The Credit Counseling Professionals

Save Money on Lunch with our Brown Bag Calculator

Regardless of the economic environment, one of the easiest ways to save money is to bring your lunch to work. Why go out and spend $6 -$12 everyday when you can “brown-bag it” for half as much? Sure, many restaurants offer inexpensive dollar menus and such, but the options are often unhealthy. The goal is to eat healthy and save money at the same time – a feat that is often seen as a challenge. Pick up a few extra items at the grocery store, and be set for the whole week. It’s actually quite easy, and certainly worth the little effort that it takes.

Let’s compare the cost of a typical lunch from a deli with the same meal prepared at home.

Here’s a typical take-out lunch from a deli:

• Sub/sandwich: $7.00
• 20 oz. soft drink: $1.75
• Bag of chips: 99 cents

Total: $9.74 per day ~ ($48.70 per week)

Now, here are the costs of creating a similar lunch with groceries from home:

• One half pound of turkey: $4.00
• One half pound of cheese: $3.00
• One loaf of bread: $3.00
• 12-pack of soda: $4.00
• Large bag of chips: $3.69

Total: $3.54 per day ~ ($17.69 per week)

In this case, the savings add up to over $30.00 per week. You don’t have to brown-bag it everyday, but the more often you can pack your own lunch, the more money you’ll save. For an environmentally friendly option, get a re-usable lunch bag, Tupperware, or a small cooler rather than using paper and plastic bags everyday.

You can also try healthy options like these, and still spend less than take-out:

• 12-pack of juice or tea: $6.00 - $8.00
• 24-pack of bottled water: $5.00
• Large bag of pita chips: $4.00
• 2 lbs of apples: $3.30

To calculate your own potential lunch-time savings, check out ACCC’s Brown Bag Calculator. Find this and many other helpful tools to help you better manage your money at consumercredit.com.

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