# Shopping lists



## JustJoel (Apr 29, 2018)

Why does my auto-correct always change “list” to “lust,” I wonder.

Anyway, how do you make your shopping lists? Are they sorted by categories? By store layout? Or just randomly jotted down? Do you keep a running list that you sort and categorize before you go to the store? Do you use a shopping list at all?

This is just a random question that popped into my head while I was planning the day’s shopping. Maybe a silly Sunday conversation will ensue...


----------



## roadfix (Apr 29, 2018)

Random list..... I'm never organized.


----------



## Andy M. (Apr 29, 2018)

I use the NOTES app on my iPhone and Mac.  I have a checklist-style list of staples we buy at least once a month.  The list is arranged in the order of the aisles in the store and along the back. The lists on the phone and the computer are synched so changing one changes both. I could also synch the lists across SO's devices as well if that was important to our process.

SO and I go through the list and the sale flyer to update it. If we don't need an item that week, I check off the item on the list. I add items to the list during the week as a need is identified and based on what the flyer has for sale that we want.

As we walk the aisles in the store I check off the items going into the cart.

After shopping is completed, I clear the checks off the checklist, delete odd items and Im ready for the next week.


----------



## blissful (Apr 29, 2018)

I list, DH shops.
I list things by their department.
Almond paste is in the canned fruit aisle bottom rack in the back.
Spices  are in produce (because I don't want the expensive spices in  containers, I have containers, I want them packed in cellophane to put  into my containers.)
Corn meal / flour is in the baking aisle usually top shelf.
Fruits are always in produce not the canned fruit aisle. Except canned apricots, those are better canned.
Vegetables are always in produce unless I want spinach which is in the frozen food aisle.
Most things are listed by loss leaders from the store that advertised them to be loss leaders.
Chicken 99 cents a lb, aldi's, fresh (not frozen).
Ground beef on sale ##% lean to fat, usually in the frozen aisle.
Candy and nuts, farm & fleet.
(sand paper, wood working, art supplies, button batteries--almost half price at Amazon compared to Walmart/Home depot/lowes)
#10 cans of tomatoes, in the institutional aisle.
Dried beans are in two places, the ethnic food area, and in or near the soup aisle cost compare/lb.
Do I sound demanding?  Go ahead and ask someone that works at the store and they have no advice and bad advice on where to find things. And no I've never worked in a grocery store.


----------



## msmofet (Apr 29, 2018)

I have a shop from home app. I add items then I copy list into excel then add aisles (for my specific store location) and prices.



Adding aisles helps me. AND sometimes hub goes shopping and makes it so easy (he can't say "I couldn't find it") for him.


----------



## JustJoel (Apr 29, 2018)

Andy M. said:


> I use the NOTES app on my iPhone and Mac.  I have a checklist-style list of staples we buy at least once a month.  The list is arranged in the order of the aisles in the store and along the back. The lists on the phone and the computer are synched so changing one changes both. I could also synch the lists across SO's devices as well if that was important to our process.
> 
> SO and I go through the list and the sale flyer to update it. If we don't need an item that week, I check off the item on the list. I add items to the list during the week as a need is identified and based on what the flyer has for sale that we want.
> 
> ...


My process is basically the same, although I’m not nearly as meticulous! I use the “reminders” app because it makes really nice checklists that are easily editable. I have two lists, actually, much to Siri’s dismay. The regular shopping list and the the Asian shopping list.

I recently switched grocery stores, and I’m still getting familiarized with the aisle layout, so my lists are tending toward product type sorting lately.


