Why You Should Buy The Products You Use the Most in Bulk

Bulk shopping is a great way to both eliminate excess trips to the grocery store as well as pay far less for things you use a lot of it. Whether you chose Sam's, BJ's, Costo or other local warehouse store, you're sure to significantly reduce your monthly grocery bill by shopping in bulk.

The best things to buy in bulk are obviously things you use a lot of, but you also want to stick to things that you use frequently. There is more upfront cost involved, as you are purchasing more quantity than you would at a grocery store, but your overall cost will be reduced dramatically if you shop wisely and buy only things you use. Wasting food or other bulk items is not saving money at all, so you want to avoid literally wasting cash by not buying the right things in bulk.

The things that my family uses a lot of and that we buy in bulk are as follows. For non-food items, we stock up on paper products such as toilet paper, paper towels, napkins as well as other household items like trash bags, foil, plastic wrap, and sandwich and freezer bags. We also buy our toiletries like shampoo, conditioner, soap, shaving cream, razors, feminine products, deodorant, etc. in bulk. We also buy cleaning products in bulk, such as huge jugs of vinegar, laundry detergent, fabric softener, dish detergent, dishwasher tabs, dusting solution, window cleaner and all purpose cleaners.

We also buy diapers, baby wipes and formula in bulk. It's so much less expensive. Recently I've been buying jarred baby foods in bulk as well. The variety isn't as great as when I buy different jars at the grocery store but by mixing flavors, I've been able to significantly reduce my baby food bill. Baby wash, lotion and diaper rash cream is also a good thing to buy in bulk because you just use so much of it.

Frozen foods are a good pick too. Our BJ's has huge bags of frozen veggies, individually wrapped per serving and sometimes they sell a really nice variety. We also buy frozen pizza, appetizers, French fries and chicken nuggets. Other food items we buy in bulk include taco kits, pasta and sauces, coffee, juice, soda, cake mix and icing, rice and dry cereals. We also stock up on milk, shredded cheese, butter, bacon and other refrigerated items we use often.

Our BJ's sells a huge selection of meat for very reasonable prices, and while I wish I could buy so much meat at once, they don't sell organic and that limits me. If you weren't eating strictly organic meats, you could easily stock up on meats and separate the tray into smaller servings before freezing. They do carry a nice variety of organic products; it just doesn't include meats.

The key to bulk shopping success is to prepare for the additional upfront cost and then set aside a portion of your weekly budget to stop back in to grab just a few things you'd like to stock up on to build your supply, this way the cost isn't as huge as it would be if you only bulk shopped every couple months. Buy only what you use consistently and regularly if it is perishable and don't waste by using excess or serving more than necessary. If you start bulk shopping, you will never run out of the things you need and the cost will balance itself out over time to the point that you will be spending so much less on the things you normally buy.