The best TikTok hacks to help you save money on your supermarket shop

With the current cost of living crisis, many brits are searching for ways to cut down their supermarket bill with ‘how to reduce food costs’ searches increasing by 350% over the past 30 days.

To help with this, recycling and waste management experts Businesswaste.co.uk have delved into food shopping hack videos on TikTok to reveal nine of the savviest ways consumers can cut their food shopping bills:

Opt for loose over-packaged

You may think buying pre-packed fruit and vegetables are cheaper but you’re wrong, it’s actually more expensive 99% of the time, opting for loose is better for the environment but also allows you to pick the exact quantity you need so you will avoid extra food waste too.

Pick items from the back of the shelf

Picking items at the back of the shelf means you will get the best possible dates available, so you have more time to use the item before having to throw it away.

Know the best time to shop for yellow stickers

Each supermarket has a slightly different time for putting their yellow sticker on items near their sell-by date. Here are the best times for a variety of supermarkets:

• Asda – 7pm and onwards
• Morrisons – 6pm and onwards
• Tesco – 6pm and onwards
• Sainsbury’s – 6pm and onwards
• Aldi – 8am (when the stores open)
• Lidl – 8am (when the stores open)
• M&S- 30 minutes before stores close

Also, shop the day after big events such as big football matches and bank holidays, as supermarkets have bigger stock to cater for those having parties and so there’s usually more food waste after the event.

Find the cheapest supermarket for your items

Comparison tools like Trolley.co.uk let’s you find the cheapest supermarket for your products, and you can also set price alerts for when the price of your favourite items drops. There is also an app that you can download whilst you shop at your local supermarket.

Buy frozen fruit and vegetables

Head straight to the freeze aisle for your fruit and vegetables next time you go shopping, they are usually a third cheaper and are much fresher due to being frozen a few hours after getting picked.

Shop Online

Shopping online can be done from the comfort of your sofa, saving you from getting drawn into any temptation when browsing the aisles at the supermarket. When shopping online you can keep returning to your basket in time, meaning you have more time to browse the offers available.

Use supermarket loyalty schemes

Schemes such as Sainsbury’s Nectar, Tesco’s Clubcard and even the lesser-known Lidl Plus will give you money off your shopping, extra rewards and points while you shop. These schemes are easy to download from the app store on your phone so you have them all available at a click of a button and could save you £100’s over the year.

Check if you’re really getting a good deal

Yellow stickers can offer great discounts but make sure you look at the original price first, as sometimes you may only be saving 30p, if you are yellow sticker hunting make sure you check later in the day when they reduce the yellow sticker even further.

Switch to own brand cleaning products

You may like to stick to branded food but why not swap to the supermarket’s own brand cleaning products, a lot are made in the same factory as the branded products and are a fraction of the cost.

Mark Hall founder of Businesswaste.co.uk adds “With winter nearly here and the cost of living significantly rising people are needing simple fixes to make their cash go further and saving money on your food shop should be one of first places to start to cut the costs. Shopping smarter will also reduce your food waste, so you are being kind to the planet and your wallet.”