----------



## Souschef (Apr 29, 2018)

I mainly shop at Vons, and am a member of the 'Just for U" program. Once a week I get an e-mail from them listing the week's bargains, broken down by category.
When you click on the item, it automatically adds it to your shopping list. You also have the ability to add other things to the list. 
In the weekly sale flyer, there are other things on sale that were not in the e-mail. Vons has some interesting programs such as "$5 Friday", where the items are $5. An example would be pistachios. where a one pound bag is usually $8, but it is $5 on that Friday.
Another program is a "Mix and Match", where if you buy 4 items on the page in the ad, you save a dollar on each one.
But, there is also incentive to walk down the aisles and look for unadvertised specials. As an example, I was walking past the meat department, and there was a sign featuring country style pork ribs for *$1* a pound!! I called Kayelle, and told her about it. Bless her heart, she also suggested picking up packages for 2 of our neighbors.
When i went to check out, I had spent $32 and saved $36!
I have attached a typical list that I print out for shopping.
http://www.vons.com/ShopStores/MyList.page#/My-List


----------



## Aunt Bea (Apr 29, 2018)

I use an old envelope.

I keep a running list of the pantry items that I use up during the week.  When the weekly flyers arrive I add the specials by store, clip any coupons that I can use and tuck them inside of the envelope.  I use the list as a guide if I see an unadvertised special I change my plans or if the coupon deal is not a significant saving over a comparable product I leave the coupon for someone else to use.

I find that if I have a list and a loose menu planned around the specials for the week I eat healthier and save money even when I don't  actually follow the plan.


----------



## Cooking Goddess (Apr 29, 2018)

I depends on where I am shopping. If the store does not send out paper ads in the newspaper, I get an email with a link to the new ad the first day the ad is in effect. I'll write up a list in the same order I walk through the store.

The two stores I frequent most do send out paper ads. In that case, I go through the ads when they show up, seeing which store is offering the best deals on items I might need. I circle the items I plan on buying in marker. I also add any item(s) I might want to buy that isn't in the ad, writing it in at the top of the page that displays items from the same department. Rather than walk the store in the order of the ad pages, I shop the store from the produce side (which takes at least half of my shopping trip time) through the store aisles to the other side. Once I've reached the end of the store, I then go over the ad thoroughly to make sure I picked up every item listed. Working off a paper ad must sound very old-school, but I have found it immensely useful when I'm unable to find something in the store. Rather than try and explain to a sometimes clueless stock clerk what it is I'm looking for, all I have to do is show them the picture. Pictures seem to work better than words - like showing them an icon on a tablet. 

When it comes to Aldi or Targ-Mart, I keep track on a post-it-note for each store. The notes are inside the door of my bathroom wall cabinet. It seems I remember that I need to buy something while brushing teeth or washing my face. If the note is right there, I can add the item to the list as soon as my hands are free. If I waited until I got down to the kitchen, I would forget half the time.  When I know I'm headed to Aldi or Wal-get, I grab the note off of the door and stick it to my wallet as soon as I get downstairs. Works for me.


----------



## Whiskadoodle (Apr 29, 2018)

I keep one list on the frig and add to another that's  on a spread sheet.  Before going to the store,  I rearrange the list according to the aisles in which- ever store I am going to shop. I put a "C" in front of an item if I'm supposed to remember  a coupon.   Mostly coupons seldom match with stuff I buy, but still....  

It is Dangerous for me to wander around a store without a list in hand.


----------



## RPCookin (Apr 29, 2018)

I have an app on my phone (Android) called Simple Shopping List.  It doesn't sort, but you can create lists for different stores, or even for different departments if you have that much stuff to buy.  I have a standing list for groceries, one for Home Depot, one for general stuff.  Then I can check each item off the list as I put it in the basket. 

When I need to put something on a list, I try to do it immediately, which is easy since the phone is always handy.  Back when the list was a piece of paper by the fridge, that wasn't the case if something came up when I wasn't at home.  By the time I got home, it was usually forgotten.


----------



## CharlieD (Apr 29, 2018)

I have a lot to learn. Whent to store today today to buy stuff for fried rice. Bought everything but what I came for.


----------



## GotGarlic (Apr 29, 2018)

DH and I use the My Groceries app, which works on both our Android and Apple devices. It comes with a list of grocery items and you can add as many as you want, with as much detail as you want. I've set up categories by aisle or section, pretty much. DH often stops by the store on his way home from work, or sometimes I go during the day. So we have synchronized lists that update immediately.


