Welcome to my 52 Ways to Save $100 a Month series. We’re serious about saving money in 2016. Sometimes it’s the little things and sometimes it’s the big things. I’m here to walk you through some little things that can add up to BIG savings. 52 little things to be exact. Every week, join me back here for another small money saving tip or idea that might not seem like significant savings until you see the overall yearly savings. It might just blow your mind. So pop in each Tuesday and read a new tip that will help you on your way to save $100 a month!
Today we’re talking about taking a few extra minutes each day to save yourself hundreds throughout the year. Packing a lunch takes a little more planning, but not only does a packed lunch cost less, but you know the ingredients you include are healthy for you {and your kids!}. That can’t be said about the last second food grab at a fast food joint!
Lunch packing planning should start before you head to the grocery store. Map out what you want your lunches to look like for the week {don’t forget to include dinner leftovers!} and create a shopping list. Then simply set aside an extra 5 minutes each morning {or be extra on the ball and pack it the night before!} and BOOM. Hundreds saved each year!
Here are the reason you’ll see me packing:
For Work: I pack the HH’s lunch for work every day. It’s something I’ve always done and I really like doing it. He’s pretty easy in that he eats almost anything and loves leftovers. Leftovers make for a perfect next-day work lunch. I try to pack a little variety each day, but he’d probably be fine eating the exact same lunch every. single. day.
Work lunches are where you’ll see some serious savings. Eating out can cost over $10/day. That’s some serious cash for a little convenience! Plus, you can pack little love notes for your sweetie!
For School: I’m all about the bento box when I pack school lunches for my kids. They are well organized {which this OCD mama loves!}, healthy and they just look fun. Plus, you can craft a bento box for even the pickiest of eaters. Here are my favorites:
PB&J Bento Box {Pin it for Later}
Ham Rollup Bento Box {Pin it for Later}
Chicken Nugget Bento Box {Pin it for Later}
Cucumber Sandwich Bento Box {Pin it for Later}
Fluffer Nutter Bento Box {Pin it for Later}
Hard Boiled Egg Bento Box {Pin it for Later}
Don’t forget to include a cute note to your kiddo. For older kids, these Secret Message Bananas will certainly make them giggle {and maybe roll their eyes, but we’ll forgive that!}.
For Travel: This can be as simple as packing a bag of snacks for a short day trip, or a full-on cooler for an extended trip. If you are going the snack route, pick travel friendly foods, like dried fruit, granola, trail mix, protein bars, etc. {the bulk bins at WinCo are awesome for travel food}. Rolling a cooler into your hotel room might seem a little odd, but it’ll save you big.
Do your travel plans include heading to an airport? Check out these tips on How to Save on Airport Meals and Snacks.
For Snacks: It’s so easy to just rush out the door on a busy day without a thought about nourishment during a long day of errand running. But if you’re like me, if you don’t pack your own snacks for when hunger strikes, you’ll be grabbing the first things you see, regardless of price or ingredients! It could be as simple as cutting up an apple {check out How I Keep Apple Slices From Browning} or throwing some pretzels or carrots in a ziploc baggie. Even simpler yet? Throw a granola bar in your purse so you’ll always have fuel near you {I highly suggest these Homemade Granola Bars}.
How Much Can You Save: Hundreds. If we just break down the cost of school lunches, assuming averages for everything {average number of kids: 2, average days in a school calendar: 190, average price of a school lunch: $2.90}, the out of pocket cost would be $1102. Since I can easily pack lunches for at least 75% less, that results in a savings of about $825 just for school lunches! <<<<————– Wow!
More Ways to Save:
52 Ways to Save $100 a Month | Clean Out Your Closet {Week 1 of 52}
52 Ways to Save $100 a Month | Break Up with Cable {Week 2 of 52}
52 Ways to Save $100 a Month | Barter Better {Week 3 of 52}
52 Ways to Save $100 a Month | Change Your Own Oil {Week 4 of 52}
52 Ways to Save $100 a Month | Adjust Your Thermostat {Week 5 of 52}
52 Ways to Save $100 a Month | Take Advantage of Your Perks {Week 6 of 52}
This post may contain affiliate links. These affiliate links help support this site. For more information, please see my disclosure policy. Thank you for supporting One Hundred Dollars a Month.
E in Upstate NY says
When in school, my mother made lunches for me. It wasn’t a cost saving issue, for me it was a time issue. I hated going through the school lunch line, it took time. I wanted to eat then spend rest of lunch period doing homework.
She sometimes would put something in a container that I would also have to bring home. Major issue there. Normally would fold brown paper lunch bag, put in a book, where it would make it home. A container however required a special trip back to my locker which took time from getting from one class to another. Know to most of you this sounds like complaining, but my 3-yr high school was one four-story building [not including basement which also had classrooms] housing over 3,000 students and up and down staircases. Getting to my locker which was on the “fifth” floor was not an easy treck nor quick. PS. Graduated in a class of over 1,000 students!
Tammy says
My husband takes leftovers for his lunch. He’s been working a lot of extra hours, and needing dinner out of the house for about 3 nights a week. I started freezing food for him to take for his dinners. Sometimes the food I freeze is leftovers (when we have a meal that has enough leftovers for him to take for lunch and then enough for another meal), but most of it is food I’ve prepped specifically for the freezer. It has saved us a lot of money doing it this way!
