Tips for Saving Money at Whole Foods
About a month or so ago, I received an email from Whole Foods asking me about partnering together to create a one-week meal plan for me and Ryan that included two meals each day for the two of us for $125. (Full disclosure: I was provided a $125 gift card.) Since getting a little creative in the kitchen is one of my favorite things, I was more than game and immediately started brainstorming ideas for a healthy and delicious meal plan.
The first step in my meal plan journey involved attending a value tour at my local Whole Foods led by Jennifer, the regional marketing specialist at Whole Foods in Charlotte. Jennifer and I walked around the store and chatted for about an hour while she pointed out lots of money-saving tips and tricks.
Some key takeaways:
- Check the bimonthly Whole Deal brochure which features more than $45 of savings per issue on average (you can also find these coupons at www.wholefoodsmarket.com/coupons) and check out weekly sales fliers, One Day Sales and sale items throughout the store.
- Sign up for your local store’s newsletter and follow them on Facebook and Twitter to receive bonus coupons, budget-friendly recipes, and notices of sales and more.
- Shop seasonally.
- Cut costs, literally. If you need only half a cabbage, sandwich, chunk of cheese, fish fillet, loaf of fresh bread, etc., simply ask a team member to help you get (and pay for) only the amount you need.
- Utilize the bulk bins to buy as much or as little as you need.
- Check out the 365 Everyday Value line for hundreds of affordable organics, including peanut butter, organic frozen veggies, pasta, sauce, canned tomatoes, soups and more.
- Consider purchasing Value Packs to help you get fish and meat at a better price, and allow you to use only what you need.
- Look for budget-friendly pricing on lesser-known cuts such as boneless sirloin, flat iron steak or skirt steak.
- Receive discounted pricing on most items when you buy a full case.
- Make the most of your leftovers with the Whole Foods Market recipes app, which allows you to save recipes, create meal plans and shopping lists, view sales items at your local store and more.
When it was time for me to create my two-meals-a-day meal plan, I opted for breakfast and dinner since breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and dinner is often the meal that requires the most planning in our house. When I set out to do shopping for our meals, there were a few hiccups in my plan. My father-in-law was in town, so our dinners needed to be able to feed three people and I knew we’d likely be going out to dinner once or twice. Whole Foods wanted the meal plan to include two meals each day, but food I bought did cover breakfast, lunch and dinner for me and breakfast and dinner for Ryan. (Ryan actually did bring his lunch to work using food from our grocery haul a couple of times, but he also ate at his workplace cafeteria or out with coworkers during the week as well, so I’m not counting his lunchtime meals.)
And a few important notes: We went out to dinner twice during the week because we wanted to take my father-in-law out to some of our favorite local hotspots, so we did not consume two of the planned dinners on the “correct” days (Tuesday and Friday) but we ate the “dinners” for lunch for two of the days during the week. I hope this makes sense! The meal plan is just a guideline for our breakfasts and dinners, but I wanted to be sure to actually make and eat everything, too, which we did!
As I shopped for our food, I did a lot of price comparisons (buying in bulk ended up being the cheapest every time!) and clipped coupons to save money, like I usually do each week.
I was truly surprised when I went through the checkout line and only spent $69.76! I ended up going through the line again and picking up more food to use to get closer to the $125 total.
Our total for the week ended up being $115.20, but it did not include the jar of peanut butter I also used in the meal plan that we already had at home. (I figured being $10 under budget made up for the peanut butter since that would be an easy purchase within the budget.)
