If you've known me for any length of time, you know that it truly pains me to see money leave my pocket. Some may call me cheap - I prefer the term frugal. In my opinion, spending more money on something than I need to is stupid. So I don't. Especially not on groceries. The experience has been trial and error but here are my tried and true ways to spend less money grocery shopping.

Coupon. Seriously, I cannot stress this enough! Coupons.com is a fantastic resource. All you have to do is download the plugin on your computer, clip and print. It's seriously that easy. In addition to this site, utilize the newspaper and weekly/biweekly inserts. I don't pay to get the paper every morning but I'll stop by a gas station on Sunday before or after church to pick up a Sunday paper. The amount of deals in that one paper is amazing. Also, most stores tend to have a coupon section of the website (coupons.target.com, coupons.walmart.com, etc.). These are powered by Coupons.com BUT they have store-specific coupons as well. There are limits on how many manufacturer coupons or store coupons you can use in one setting but pairing the two is always a win!

• Snap by Groupon - Almost exactly like Ibotta but with less rebates. However, I've learned that some of the same rebates are available on both Snap and Ibotta so you can double up! The only true difference is that Snap rebates can be used at any store whereas Ibotta makes you choose which store you're going to. How to Use: Check out the items available for cash back offers. Add them to your shopping list. After checking out at the grocery store, click "Snap Receipt" and take a picture of your receipt in full. In about 24 hours, they'll add the funds to your Snap account. You'll have to wait until you hit $20 before you can transfer but it's still a great option!

• Walmart Savings Catcher - When I moved into my new apartment, I found that it was easier to shop at Walmart than to shop at Bi-lo. While I miss the FuelPerks and try to catch the sales whenever I can, I find that using the Walmart app's "Savings Catcher" feature is worth the change! If you purchase an item at Walmart and a competitor has them advertised for a lower price, they'll give you the difference in the form of a Walmart gift card! How to Use: Shop as you normally would at Walmart. Take a picture of your receipt through the app and wait a day or so. You'll get a notification after they scan competitor prices and let you know if/how much you'll receive!

• Cartwheel by Target - I love Target but I find some of their products to be a little pricey so when my boss told me about the Cartwheel app, I was so excited. This app offers extra percentages off of certain items, including groceries! How to Use: Type in the items that you need to purchase (milk, coffee creamer, shampoo, etc.) and the app will tell you how much percentage off you can receive when you buy it. (For example, right now you can get 5% off Market Pantry Milk, 15% off Deli Oven-Roasted Chicken, 20% off Pretzel Crisps and SO much more!) Expand the item you want by clicking on it, hit "Add" and have the cashier scan the barcode when you're checking out. They'll automatically take off those percentages and save you money.

Shop Off the Beaten Path - While all of these apps are immensely helpful, sometimes I try to avoid large grocery stores. There's an Aldi right down the street from my job and it's amazing. "Fit & Active" brand cereal bars and chips taste just as good as Kellogg and Tostitos for half the price. Plus, their fruits and vegetables are extremely inexpensive so it's a great place to go when you're trying to stay healthy without breaking the budget.

How do you save money grocery shopping? Any other apps I've missed?

Like many of my millennials, working during college wasn't optional. In order to pay for my rent, groceries, utilities and every college girl's favorite accessories (i.e. textbooks), I had to get a job. Even though I kinda learned how to keep track of my money, budgeting has always been hard for me. I would pay my rent, give my roommate my utility money and just blow the rest. As long as I had something left over to eat (mostly Ramen noodles and Chef Boyardee ravioli), it didn't seem like budgeting was that important. Until I got a real job.
After joining the "real world," I learned that this life isn't everything MTV made it out to be. In fact, it kinda sucks. Fun facts: a 401k is the real deal and even normal people like me need to start an investment portfolio. If your face looks anything like what mine looked like when I talked to my financial advisor, don't worry: I'll get you the details on all that stuff soon enough. Right now, however, I've decided to work on an in-depth guide to budgeting with a primary focus on the people that really need it: my recent grad family.

