My sister said my grocery budget was 'just a guess' and she was right

She looked at my notebook last month and pointed out I was just writing down round numbers, like $100 for food, without tracking actual receipts. I started using a free app called Mint to scan every single receipt from Kroger for 30 days. Turns out I was spending about $40 more each week than my 'budget' said. Now I know my real number is $360 a month, not $400, and I put that extra $40 straight into savings. Has anyone else had a simple tracking change make that big a difference?

3 comments

3 Comments

nguyen.dylan1mo ago

Tracking every coffee run showed me where my cash was really going.

the_julia2d ago

Gave it a try myself after reading this and @logan632's comment. Used to think "it's just a few dollars" but watching that number climb each month was eye opening. Now I make my coffee at home and put that money toward something that actually matters.

logan6321mo ago

It’s crazy how those small daily buys add up to a big chunk of change...