MealBudgetA $75 a week grocery list for a family of three
$75 a week covers seven dinners for two adults and a child. That is about $5 a serving, and 14 of the 29 items go into two or more dinners. Starting from an empty cupboard the first shop is about $93, because oil, rice and spices get bought once. After that a week like this costs about $70, inside $75.
Meal planning on a budgetHow to build a grocery list from your budget
Full list
About $93
Pantry already stocked
About $70
Per serving
About $5
Household: two adults and one child, 7 dinners. Children count as about 0.6 of an adult portion. Prices are estimated from average US prices and rounded to the dollar.
The 7 dinners
- Day 1 · 15 min
Tuna and White Bean Salad
A no-cook dinner salad of canned tuna, cannellini beans, red onion, and lemon over greens.
Shares 7 ingredients with other dinners this week
- Day 2 · 25 min
Baladi Salad with Toasted Pita
Chopped tomato, cucumber and onion with lemon and oil, and torn pita crisped in the oven for crunch.
Shares 6 ingredients with other dinners this week
- Day 3 · 20 min
Garlic and Chili Oil Spaghetti
The pantry hero: sliced garlic bloomed in olive oil with chili flakes, tossed with spaghetti and parsley.
Shares 5 ingredients with other dinners this week
- Day 4 · 10 min
Egyptian Hummus with Cumin and Lemon
Chickpeas blended smooth with tahini, sharpened with lemon and dusted with cumin. Ten minutes, and it disappears faster than that.
Shares 6 ingredients with other dinners this week
- Day 5 · 30 min
Rosemary White Beans on Garlic Toast
Creamy cannellini beans simmered with rosemary and tomato, spooned over rubbed garlic toast.
Shares 7 ingredients with other dinners this week
- Day 6 · 45 min
Carrot and Ginger Soup
A smooth bright-orange soup with a swirl of coconut milk through it and black pepper cracked over.
Shares 8 ingredients with other dinners this week
- Day 7 · 30 min
White Beans with Kale and Tomatoes
Creamy cannellini beans simmered with garlic, kale, and tomatoes, eaten with toast.
Shares 9 ingredients with other dinners this week
The grocery list
29 items, sorted by aisle. Duplicates across the dinners are merged and every quantity is rounded up to the packages you actually put in the cart.
Produce
About $27- Yellow onions3 lb bag (~5 onions) · used in 2 dinners$3.47
- Cherry tomatoes10 oz clamshell$2.98
- Lemon5 × 1 lemon · used in 5 dinners$2.75
- Red onion2 × 1 onion · used in 2 dinners$2.56
- Fresh rosemary0.66 oz clamshell$2.49
- Carrots2 lb bag$2.29
- Kale1 bunch$2.28
- Fresh flat-leaf parsley2 × 1 bunch · used in 4 dinners$2.18
- Spring mix salad greens5 oz clamshell$2.00
- Roma tomatoes~1 lb (4-5 tomatoes)$1.98
- Garlic2 × 1 head (~10 cloves) · used in 5 dinners$1.58
- Cucumber1 cucumber$0.89
Bakery
About $12- French baguette2 × 1 baguette$4.96
- Sourdough loaf24 oz loaf$4.48
- Pita bread6-count pack · used in 2 dinners$2.98
Pantry
About $53- Extra virgin olive oil16.9 fl oz bottle · used in 7 dinners$11.15
- Tahinipantry staple16 oz jar$9.08
- Canned cannellini beans6 × 15 oz can · used in 3 dinners$5.82
- Ground black pepperpantry staple3 oz container · used in 2 dinners$4.28
- Vegetable broth32 oz carton · used in 3 dinners$3.79
- Ground cuminpantry staple2 oz jar · used in 3 dinners$2.98
- Ground gingerpantry staple1.6 oz jar$2.98
- Canned chunk light tuna2 × 5 oz can$2.50
- Crushed red pepper flakespantry staple1.5 oz jar · used in 3 dinners$2.48
- Canned diced tomatoes2 × 14.5 oz can · used in 2 dinners$2.24
- Canned coconut milk13.5 oz can$1.98
- Spaghetti16 oz box$1.28
- Saltpantry staple26 oz canister · used in 5 dinners$1.18
- Canned chickpeas15 oz can$0.98
Want this list for your store and your family? Set your own budget and the app plans the week to fit it.
Questions people ask
- Is $75 a week enough for groceries for three?
- For a week of dinners, yes: about $70 once the pantry basics are in. For every meal of the day it is tight, and the dinners have to share ingredients to make it work.
- How do you keep a $75 grocery list from creeping up?
- Pick dinners that reuse what you already bought. Here 14 of the 29 items go into two or more dinners, so later dinners cost far less than the first.
- Why are some items marked as pantry staples?
- Oil, rice, spices and sauces get bought once and last for weeks. They are $23 of this list. If you already have them, this week costs closer to $70.
- Are these real store prices?
- No. They are estimated from average US prices, not read from your store. A discount grocer will usually come in under them and a city-centre store over them. Use the total as a planning number, not a receipt.
- Can I get a list like this for my own budget?
- Yes. In the MealBudget app you set the amount, the people you feed and anything you will not eat, and it plans the dinners and one shopping list that adds up to it. The first week is free.
Planning the whole week, not just dinners? See how much to budget for food.
Try a free week
Tell MealBudget what you want to spend and who you are feeding. It picks dinners that share ingredients and hands you one list that adds up, before you get to the store.
$150, $75 and $50 grocery lists
- $150 a week for four
- $75 a week for three
- $50 a week for two
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- Cheap meal plan for two, with a grocery list
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- Meal planning on a budget: a week of dinners