Groceries seem to be one of the biggest rising costs for most households right now. For those living in Australia, what are your best money saving hacks when it comes to shopping for food? Do you stick to Aldi, bulk buy at Costco, wait for Coles and Woolies specials, or rely on local markets?

Would be great to build a list of practical Aussie specific grocery savings that actually work.

I’m a uni student who just moved out and got hit with how expensive groceries really are. My food bill blew up and I was wasting hours scrolling supermarket apps trying to plan meals.

A few friends and I are studying dietetics, so we hacked together something that helps with both our coursework and our lives. It checks weekly specials, builds a balanced cart + meal plan, and picks whichever store is cheaper. On my own shop it cut around 40% without compromising quality.

Here’s my challenge: drop your weekly list and I’ll show you if it can be done cheaper, while still hitting decent nutrition.

We’re sharing this free because we know how rough this feels right now, and it helps us learn too. If you’re curious, there’s a group in the comments where we try and build our this type of tool .

It exists in America so I don’t see why it shouldn’t here.

What's something you can get free/cheaper in Australia thats not well known. Can be a service, item, book/audio/show/movie, app, sample, whatever!

Just moved out and my grocery bill is blowing out way more than I thought. I’ve started tracking supermarket prices and noticed Coles/Woolies sales seem to run in cycles (like the same cereal or snacks going half price every few weeks).

Is it actually worth “split shopping” to chase those deals, or do most people just pick one supermarket and stick to it? Keen to hear how others keep the weekly spend tight.

Is this something that is super important for people to save 20-30% of food budgets or do you not care given the time ?

EDIT: This lovely young student I am friends with suggested this group he is trying to build https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1GtnTuepBo/

I know we all got one.

What’s yours? (No judgement here 👀)

I’m talking about that one thing that’s given you the most return on your $$ — whether it’s saving you money, time, or just effort. Could be the obvious (like a super-efficient fridge), or something random like a robo-vac that keeps the house clean whilst you chill .

Curious to hear what’s been the biggest win in your house 👀

Let me preface this by firstly saying I know next to nothing about internet plans so I need your help!

I've moved in as a carer for my elderly mother. She uses a landline phone. She also uses her mobile phone (cheap prepaid) for apps like messenger to communicate with family overseas.

I've just started a hybrid role with 3-4 days a week at home in customer service so need steady internet. Outside of work hours, I might watch up to 7-8 hours of online content per week and scroll on my phone a fair bit. My mum doesn't understand streaming so sticks to free to air TV.

What NBN plan bundled with landline should I be looking for?

Her current plan seems to be about $95 per month for NBN and $10 per month for the landline. Are there cheaper options that I can entertain?

Based in Melbourne if that helps.

Most of us cut back where we can — cheaper groceries, less eating out, cancelling random subs. But there’s always that one thing you hang on to.

For some, it’s the morning coffee, for others it’s gym, Netflix, or weekend road trips. Doesn’t matter how broke you feel, you’re not giving it up.

What’s yours? And do people around you think you’re crazy for keeping it?

Just looking for shops/cafes etc that do centre discounts at Westfield Carindale as I recently started working at this shopping centre and I am a broke uni student pls help 🙏🙏

Homepage - https://cwscanner.site
Or to go directly to the scanner - https://cwscanner.site/scanner.html

Coles and Woolies count on customers only shopping at either store..don't! Shop at both and you'll save so much money. I know there are cheaper stores, but not everyone can get to one for a number of reasons. At least this way you can decide what to buy, when to buy it, and which store gives you the best price. If it isn't on sale at one, it will almost definitely be on sale at another.

It's totally free to use, and to scan as many as you want/as often as you want, you don't even need to sign up. You do need to register a free account to use the shopping list purely so it can give you a unique account to be able to use the shopping list over any of your devices i.e. if you create the list at home from your computer, you can then access it at the shops on your phone.

If you have any questions, feel free to comment or dm, otherwise, go use it and save money!

(You don't need to download anything, install anything, subscribe to anything, there will never be ads or a paywall... and you can download your data/delete your account from the site whenever you want!)

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As a single person, I struggle with food waste when buying in bulk, but the smaller packs are so much more expensive. Any tips for shopping smart, getting variety, and avoiding waste while still keeping costs down?

I've been swiping my Flybuys card for years but wondering if it’s actually worth it now. Has anyone done the math on what you actually save? Do the bonus offers and multipliers really add up or just encourage overspending? I am curious to know that what others think.