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Is it worth packing a lunch to save cash? How much savings?

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 8:54a
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Was curious to how many fatwalleters choose to pack their lunches versus eating out. I was recently going over my expenses and noticed that I was spending about $35/week-> $140/mon on eating out everyday for lunch during the work week. I was talking with my roomate who packs lunch everyday and I was trying to find out how much money he really saves by packing a lunch. It seemed to me that he was still spending around $4/5 on groceries per lunch, which made me wonder whether it was worth the savings.

Things I've considered:
-Additional gas costs driving to lunch VS. oppertunity cost of time having to actually pack a lunch

-Saved money VS. The need to get out of the office for an hour.

What do you guys do for lunch and how do you justify it? I've gotten into the habit of completly removing soda from my diet. Saves me $1 per lunch and is more healthy to drink water.

   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 8:54a

Lunch Savings Calculator - Link

Message edited by: longwood8 on 2007-07-18 11:37:50 CDT
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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 8:59a
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I usually bring my lunch 3 or 4 times a week. Leftovers are my main meals because it is easy to cook a little extra food the night before and bring it in the lunch and probably doesn't cost much more.

I can make a sandwich and bring some fruit as well and that doesn't cost more than 2 or 3 bucks so I save a little where I can.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:07a
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llcwannabe said:-Saved money VS. The need to get out of the office for an hour.
Pack lunch, take an 45 minute walk (I walk inside the building where I work if the weather is bad). I save on the gym membership.

Plus what I pack is definitely healthier than eating out. Eating sandwiches, fruit and veggies with water and a few cookies is definitely better for me than a burger, fries and coke. I'm not sure what your roomate perpares if it's costing $4-5 bucks, my packed lunches work out cheaper than that. If you must eat out, just skip the soda, the $ adds up quickly and it's just empty calories anyway.

Also, you can just cook extra the night before and bring leftovers if you want, no need to spend extra time packing.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:09a
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I usually just eat a good breakfast at home and then skip lunch. Since I work very close to my house if I do get hungry I just go home for a snack and sometimes a nooner

Message edited by: scott1961 on 2007-07-17 09:11:22 CDT
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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:10a
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I try to pack mine when I can, my biggest problem is taking the time in the morning to do so - half the time I just forget/don't want to waste the few minutes, and end up buying lunch. At my old job I could go home @ lunch, I definitely saved a ton of cash, some weeks I wouldn't spend any money at all (also I was so close to work I only had to put gas in my car every 2 weeks or so)... but now, avg 7 or 8 bucks a day on lunch, it adds up; your estimate for your roomate's cost seems a bit high, you can buy a week's worth of lunchmeat and bread and fruit for less than $20 (or just eat pb&j) .

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:11a
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We ususally cook two meals at night, one for dinner and the other for lunch. It costs roughly $3 to $4 for the lunch foodstuffs which can typically go toward 4 lunches (alternate with leftovers.) I've sort of gotten into the habit since I sit in front of a computer all day and sometimes don't want to break my concentration, however other times it's nice to get away but those times it costs me more, is sometimes a hassle with crowds, takes more time etc.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:12a
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I bring mostly leftovers from dinner. It is cheap to make a little larger dinner, and if the food reheats ok, just bring it to lunch. Also a big fan of the deli. I do this more b/c when I eat out I typically eat crap (burgers/fries vs deli sandwhiches and fruit), so packing is much more healthy for me. Besides, I find it a pain to deal with the traffic and lunch crowd waiting in line at Wendy's to get a greesebuger. The ease and health issue for me is more important than the economical part, but I'm sure I am saving a lot of money this way also.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:12a
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My wife and I recently started cutting back on going out to lunch, because of how much we spend. Figure $7-$10 each per day, and we tend to eat dinner out a lot, too. We decided to keep the dinners, and trim back on lunch. We each go out for lunch 1-2 days a week, now. For packing lunches, we buy the bagged salads and split them up in Tuppperware type containers (each bag easily makes 3-4 salads) and she takes that with a Lean Cuisine or leftovers. I take mine with a sandwich I make, or some canned spaghetti or something similar that costs <=$1. Coupons help a lot on the cost (and often determine what I'll be eating, as I'm not that particular).

