How are you adapting to inflation?

[Trudie]

I’m wondering what sorts of contrarian hacks Mustachians have developed to address the inflationary time we’re living in?  Ways of reducing consumption?  Adjusting what goods you buy?  I realize that basic MMM habits are good at times like these, but what’s been helpful in particular?

[Omy]

We've done a lot more DIY projects rather than hiring them out. We've made slightly different choices when grocery shopping to avoid inflated items. We stock up when we see good sales and we put off purchases when items seem overpriced. We combine errands more now to avoid driving. We've optimized utility bills by dropping the thermostat significantly at night...and are sleeping better when it's a bit chilly. We traded direct TV for cable and saved $80 month. We've optimized insurance bills by shopping around. We've avoided traveling during the pandemic which has saved a lot of money, and we've used the time at home to organize, optimize, and improve our diet and exercise habits. Losing a little weight and not drinking much alcohol also had the unintended consequence of reducing expenses.

All of these little things resulted in a 15% drop in our expenses in 2021.

[PDXTabs]

I have 28 years left on a 30 year mortgage. Since housing and taxes are my two largest expense inflation hasn't hurt much.

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

Wringing more money out of my employer... (I highly recommend this strategy.)

[2Birds1Stone]

By being a Mustachian ;)

This stuff works.

[Cranky]

I’m being pretty careful about the groceries at this point. There just aren’t many bargains to be had at this point!

And we turned the thermostat down to 66°, at which temperature I’m cold all the time, but I was outvoted on this. Luckily I bought electric throws last winter!

Otherwise, our housing costs are stable and we don’t need a new car. We don’t drive all that much so gas prices don’t affect us too much.

Long walks and the library continue to be free.

[Omy]

We turn the thermostat down to 61 at night (and use flannel sheets and a down comforter to keep us toasty) and up to 68 during the day. I'm rarely uncomfortable and the bills are WAY down from last year when we kept it at 70 all winter.

P.S. We have a furnace. I would NOT recommend this approach with a heat pump since it would be less efficient.

[jnw]

I’m being pretty careful about the groceries at this point. There just aren’t many bargains to be had at this point!

And we turned the thermostat down to 66°, at which temperature I’m cold all the time, but I was outvoted on this. Luckily I bought electric throws last winter!

Otherwise, our housing costs are stable and we don’t need a new car. We don’t drive all that much so gas prices don’t affect us too much.

Long walks and the library continue to be free.

How much do you save on the electric bill with temp set at 66F compared to around 70 to 73?   At 66F my bones start aching and I cough more at night.  Never thougth about electric blanket.   

[jnw]

We turn the thermostat down to 61 at night (and use flannel sheets and a down comforter to keep us toasty) and up to 68 during the day. I'm rarely uncomfortable and the bills are WAY down from last year when we kept it at 70 all winter.

How much do you figure you save each year running heat at 61F at night compared to 70F?

[waltworks]

30 year 3% mortgage, as much money as they'd give us. Paying the minimum. Make FIRE a lot quicker AND makes inflation no big thing.

I am paying more for avocados, but screw it. Avocados are delicious.

Do people really keep their houses at 70 degrees? We do 62 in the daytime and 58 at night. I can't even imagine 70 degrees, I'd be roasting alive.

-W

[The 585]

Flexibility in where you spend your money. Ground beef just shot up in price? Use ground turkey, or even better, a vegan substitute if you're willing to consider meatless options. Fuel prices skyrocketing? Use public transportation or a bicycle more often if possible. Like someone said upthread, "by being a mustachian". We're pretty resilient to things like this such as spending inflation, and in many cases we can leverage it as a reason to make even healthier choices!

[sonofsven]

30 year 3% mortgage, as much money as they'd give us. Paying the minimum. Make FIRE a lot quicker AND makes inflation no big thing.

I am paying more for avocados, but screw it. Avocados are delicious.

Do people really keep their houses at 70 degrees? We do 62 in the daytime and 58 at night. I can't even imagine 70 degrees, I'd be roasting alive.