For myself, I’ve found that if I can fix a travel cup of coffee or tea and take it out when I’m doing errands, it eliminates the temptation to run through the drive through of a coffee shop! It’s so cold right now, and all I can think about when I’m running errands is getting warm and how good a hot cup of coffee would be. So I plan ahead and then I don’t have to pay the $2-5 for a coffee shop drink but I can still stay warm!
Lana says
i have packed Hubby’s lunch for almost 38 years. That is a lot of moola!
Mavis Butterfield says
Yes.It.Is. 🙂
Kim says
I pack both of my young daughter’s lunches for elementary school and my DH’s for work. When my girls tease for jello, pudding, yogurt parfaits, and fruit cups in their lunches, I use my canning jelly size jars paired with white plastic screw top lids. The jars are very durable, I can make several at once for the fridge, and cost so much less than the little plastic store-bought cups their friends eat. My girls like their because they can pick the flavors and decorate the lids so they are pretty.
KC says
I want to note that while packing a lunch for work saves a ton of money in the short term, in companies where “networking” happens over lunches out, it can cost large amounts of money via missed opportunities in the long term (raises, opportunities for advancement/transfer, opportunities for employment at a new place if substantial layoffs happen). I don’t think this applies to most jobs, though – but if a spouse objects to packing a lunch because lunches out with colleagues keeps them in the loop, then restaurant meals may actually be the long-term cost-effective way to go.
A says
As a man reading this I must agree. It is true that bringing your lunch does; can save quite a bit of money. On the other hand I’ve been able to be in the loop on numerous occasions from going out to lunch with coworkers and employers. I was able to put my 2 cents in when asked and my comments were taken and used. This did advance my career dramatically on more than one occasion. Another plus is… it gets me away from the job even if just for a little bit. I can clear my mind and come back more productive and ready.
Lisa Millar says
Aside from lunches, places that have the monopoly on food are horrendous in price. If we travel I always try to take something with us.
I remember arriving at an airport once really early and going to buy a croissant – I walked away hungry because there was NO WAY I was going to pay nearly $8 for it!! I nearly fell over!
And anywhere that you travel with Ruby is like a moveable feast! The thermos and picnic baskets come out and are full with amazing stuff… who wants to pay to eat when you can have that?? 🙂
Chris says
I love leftovers for lunch. The hubby hates them for lunch but loves them for dinner; go figure 🙂 I pack his lunch every day – same thing – sandwich, apple, chips/pretzels, Coke. IT NEVER CHANGES! I have packed lunches for my teenagers nearly every day. Once they hit high school it was so NOT cool to carry an insulated lunch bag. Apparently, the only acceptable lunch sack was a plastic grocery bag (to be thrown out) with crap-ola inside. Too bad, I said, we don’t follow the crowd. The first year they were teased, but their peers were envious of the lunches ie salads, stews, wraps, homemade desserts, etc. After that, my teens realized the food quality and time savings were well worth it.
Marcia says
I pack lunch for myself every day. I used to pack my husband and son’s lunches too. Then I just started making sure there was *food* for my husband, so he packs his own (leftovers or sandwiches). Then I got tired of packing my 9 year old’s lunch, that he wouldn’t eat. So I made him pack his own. He still didn’t eat it.
I think the problem is that
1. He gets a morning snack at school
2. He would rather talk than eat
3. He prefers a hot lunch
So, at $2.50 a day, he has been getting the school lunch since October. The little guy eats for free at daycare (which is $320 a week, so…not free!)
But I did the calculations once, and I figured it was $3500 a year saved by packing lunch. That’s a new car every 5 years. (Well, a new Civic, and it was a new Civic when we bought ours 7 years ago).
I even packed myself a lunch when we went to Legoland this weekend. I let the boys buy food because they wanted it, but saved $11 by bringing my own sandwich.
T.J. says
It just seems so easy to let my kiddo eat lunch at school but this was an eye opener. I tend to bring those Campbell’s soup drinks to work but the sodium is so high. I told my kiddo we were going to sit down this weekend and make up a lunch menu and he is all for it.
Texas says
We have always packed our lunches and dinners. Our son is a senior in college and still takes his lunch with him. He has often been told that his lunches look so good. Our daughter is a sophomore in high school and has always taken lunch to school. Fortunately they both have access to a microwave. DD also has access to a steamer in her science class. My husband comes home for lunch but we have found having fully cooked and packed lunch/dinner trays in the freezer saves us a ton. DD has tennis tournaments all over the state. We just pull our trays out of the freezer, pack them in an ice chest and off we go. Saves us hundreds each weekend. It’s easy to take a sporadic trip knowing we won’t have to fork over $$$$ for food. When we cook we cook 2-4 times the normal meal and pack up the rest. Couldn’t afford to do all the things we do without this simple idea…packing lunch.
Mavis says
I love everything about this!!
Susannah says
And, don’t forget about picnics! It’s summer time and most weekends there is an opportunity to watch a movie and picnic with friends and family. I’m always looking for budget (or better, free) summer entertainment ideas.