I’m going to start this post by disclosing the fact that talking about money makes me squirm. There are so many nuances to budgets and how people spend money that I find it very difficult to truly compare one family’s cost of groceries to another family’s cost of groceries.
That said, I have been asked time and again to at least try. So, this is me trying.
I originally wrote this post back in 2016, so I will be including figures and information from then and now in 2025, so you can see how things have changed.
This was our family of 10 in 2016:
Now, in 2025, the landscape has greatly changed! We currently STILL have 10 people living in the house, but they are as follows:
My husband and I
My mom
Our 20 and 24 year old daughters
And our 5 youngest children, ages 16, 14, 12, 10, & 8
We also often feed neighbor children and several times a week our son and his family of 4 swing by for dinner since they live in the same town.
So, we are no longer feeding a bunch of small appetites!
A few more disclaimers before we get started:
- My husband’s income has increased over the years. My budget is not as tight as it once was due to that simple fact.
- Our family has no known dietary restrictions.
- We live in a low cost of living area – always have. This fact greatly affects my grocery budget.
Also, if you have the time, I’d encourage you to read my post How to Afford to Feed Your Family. My philosophy behind feeding my family is more important than the actual numbers.
NOTE: My Large Family Meal Planning page has tons of great information for feeding your larger-than-average family!
Table of contents
So…let’s dive in!
How much do I spend on groceries for my family of 10?
Short Answer: Between $250-350 a week (in 2016, it was about $50-75 less)
Long Answer: I typically shop at two stores – Aldi and Walmart. Once a month or so, I shop at our Commissary on post for meat (best deal around!) and occasionally, I shop our local Kroger store for items I can’t seem to get anywhere else. I do have a Sam’s membership that we use a few times a year to purchase bulk items. And when we visit family, we frequent an Amish bulk food store where we buy bulk baking supplies.
That said…I can get almost everything I need at Aldi, but I did splurge for Walmart+ recently so that I can save time and money because I don’t find things I just have to have while walking up and down aisles! I keep a running list in my Walmart app and order at my convenience. So, on a typical week, I need only go our to Aldi.
2017 podcast on our Aldi Grocery List & Budget:
What I feed my family of 10
This was my family of 10 in 2016:
As I said earlier, the family dynamic has changed. There are 5 adults in the house, 3 teenage boys, 2 elementary aged girls, and a handful of other family members and friends dropping by for meals a couple of times a week.
NOTE: As I was revamping this section of the post, I realized some things have changed and some have stayed exactly the same! Breakfast and Lunch are the same as they have always been, but our Dinners are different. So, I will share what we are eating in 2025, but also leave up what we were eating in 2016, so you can see the difference.
The week I chose to showcase from 2016, we spent right around $225 on groceries. The week I am showcasing for 2025, we spent $300 and I feel as if I got A LOT of really good food for that price!
BREAKFAST
I make sure we have simple breakfast foods on hand. Sausage links, bacon, eggs, hash browns, cereal, toast, Greek yogurt, and oatmeal are staples here. Most mornings, the children are in charge of their own breakfasts. Occasionally, I’ll make sourdough discard pancakes for everyone or a special breakfast casserole. But not very often.
After years and years of being in charge of feeding small children 3 meals a day + snacks, I decided to let this one go.
LUNCH
I like to keep lunch simple because of homeschooling. We almost always have Soup, Salad, Sandwiches or Leftovers. You can read more about how we make lunch easy in this post.
DINNER
This is the only meal I truly plan – often taken from requests by my family or new recipes I want to try.
The year I originally wrote this post, this was my menu:
Crockpot Hamburgers with grilled onions & frozen peas
Chicken Nuggets and French Fries
Hopple Popple & Salad
Homemade Bierocks (using this dough recipe) & Cauliflower Casserole + Cinnamon Rolls for Daddy’s Birthday
Crock Pot Chicken Bacon Ranch over Egg Noodles
Chicken Spaghetti & Frozen Corn
Baked Chimichangas with all the fixin’s + fry up the leftover corn tortillas from last week
Frozen Pizza
As you can see, there was a mix of homemade and convenience. And this is still the case, although we rarely have a lot of the homemade meals I listed from 2016 anymore! It’s funny how things change.
