How to Build a Master Grocery List to Make Shopping Quick & Easy
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I truly hate grocery shopping. I always feel like it’s such a time-sucker and a money pit. Yes, we need the food for eating and whatnot, but seeing the final cost always makes me cringe. It doesn’t help that I manage to always go at peak times despite my best efforts, so the huge rush of obnoxious people are not a draw, either. I decided to find a way to make it more efficient and effective. The result? My Master Grocery List.
Grocery Shopping Sucks
Besides the money and the carrying all the groceries up two flights of stairs (I can’t help you on that one, sorry), one of the things that really bugs me about this chore is that I always seem to forget something. And it’s almost invariably something that we need, or worse, something we went to the store specifically to buy. The store is a distracting place. I’m easily sidetracked by shiny objects, and the store is full of them.
Home is a distracting place when I’m writing my list, too. I used to find a scrap of paper, jot down what I needed (sometimes I’d organize it into categories if I was feelin’ froggy), and bring it with me to the store. Then I’d toss it and start from scratch the next time. This leads to forgotten items and disorganization. It’s a pretty terrible system that lots of people use. I propose a change!
How to make a Master Grocery List
I think that if the bullet journal can organize other random scraps of paper, it can organize this one, too. So I opened up to a clean white spread in my Leuchtturm and started creating categories. Under each category, I wrote down a list of all the items that we frequently buy. For example, under Dairy, I wrote milk, creamer, eggs, etc. I did this until I exhausted the entire list all of our regular purchases.
But how will I add unusual items to my list? This is the point where page markers come into play. I have two kinds of page markers that I use in my Master Grocery List: new items or elaboration. For instance, under my cheese listing, you may notice a gap. This is so I can add a marker underneath, which will have the specific kind of cheese written down. This way I won’t have to list out all the different cheeses we get on a regular basis. Of course, if you would prefer more room to write, you can use sticky notes instead and accommodate for the size of the sticky in your permanent list. I color coded my page markers, but you certainly don’t have to!
To mark what I need, I lightly draw a bullet next to the item with a pencil and erase as I go. This allows me to keep one list for a while. I personally don’t mark the amount of what I need next to the item because I am able to remember how much we need or how much we typically get. If you want to add a space next to the item to pencil in an amount, go for it! The Master Grocery list is as flexible as you need it to be, so don’t be afraid to make it yours. It is one of the primary reasons it is one of my top bullet journal spreads.
The beauty of the List is that when you finish shopping each week, you just pull those sticky notes or page markers out and toss them. Or you can keep them in the Master Grocery List until the next time you shop so you can have a reminder of what you recently bought. Another alternative is that you keep your master shopping list in your bullet journal just like this, but you simply use it as a template and you write your list on a sheet of paper to take along to the store. That way you can have the satisfaction of crossing out an item without worrying about forgetting anything important!
I also really enjoy having a hardcover journal with me at the store. I hated having to keep an eye on my list so it wouldn’t flutter away, and marking stuff off was always a minor irritant. Now I can prop my Leuchtturm open with the help of a binder clip and be able to quickly reference my list without any worry of it sliding around or slipping out of the cart.
Make Shopping More Enjoyable
If I’m going solo, I usually just pop in my Prime Music and just listen to something upbeat and jazzy. It’s amazing how much more fun shopping can be when you’re jamming out to your favorite music with zero commercials. Hop on over to Amazon to try a 30 day free trial (or a 6 month free trial if you’re a student) and see what I mean. Besides, you can order whatever items you forgot and have it arrive at your home with free two day shipping! What’s not to love?
I also like something so mundane getting brightened up by a vibrant spread. I used my new Tombow Dual Brush Pens to draw out my spread, and I love the finished look so much. I used my trusty Micron pens for the items on my list. These pens are a great option for anyone who prefers a simple, bold line over a flourished, colorful hand lettering. I would highly recommend these for a list that you’ll use again and again.
Having a Master List in my bullet journal makes it super easy to remember important items and keeps my trip short and sweet. Not to mention it keeps me on task and away from the tempting add-on items plus it pairs beautifully with my recipe bank! This perk helps me to save money, save time, and keeps me eating healthy. So draft up your own master shopping list and see how much easier your next visit to the supermarket can be!
Oh my goodness! I made and have been using my list like this forever! The only difference is mine is laminated and I left a space to write in things needed in each category at the bottom instead of the sticky notes like you have. When I’m done shopping I just erase for next time!
Laminating your list is a BRILLIANT idea! What a great way to keep your list usable for ages to come.
This is really cute. I would even take it a step further for my family and laminate it so that I could use a dry erase marker on it at the store, and even make it into a few pages within my planner. (oh the ideas I have now!!) Thank you for your time and effort. I really enjoyed reading this; not to mention how stinking cute you made it! Good luck with your productivity!!
xoxo Kay
Thank you so much Kay! I love your enthusiasm and great ideas of how to make it your own. Enjoy 🙂
I thought of that as soon as I read the article! Great minds, think alike!!! There are only 2 of us to shop for, but I find if I go with a list, I stick to the list! I stick to it. If I go in without a list, I will end up spending 2X what my budget was! I HATE doing that! This will REALLY help staying on budget!
Isn’t it funny how that happens Sue?! I’m glad to hear this will be helpful for you.
