<prompt> Human: I moved out of my parents house over a year and a half ago, and living on my own Ive learned some things, one being that I am a terrible cook, and second is I do not know how to grocery shop.Im really bad at it. I dont pay attention to price, I just grab whatever is there and go. And when it comes to food, its even worse. Not knowing how to cook makes it difficult, but I spend 50 in food microwave meals, cereal, milk, things that dont take much to put together and in three days its all gone!! I work full-time at a grocery store. So, the mindset is always to get out as soon as my shift is over. I think this might be why I hate grocery shopping so much. Its really hurting my budget, I cant afford more than 200 a month in groceries and I cant afford to eat out either. I know theres a lot here that I need to learn, and I can use some professional advice. Thank you for reading.TL;DR Terrible at grocery shopping on a tight budget, how does it work?? EDIT: I want to thank everyone who took the time to reply and give me their advice. I really appreciate it. I think I might be able to tackle the grocery store fearlessly from here on out. It will take some time to learn my own routine, as well as cook, but at least I know what direction to take. Thanks again, guys. :Assistant: Make a list, first of all. Put a piece of paper on the front of the fridge, and whenever you run out of something or remember you need something, write it down. Then, meal plan. Know what youre planning to eat for the week before you go, and write all necessary ingredients down on the list. Once you get to the grocery store, do not buy anything not on the list unless its super critical, like omg I just remembered were completely out of rice. Bonus: this makes shopping much faster!Also, if you peer real close at the price stickers on the shelves, it will give you the per unit price of the item, so you can compare its price directly to all the other rice or whatever on sale without having to do math in your head.Cooking is critical! Learn a few basic recipes, like how to make a pasta sauce you like. Buy a cookbook with simple recipes, and when youre in the meal planning stage, pick a meal from the book to try out. Make large batches and freeze what you cant eat in a couple days, then defrost as you go, so you dont have to cook as often.Human: Thank you so much. This gives me a good routine to follow to get on the right track. I need to make a habit of writing things down.  <response>: Lists are lifesavers! Before I started writing grocery lists, I once went to the store planning to buy ingredients for chili, and returned home with no chili powder. Recently Ive started keeping a list of things I want to eat, too. When Im like man Id kill for pizza I write it on the list, then when Im meal planning Ive got a list of things I was hungry for recently. Helps a lot, because I often find myself sitting in front of a grocery list trying to plan and going well...I could have pasta? 