So, what about this week’s 2025 menu?
Charcuterie consisting of fruit, veg, sourdough bread and dipping oil, salami and shredded chicken, cheeses, and homemade salsa and chips.
Homemade Subway Sandwiches – I bought Boar’s Head meat & cheese and we added our own fixin’s.
Mexican Bowls – rice, beans, chicken, guacamole, salsa
Frozen Pizza (for Bible Study night)
Asian Bowls – rice, mixed veggies, air fried chicken wontons, wonton strips, Asian sauces
Caesar Wraps – tortillas, chicken, Caesar Salad
Same as back in 2016, the convenience foods I have listed are for nights when we are super busy and need something fast and easy, but I do try to have leftovers that can work as convenience foods as well. (Learning to gauge leftovers in a household this size is a feat all its own!)
SNACKS
We also have snacks between meals. These typically consist of fruit, crackers, veggies, or something my kids have whipped up. My husband also likes to have popcorn as a nighttime snack once a week.
I also often have a new recipe or snack to try listed in my menu plan that will require me to buy a couple of ingredients I don’t usually have on hand. This week it was sourdough cheese crackers, so I needed freshly grated parmesan.
What we buy a lot of: fruit, veggies, eggs, meat, and tortilla chips
We buy a massive amount of fruit and veg, as that is a part of many of our meals and snacks. I try to buy what is in season and cheaper, but bananas and apples are almost always on the list, along with cucumbers and carrots as appetizers for our meals.
Eggs are a cheap protein source. We go through 2-3 dozen a week. I eat eggs for breakfast several times a week, and I often make hard boiled eggs in my Instant Pot to make egg salad for lunch, add to potato salad as a side, or simply eat as a snack!
I cannot say enough good about making hard boiled eggs in the Instant Pot! They turn out PERFECT EVERY TIME! Here is the Instant Pot we own as a large family:
For meat, I am buying mostly ground beef and chicken breasts or thighs, with the occasional roast, stew meat, or pork tenderloin thrown in.
I also buy bread when I am not baking my own – and sometimes even when I am!
And about the tortilla chips…
Nachos are my Go-To Meal when we are busy. I firmly believe every family should have a fall back meal like this and ALWAYS keep the items on hand for that meal.
What we don’t buy much of: milk (relatively speaking), juice, soda, canned foods, convenience foods
We are not big milk drinkers. We go through about 1.5 gallons of milk a week. We buy soda only on special occasions. The kids make homemade lemonade on weekends, and we only buy juice for flavoring kombucha (100% black cherry juice) and family Communion (grape juice). We drink mostly water and tea, which are cheap.
Once upon a time, we ate mostly canned vegetables, but now the bulk of our canned goods are more for emergencies and convenience sake – canned chicken for chicken salad, corn for smoked corn dip, spaghetti sauce for when I don’t want to make it from scratch, etc. The veggies we eat on most occasions are either fresh or frozen – mainly because we can afford that now.
My older daughters will tell you we are an “ingredient household.” There are a lot of ingredients to make things, but you have to actually MAKE them. We do buy some convenience foods here and there, but they don’t make up much of our grocery budget.
What groceries does our large family buy in bulk?
I did an entire post on this in 2015. You can read it HERE, or you can watch the video HERE. But, one question I didn’t answer in either the post or the video was this…
How does our large family afford to buy groceries in bulk?
The very nature of buying in bulk is that you are buying mass quantities of something and therefore, it costs more. Here are a few tips for buying in bulk:
*Count the cost – Write down everything you think would be beneficial to buy in bulk for your family. What do you tend to use a lot of that can easily be purchased in bulk. (Remember to read my post on buying in bulk to find ways to store bulk buys.)