Here is what our one-week meal plan looked like:
- Breakfast: Tortilla topped with banana, peanut butter and cinnamon
- Dinner: Fish tacos with (frozen) mahi mahi, black beans, chopped romaine lettuce and pico de gallo
- Breakfast: Overnight oats made with oatmeal, Greek yogurt, honey and raw almonds
- Dinner: Turkey and ham rollups with romaine, tomatoes and pumpkin seeds, served with apple slices
- Breakfast: Cottage cheese topped with a sliced apple, cinnamon, almonds and pumpkin seeds
- Dinner: 365 Everyday Value whole wheat linguine with steamed spinach and 365 Everyday Value marinara, served with roasted broccoli
- Breakfast: Two waffles topped with a dippy egg and tomato slices, served with a plum on the side
- Dinner: Chopped salad with romaine, ham, tomatoes, black beans, edamame, wheat berries and pumpkin seeds
- Breakfast: Two waffles served with a cup of Greek yogurt
- Dinner: Baked chicken breasts with sweet potatoes and roasted Brussels sprouts
- Breakfast: Three-minute egg white oatmeal, topped with chopped almonds
- Dinner: Crockpot lentil wheat berry soup <—We loved this soup!!!
Crockpot Lentil Wheat Berry Soup
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups dry lentils
- 3/4 wheat berries
- 6 cups reduced sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 sweet onion, roughly chopped
- 2 cups chopped carrots
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 – 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper (depending on taste)
- 1/2 – 1 1/2 teaspoons salt (depending on taste)
Directions
- Combine all ingredients and cook on low for 8 hours. Serve and enjoy!
- Breakfast: Strawberry, mango and spinach smoothie
- Dinner: Leftover lentil and wheat berry soup
Giveaway
Now Whole Foods Market wants to give you guys a chance to shop at their store and create some healthy budget-friendly recipes.
FIVE readers will win a $25 gift card to Whole Foods!
To enter this giveaway, simply leave a comment on this post, telling me about some of your favorite Whole Foods finds!
I will randomly select five winners on Friday.
Good luck!
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I like their mini scones.
I actually love buying skincare and essential oils there… in addition to kombucha by the case 🙂
the bulk bins, specifically the bulk bins with the dark chocolate covered almonds!!!
When I visited England, I tasted one of the greatest things to ever encounter my palate, clotted cream on scones. Whole Foods has been the only store that I can find this item in, besides having to go on the web and order it in England.
Thank you Whole Foods, for bringing that decadent experience back to me anytime I am in the mood for it.
I love seaweed crackers!!
Hi Julie,
Whole Foods has an amazing salad bar and soup station. I frequently fill up at the “make your own trail mix” bar, too.
I love their french brioche : )
I love the bulk bins, especially the steel cut oats, as I eat them daily! Their produce section is AMAZING too! So many cool fruits that we have never heard of. We always try to find something we’ve never had before each time we go!
I love their assortment of nut butters! I discovered my obsession, Sunbutter there. I also love their bulk bins (their trail mixes are insane), the extensive homeopathic remedies, the hot bars (I’ve been to a bunch of different Whole Foods and I’ve never met a hot bar I didn’t like) and all of the amazing frozen prepared foods!
i love the 365 ginger snaps! and of course the salad bar
Whole Foods is my happy place 🙂 I drive by one on my way home from work and I stop there faaaar too frequently! It doesn’t help that I’m always driving by right around dinner time. They have roasted carrots at the hot food bar there and I’m legitimately obsessed.
I love their great selection of dairy free products!!
I love the fish selection. Especially the salmon.
Love trail mix from the bulk bins!
I love the pirate’s booty snacks they offer and love making my own peanut there! 🙂
I can barely even talk about whole foods without getting starry eyed! I love the juice bar at mine as well as their bulk bins, cheeses, and chocolates! It’s both a blessing and a curse that the stores in my area are both about 20-25 minutes away and in high traffic areas making me not want to make a special trip.
Their frozen vegan chocolate chip cookie dough balls! They are meant to be baked, but I never get that far lol! One is a perfect treat straight from the fridge ;D
Have you tried their freshly made in house tortilla chips? Life.changing. I also love their selection of cheeses; they’re the only place in Colorado that I can consistently find Komijnekaas.
