Price Tracking

There are several ways to keep track of prices so you know when it's on sale:

• In your head-- this way is definitely the easiest but not always the most accurate.  I use this for the basic items I buy often...just trying to remember what price I usually pay and recognize when it's truly on sale.  This is not so great when you are trying to compare price per ounce or when items start increasing in price due to inflation.
• Excel spreadsheet-- very time consuming, but a great way to keep track of each item and/or brand and how much you pay per ounce.
• Binder method-- in a book I read once, the author kept a separate sheet of paper for each item (ie., ground beef, cereal, cheese, etc.).  She'd write down the price of an item, the store, and the date.  After a few months, she had a good idea of the lowest price and the sale cycle.  Great for if you have/make the time, but very time consuming.
• Subscribe to a company that does it for you--There are several companies online that will do this for you for a small fee.  I personally use the Grocery Game.  They track the price of items, combine it with coupons, and calculate when an item is at it's true sale price (rather than a phantom sale).  I pay $5/month for the list for my local grocery store.  You can add more stores to your list for an additional amount.  The upside: it saves you time and tracks items in the store circular and unpublished sales.  The downside:  it does not track the price per ounce, nor does it compare prices with neighboring stores.  It is item specific.  (For example... it tracks, say, a Satin Care Shave Gel 7 oz. bottle.  Usually it is $2.36 (at my King Soopers) but is on sale for $1.88.  Combine it with a coupon and you can get it for $0.88--a "savings" of 63%.  But you could possibly get a better price per ounce by buying a larger bottle or by purchasing it instead at Walmart using your coupon.)
• Do a combination that works for you-- then you get the best of both worlds! 

Jamie