How to Save Money at Whole Foods

Just getting back from a Whole Foods Trip and of course had my coupons handy, so I saved some money! When I tell people that I shop at Whole Foods they are often shocked because I am so frugal/a cheapskate/whatever you wanna call it. I buy certain items from Whole Foods that are actually cheaper for me to buy there than other stores and then buy other things that I have coupons for. I figured that I would save some of my favorite ways to save money when shopping at Whole Foods so that you don’t end up spending your “Whole Paycheck”.

1. Use the Whole Foods Store Coupons

Here’s a visual of what the coupon books look like so you can find them next time you shop!

I find it so strange that so many people do not know about these! Whole Foods has store coupons on their website as well as coupon booklets inside the store. They offer coupons on some of their prepared food items like arugula salads, nuts, beverages, cleaning items, protein powders, and health & beauty care. You can either print the coupons from the website or just pick up a booklet when you are there! They are usually found by the customer service desk/ entry to the store. Check them out @ www.wholefoods.com/coupons

2. Use Manufacturer Coupons

What is so great about Whole Foods is that you can stack Manufacturer Coupons and the Whole Foods store coupons aka you can use 2 coupons on one item! There are actually lots of Manufacturer coupons for healthy products on a couple of websites online. I frequently use Mambro Sprouts, Common Kindness, and Organicdeals.com. There are lots of great coupons on these websites so be sure to check them out! Sometimes there are even healthy food product coupons in the Sunday paper. Usually the coupons in the Sunday paper are for junk foods/ hygiene products, but sometimes you get lucky & score some good coupons.

3. Use Rebate Programs/ Phone Apps

I am fairly new to these types of coupons as I usually get annoyed by having to save money after buying something, but they are actually really helpful. You can download Apps like Ibotta, Checkout 51, and Saving Star and unlock offers to help you save money. Then after you buy the products you scan them and take photos of your receipt to get the refund (at least I think thats how it works, don’t quote me on it).

4. Buy their 365 Store Brand Products

Whole Foods has some of my favorite store brand products. I love their 365 peanut butter, almond milk, jarred pasta sauce, tofu, popcorn, and lots of other stuff I’m sure I am forgetting. They have very reasonable deals for the store brand products and they really do taste just as good if not better than “name brands”. Whole foods brand 365 Chunky Peanut Butter is actually my favorite kind of peanut butter I’ve had thus far (and it’s only 2.69/ jar!). I am also super picky about pasta sauce- I grew up hating pasta/sauce/meatballs (still hate meatballs) so actually liking their pasta sauce is a big deal for me. I use it when I make spaghetti squash which makes a super delicious quite weeknight meal.

5. Shop the sales

Whole foods often runs really good one or two day sales on different produce/ meat and also has some good sales in their normal weekly ads. I have gotten some really cheap produce when they run these sales & I stock up! I will rarely buy foods that are not on sale/ a reasonable price at the grocery store (especially produce). I like so many different fruits and veggies so it is not an issue for me to just buy whatever is on sale. If you are on a tight budget like me, I advise looking at the sales papers before you head to the store to see what is on sale.