We love the mint marinade used on lamb that we get from Whole Foods by the meat counter.
I love buying the brown cow organic greek yogurt in bulk. I eat them every day and it saves so much money in the long run. I love that the lady at the check out line told me about the offer when she always saw me getting a ton of yogurts!
I’m very sensitive to gluten and can’t tolerate soy, and unfortunately soy lecithin is in almost all chocolate! I am obsessed with Enjoy Life chocolate chips at Whole Foods. 🙂 I put them in everything – oatmeal, on chopped fruit with nut butter, baked into pumpkin bread… So glad WF carries them, it’s the only store I’ve found that does!
I love their gingerbread cake!
I love anything from their salad bar. Such a great variety!
The freezer “quick meal” packages…the selection is outstanding!
Love the bulk section of Whole Foods! Chocolate or peanut butter covered pretzels are a go-to movie snack, as we have a Whole Foods across the street from a local movie theater. Also get lentils, oatmeal, split peas, almonds, peanuts (for homemade peanut butter) and the occasional chocolate treat from the bulk bins. Yum!
Love their selection of dried fruit in the bulk bins!
I love their whole roasted chickens especially when they are offered as a $5 Friday deal. It makes putting meals together so much quicker and easier. I love using it in various recipes to get a few meals from one chicken. I also love Whole Foods bulk bins! They offer great value.
goodbelly juice. they are really good. I can’t find it at other stores.
Love the fresh meats, salad bar, and breads at Whole Foods
Amazing job! I always walk out of there spending a fortune on a handful of things…Guess that’s because I go a lil crazy at meat and fish counters hahaha. But I mean, it’s all wild caught fish and they have bison. Enough said. Also can’t leave without touching their hot/salad bars. They are actually one of my favourite places to ‘dine in’. Is that weird? 😛
I like there selection of gluten free items!
I love their Moose Munch seasonal caramel popcorn! It is my favorite seasonal treat! Their bulk food section is also great for making easy on-the-go trail mixes.
WFM has the best produce!
I love the bulk foods section – sometimes to help me stock up, and sometimes to get myself a small nighttime snack (a handful of chocolate covered almonds)! Stonyfield vanilla ice cream is AMAZING. And it’s been awesome to figure out what’s less expensive at WF than at my other grocery store — including milk, nutrition bars (like Luna bars), lentils, and some fruits/veggies.
Bulk bins are amazing! Trail mixes & the energy chunks are perfect to pack in lunches! 🙂 #wholefoodsismyhappyplace
My favs are the salad bar, hot food bar, ice cream, bakery, and fresh organic produce
Kombucha…any flavor!
I love this post! I’m always looking for $ saving tips because I LOVE Whole Foods, but often can’t afford some things. I always get the Oasis hummus they carry (inexpensive and delicious!!) and always shop the bulk bins for their energy bites and date rolls.
Their fresh nut butters and Bobo’s Oat Bars are always a standard pick up for me, but I love checking out new products at Whole Foods (usually something of the snack variety!).
I like their bulk bins and the fresh pizza dough to make your own pizza at home!
Like you Julie, I love their salad bar and freshly prepared foods!
I love all the grass feed meat selections at whole foods! Their croissants are really good too 😉
I love there make your own peanut butter station!
Oh man, so many things I love there! But I’d have to say I always buy stevia and japanese sweet potatoes there!
I love whole food’s flaxseed frozen waffles!
I love the food, atmosphere and how they promote locally grown produce!
My favorite finds from Whole Foods is their fresh nut butters that grind right in front of you and come out warm — so delicious! :]
An almond-based hummus-like dip called Bitchin’ Sauce that I’ve only seen at Colorado Whole Foods so far and that is incredible. So addicting and delicious.
I also love the “snack” cheeses – affordable and great way to taste new types of cheeses.
I love their bakery selection. They have wonderful cupcakes!
Sadly I have never shopped at Whole Foods before. If I win that would change.