-W

You're just overdressed. I get my wood stove cranking and it's 75* in no time, but I generally wear shorts and a t shirt in the house.
I got a great deal on avocados the other day, packaged up as a "guacamole kit", they were so ripe they barely made it into guac that evening.

I have a well stocked freezer and I've been stocking it less and eating out of it more, which is really just putting off the inevitable I suppose.
My fuel bill has increased about $30/mo so I'm trying to drive less, too.

[Omy]

We turn the thermostat down to 61 at night (and use flannel sheets and a down comforter to keep us toasty) and up to 68 during the day. I'm rarely uncomfortable and the bills are WAY down from last year when we kept it at 70 all winter.

How much do you figure you save each year running heat at 61F at night compared to 70F?

For electricity this winter, we used 2124 KWH...same period last year it was 2528 KWH. Consumption is 16% less.

For gas this winter, we used 356 CCF...same period last year was 445 CCF. Consumption is 20% less.

[Dicey]

At the risk of sounding tone deaf, we're mustachian and really haven't changed anything. Our real estate holdings have skyrocketed. Our old, gently used cars have held their value shockingly well. I continue to shop at grocery stores that prioritize having ever-changing bargains over places that put the exact product in the exact slot every day. I maintain a well-stocked pantry. Sure, some things have gone up, but we just roll with those. Why freak out about things we have little control over?

Example: Prime is going up $20. Our NW has soared by hundreds of thousands of dollars. Nothing to fret over. Do we absolutely need Prime? I don't but DH typically buys parts to repair/maintain things, doing the work himself. Trips to stores for esoteric parts that aren't in stock waste far more time and money than $20, or even $140, for that matter.

Oh, and we keep the heat at 65. The bill has more than doubled. Meh. We're getting old, we don't want to be cold. Warm now is more important than a leaving a bigger pile of cold, cash to our heirs.

[BlueMR2]

Sold an extra car that I just didn't have time to deal with.  Fortunately got window replacement done last year at a price that was near normal and found that I can keep the temperature in the house set lower and still be comfortable.  Gas bill is actually lower so far this Winter.  Not buying extra/fun things at the grocery store anymore, sticking with the staples.  Dropping most club memberships and magazine subscriptions.  Cut our going out to eat from occasional to very rare.

[Sibley]

The biggest impact of inflation that I've personally noticed is the utility (gas/electric) and grocery bill. Thus far I haven't really changed anything, it's tightened the money a bit not enough for me to pull back on savings.

[JLee]

I landed a new job with a 40%+ raise. If you're still working, the job market right now is bananas and likely sufficient to blow away any negative impact inflation would otherwise have.

[Cranky]

I’m being pretty careful about the groceries at this point. There just aren’t many bargains to be had at this point!

And we turned the thermostat down to 66°, at which temperature I’m cold all the time, but I was outvoted on this. Luckily I bought electric throws last winter!

Otherwise, our housing costs are stable and we don’t need a new car. We don’t drive all that much so gas prices don’t affect us too much.

Long walks and the library continue to be free.

How much do you save on the electric bill with temp set at 66F compared to around 70 to 73?   At 66F my bones start aching and I cough more at night.  Never thougth about electric blanket.

We have a gas furnace and the bill has gone up a LOT this winter. It’s more about cutting into the increase, as it’s easily 30% higher than last year.

Plus we turn it down to 60° at night, which is really cold. The cats are crawling under the covers with us.

I can hardly wait for summer.

[jnw]

Ive decided to quit buying bacon due to inflation.  $4.20 to $6 per pound of bacon is outrageous.

I buy my own pork products in bulk, by the case from Sam's Club at $1.48 to $1.68/lb.   

Today I processed a pork butt -- which costs $1.48/lb.  I cut it in half lengthwise to get a nice portion about the size of  slab of bacon, but a little wider than bacon.  The rest of the pork I butchered into stew meat;  the leftover bone with some meat around it is become a soup for dinner tonight.

