Groceries have gotten expensive. Over the past year, the cost of food has risen faster than the overall rate of inflation, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Price Outlook. From May 2024 to 2025, overall inflation rose by 2.4%, while the food price inflation rose by 2.9%. Between the price of eggs due to the shortage and new or proposed tariffs, perhaps you've started to rethink your grocery list.
Beyond shopping at our list of the cheapest grocery stores and cooking budget meals, there are plenty more ways to save money when it comes to groceries. We searched the r/Frugal subreddit and the discussions "what would you never buy again?" and "things I no longer buy" to come up with this list of items that people who want to be smart about their budget say they've stopped adding to their carts.
Whether you're looking to save on groceries or consume less for the sake of the environment, here are some of the common items those who call themselves frugal choose not to buy.
Oat Milk
"It’s so easy to make your own," one user, who says they save money this way, wrote. Most non-dairy milks are pretty simple to make at home as they typically only require the main ingredient (oats, almonds, cashews) and water. A benefit of homemade non-dairy milks is that you can control any added ingredients. Check out our guides for making your own oat milk and almond milk.
Bottled Iced Tea & Cold Brew
Bottles of iced tea and cold brew are convenient to have in the fridge–and often much cheaper than buying individual drinks at the coffee shop. However, while it can take some time, oftentimes, you can save even more money by brewing tea and coffee at home. One Redditor says they make cold brewed iced tea at home using glass jars.
Not sure where to start? We have step-by-step recipes for how to make iced tea and your own cold brew.
Premixed Spice Blends
Instead of buying individual spice blends, Redditors recommend mixing your own at home. "I buy individual spices and then mix them for dishes I’m cooking," says one user. "No sense in paying $2 for a packet of taco seasoning when I can put something together for pennies." Other chimed in saying they buy spices in bulk to refill spice jars.
Check out our recipes for homemade spice blends including everything from taco seasoning to pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon sugar.
Gluten-Free Bread
If you don't consume gluten, you probably find yourself buying a lot of gluten-free products. "I realized that I can make so many delicious recipes that are naturally gluten-free rather than trying to replicate gluten containing recipes," one user says. "This has saved me so much money and disappointment."
And there are a lot of gluten-free recipes to get creative with in the kitchen.
Bottled Water
Grabbing bottled water on-the-go can be convenient, but you can save money and reduce plastic use by using good 'ol tap water and refilling a reusable water bottle–just make sure to clean it well.
Food for thought: One Redditor says they no longer buy bottled water because they "don't want to buy and throw away all that plastic."
Paper Towels
Paper towels, along with other disposal products like plastic bags and paper napkins, were mentioned over and over. Bargain hunters say they use reusable towels instead.
"As I piled a $20 pack of paper towels, $10 in Ziploc bags, a $5 roll of foil into my cart, I realized that I could buy a lot of dishtowels and storage containers for $35," one Redditor says. So they replaced monthly paper towels and plastic wrap with flannel cloths and reusable containers.
"The flannel cloths I switched to are still going strong several years later and I have easily saved $2500 on paper towels alone," they added.
Broths & Stocks
Broths and stocks are a key component of more than just soup recipes. They add flavor to pastas, sauces, rice, and more. One user says they're not buying them anymore—instead, they're learning how to make their own at home.
Seasonal Items
Seasonal items were mentioned frequently amongst the r/Frugal subreddit. Several users chimed in on this thread, saying they avoid buying seasonal decorations like pumpkins, mums, and live Christmas trees.
One Redditor shared that she used to always buy mums, but, she realized: "It turns out that I am really not good at caring for flowers and they usually expire in short order." So, she stopped wasting her money.
If you still want to get in the spirit with seasonal decor, save money by shopping post-holiday sales instead of impulse-buying what catches your eye. You can also think smart to stretch your dollar on some things you do buy in-season. For example, roasted pumpkin seeds are a great way to put pumpkins to use.
Pre-Cut Meat & Produce
Whether it's diced meat for stir-frys or bagged veggies, pre-cut groceries might save you time, but they'll often cost more. In one thread, a user said they'd never buy pre-cut pineapple. "It's cheaper and super easy to just cut up a whole one yourself."
Pineapples generally weigh between two and five pounds. Pre-cut pineapple at a Whole Foods in New York City costs $5.49 per lb—or you can buy an entire pineapple for only $3.99.
Soda
"I only drink water, milk, or coffee. No sodas or special drinks. With the exception of alcohol, which isn’t often," wrote one user. Another says they use a Soda Stream to make drinks at home.
Alcohol
Aside from packaged sodas and teas, alcohol is another item many users say they no longer consume, or do so infrequently. "Gave up alcohol years ago and that was possibly the biggest cost savings," says one Redditor.
If you still want a festive drink at home, there are so many excellent mocktail recipes.
Packaged Foods
From cereal to trail mix, many packaged food products were mentioned on Reddit. They can be convenient, but many can also be made at home, which also allows you to control the ingredients. Buying ingredients in bulk and batch-cooking snacks like granola saves both money and time.