----------



## Rocklobster (Apr 29, 2018)

I'm in grocery stores at least 5 times a week, so my lists are never too big..i just have a note pad that I keep on the kitchen island or on my clip board at work and add to it whenever I think of something...I also have a lot of items that I repeat buying so when I get to the stores I usually get more than I set out to get..If I don't need something right away, I'll end up using it eventually..


----------



## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 29, 2018)

I keep a written running list, then I create another written list with like items together.  I then leave the list on the table and go shopping.  I usually remember the list when I am 20 miles down the road. No, I do not go back for it.


----------



## RPCookin (Apr 29, 2018)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> I keep a written running list, then I create another written list with like items together.  I then leave the list on the table and go shopping.  I usually remember the list when I am 20 miles down the road. No, I do not go back for it.



I never used to be all that organized.... my wife is the one with a plan.  Since we moved here, 20 miles from the nearest grocery store, I can't let myself be quite so sloppy, so when we got our first smart phones 4 years ago, Simple shopping List was one of the first apps I ever got for it and far and away the most used and useful one I've found, and it's free, so it's win-win all the way.


----------



## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 29, 2018)

RPCookin said:


> I never used to be all that organized.... my wife is the one with a plan.  Since we moved here, 20 miles from the nearest grocery store, I can't let myself be quite so sloppy, so when we got our first smart phones 4 years ago, Simple shopping List was one of the first apps I ever got for it and far and away the most used and useful one I've found, and it's free, so it's win-win all the way.



I wonder if there is something on my dumb phone that would help, but I would probably just leave the phone at home, like I did today.


----------



## CakePoet (Apr 30, 2018)

I do a list based on the stores lay out otherwise I miss stuff I need.
And before I go shopping I check , fridge , freezer, pantry, husband and then the flyers , do my list then goes.


----------



## buckytom (Apr 30, 2018)

Aunt Bea said:


> I use an old envelope.
> 
> I keep a running list of the pantry items that I use up during the week.  When the weekly flyers arrive I add the specials by store, clip any coupons that I can use and tuck them inside of the envelope.  I use the list as a guide if I see an unadvertised special I change my plans or if the coupon deal is not a significant saving over a comparable product I leave the coupon for someone else to use.
> 
> I find that if I have a list and a loose menu planned around the specials for the week I eat healthier and save money even when I don't  actually follow the plan.




My mom used to do that, with the list on the envelope and the coupins inside.

I use a notepad app on my phone, typing in items as DW tells them to me. I try to add them to the list in the order by which the store I'm going to is laid out. Then I add the things I want to buy, and do a final rearranging by store layout again.

Twice last year the store I visit the most moved everything around after being bought out by another company. It's taken me a while to memorize where everything is again. I guess old habits die hard.

I sure hope they don't do it again.


----------



## Just Cooking (Apr 30, 2018)

We keep a note pad on the fridge to write down needed items..

Each week we make a menu (don't always follow it) and check what we need for each meal.. 

No TJ's here so, we make an Aldi list and a chain store list.. Haven't been here long enough to choose a chain store so, we usually pick up what Adli doesn't carry @ Walmart, at this point..

Ross


----------



## Aunt Bea (Apr 30, 2018)

buckytom said:


> My mom used to do that, with the list on the envelope and the coupins inside.
> 
> I use a notepad app on my phone, typing in items as DW tells them to me. I try to add them to the list in the order by which the store I'm going to is laid out. Then I add the things I want to buy, and do a final rearranging by store layout again.
> 
> ...



That happened to me too!

Prolly some brat with a PHD figured I would spend more money if I had to wander around the store looking for the things I need!


----------



## msmofet (Apr 30, 2018)

buckytom said:


> My mom used to do that, with the list on the envelope and the coupins inside.
> 
> I use a notepad app on my phone, typing in items as DW tells them to me. I try to add them to the list in the order by which the store I'm going to is laid out. Then I add the things I want to buy, and do a final rearranging by store layout again.
> 
> ...



ShopRite in Parsippany did a reset also. That’s why I use the shop from home app and it tells me the aisles.