This bacon is called Buckboard Bacon and tastes great as there is plenty of fat in the cut.   I cure it myself in the fridge over two weeks with a dry curing rub.  I'll also cut a pork loin into 3 pieces and cure that at the same time for Canadian Bacon.   I'l smoke everything together at same time for about $2.50 in charcoal and wood chunks.  (Actually I think I'll cut up antoher pork butt for another Buckboard Bacon slab, with the excess pork butt made into ground pork... the more I smoke at same time the more I save.)  I can freeze the buckboard bacon as well as canadian bacon after it's smoked -- I'll portion into 1 lb chunks or so which I will slice as needed each morning for breakfast.

So I smoke 15 pounds of cured pork butt & loin.  At an average cost of $1.58/lb.  15 x $1.58 = $23.7 plus the $2.50 (charcoal and wood chunks) and total cost is $26.20.   Wherease 15lbs of bacon at Aldi is 15 x $4.19 = $62.85.  $40 savings.  And btw, buckboard bacon (home smoked in bbq pit) tastes a lot better than the cheap $4.19 Aldi bacon in my opinion.

EDIT: oh add like 50 cents for the curing rub which is cure #1, kosher salt and brown sugar.

[waltworks]

That sounds like a really really difficult way to save $40 that involves many hours of labor, but if you must have cured meat, good work, I guess?

-W

[waltworks]

You're just overdressed. I get my wood stove cranking and it's 75* in no time, but I generally wear shorts and a t shirt in the house.
I got a great deal on avocados the other day, packaged up as a "guacamole kit", they were so ripe they barely made it into guac that evening.

I have a well stocked freezer and I've been stocking it less and eating out of it more, which is really just putting off the inevitable I suppose.
My fuel bill has increased about $30/mo so I'm trying to drive less, too.

I'm concerned enough about climate change and local air quality that I'm willing to wear a long sleeved shirt in the house, but to each their own.

-W

[DaTrill]

Ask for raises or look for new jobs that pay more.  Difficult to cut your way to save 7% if inflation stays at this rate for long. 

I will eat less protein per serving.  Two slices of bacon instead of 3-4, smaller portions, maybe eat more potatoes.  Travel is usually a place to cut back but travel is ridiculously cheap right now, so likely to travel more in the near term.   

[jnw]

That sounds like a really really difficult way to save $40 that involves many hours of labor, but if you must have cured meat, good work, I guess?

-W

I already process pork products with knives, grinder and meat slicer in a large batch, so I don't have to do it very often.. maybe every 3 months at most. Saving TONS of money on stew meat, boneless pork chops of my desired thickness, buckboard bacon, canadian bacon, sliced pork loin (for homemade jerky, pho and stir fry), ground pork, etc..  Bacon is just one small part.   To process the bacon at the same time isn't much more work; since the setup and cleanup would be the same amount of time regardless.  I think it takes an hour to do a many months worth of pork butchering.

The curing of two buckboard bacon slabs alogn with say a whole pork loin , takes all of about 15 minutes I'd say.  It's not any labor the two weeks it sits in the fridge curing.  This 15 mins includes the weighing of the meat, the percentage of rub needed calculation based on the weight, the weighing of the rub, the placing in a gallon zip lock bag, the rubbing down of it in the bag, putting the slabs in a tray and placing in fridge. It also covers the taking out of the slabs two weeks later, rinsing off, drying and placing on a rack in the fridge to form a pellicle over 2 days.  After that it's ready to smoke.

I love BBQ'ing stuff, it's a hobby of mine and well my BBQ tastes about 5 times better than any BBQ you can buy from most any restaurant.   (I also BBQ pork butts for pulled pork; chicken as well.. even turkey -- I don't BBQ ribs & brisket very often because they are expensive.).  I am used to getting the pit set up fast and automating things.   Sure it takes a couple hours to smoke but I dont' have to sit there out side watching it.. I have remote pit temps (wi fi) which alert me inside the house.. then I go outside and make a tiny adjustment to the vent and then wait for the next alert.   I get the pit fired up fast because I use a charcoal chimney with a propane burner to start it.  That takes about 10 mins total.. 2 mins to pour charcoal in and clean up mess.. and 8 mins for it to burn enough to throw the chimney in the pit.

