How to Eat Healthy For Cheap

Best tips for eating healthy on a tight budget.

I honestly believe that health is wealth.  It’s so important for us to invest in good health.  This will save us money, time, stress and hardship in our future.  One of the questions I get asked most on Instagram is how to eat healthy for cheap.

I understand that a lot of healthy foods can be expensive and it can feel almost impossible to stay in budget while buying healthy foods.  There are a few tricks I’m excited to share with you about how you can still eat healthy while on a budget.

How To Eat Healthy On a Budget

1.  Make a Meal Plan

A good meal plan is always the first step to saving money on food.

Take some time to look through your cupboards, fridge, etc. and take note of what you already have at home.  Plan meals around those items first.

Next, look through store ads using the free Flipp App.  Flipp gives you access to the weekly grocery flyers in your area.  Produce and organic foods will go on sale throughout the month.  Make your meal plan based around what’s on sale for the week.

• Related:  Start Meal Planning For The Complete Beginner

2.  Shop In Season

Deals and sales will change throughout the year.  Always plan meals and buy food that is currently in season.  This will give you the best value.

For example:  strawberries and broccoli will be cheaper in the spring.  Apples and spinach will be cheaper in the fall.

Stock up on the produce in season and freeze it to use throughout the year.  Here are a few tutorials for freezing peas, corn, strawberries, and raspberries.

When you find a good deal on produce, make sure to stock up and freeze the excess for later use.  Here are a few tutorials to teach you how to freeze:  peas, corn, and strawberries.

3.  Start a Garden

Have you ever considered starting a garden?  It’s a great way to save money on produce.

Try growing a few of your favorite fruits and vegetables in an at home garden.  You don’t even need a lot of space to begin!  A small container garden can easily be started on a patio.

I grow a fairly large garden each year.  My goal is to never buy produce during the summer, and eat out of the garden instead.  

• Related:  9 Vegetables to Grow in Your Beginner Garden

4.  Buy Local

Shop at local farmers markets for healthy, organically grown produce and grass fed meat..  You can usually find the best deals when buying from a local farmer.

5.  Eat Frugal Healthy Foods

There are a lot of foods that are both cheap to buy and healthy to eat.  Focus on the foods that fit in the budget, and skip the more expensive items.

A few healthy, but frugal foods are:

• Eggs
• Beans
• Oatmeal (check out this easy overnight oatmeal recipe)
• Lentils
• Quinoa
• Apples
• Popcorn
• Potatoes
• Brown Rice
• Carrots
• Spinach

6.  Buy in Bulk

Many of the healthy grains, such as brown rice, quinoa and lentils, will be cheaper if bought in bulk. 

Words of caution:  Remember to always check the price per unit before buying something in bulk.  Many times a bulk item will be cheaper, but not always.

I also like to buy my meat in bulk from Butcher Box.  The quality is outstanding and I love their grass-fed beef and free-range organic chicken.  Plus, there is nothing better than a box of meat delivered right to my doorstep!

7.  Use Cashback

Most people don’t realize this, but most of the cash back apps have produce and other healthy foods available for rebates.  I just checked ibotta and they currently offer a rebate on grapes, veggie burgers, and any protein drink (yay!).

My favorite cash back apps for groceries are:

• Ibotta 
• Fetch Rewards

8.  Skip Convenience Foods

Learn to make foods yourself, rather than buying convenience items.  For example, dry beans will be much cheaper than canned beans.

A good rule of thumb to follow is to shop the outer edges of the store and skip the aisles.  The whole, fresh foods are kept on the outer edges, and the more expensive convenience foods are usually down the aisles.

9.  Shop At A Discount Grocery Store

Health food stores, such as Whole Foods, can be fun to shop at for healthy foods, but they aren’t very budget friendly.

You can find high quality, healthy foods at local grocery chains or discount stores, such as Aldi.

10.  Prevent Waste

Many healthy foods have a shorter shelf date, which means you need to be diligent in using it up to prevent kitchen waste.  

Here are a few tips for preventing waste:

• Only buy as much as you will eat.  Often our eyes are bigger than our stomachs and we purchase more than we can eat before it goes bad.  Make sure to only buy what you will actually use up during it’s shelf life.
• Find a way to reuse leftovers.  If you only ate half a banana, freeze the other half to put in your fruit smoothie the next day.

11.  Grocery Shop Online

One of the best things for my grocery has been shopping online using Walmart’s free Grocery Pickup service.  It gives me the ability to grocery shop from home (in my PJs most days) and watch my cart total before checking out.  If I ever go over budget, I simply delete a few items from my cart.  It’s the best!

Most grocery stores offer online grocery pickup or deliver.  Give it a try when buying your healthy groceries.  I hope it saves you as much money as it has saved me!

You can try Walmart Grocery Pickup for free here and get $10 off your first order of $35 or more.

In Conclusion

There are many different ways you can eat healthy for cheap.  It takes a little bit of planning, but it can be done!  The most important thing is to set a budget, and stick to it!

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I hope this articles helps you eat healthy for cheap.