Lisa
I do love me some AI. I’ve been using it for all kinds of personal things: like helping a friend with their huge gardening and planting schedule, aiding me in explaining some complicated medical info to my mom, and making some fun videos for a friend’s birthday.
There are certainly some novel and trendy ways to use AI for kicks. But there are definitely real and practical ways that AI can be used to save money. Recently, I entered my grocery bills for last month and watched ChatGPT work its magic. Of course, you can use your preferred AI tool to do the same.
I went from spending $400 a month to only $180 and some change. I didn’t go hungry. I didn’t give up all my favorite foods. I didn't sacrifice quality or taste. I didn’t change much – except having a lot more money in my pocket.
Here are a few of the prompts I entered to help me save money:
Prompt: “Here’s my grocery list from last month. Tell me where I overspent, and how I can cut back without losing quality?”
Prompt: “Provide 5 healthy meal ideas using only mix-and-match staple ingredients.”
Prompt: “Here’s a list of all the food in my fridge, freezer, and pantry: [list]. Create a 7-day meal plan that uses mostly what I already have, requires minimal extra purchases, and keeps costs under $X.”
Prompt: “List the 10 cheapest in-season fruits and vegetables available in [my city/state] right now and give me budget-friendly recipes that use them in creative ways.”
Prompt: “Give me a substitution chart for the top 10 most expensive grocery items I buy often, showing cheaper alternatives that still taste great and work well in recipes.”
Prompt: “Here are my local grocery stores: [store names]. Based on their current weekly ads (or typical sale items), create a shopping list and meal plan that gets the lowest price possible while still being healthy and balanced.”
Prompt: “Give me a plan to buy ingredients in bulk, cook in batches, and freeze meals so I can cut my grocery spending by at least 20% over the next month. Include exact quantities and recipes.”
Here are a few I didn’t use (because I just thought of them), but I’ll try this before I head out to the store next time:
“Organize my grocery list by store section so I can shop faster and avoid any impulse buys.”
“What are 5 bulk items I can buy that are versatile, save money, and won’t spoil in 3 to 5 days?”
You can totally customize the prompts to your specific needs if you have dietary restrictions, or are following a particular eating plan (Keto, Paleo, etc.), or for the size of your family. Additionally, you can even ask your AI to brainstorm prompts for you based on your specific criteria.