I also have a lot of time on my hands and enjoy the outdoors/bbq so it's no biggy. I play with the dog outside while the pit is going sometimes.

If I were to guess I'd probably save about $60 per hour at a minimum processing all this pork myself.  I don't work, so that's a lot of money per hour for me.  All the while, performing custom butchered cuts you just don't get anywhere else; that along with achieving flavors beyond that of the best restaurants.  Now if I can find other ways I can save $60 per hour here at home I will do that as well (and have) -- processing of pork being one example.

[ixtap]

I wouldn't mind a bit of inflation, but we just aren't finding the meat products we want and can't justify paying more for something we are going to be less satisfied with. And so, we are eating more beans these days by default.

[neophyte]

Biting the bullet. There's not a lot of fat to trim from the budget.  We already have roommates and don't have a car, and we do most of our grocery shopping at Aldi so there's not a lot to optimize. Thermostat is 65 during the day and off at night. Roommates complain and use space heaters at 65, so lower isn't an option. We could change our diets, but we're not really willing to go that far. I only bought beef twice last year anyway so there isn't a ton of low hanging fruit. Expenses are going up. At least being mustachian helps me try not to fret too much.

SO will be finishing his master's in engineering soon and is job hunting so hopefully something good materializes there. With all the stories about how everyone is looking to hire, he's only had one interview so far (for a job he didn't even want) and lots of rejections, so that's pretty demoralizing.

[jrhampt]

Wringing more money out of my employer... (I highly recommend this strategy.)

same

[YttriumNitrate]

I really haven't noticed much inflation in my daily life, but that might be because A) my housing costs are more or less locked in, B) it should be another ~10 years before I need to buy another vehicle, C) I haven't been doing much traveling/driving for the past two years, and D) my food costs were already quite low to begin with.

EDIT: I did notice January's natural gas bill was ~$50 higher than last year, so assuming three months of that, it means my annual housing costs are up a paltry 0.75%

[Dr Kidstache]

I'm getting eaten up at the moment by inflation. I'm on a fixed income because I'm disabled so I can't increase income to offset inflation. My housing costs have gone up 75% (fun with living in a resort town!) but will be stable going forward because I bought a house. I've been living in furnished housing for a long time and so I'm having to buy just about everything to furnish a house. And not just furniture which I haven't gotten around to buying yet, but also all the stuff like dishes, pots & pans, a mattress, etc. Because of my disability, I can't go shopping in stores, thrifting, or even into other people's homes to buy used things and, while I can get help from friends for the occasional shopping, I don't want to exhaust their goodwill buying all the million little things I need so I'm buying almost everything new online. #criptax
My food costs haven't really gone up because I eat almost entirely vegetarian. And I don't drive much so not getting dinged much by fuel costs. My new house is pretty similar size to my former rental so energy costs pretty stable. 60 degrees daytime temp is my usual. There's an acclimatization period every fall that's chilly but I'm totally comfortable at 60 by this point in the winter.

[jnw]

I'm getting eaten up at the moment by inflation. I'm on a fixed income because I'm disabled so I can't increase income to offset inflation. My housing costs have gone up 75% (fun with living in a resort town!) but will be stable going forward because I bought a house. I've been living in furnished housing for a long time and so I'm having to buy just about everything to furnish a house. And not just furniture which I haven't gotten around to buying yet, but also all the stuff like dishes, pots & pans, a mattress, etc. Because of my disability, I can't go shopping in stores, thrifting, or even into other people's homes to buy used things and, while I can get help from friends for the occasional shopping, I don't want to exhaust their goodwill buying all the million little things I need so I'm buying almost everything new online. #criptax
My food costs haven't really gone up because I eat almost entirely vegetarian. And I don't drive much so not getting dinged much by fuel costs. My new house is pretty similar size to my former rental so energy costs pretty stable. 60 degrees daytime temp is my usual. There's an acclimatization period every fall that's chilly but I'm totally comfortable at 60 by this point in the winter.