Read Your Bank Statement
Yes, it sucks. No, you don't wanna see all of the times you visited McAllister's or Panera Bread last month. Oh well. Open it up and take a serious look at everything you spend your money on. My bank statement makes me very sad but it was probably the most important thing I could have done. Sure, I check my bank account on my phone through an app but opening up your statement online & printing it out makes it ten times more real.

Write It Down
Income
Your income is just as important in budgeting as your expenses. I break down my budget by paycheck so I wrote down exactly (down to the cent) how much I would get paid every two weeks. That way, I can decide how much I need to spend per pay period, rather than the entire month. *Remember to include all income* I have a very lackadaisical part time job that pays me about $150 every month. That doesn't amount to too much but it's definitely something that I can put into my savings or splurge with to buy some new clothes for work. Do you blog? If your blog brings in income, however sporadic it may be, write that down as well.
Expenses: The Necessities
What do you have to pay for? Not getting your hair or nails done every month or the weekly happy hour dates with your friends. Rent, water bill, light bill, phone bill, car insurance/taxes and, yes, groceries. (Obviously - you gotta eat to live.) My water and light bill tend to fluctuate but never more than a couple of dollars so estimate the highest possible rate for those two. The last time you went to the grocery store did you get what you needed or were you feeling fancy and sprung for the expensive ice cream sandwiches? Make a serious estimate about how much you spend monthly on your groceries using your bank statement (see why that was important?).

Expenses: Kinda Important
Now, think of everything that's kinda important to you. I'm not the type of girl to get my nails done every two weeks but I'll have a panic attack if I don't go to my hairdresser at least once every two months. So, "hair" goes right into the budget. If going out to dinner once a week with your college friends is important, put that in there! When I started my grown-up job? I had two pairs of work pants and three dresses. Work appropriate tops were in short supply for me but I made due with what I had. In the beginning, I had to add a section to my budget for clothing, but only the stuff I really needed. Did I love that dress I saw in Charlotte Russe last week? Of course. But unless it's work appropriate, it ain't in the budget.
Also, a lot of my friends and sorority sisters have been getting engaged or buying houses which calls for housewarming parties and showers galore. Spending 30 bucks on presents for all of these parties isn't plausible for me right now, but making sure that I have a little bit allotted to at least get a $10 or $15 gift card can be.

Create Your Spreadsheet
If I didn't have someone to help me create this spreadsheet, I probably would have failed myself. Soooooo here's a couple of templates! I found one on Financegirl's website and attempted to use it when I was in college but seeing as how I was living paycheck to paycheck and stacking up on Ramen noodles, budgeting wasn't my first priority. When I sat down with my financial advisor, she was able to make me a spreadsheet that wasn't as pretty but still very helpful! I've provided that document here: Free Spending Plan Download 

Inputting the Info
For Paycheck 1 and 2 (and possible 3), put in the actual dates that you get paid
Change the titles in A3 & A4 to your actual employers
In E3 and E4, put the total monthly amount (after taxes) that you make for each (That balance will show up in E5)
In F3 and F4, put the amount that you will make for each pay period. In other words, when you check your direct deposit that morning, what will you see? Do the same thing for G3 and G4
*If you do not have more than one employer (i.e. more than one job), don't worry about row 4*

Once you've got all of your income taken care of, start inputting all of your expenses in the corresponding categories. First, input how much you spend on a monthly basis in column D, then break that up by paycheck. (For example: if you pay $100 per month on gas, allot $50 for your first paycheck and the other 50 for your second. Put those amounts in the correct row in columns F & G).

After filling in your expenses, fill in their corresponding due date in column B. (Ex. My rent is due on the 1st and my car insurance is due on the 15th) In Row 34, you'll see all of your expenses per pay period and in row 36, you'll see how much you have left over after all of your previously stated expenses are paid.

Putting It To Work
That's it! now that you've actually made the budget, STICK TO IT. Track your spending by holding onto receipts or using the envelope system. I personally like holding onto my receipts and adding another row to my spreadsheet for each purchase so I see how much money I really have left. Sticking to your plan after you've started it is really the most difficult part but with a little discipline, I promise it'll make a huge different! Trust me, after actually seeing the funds leave your account, you'll be very careful where you spend your money.