Then, start searching for the best bulk price. Check your local stores (including your local supermarket – especially if you live in a smaller town – sometimes they are willing to sell wholesale to you!), check with Azure Standard, check with bulk food stores (you can often find these in Amish and Mennonite communities), check with big box stores, check with Amazon (and don’t forget to compare the Subscribe and Save price – you can always UNsubscribe!)
Now, take a look at those bulk costs in comparison to the best deal you can find on the smaller version. Sometimes bulk is NOT a good deal. For instance, it is a better deal for me to buy 11.5 oz bags of chocolate chips from Aldi rather than buy the bulk chocolate chips from Sam’s or anywhere else for that matter. I would be paying for convenience if I purchased the bulk item, and this is not something I feel I need to do.
Once you know if the bulk item is a good deal, you can make an informed decision about whether to buy it that way or not. Another thing to note is that bulk takes up space. Be prepared to find places to put your bulk items (under the bed, in corners, in basements, etc), and decide if you really have the room for such items.
*Plan ahead – Once you have your list of bulk items you think would be beneficial and cost effective, you can start planning ahead. Buy the things you need right now, and save the other bulk items for later. Don’t try to stock up on everything all at once. And if you don’t think you can swing the bulk version of an item one month, buy it smaller. We do this a lot. If I can’t get my bulk flour, I’ll buy smaller packages weekly until I have a little more money saved up.
*Be creative – My husband hunts, so some of our bulk meat comes from his excursions. Another good way to buy in bulk is to find other families to share your bulk buys with. Go in on the price together and split the bulk item between the two of you. Find out if there are cash discounts at certain stores – sometimes you will find this when buying and processing meat.
Tips for stretching your large family grocery budget
*Shop your pantry – When you are making your weekly menu plan and grocery list, always take a look at what you have on hand first. Try to create meals from what you have. This will save you a mint!
*Find your shopping groove – Once upon a time, I shopped monthly. Then, I shopped every 2 weeks. Now, I shop every week, plus an order from Walmart+ delivered to my house.
Each of these worked well at the time, and each had their own economics. Shopping once a week helps me to waste less, and I actually feel I spend less as well because I don’t need to run back to the store to get things I have run out of. However nowadays, I live only a few blocks from the store, so there’s no waste of gas, and at this point in my life, I can only seem to manage a week’s worth of meal planning at a time anyway.
*Do your best to never waste anything –
Beyond picking food up off the floor, you can get creative with leftovers, you can freeze all sorts of things, and you can keep your pantry and refrigerators and freezers organized so you don’t miss using up items.
Here’s a video I did in 2022 on Scrap Saving as a creative way to save money on groceries:
If you’d like to see a tour of my large family freezers and refrigerators from about a decade ago, you can find it HERE!
So, there you have it! If you have more questions, feel free to ask, and any input from all you wonderful readers in the comments section will make this post that much more of a resource to others! Thank you!
Samantha Hatcher says
I also shop at Aldi. It is where I go first for all of my shopping. For produce, I shop at the new Kroger here. Not only does it have a nice selection, but the prices are comparable. For bulk meat, I usually buy it by the box at Sam’s club and spilt it and the cost with another member of my family. For the bulk cans, when I can’t go to Sam’s we have a GFS store. This is mainly for restaurants, but it has no membership fee and is great for picking up things in bulk.
Lisa says
Thanks for sharing Amy! We save money by raising our own meat–that way the cost of steaks are the same per pound as the cost of hamburger and we’re able to eat more of it!
But the biggest way we save money is simply by extending my meal planning. For the past three years I’ve planned an annual meal plan and corresponding grocery list each July. Then I’m done for the year and really able to stockpile when the prices are low.
We just use a rotating plan for breakfast and lunch (i.e. we eat the same meals every Monday), and have dinner on a themed rotation. The kids each have a day of the week and they were able to help plan the menu on their day.
We drive an hour to shop, so I only go once a month, though I order produce from Bountiful Baskets a couple weeks after my initial run to ensure we have more fresh produce.
Thanks again for your insight into how you manage a large family!
Cindy says
I’d love to see your yearly plan. We have 8 or 9 or more everyday.
Thanks.