Have you tried joining your local "Buy Nothing" facebook group?  They always give away furniture and free household items.  And I'm sure if you explained your situation many might take heart and drop stuff off at your house. I know I'd probably drop off a couple free things to your house if I was a neighbor.

[PDXTabs]

FWIW I keep my upstairs at 68°F during the day and I turn my heat off at night. But this is nothing new. The downstairs can be up to 10°F cooler which I usually deal with by adding layers. Occasionally I'll run a space heater.

[tygertygertyger]

Yeah, we bought a house a few months back, so we're figuring out our new cost of living now. Our electric consumption went down from Dec - Jan, but our bill went up by $30, so agreeing with others that I'm noticing it in our utilities! I'm waiting for our new gas bill to drop, because I expect that'll be a doozy.

We've been doing weatherization projects and caulking everywhere we can, so at least cold gusts of air are no long coming in around the windows. We keep the heat at 67-68 during the day and drop it to 58 overnight. I don't even feel the difference because I sleep under a pile of blankets that keep me toasty. And happily our dog is a winter dog who opts to sleep in the coldest room of the house.

But yeah, along with Dr. Kidstache, we're still trying to buy stuff that we didn't need before. Checking out the thrift shops on weekends for deals. My company did very well apparently last year, and I did receive the very first year-end bonus from them, so we'll see what happens with this year's raises. 

[Captain FIRE]

I'm considering looking for a new job (for other reasons, but this doesn't hurt to add to the reasons either).  My current one is locked in at a 2% raise in July.

[Zikoris]

As a low-consumption vegan who doesn't buy most of the high-inflation categories at all, it really has not been an issue for me so far. If I was having problems with inflation, I would just lean harder into anticonsumption/zero waste. It's worth keeping in mind that there are many people at every point in the spending spectrum, including people who spend $0, so unless you're already spending $0/year, you always have options and the ability to spend less if you choose to.

[Krolik]

Wringing more money out of my employer... (I highly recommend this strategy.)

same

Did the same thing. They didn't even blink.

[pasadenafr]

I noticed it in my rent, which increased by $150 last month (honestly it's not that big of an increase, especially when it didn't go up last year), and my electricity bill in January, but since I've already lowered my consumption this fall/winter, it's still under last year's bills. Maybe I'll turn the thermostat down another degree or two.

As for groceries, I've decided to stop eating crap - because of inflation on my hips, not my wallet, so it helps keep it down. I mostly buy raw meat, milk, eggs and veggies. I did balk at the price of smoked salmon, which is one of my favorite treats, but it's now way over what I'm willing to pay (not to mention, I only buy wild, preferably Alaskan). So no more processed food, no more cheese, no more cold cuts, and unfortunately no more smoked salmon. My grocery bill is actually lower than it was before I started my diet - for more food, and I feel so much better too.

One thing that hurts is coffee. I guess I really need to use my French Press more often, but it's apparently too much of a hassle lol. Maybe I need a bigger one.

I don't drive much, so gas prices don't really impact my budget.

The rest of it, well, I just try to be more intentional when I buy something, and I just bite the bullet. As someone else said, not much fat to trim in the budget.

[TheAnonOne]

By spending more money!

[charis]

I've only noticed it at the grocery store and gas. We try to stick to Aldi and shop sales anyway.  Gas is infrequent but noticeably much more to fill the tank.  We had sticker shock on last two restaurant meals via takeout at normally cheap options. So I think we'll be avoiding that for a while.

[Cranky]

I've only noticed it at the grocery store and gas. We try to stick to Aldi and shop sales anyway.  Gas is infrequent but noticeably much more to fill the tank.  We had sticker shock on last two restaurant meals via takeout at normally cheap options. So I think we'll be avoiding that for a while.

We walk at the mall sometimes when the weather is terrible, and I was startled to notice the price of food court lunch these days - almost $5 for a slice of pizza???

[charis]

I've only noticed it at the grocery store and gas. We try to stick to Aldi and shop sales anyway.  Gas is infrequent but noticeably much more to fill the tank.  We had sticker shock on last two restaurant meals via takeout at normally cheap options. So I think we'll be avoiding that for a while.