Cutting out the soda is a good idea, too. I've cut back, but haven't cut it out. My employer has a stocked snack kitchen (including chips and sodas), so sometimes I just go out and buy 1/2 a large sandwich - or a whole one and split it for 2 days.

Message edited by: cclyde on 2007-07-17 09:12:45 CDT
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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:14a
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I just skip lunch instead. It's quicker, easier, cheaper, and it helps maintain my figure.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:18a
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I notice my biggest savings when I cook in bulk - a couple of times a month, I'll cook 3 pounds of taco meat and have tacos for dinner the night I cook it and tacos for lunch the next four days. I save good money on bringing lunch by per meal cost averaging; the more times I can eat it, the more I save.

I also find eating at work is much more relaxing, my day tends to flow a little better if I have down time at work (vs waiting in line to order food, etc).

Edit: Throwing in some figures, for my taco example:

Cost to eat random fast food joint: $6 * 5 days = $30 / week
Cost to eat tacos: $3 / lb * 3 lb + $0.50 seasoning packet * 2 packet + $1.50 tortillas = $11.50

Obviously, not many people will be interested in eating tacos all week, but sometimes the frugality bug bites me...

Message edited by: Freno911 on 2007-07-17 09:21:47 CDT
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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:21a
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I bring 95% of the time. It costs me about $8 to eat out here, $8 * 5 days = $40/wk = $160 month. For a week worth of lunches I figure about $2 loaf of bread $3 deli meat and $3-5 of fruit/snacks, so I can do lunch for around $10 a week if I pack myself. I was using leftovers from dinner mostly, until I realized how much more I was spending on food because dinners cost more than lunches. I still bring leftovers on occasion though.

Making a lunch takes about 3 minutes, and I presume you're already at the grocery store so the extra 3 minutes it takes you to grab the few things you need for lunch is insignificant.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:25a
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I used to skip lunch until I finally realized it was the cause of my relatively frequent late afternoon headaches. Every since I have pretty much always brought lunch from home. From leftovers to sandwiches to a can of soup and crackers, it is always cheaper than eating out for me. There are a few occasions where I will eat out; lunch meeting, lunchtime appt., etc... The few times that I do eat out though, I try to spend as little as possible. If I'm eating fastfood, I only order as much as I think will hold me over until dinner, I don't try to get "full".

Others in my office eat out everyday and they typically say it costs them $30-$70/week to eat out. My wife and I combined can pack a lunch and not even go above $30.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:36a
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I pack lunches for 2 teenagers and one adult and it is definitly a big savings. I usually do one of 3 things:

1.Pack lunch as I am putting away dinner.
2.Pull out something I made ahead for the freezer.
3.Make PB&J, carrots and pretzels ( always on hand).

I make stuffed potatoes,enchiladas,burritos, chili and muffins in bulk and freeze.

I also stock up on things like baked beans and canned soup when it goes on sale and pack that when I don't have time.
You can freeze ham and turkey sandwiches for up to a month if you put a thin layer of margarine on the bread.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:40a
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Thanks for the input fellas. Seems like most agree here that it's worth the time to pack a lunch. Any devil advocates? In my case I have an extremely high metabolism and like to have a good size lunch. Chiptole seems like a pretty good steal for lunch. $5.25 for a huge burritto w/ out a drink.

Does anyone have a breakdown of pricing for an average "filling" lunch?
-The thing that boosted the cost for my roomates lunch is the lunch meat isn't that cheap. With decent meat (honey ham) costing around $5-$6/lbs and cheese costing around $3-$5/lbs. If you want a decent sized ham sandwich with swiss (8oz ham & 4 oz cheese) you are still looking at around ~$3 just for the sandwich not including condiment costs and veggies. Then you add in $.75 for a yogurt. $.25 for a string cheese. $.75 for an orange. And you are looking at almost the same price as a Chiptole Burritto.

