How To Save Money On Thanksgiving Dinner

The holidays are a bit rough for families this year. As the price of everything goes up many families will have to choose whether or not they can afford to host a Thanksgiving dinner.

Saving money on Thanksgiving dinner will not be as easy as it once was but anyone can use these tips to help. 

As prices rise you can make a few simple tips to help fight inflation at the grocery store and save money on your Thanksgiving dinner. 

Consider a non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner

In 2019 my father died. He was the only one that ever really cared about traditional holiday dinners so when he passed on we took back our tradition of doing things differently. Before his passing when we were away while my husband was in the army we would swap the turkey for homemade fried chicken.

The year dad passed away we ended up gaining the rest of the family and went even further from tradition. Instead of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, we decided to have a taco bar with the whole family gathered around to enjoy a variety of tacos, toppings, and a splattering of traditional sides and desserts like pumpkin pie.

How to save money on Thanksgiving dinner

Saving money on your family’s Thanksgiving dinner can be easier than you think. Even as the cost of food is rising with a little hard work you can help to make the holiday great and allow for some wonderful bonding time with your family while sticking to your budget.

Make it a potluck

Bringing a dish or dessert to Thanksgiving dinner has been a tradition for most families but still tends to leave most of the cost of the dinner on the host. More and more families are more fairly splitting the cost and work involved in hosting family dinners by turning them into a potluck style.

Have each guest sign up to bring a side dish, a dessert, and a drink to dinner. This will increase the chances that as many of the holiday basics will be covered as possible so it is not all on you as the host to feed the crowd and each family is still spending much less than they would for a dinner at home. 

Make a list and stick to it

When you go to the grocery store it is easy to walk out with more than you intended to. Stores actually have tricks they use to increase impulse buys. To help stick to your budget and save money on your Thanksgiving dinner, arrive at the grocery store armed with a list of what you need and stick to it.

This is a good practice pretty much any time you go to the grocery store but it can be a real budget saver when putting together an already expensive holiday dinner. 

Shop the holiday sales

This time of year grocery stores are desperate to get you to come and spend your money at their stores. This leads them to host deep discount sales to get people in the door. These sales are often at a loss for the store but a huge savings for you.

Take advantage of these theses on things like butter, flour, eggs, and potatoes to help make it easier to save on your Thanksgiving dinner. 

Buy some items in bulk

Now is a great time to start stocking things you will be using a lot over the winter. Try a bulk store like Sam’s Club for some great deals on things that will save you money over the next few months.

Things like flour and yeast in bulk can make dinner rolls much cheaper than buying at the store while saving you money on all of your baking for the holidays and beyond. 

Save on your turkey

Check your local sales for deals on your turkey for Thanksgiving dinner. Many stores will have a deal where you can get your turnkey for half the price of other stores’ sales when you spend a certain amount of money at the store.

This is a great opportunity to shop for other deals at the store for both your Thanksgiving dinner and for building your stockpile. 

Make dishes from scratch

Cooking from scratch is a great way to save money. One way I always save money on big meals is to make the bread myself. My basic homemade bread recipe works wonderfully for things like dinner rolls or even breadsticks.

While I’m at it I mix up some cinnamon butter for a fun treat to go with our dinner. 

Remember if things go wrong your Thanksgiving Dinner doesn’t have to be a waste. Here is how to save a burned Thanksgiving dinner.

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