Lisa says
Cindy, here’s a link to my most recent version. http://lisatannerwriting.com/2016/07/updating-annual-meal-plan/
STEPHANIE says
Thank you for sharing. Its nice to see what others spend. We now have an aldi as little closer (25) minutes so I’m trying to alternate weeks there and weeks at Walmart right up the street.
Adrienne says
I also have a family of 10, and spend $150-$200 a week, shopping at Aldi then Walmart. Our mealtimes look very similar to yours – I provide breakfast and lunch options and only plan (and typically cook… kids are capable!) supper. This was interesting to read! Thanks for posting it.
Amy says
Kids definitely ARE capable!
Amy says
Thanks for sharing ! We are a family of almost 5 🙂 I feel like I do a terrible job at the money part of our groceries, but this was very encouraging. I spend about 80-100 so maybe I am not doing quite as badly as I thought. We go to Save A lot and Food Lion and Dollar General . I love your posts ! You are an encouragement. Thank you. Blessings , Amy
Amy says
Thank you, Amy! Sounds to me like you are right on track. 🙂
Large Family Mom says
Thank you for this post. As usual, I am so encouraged by what you write. Thank you for taking the time put this all down in writing and for the links. Also, thank you for talking about the seasons you have been through. I did once a month shopping several kids ago and have always felt guilty going every two weeks now and secretly wishing I could cut it to once a week. Seeing you put it in writing that things change and it’s ok- helped me put things into perspective.
Amy says
It definitely IS ok – we have to adapt, and sometimes what worked several kiddos ago, just doesn’t work anymore. You’ll drive yourself mad if you try to keep doing something that doesn’t work.
Melissa says
I would love an article of how to survive with all littles. We are about to have our 5th and our oldest is 7. She can help in lots of ways but I still have to monitor some. Maybe I should allow her to do it all herself but when she pours her own cereal and milk all I can see is all the milk that will be wasted. Haha she is a really great girl and helps a lot with the younger ones but some days I feel like I don’t stop.
So any words of advise or tips would be greatly appreciated.
I have found that I stretch us too thin. So this year with welcoming another child we have decided not to be involved in any co op or extra homeschool activity. They will do rec sports but other then that for our homeschool we are doing it all at home. Which has given me much relief.
We spend between 100-150 depending on what we are wanting food wise. Sometimes it’s more and sometimes it’s less just depends on where or freezer stock is. Thanks for the post.
Amy says
Absolutely! I’m working on several different “all littles” posts. 🙂
Aa says
One thing I did when my oldest was little and wanted to get his own cereal with milk was to put the correct amount of milk into a half pint canning jar. I’d get 7 of them ready on Sunday and put them in the fridge for him. Then when he was ready to get himself breakfast he could grab a jar and pour the milk.
Nola says
This is interesting, thank you for sharing. I wish I had access to some bulk buying. But I don’t (I am in Canada and a more remote/rural part of Canada at that). I think that would save a ton of money. The stores we have access to are also different. We try our best but I find it very discouraging what we spend. It seems that every time I cut back more, prices go up. The one thing that we do that I am sure saves quite a bit of money is eating a lot of beans and lentils, and a lot of soups and stews (homemade).
Amy says
Yes, beans and lentils do save money!
Nancy in Alberta says
Hi, Nola! I’m from southern Alberta, so I understand when you see American grocery budgets how painful it can be! It may help to know that the principles are the same. Plan ahead, balance “from scratch” with convenience (make it work for you), buy bulk if that saves you money…and try, try, try not to waste food! =)
Be encouraged. We’re all on the same road for those of us at home with children, and it seems like your heart’s in the right place!
Kathy says
Thank for sharing your video of your refrigerators and freezers. Thank you for sharing your budget as well. We are a family of 6 and not too far off from your example. It made me feel more at ease knowing it does cost to have a bigger family but there are many great benefits to a bigger family.
Julie says
Hi Amy!
