Are poor shopping habits costing you money at the checkout counter? What you may or may not be doing while you are in the grocery store is affecting the outcome of your overall bill. The following tips will help you replace poor shopping habits with more productive, cost-cutting routines enabling you to save money on groceries.

Shop once a week. Pick a time and day that is convenient for you and build other tasks around your grocery shopping trip. If you have to pick up a few items before your weekly trip, make sure you put them on a grocery shopping list and stick to it!

Shop during off peak hours. Go early in the morning or late in the evening. Stores will be the busiest on the weekends so take advantage of 24 hour venues to accommodate your schedule.

Leave the kids at home. Small children can be a distraction when trying to shop for groceries. They may tempt you to shop on impulse as they pick out items that appeal to them. Accordingly, if they are disobedient you may forget to purchase some of the items on your list which may cause you to return to the store again later in the week.

Eat before you shop. It is not uncommon to find the scent of freshly baked bread, pie and other desserts wafting through the store. This is not a coincidence. Store operators know that hungry shoppers are inclined to spend more than intended. Eat a meal or light snack before heading to the store.

Know where to look. When you venture down the aisles, be sure to look for products above and below your eye level or your child’s eye level (if it is a product marketed to children). These items are often times the most expensive. Take the time to look up and down (away from the initial product) that catches your eye.

Count the costs. Know how much it takes to make the dishes your family loves. Calculate the cost of a larger size item vs. buying two or more of its smaller counterparts to see if it truly gives you more for the money. Compare coupon discounts with store brand prices. Figure out if you really save money making a dish from scratch versus buying a prepackaged version of the dish. Taking the time to do these comparisons can make a huge difference in your savings.

Pay with cash. Leave the debit and credit cards at home and bring only enough cash to pay for the things on your list. It’s so easy to swipe a debit or credit card to make purchases but when you have to pay with hard earned cash, something about it triggers you to think twice.

TIP – Save money on groceries by knowing where and where not to shop. You may feel tempted to grab an armful of your groceries while paying for gas at the convenience store counter, but this is a costly mistake. The price mark up on typical grocery store items is very high at convenience stores. Accordingly, groceries stores should be avoided when looking to purchase toiletries. Leave the all-in-one shopping for places like Walmart and other super centers.