----------



## Andy M. (Apr 30, 2018)

Our store hasn't changed hands but does rearrange some items from time to time to keep you on your toes and having to go up and down every aisle to find stuff.

When I started using my phone app to keep the list, I snapped photos of the directory above each aisle as a reference so I could easily arrange my list. As I don't erase the list every week (just the checkmarks) I only had to do it once with minor adjustments for odd items.


----------



## RPCookin (Apr 30, 2018)

Aunt Bea said:


> That happened to me too!
> 
> Prolly some brat with a PHD figured I would spend more money if I had to wander around the store looking for the things I need!



This is a common and very deliberate sales strategy - stores have been doing this for years.  If you have to search, you might just come across and pick up something that you wouldn't have bought otherwise.  I mostly find it frustrating.  

I also find it frustrating when they put an item in an aisle where the rest of the things there ore not related to it.  It's like the stock clerk saw an empty space and just decided this must be the spot, regardless of any organizational logic.  

Since the only "full service" grocery store we have closer than 50 miles is a Walmart, that's where 90% of our shopping is done.  About once every couple of months we do the longer drive (50+ miles) to Safeway, ether in Ft. Morgan CO or Sidney NE.  Safeway stocks better produce and they have a good butcher/meat department, so if they were closer, we would only shop Walmart for non food stuff.


----------



## Katie H (Apr 30, 2018)

Both my phone and Glenn's phone are only about one step above 2 tin cans and some string, so no apps of any kind.

I just keep my list on a piece of tear-off note paper.  Use one side one week.  The other side the next week.  If I don't get an item on the list, I circle it to make sure it goes on the next list.

We don't get any weekly/daily papers and also don't get any mailings, so I usually go to our Kroger website to see what the weekly flyer looks like.  I have my list next to me and add anything that interests me or is a particularly good sale.

Our shopping is done weekly on Tuesday (old farts day) because those of us "of a certain age" receive a 5% discount on our entire purchase amount.  Not bad when you also add in things like the few coupons I use, along with the "buy 5" program they have.  This program is especially useful because shoppers can mix and match items as long as they are items in the buy 5 groups.  I've made out quite handsomely doing this.


----------



## buckytom (Apr 30, 2018)

Aunt Bea said:


> That happened to me too!
> 
> Prolly some brat with a PHD figured I would spend more money if I had to wander around the store looking for the things I need!




PHD? Lol. I'm a doctor, Jim. Not a green grocer...

Actually, the first time they changed things around was when the store changed hands to become an Acme supermarket. But I asked a customer service person why they changed things around a second time just a few months later, and she said it was because the new regional manager came by and ordered the changes. So yeah, some smart guy who knows better.

Hmm, maybe the new GM will finally let me in the back room with the rocket skates, dynamite, and trebuches.

But RP's right, that stores move stuff around to get you to look at and maybe buy new stuff.


----------



## Steve Kroll (May 1, 2018)

I posted this on DC several years back. It's a smartphone app called *OurGroceries*...

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f163/grocery-list-smartphone-app-77185.html

I still use it, and they've made several enhancements since it first came out. It now even integrates with Amazon Echo, so if I'm in the middle of cooking and run out of something, or if I happen to think of an item I need while laying in bed at night, I can just tell Alexa to add it to my list, without having to fumble around on the phone.

I actually use this app for more than just groceries. For example, right now I have a list called "spring cleanup," with all my to-do items on it. As I finish things, I can just check them off on the list.


----------



## roadfix (May 1, 2018)

I guess we're way behind here.    I still use a piece of paper to jot down what we need (rarely over a dozen items).   
My wife, OTH, does not use a list of any sort, does the bulk of our shopping, and buys impulsively, often duplicating what we already have and in some instances, running out of refrigerator and freezer space when she brings home the groceries.    That's when I get pissed off.


----------



## Lauraalice (May 21, 2018)

I first pin recipes for dinners then i start there. I write down all the ingredients needed. But when i make the actual shopping list its by Aisle.


----------

