We have been in Spain a little over a month now, and that means it’s time to evaluate how much we have spent on groceries for our family of four.
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| A Moroccan bakery only a few minutes from our home in Granada (Pastelería Andalusí Nujaila). |
Based on what we were spending on groceries in the US most recently ($550 per month), I assumed the same amount would apply to us in Spain. After being here for a month I can safely say that I was WRONG!
Note: I’m paying in Euros here, so my $550 per month is really closer to €450.
Where are we buying our food in Spain?
Farmers Market
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| Market in Plaza Larga (Albaicin neighborhood of Granada, Spain). |
We have a GREAT farmers market in Plaza Larga (Albaicin) from Tuesday to Saturday. A local expat gave us the low down on this market and many other places! All of our produce is bought here, and we frequent it at least 3 times per week so our produce is fresh and local.
Here is a haul that my daughter and I picked up for 13 euros this weekend.
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| Produce haul from a Farmers Market in Plaza Larga (Granada, Spain). |
An unexpected perk from being loyal customers of this Farmers Market is that we routinely end up with an assortment of free produce. Sometimes we don’t even notice it until we get home, but we routinely find extra tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, bananas, and so on in our bags.
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| Produce haul from a Farmers Market in Plaza Larga (Granada, Spain). |
As you can see, we are also picking up fresh bread, and often times our grocery run includes pastries from one of the great bakeries near by, Panadería María (also near Plaza Larga in Granada, Spain). Also once per week we pick up empanadas from the bakery. It doesn’t seem to matter what I buy at this wonderful place, it could be 12 loaves of bread, empanadas, or pastries the total amount owed is almost always under 4 euros.
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| Panadería María in the Albaicin neighborhood of Granada, Spain. |
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| Delicious pastries at Pandería María in Granada, Spain (Albaicin neighborhood). |
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| Panadería María in the Albaicin neighborhood of Granada, Spain. |
Coviran (Local Mini Mart)
Tara might describe this one as a larger bodega that you could find in NYC (minus the high prices of NYC).
I also go to our local Coviran once per week and pick up essentials like rice, beans, lentils, pasta, cereal, milk, wine, and some cleaning supplies. This bill is consistently under 20 euros per week.
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| Here is an example of some of the grocery items we would get at our local Coviran in Granada, Spain. |
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| This is the walk / route we take to get down the hill to our local Coviran in Granada, Spain. |
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| We also pass by a fantastic Moroccan bakery (Pastelería Andalusí Nujaila) on our way to Coviran (Granada, Spain). |
Mercadona is more like a typical grocery store that we are use to in the US. Think HEB (for Texans), but not to that scale. El Corte Inglés is more like a typical department store in the US, but the lower level or basement level is a grocery store with many American or International products.
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| The cereal is from Mercadona, and the peanut butter and hot sauce are from El Corte Inglés. We were concerned about not being able to find PB or hot sauce here in Spain. But it wasn’t a problem! |
We hit up these two larger grocery stores once or twice a month to pick up more speciality (or often Americanized) items. These are a little further away, but it is a really beautiful walk. I’ve never been one to shy away from some extra exercise. A typical haul includes hot sauce, BBQ sauce, oatmeal, peanut butter, cereal, chips / crackers, vegan specialty items (like seitan or tofu), and other household goods like for the bathroom or trash bags, etc. I’ve found the prices at these two stores to be very reasonable for the items that we purchase. The cost of most are either cheaper or on par with what we paid in the US.
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| Our walk through the center of town to the bigger markets / grocery stores in Granada, Spain. |
Col & Flower (Local Organic Shop)
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| Col & Flower in Albaicin (Granada, Spain). |
This place is an absolute treasure, and it is literally right around the corner from our apartment. We swing in here once per week (or more) to pick up various items like empanadas, herbs / spices, wine, and (best of all) hummus. The hummus is made fresh daily, and they literally take spices right off the shelf and season it the way you request. Everything in the shop is organic, and I believe most are also local. A large container of hummus runs €3.50. A bottle of local wine can be had for under €10, and the spices are sold in bulk, so you can buy as much or as little as you like.
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| Local wine from Col & Flower (Granada, Spain). |
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| Oh, just a normal walk home from the grocery stores in Granada, Spain. |
What does all this cost? Under 400 euros per month (or $486).
(Note, we are mostly vegan at home, but if we ate more meat we could also hit up small businesses that specifically sell meat or seafood. This would probably drive up our grocery budget some.)
I think it’s also important to point out that we walk (and almost always up and down hills) to all of these places and so not only are we getting an abundance of high quality food, but we are also getting an abundance of exercise that we never got by driving to our local HEB back home in Texas.
When you have high quality food coupled with exercise and time outside in fresh air and sunshine you really have hit the jackpot in my opinion. These, along with other reasons are why I feel confident that my family is going to absolutely thrive in this beautiful city. It is a blessing to be here.
What do you think? What is your grocery budget? Would you like to change it in any way?
Are you working towards clearing debt or financial independence? I love to help others on their journey. Comment below or reach out to fourtakeflight@gmail.com. It is never too late or too early to start your own financial independence journey.
Read Tara’s latest post on World Schooling here.
-Erik
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