You can add a column (or just a number) of the aisle it is on. I shop often enough that I know cornmeal is on aisle 5 and tortillas are on aisle 9. But this way if you have to ask a spouse, older child, friend to pick something up, they have a better idea of wear to go.
That’s a wonderful idea to help out anyone else who isn’t familiar with where to find everything! Thanks for sharing Sara.
The AnyList smartphone app is a great alternative to the waste created with paper lists or plastic tabs. As you add items, they are automatically sorted into aisles to make the shopping trip faster and easier. It also allows you to mark items as favorites so they can quickly be added to your list for the next trip! It’s also super convenient, as I can pull my phone out of my pocket/purse and add an item to the list, no matter where I’m at. AND, last bonus, I share the list with my husband so either one of us can add, edit, or cross off an item!
For me, digital wins out in the small battle of grocery lists.
Sounds like a great option if you prefer to have a digital list, Katherine!
I love this idea! I am undergoing treatment for cancer at the moment so need all the help I can get to battle ‘chemo-brain’ that makes me sooo forgetful. I can’t go to supermarkets at the moment but this will help me when my friends offer to get my groceries for me. Thanks for the inspiration!
This would really help, especially as your friends get groceries for you! Best to you as you go through this Jo.
Hi, I have made my master grocery list laminated and use a dry erase marker to cross off once at the store. When I have recovered from surgeries, I could underline the items I needed and a friend could grab the list & go shop for me.
If there were new items needed for recovery (thus not on the master list) I could just add a sticky note to it ie: a bag of ice. I hope sharing this is helpful for Jo and others.
I have a fold out from the back of my journal (like those used to remind you of key symbols and colours etc) which has a list of most frequently bought items. Each week I create a page which is devided into 2 columns. Left column I write my menu for the week, then using my flip out page from back of book, mark on the right hand column of the main page beside the flip out the items I want to by just using a diagonal line. Then I can tuck that back out of the way until I go shopping. Now I have space to write to the right of the diagonals anything which is extra. No need to write out all the frequent stuff just use the flip out when at the store to see what the diagonal lines relate to and flip it out of the way to see what else to buy. Once in the trolley cross through the diagonal line the other way to show you have each item
Sounds like a great system Heather! Thanks for sharing.
I have a meal idea list on computer and printed out and stuck at the back of shopping list notebook. I’ve added to it over many years. It is invaluable for the ‘blank mind’ moments while preparing a list or while in supermarket.
Subdivided into meat types, veggie and cheap!
It really is a life-saver from those dreaded boring dinners that become the “go-to” way too often!
Being Military, I do my majority shopping at the post Commissary (Ft Campbell). I have a list of my usually items that I get and it’s organized by the isles in that store. I go shop on average every 2 weeks. So during that time, items that aren’t urgent, I outline with a box (circles run into one another and make it difficult to read). I keep this list on the fridge. I write on the back of it when I need to get things from other stores that the commissary doesn’t usually have. I had not considered putting this list in my BuJo- but it would make sense. Originally I put the list on the fridge with the idea that my hubby could mark things off- but he never does. He just tells me I need to do it (LOL). Overall I’m very new to the BuJo thing. I just started mine on 8/9/17. Putting the list in there would get one more item off the front of the fridge. QUESTION- does this list ideally last you the time of your BuJo or do you change it every month?
I have a small (3×4’ish) bullet journal that I have categorized and put common/favorite meals in. I don’t include recipe directions, just ingredients and their measurements. I keep in my purse; when I need an idea or if I’m in the store and I’m trying to remember what’s in a recipe, I have it! I use it at lunch time to create a grocery list by meals/dishes, etc.
Wow, that is a small journal! But what a great idea, Susan 🙂 Just being able to pop it in your purse must be so convenient! Thanks so much for sharing, I bet that will inspire someone to give that method a try!
This idea is so awesome!! I hate food shopping with a passion but I think if I try something like this, I might be motivated to really think about what i’m buying and enjoy the process a little more. Thank you for posting this!!
I feel the same way, AJ! Grocery shopping sucks so much, but now I find it to be a lot easier and much quicker. I can’t express how much this spread helps me get through it! Some good music doesn’t hurt, either 🙂
I make a photocopy of my master list and highlight what I need.
That sounds like a great way to do it, Kimberly!
I seriously love everything about this!!! I have a master list that I usually go off of but I never even thought of doing it in a hardback notebook and reusing it. Genious!! Totally going to get this stuff for my next shopping trip 🙂
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I’m so glad you enjoy it! I think I can officially say that this has been one of my top five favorite spreads of all time. I use it every time I go to the store! I hope you find that it works just as well for you when you give it a shot! 😀
What great ideas!
Thank you, Sadie!
Just a little thought on adding to your master grocery list. Cover it with clear contact paper and use wet or dry markers like Expo or Visa V that you can purchase in office supply places.
That’s a great idea! Thanks for that tidbit, Pam!
Really love this idea. I’ve toyed with several different “master” lists, but none of them have quite stuck. I’m addicted to my bullet journal. so I’m definitely going to be giving this a try!
I’m glad you like it! This is a list I have come back to again and again every time I go grocery shopping. I feel like this is one of the most practical ideas I’ve ever had 🙂 I hope you find it as useful as I do! Thank you for commenting!