I guess I am getting old and tired… lol; I MADE the older kids get food plans OR not ask for money.
But my youngest is the most likely to cook for herself at home and I am thinking we will contribute some to the cause – the apartment is a lot more expensive than the dorm, and that cost eats up most of the food plan savings. She also left a whole lot of food swipes on the card end of semester and I wasn’t giving her any money (I did shop with her before semester for basics).
How much does one girl need for food (like grocery store - eating out is on her own) for a week to eat would you say?
I’d think about $50
I gave our kids whatever the school charges for an 18-19 weekly meals plan. I figured they could spring for two meals out a week. They probably went out more than that and missed meals on campus while on the meal plan freshman year when they lived on campus. My kids worked summers and a few hours a week during the school year after freshman year, and were responsible for paying for their expenses other than room, board, books, some school supplies and trips home.
We did $75 per week which actually saved us money vs. the college’s meal plan.
How does she eat- smoothies with fresh fruit and yogurt for breakfast, nice salads for lunch, and a protein/ veggies for dinner? Or energy bars and boxes of raisins for both breakfast and lunch?
Fresh fruit and vegetables are going to be more expensive than a kid who is happy with ramen, a box of mac and cheese, and a granola bar as her daily fare. You know her eating habits and how close a real grocery store is to her apartment…
My D spends about $50 per week on groceries after a fully stocked pantry and start-up groceries purchased at drop off. She’s a vegetarian so a meat eater might spend more.
Thanks - I was thinking 50 -75 a week after stocking her up. At least it seems in the ball park!
We gave our kids $200 per month which seems to jive with other estimates of $50 per week. They ate meat and fresh foods and never complained it wasn’t enough.
My kid’s total monthly allowance was $430. That was for food, utility bills, local transportation, toiletries, household items, etc.
My D uses her Discover student card for food and grocery store trips we’re about $50 weekly. She would meal plan for the week. Sometimes it was more if she needed supplies like toilet paper or such. We give her money to pay the credit card bill.
We are budgeting $75 a week and $500 a semester in flex dollars. Still ends up being 1/2 of what the meal plan costs. If I find that is too much we will adjust in the spring.
My two girls each spent $30-50 per week on groceries when they were in apartments and not on any meal plan.