I do like the idea of using leftovers from dinner. I never thought of that before, and since I cook only for myself I always have some leftovers that get tossed.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:42a
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I used to buy lunch at my school, but last year I started being more frugal. Lunch at the school cost $3.50 a day. Now, I buy a six pack of Cup O' Noodles for $1.50 at the local Food Basics. Much cheaper and it's pretty good for a simple lunch. Sometimes if I want to treat myself I pop open a can of Chunky soup (bought on sale of course, shouldn't cost more than $1.25 or so) or I bring a Lean Cuisine (no more than $2.00). If it's a really special occasion, I may make myself a ham & cheese sandwich. (The local Shop-Rite often puts Virginia ham on sale for $2.99 a pound and domestic swiss for $3.99 a pound. If it's a really good week they may put Finlandia on sale for $3.99 a pound.)

I still do splurge on a bottle of soda from the vending machine each day ($1.25) but I think next year I'm going to start bringing my own soda (on sale of course, hopefully no more than $2.00 for a 12 pack of cans).

Message edited by: zhelder on 2007-07-17 09:47:58 CDT
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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:43a
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llcwannabe said: I've gotten into the habit of completly removing soda from my diet. Saves me $1 per lunch and is more healthy to drink water.

For those, like myself, who want to bring some pop with them, get it at CVS.

I combine the following to get Coke or Pepsi for about 15 cents per can.:
'Extrabucks' Cash Back
coupons such as $5 off a $15 purchase
my credit card rebate

If you are paying $1.00 for a bottle/can of pop, you really need to spend more time reading FatWallet forums.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:46a
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LEFTOVERS ROCK!!!

I haven't bought lunch at work in YEARS (except for emergencies, or going away parties). When I say years, I mean 20+ years!

When cleaning up from dinner the night before, I pack the leftovers, and put them in the fridge... Monday is so cool, taking leftover fancy food from grilling the weekend before. People in the office drool when I reheat a grilled cornish hen, or start nucro-waving some smoked turkey legs or grilled chicken wings!

Wanna freak everyone out? Take in slices of leg of lamb or grilled lamb chops, along with a NICE dinner plate, real silverware, and a cloth napkin! Then eat lunch with the dude that brought in McDonald's, Wendys, and Quizno's.... mine PROBABLY cost less to make (buying in bulk, cooking for 4 (and planning on leftovers)).

Also, you don't have to eat the same thing for lunch that you had for dinner the night before... I usually take leftovers from 2 or 3 meals in to work 2 times a week...and get to choose what I feel like eating...

Today is either T-Bone steak, Grilled Chicken breast, or crabcakes! Sides are Mac and cheese, grilled squash, or scalloped potatoes.

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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:50a
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Absolutely!!! Recurring daily expenses like cafe meals really add up to become big bucks.
I've been brownbagging it for years. The cost is pennies on the dollar relative to cafe food and it's usually healthier for you. I also rarely buy work coffee. (just bring a thermos)

I also can't believe the people that buy these fancy Starbucks coffee drinks several times a day at about $5/ea then whine that they're always broke.

If you're serious about saving money focus on anything that's recurring no matter how small you think it is.

(ex: $5 cafe meal + 2X$5 coffee drinks = $15/day. $15/day X 260 work days/yr = $3900/yr. Assuming a 40% tax bracket you need to earn about $6700/year to pay for this!!!)

Message edited by: henny on 2007-07-17 09:53:00 CDT
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   posted: Jul. 17, 2007 @ 9:54a
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$4-$5 for a packed lunch is pretty steep. I figure $3 for a bag of apples for the week, $2 for a bag of pretzels or chips for the week, less than $2 for a loaf of bread. PB&J is cheap and lasts a long time. Throw in another $5 or so for yogurt or other snacks, bringing the total for the week to $10 - $15, or $2-$3 per day.

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