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!
![\"Quantcast\"/](\"//pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-1e3-7hOJ_U8Bg.gif\")
I go to Whole Foods almost every week, I am OBSESSED. Some of my favorite things are most definitely the Honey Roasted Peanut Butter, the organic pineapples, the salad bar, ThinkThin protein bars, and the peanut butter chocolate chip cookies at the front of the store. Yum 🙂
I love their granola!!!!!!!
I love the coconut water whole foods has!! Their pizza is also one of my favorite treats!
My all time favorite thing to buy at Whole Foods is the mushroom barley soup from the hot bar. I wish I had that recipe. But I also like the single serving Justin’s nut butters and different bottled kombuchas they have.
I LOVE their bulk bins… and I always buy their 5lbs of organic carrots!
They have these coconut-rolled date bars that they make and just price according to weight….oh my goodness – they texture!! They are so soft and chewy. I love. I also love their “bars” section – they always have all kinds of new to me varieties.
This is a great post. Im someone who tries to shop at whole foods less because i spend so much money there but this makes me think i can shop differently to spend less.
The one point that gave me pause was that you could ask someone to only buy a half a loaf of bread or cabbage… would they really do that? I think i would be too embarrassed to even ask but it’s a really cool thing if they do that.
I LOVE their salad bar and hot food bar! Fresh and easy on the go food! I also love all their nut butter varieties 😀
Their bulk bins are awesome! I also love getting dried beans for hearty budget friendly meals!
I love the selection of dry goods, seeds nuts, etc. Pumpkin seeds are definitely a favorite!
My favorite part of Whole Foods is the free range/ethically raised meat!
I love WF’s coffee!! That was a great discovery I made while studying for my Registered Dietitian exam.
You can’t beat their 365 brand! Also? Their plantain chips!
I LOVE all the bulk bin items. I often combine them to make homemade granola bars for a filling snack to power me through the week!
I love getting my produce at Whole Foods. It’s always the freshest and they have a great selection to choose from. Also, it’s the only place I’ll get seafood. Being in Colorado, it’s tough to find a fresh selection anywhere, but Whole Foods always has an awesome array of fish and shrimp!
I love their produce-it always beats the competition. I also love their soaps! They are great and economical!
I love their selection of individual packs of nut butters and their hot food bar!
I love the Whole 365 brand and their prepared foods are outstanding!
The 365 Fig Greek Yogurt is amazing!
I love Whole Foods! I previously lived in Austin where they had the greatest locations! Now we are in Flagstaff and they have New Frontiers, which is owned by Whole Foods. I love that the store offers everything! I especially enjoy that you can get craft beers (a little on the unhealthy side). I also love their bakery section, where you can easily buy delicious rolls for dinner or a quick breakfast!
Whole Foods fruit tart is my absolute favorite thing to bring to dinner parties! It’s always the first dessert to go. 🙂
The nut butters are my favorites from WF! Also grains/legumes from the bulk bins
Whole foods salad bar is fun to try new thing but I really like their guac!
I love all the fun desserts at whole foods! And I loved following your meals – they all look delicious! These were really helpful tips!
I’ve heard great things about their bulk bins and salad dressings – although, Trader Joe’s is just a mile from my house so I rarely shop anywhere else 😉
Their nut butter stash
Their bulk bins are the BEST!
It’s the only place I’ve been able to find ground lamb, which I love mixing with breadcrumbs, diced onion, and an egg to make lamb patties!
I love the bulk bins at Whole Foods. They are perfect especially when you are cooking for just two people or experimenting with new ingredients. I’ve found their 1 day and weekend sales to be awesome too. Some of the things I watch out for are the sales on salmon and in-season produce.
I love everything at whole foods, but especially their veggie/pasta salads, wraps, and organic peanut butter.
I love all of their bulk bin items!! Especially the nuts, seeds, and flours!
I just went to the new Whole Foods that opened by me and was blown away! I finally found the Sambazon Acai smoothie packs for Acai bowls, and they had a huge selection of probiotic drinks that were all on sale!!
their organic frozen veggies and berries are a go to for me
I love their almond milk and peanut butter… they’re staples in my house and the whole foods brand of them is my fav! Awesome giveaway 🙂
I love practically everything from Whole Foods! Especially their baked goods!
Their vegan desserts are amazing….especially the cookies! But nothing can really beat the hot/cold bar!
Right now, my absolute favorite thing at WF is the kabocha squash!!! I’m such a huge fan, and I usually end up hoarding most of them, haha. I also am a dedicated buyer from the hot bar, and I do love their fish counter, where they will grill your fish for you right there in the store!
Love the bulk bins and freshly ground almond butter!
So many things to love at Whole Foods! It’s hard to pick just one thing. But I love all the bulk food bins. You can make some great trail mix combining that stuff. 🙂
Gelato ice cream sandwiches. Caramel and sea salt. ohhhh man
I love the bulk items because I love to make granola!
Their bakery’s vegan cornbread is so good! I’m not even a vegan, but I think it’s even better than their regular cornbread!
What a helpful post, thank you!! Whole Foods is within miles of our house, yet I opt to not go because I have not learned how to not spend lots of money when I shop. If I do go, it is usually for their salmon, almond butter, and amazing produce!
I will always budget for Whole Foods meat and fish! And their salad bar is a great convenience option for on-the-go.
I love the bulk trail mix — especially the chocolate cherry blend!
This is random, but my husband LOVES their tea tree peppermint toothpicks! I have to buy him multiple boxes at a time.
Whole Foods was the only place I was able to find Kelp noodles 🙂 Whenever I can’t find an ingredient for a receipe Whole Foods usually carries it.
The hot bar sucks me in every time…
I love the bulk foods and their trail mixes!
I’m a really big fan of Whole Foods’ olive oil selection. For everyday cooking, I use the 365 store brand olive oil, but for salad dressing and special meals I like to use better quality olive oil and Whole Foods is the best place to get it.