Like many countries around the world, Canada has also experienced rising living costs for most goods and services — including groceries.
For obvious reasons, the ability to affordably purchase groceries is key to living a comfortable life in Canada, as it allows for the purchase of everyday essential goods for newcomers and their families.
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With the rising cost of living in Canada, this article will showcase three strategies that all Canadians – and especially newcomers to Canada – can use to save money at the grocery store.
Price Matching
Price matching involves a policy that allows consumers to walk in and prove that a rival retailer is offering the same product for a lower price at their store. This could be any product, from bananas to toilet paper.
In this case, grocery stores with a price match policy will adjust the price of the product in question, allowing customers to buy said product at the lower price.
Note: Price adjustment/match policies vary by store, as different retailers have different policies for how they provide customers with the cheapest price possible.
It is important to be aware that not all Canadian grocery stores have a price match policy. The following six grocery retailers, however, are some of the big stores that price match across this country:
- FreshCo
- No Frills
- Real Canadian Superstore
- Giant Tiger
- Maxi
- IGA
Buying in Bulk
Many Canadian grocery stores offer per-item discounts when customers buy a large quantity of a particular item. In other words, while one of a particular item, say a sports drink, may cost $3.00, a grocery store may have a 3-for-$7 deal on that drink.
This means that by purchasing three bottles/cans of that sports drink, the customer is getting each drink for $2.30 instead of $3.00. This can be a great way to save money at the grocery store, especially if you are buying groceries for a large number of people in your household or you are purchasing items that you can stock in your home for later use (toilet paper, canned goods etc.)
Using Coupons
Coupons are another common way to save money at the grocery store. Using either coupons that come to their email, apps on their phone or those that are delivered alongside newspapers or mail, Canadians making a trip to the grocery store can take advantage of the savings provided by the retailer themselves through these coupons.
Often, coupons will save the customer anywhere from 50 cents to a few dollars on a single product, but these savings can quicky add up to save newcomers a good amount of money if they use coupons intelligently.
Navigating the rising cost of living as a newcomer to Canada
The above is just one way that new Canadians can handle the rising cost of living in Canada.
In addition to tips and tricks like the above, the Canadian government – at both the provincial and federal levels – provide Canadians from coast to coast with a multitude of ways to deal with the rising cost of living.
On the federal level, some of the supports provided to Canadians include:
- The Goods and Services (GST) Tax Credit, expected to provide financial help to approximately 11 million low-to-modest income Canadians
- The Canada Workers Benefit (CWB), aimed at supplementing the income of Canada’s lowest-paid workers
- The Canada Dental Benefit, designed to promote affordable dental care through tax-free payments to cover dental costs for children under 12
Provincially, many different regions across Canada provide similar benefits to their residents. Examples include:
- The Ontario Child Benefit
- Affordable Housing programs in Alberta
- The British Columbia Early Childhood Tax Benefit
A more complete list of provincial/territorial benefits can be found here, where there are hyperlinks to government benefits/programs pages for each province and territory in Canada.
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