

The average family spends one-fifth of their grocery budget on beef, pork, seafood, and poultry. Therefore, their habits determine how much they spend on these products every month. Others prefer to have fruit throughout the day and, in turn, eat smaller meals (with less vegetables). Some people forgo the latter and only buy vegetable products. You eat fruit, meanwhile, in-between meals. Vegetables, such as potato fries and broccoli, are cooked alongside a main dish (steak, for instance). Your eating habits could make this expense bigger or smaller. The ‘canned food’ category only covers meals rather than pre-cooked vegetables or fruits. It is important to note that this includes fresh and packaged products, alike. The second largest expense in the average grocery bill for a family of 4, fruits and vegetables cost households a monthly $75.10. The same could be said about households that often eat hamburgers, sandwiches, and other items that contain breads and cheeses. Spicy and ethnic food enthusiasts pay more for these items. Having said that, your preferences control how much you spend on seasonings and side dishes. To clarify, this adds up to over $800 per year. Families incur $67.30 each month for these products. This expanded category entails bread, cooking oils, sugars, and seasonings. These items fall under the entertainment/leisure budget, rather than the grocery one. Above all else, the beverages category doesn’t include beer, wine, and alcohol.

Similarly, younger children don’t drink sodas. Meanwhile, the parents probably use most (or all) of the coffee creamer. Infants will likely consume much more milk than an adult or an older child. Just as with snacks and packaged meals, this expense is based on how old your children are. Households pay $53.60 for juice, soda, milk, and cream. To illustrate, here are the main products that shoppers buy, alongside their average monthly cost for a family of 4: American households only spend $44 per month on eggs, cereals, and other breakfast foods. While this should be your largest meal of the day, it certainly isn’t the priciest one.

Most K-12 students have lunch at school, but an adult may bring frozen or pre-made goods to work, especially because they don’t have time to cook. Again, however, your children’s age group may define how much you spend on canned products. Canned and Pre-Cooked Foods (10.9%)įrozen dinners, canned soups, and other packaged meals cost $43.00 per month. It only covers ready-to-eat snacks, like potato chips and ice cream. Equally as important, this category doesn’t include homemade desserts, such as pie, cake, and brownies. For instance, an infant doesn’t consume any snacks, but a ten-year-old might eat more ice cream or cookies than an adult. Keep in mind though, that this may vary based on the age of your children.

Snacks (7.8%)įamilies spend $30.70 each month on potato chips, cookies, ice cream, and nuts. To illustrate, here is how much the average household of 4 pays for each type of product as a percentage of their total monthly grocery budget. Furthermore, we looked at how specific items (meats, snacks, beverages, etc.) influence your shopping bill. To put it another way, this equals about $130 per adult and $65 per child. A household with two parents and two children consume $393.50 worth of groceries per month. Based on this information, we calculated what the average grocery bill for a family of 4 would look like. The BLS also note that an adult consumes twice as much as a child. The Average Grocery Bill for a Family of 4Īccording to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), a household with two adults and one child spends almost $4,000 per year (or $328 per month) on groceries. In light of this, the following list should help you figure out what the average grocery bill for a family of 4 is and how its broken up. Packaged meals and fresh breakfast food roughly cost the same amount. Similarly, do you bring frozen food or sandwiches to work? Do you often eat at a restaurant during your lunch break? The answer to that determines how much canned products you consume. For instance, your three-year-old child will consume less milk and more chicken or beef as they grow up. Yet this number is difficult to pin down for several reasons. The average grocery bill for a family of 4 mainly consists of meat products, vegetables, and beverages.
