FoodHero,” a Redditor with the handle Smol-Dawg wrote in a thread on r/TooGoodToGoCanada.

Too Good To Go connects app users to local restaurants, cafes and stores that sell discounted food that would otherwise be thrown away.
Flashfood partners with grocery stores to find buyers for food that’s nearing its best-by date. Groceries on the app can be up to 50% off. Participating grocers include Loblaws, Superstore, No Frills and Zehrs.
FoodHero includes hundreds of IGA, Métro, Rachelle-Béry and Marché Tradition stores; it offers surplus, imperfect or close-to-its-expiration-date groceries at 25% to 60% discounts.

3. Make friends with your freezer (and a slow cooker)

Freezer space, if you have it, unlocks a cheat code for making the most of discounted foods, according to many Redditors.

“I freeze everything before it can go bad. Bread. Meat. Vegetables I got on sale. Milk. Fruit. Freeze it and use it later. Don’t waste any food. Buy what’s on sale,” a Redditor with the handle astudentiguess wrote in a thread on r/budgetfood.

Investing $50 (or even less at a thrift store) in a slow cooker can transform budget-friendly ingredients — dried beans, root vegetables and cheaper cuts of meat — into meals that taste more expensive than they actually are. Not to mention, a slow cooker does the work for you while you’re away.

If you’re just getting started, don’t bother buying a cookbook; the 4.4 million members of r/slowcooking can get you started with low-cost recipes for free.