We walk at the mall sometimes when the weather is terrible, and I was startled to notice the price of food court lunch these days - almost $5 for a slice of pizza???

We got hit in the pizza bone first. An x-large pepperoni pizza with 12 wings came to over $50 (with $5 off coupon)

[Zikoris]

I've only noticed it at the grocery store and gas. We try to stick to Aldi and shop sales anyway.  Gas is infrequent but noticeably much more to fill the tank.  We had sticker shock on last two restaurant meals via takeout at normally cheap options. So I think we'll be avoiding that for a while.

We walk at the mall sometimes when the weather is terrible, and I was startled to notice the price of food court lunch these days - almost $5 for a slice of pizza???

We got hit in the pizza bone first. An x-large pepperoni pizza with 12 wings came to over $50 (with $5 off coupon)

Jesus, is that what it costs these days? I've been making my own pizza for about 20 years now, and I'd be surprised if the ingredient cost came to more than maybe a few bucks tops.

[jnw]

I've only noticed it at the grocery store and gas. We try to stick to Aldi and shop sales anyway.  Gas is infrequent but noticeably much more to fill the tank.  We had sticker shock on last two restaurant meals via takeout at normally cheap options. So I think we'll be avoiding that for a while.

We walk at the mall sometimes when the weather is terrible, and I was startled to notice the price of food court lunch these days - almost $5 for a slice of pizza???

We got hit in the pizza bone first. An x-large pepperoni pizza with 12 wings came to over $50 (with $5 off coupon)

Pizzas cost like $1.50 to make at home :) Really easy.  I used to make them with sourdough starter, but don't eat grains anymore.  Now I eat keto pizzas with mozz/almond flour crust, so add a couple dollars for that.

[BlueMR2]

Pizzas cost like $1.50 to make at home :) Really easy.  I used to make them with sourdough starter, but don't eat grains anymore.  Now I eat keto pizzas with mozz/almond flour crust, so add a couple dollars for that.

We quit making pizza at home because it was cheaper to order it.  Not sure how you're making it for $1.50.  Our average spend to make our own pizza ran around $20 and that was from scratch crust and everything.

[Zikoris]

Pizzas cost like $1.50 to make at home :) Really easy.  I used to make them with sourdough starter, but don't eat grains anymore.  Now I eat keto pizzas with mozz/almond flour crust, so add a couple dollars for that.

We quit making pizza at home because it was cheaper to order it.  Not sure how you're making it for $1.50.  Our average spend to make our own pizza ran around $20 and that was from scratch crust and everything.

LOL, WTF were you putting on it that cost $20??

[Cranky]

I may spend as much as $3 to make a pizza if I use pepperoni, but honestly, pizza is kind of a “clean out the produce drawer” thing? What needs to be used up?

I’ve always used a particular brand of jarred sauce and it’s not available here. The local brands aren’t that great. I’m going to have to make it from scratch and it annoys me because I don’t even like pizza all that much. Other people in my house do, though.

Aldi has take and bake pizza for around $5.

[jnw]

Pizza sauce from scratch:  Start with whatever amount of tomato paste.  Add a little olive oil.  Then some orgeno, basil, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder.   Perhaps add a little water to the spread consistency you like, then salt to taste.  Easy peasy.

All these spices can be bought for $1 per bottle at Aldi and last for many meals.. great for italian, mexican etc.

[jnw]

Pizzas cost like $1.50 to make at home :) Really easy.  I used to make them with sourdough starter, but don't eat grains anymore.  Now I eat keto pizzas with mozz/almond flour crust, so add a couple dollars for that.

We quit making pizza at home because it was cheaper to order it.  Not sure how you're making it for $1.50.  Our average spend to make our own pizza ran around $20 and that was from scratch crust and everything.

