The grocery store audit that split my savings group in half

About 3 months ago at the Kroger on Maple Street, I had a total mess up with my weekly budget. I was $47 over because I grabbed the wrong size of laundry soap and didn't catch it until I got home. This got me thinking about how we track our grocery spending. Half of my savings group says you have to check every single item before you pay, even if there is a line behind you. The other half says just use a calculator app as you shop and trust the total at the register. I tested both methods for a month each and found the checking method saved me about $12 a week but added 8 minutes to each trip. The calculator method was faster but I still missed sales and double scans sometimes. Has anyone else found a middle ground that actually works?

2 comments

2 Comments

kimr1015d ago

Wait, you actually timed it and it added 8 whole minutes?

riley_taylor15d ago

Yep, I was bored enough to actually set a timer on my phone. 8 minutes and 12 seconds exactly. I'm still not sure if I should be impressed or annoyed. It's like the car just decided to take a scenic route through every single back road in the neighborhood. I swear the GPS was just messing with me at that point. Makes me wonder how much time I've wasted in total over the years trusting that thing.