How much should I be spending on food each month? (plus suggestions)

use this one next time -

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if you absolutely have to eat restaurant food, buy lunch takeout and save it in the fridge for dinner. Most lunch specials are a good $5 less than a dinner entree of the same type. You also dont have to tip on takeouts.

 

Not to be an ass, but this isn't exactly rocket science. Stop spending $10/day on lunch and cut it down to $5. You don't even need to learn how to cook or become a remotely responsible adult like some are suggesting to improve off of your current habits.

If you're not earning big, stop thinking you're entitled to spend big. It's a simple concept.

 

Uhmm cutting down your lunch costs from $10/day to $5 shouldn't be too difficult. Learn to cook the basics and go from there.

 

I would suggest you eat your lunches out, but eat dinner at home. Reason is its sometimes hard to pack food in the morning or eat at your desk since its not as convenient as eating at a table. But for dinner you have plenty of time to prepare the food, have a beverage and eat at your pace.

 

Just eat out, it tastes better, life is short...
Seriously, I have the same problem because my mommy pays for all my food. But I've thought about it and I can save mommies money and buy other stuff rather than food. Don't drink soda. Buy water by the gallon and refill smaller bottles. Refill gallon water at the store manually.
My top 10 list of cheap eats:
1. ham/cheese sandwich with chips
2. ramyun with kimchee, the good Korean kind at the Korean groceries. (for asian peeps)
3. spaghetti, just heat sauce and meatball together in a saucepan with store bought garlic bread.
4. stouffer's meat lasagna with store bought garlic bread.
5. Cereal, for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. reduced sugar variety.
6. Fruits - cheap, tasty, healthy, fresh, variety, a good desert after each meal. fruits taste better cold. my favorites are Fuji Apples and mangoes from the mexican dude who comes to my mom's flea market shop.
7. Steamed rice with any meat, fried eggs and dried seaweed (kind of like the ones they make sushirolls with except it's salted). with spam, franks, etc... don't forget ketchup.
8. Get a steamer - from dumplings to corn, steaming is a great way to eat healthy while keeping foods moist.
9. Get use to McDonalds - I usually order a hot'n'spicy chicken sandwich, double cheese burger, a snap wrap and a parfait for desert. total? >$5.00
10. Get hungry - hunger is the best seasoning. I'm not saying skip meals, but eat your meal a hour late to work up an appetite. this way, you'll be opening up to eating the cheap stuff to achieve your goal.

 

Look, I don't want to be rude, but this is common sense here. If you said you ate lunch off the dollar menu at Wendy's every day and were looking to spend less, I could actually respect you and advise you to learn how to prepare food on your own as others have suggested.

As it stands, your income is low and you're spending $10 a day on lunch. It isn't rocket science. Eat more modest outside the home and then you can think about cooking on your own after that.

 

thacabbage does have a point. You shouldn't be spending $10 a day on lunch if you can't afford it. It's not exactly a hard thing to do; if you want to go out with your friends or coworkers to a place where lunch costs $10, go out twice a week. Eat at cheaper places the other 5 days, or prepare your own lunch. That'll save you at least $30 a week.

Don't buy coffee from starbucks or duncan donuts. In fact, don't buy anything from them.

Eat breakfast at home, breakfast at restaurants is a huge ripoff. If you want, bacon and eggs is pretty cheap from the supermarket if you're willing to spend 10 minutes a day cooking it. Otherwise just eat cereal. A $4 box of cereal and a $3 jug of milk will last you a week.