$1.50 for a medium pizza for two.  The crust is just flour, water, salt and free sourdough starter.. Big bags of flour cost next to nothing. Doesn't take much flour for the crust.  Tomato paste is 25 cents a can?  You use maybe a tablespoon or two?   You use very little amt of spices in making the homemade sauce.. buy the $1 spice bottles at Aldi.  Mozzarella , maybe $1 worth of it -- this is by far the most expensive part of a pizza.  Say some sliced onion rings (thinly sliced).. 10 cents?  Maybe 3 slices of semi fried bacon for the topping?   (or same some home cured canadian bacon for $1.68/lb.. couple slices of that as topping?)

You can make a batch of sourdough and leave it in a bin in the fridge for a week or longer, and take out what you need, shape into a ball and let rise on counter.. then stretch it out into a pizza once risen.

A can of tomato paste can be portioned however you like and wrapped in plastic wrap and put in a sandwich bag or 1 quart zip lock in the freezer.

EDIT: Instead of sourdough starter you could use 1 tsp of dried yeast, you can buy it in bulk and put in a mason jar in the fridge.

EDIT #2: maybe it's $1.75 now instead of $1.50 due to inflation. Pizza is so cheap and easy to make, that's why there are so many pizza joints.. costs next to nothing to make.  I made a sourdough crust pizza here at home one time for a friend and she was blown away and said it was the best pizza she's ever tasted.

[charis]

I've only noticed it at the grocery store and gas. We try to stick to Aldi and shop sales anyway.  Gas is infrequent but noticeably much more to fill the tank.  We had sticker shock on last two restaurant meals via takeout at normally cheap options. So I think we'll be avoiding that for a while.

We walk at the mall sometimes when the weather is terrible, and I was startled to notice the price of food court lunch these days - almost $5 for a slice of pizza???

We got hit in the pizza bone first. An x-large pepperoni pizza with 12 wings came to over $50 (with $5 off coupon)

Pizzas cost like $1.50 to make at home :) Really easy.  I used to make them with sourdough starter, but don't eat grains anymore.  Now I eat keto pizzas with mozz/almond flour crust, so add a couple dollars for that.

We normally make pizza at home and have been doing it for years, but order occasionally.  That's why I was taken so off guard when we ordered from a shop recently.  Even if you buy the dough and sauce, which we do, it takes the same amount of time and effort as takeout but a quarter of the cost.

[waltworks]

To be honest, even with 5 mouths to feed, I never even look at food prices. If you mostly eat produce and grains, food is so stupid cheap that price changes are just totally irrelevant. I guess I notice the price of avocados because it's a discreet unit, but I buy them when they're 50 cents and also when they're $2.00, doesn't matter much.

-W

[SailingOnASmallSailboat]

Pizzas cost like $1.50 to make at home :) Really easy.  I used to make them with sourdough starter, but don't eat grains anymore.  Now I eat keto pizzas with mozz/almond flour crust, so add a couple dollars for that.

We quit making pizza at home because it was cheaper to order it.  Not sure how you're making it for $1.50.  Our average spend to make our own pizza ran around $20 and that was from scratch crust and everything.

I wonder where you are and what you're making it with - perhaps local costs really are that much higher, but if that were the case I wouldn't think ordering it would be cheaper. My general is close to what others have said - $1.50 or $2 a pizza (not including the fuel to cook it) and I use brand name bread flour (King Arthur), brand name canned tomatoes (Muir Glen usually), and other not-particularly inexpensive ingredients. Now if you're making 5 or 6 pizzas, I could see spending the $20 to make it at home, including having to buy a whole bag of flour because you don't usually use it and a new bottle of olive oil - but those generally contain enough to make multiple batches of pizza. (A 5 lb bag of flour will make about 16 pizzas; said bag of flour costs $7.50 at the most expensive store around but more like $4.50 at a normal store)

[YttriumNitrate]

To be honest, even with 5 mouths to feed, I never even look at food prices. If you mostly eat produce and grains, food is so stupid cheap that price changes are just totally irrelevant. I guess I notice the price of avocados because it's a discreet unit, but I buy them when they're 50 cents and also when they're $2.00, doesn't matter much.
-W

Indeed, the relative price of food at home has dropped by more than 50% in the last 60 years.

https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/chart-gallery/gallery/chart-detail/?chartId=78028