My husband works for Aldi so I know how valuable it is 🙂 I have always done the same as you..Aldi first, then Walmart for those items not available at Aldi. Bonus..my husband always tells me when fruit is on sale or particularly good at the time. He has been known to bring home unusually large cantaloupes or pineapples.. (smle)
Just one question. Although my kids are older now, coffee and tea are the only beverages we drink. Yet when they were littles and even older, they LOVED milk, esp my son. We have 2 children, and when they were smaller, I would buy 3-4 gallons a week of milk, plus orange juice, maybe a gallon a week. Our two now are the same age as your oldest two are now. It wasn’t until our son was 16 that he finally decided to forgo the milk and we have since switched to almond milk for the smoothies he likes to make. He still loves his OJ! My question is, how do you manage not to have milk drinkers?
Thank you! Time has passed now, but if our water/tea habit had been one years ago, I would have saved a ton!
PS Our son hates tea so it is just water or juice for him now..haha
Aa says
I’m always amazed at what parents of large families can do with their grocery budgets. We are a family of 5, with an almost 16-year-old 6’2″ 201 lb man-child, and we spend around $1,000 a month on groceries. Once a month I buy things in bulk that we’ll use a lot of throughout the month and our first produce run of the month. After that, I go to the store twice a week to pick up more fresh produce. We spend close to $800 of our monthly budget on produce alone. Someday I’d love to live in a place where we’re able to have a garden again.
Amy says
I’m raising giants too, so I totally get this! My son is 18 and 6’4″. We aren’t allowed to have a garden in our current home, so we have to buy all our produce as well. You definitely have to take into account size of kids. People spending a lot less with a lot more kids tend to have a lot of little ones.
kaci says
We also go to aldis then walmart. I shop monthly and for meat we recently started growing our own live stock since we moved to the country. I do usually have to get milk, eggs and bread weekly with my WIC checks. I have only lilttles. Thanks for your tips on buying bulk.
lisacb12 says
The other thing I find with bulk (my parents live with me and there are just some things that are way cheaper for their care): you need to remember what you have stashed and where it is! We’ve re-bought a few times because the stash has been moved and their home worker is not good at looking around. It’s not the end of the world, because it will get used, but just takes up more valuable space when we are trying desperately to purge.
Tricia says
Im not sure your aware of an ad on your site showing a pregnancy test thats positive and the question ” not the gift you wanted?” we can help. Im not ging to dignify their ad by pressing on it but I imagine its not a pro family message that you might not want to convey to your followers. God bless, and thanks for the food budgeting tips.
Meg says
Thank you for this! I am currently in a food rut with my griwing bunch of people. Appetites are fluctuating and food preferences change as they get closer to the teen years. We live on a farm and eat a lot of what we grow so I don’t buy that much from the store, especially not in summer. To do a comparable post detailing our spending, I would have to add up feed costs for ducks, a milk cow, and some pigs. That is my husband’s area of expertise though. Anyway, this was very helpful especially the three s lunch. Homeschool days get away from me and before I know it it’s lunchtime and we are eating ham and cheese again. My kids say they “don’t like” soup, but with a loaf of sourdough I bet they could eat it. The bread would have to be allowed in many helpings though. I think they could live off bread!
Thanks so much!
Kristy says
I think that by the time we figured in all the chicken feed and the “treats” for the milk cow, we might have a higher budget! LOL We too raise most all of our own food and have a milk cow and chickens and raise our own pork, beef and chicken. We also garden and can/preserve a lot of our food. I love buying in bulk from Azure Standard. I usually pick up what little I need of fresh fruits and vegetables from a local Kroger store. We are an hour from a grocery store except for the little ones in a few smaller closer towns. Sometimes they have good sales, but most of their items are way more expensive. There are so many factors in each family that it is hard to compare!
Diana says
I think I remember reading your original post! 🙂
You are doing a great job – and better than I’m doing, for sure. I spend about $300 per week as well (here in Phoenix), plus a bit more that I’m not really adding in, like “little” runs to the store for forgotten items, Azure Standard, etc. – but we have fewer people than you guys (only 8), and younger kiddos (one adult, two teens, two children, one toddler).
Thank you for all the hard work you put into documenting all of this! Great post!