Starbucks is one thing. Going into the place, you know you’re paying too much for coffee. So when they raise prices (like they did in many cities last week), it’s just a little more incentive to brew your own. But get ready for more price hike heartbreak: Big American brewers are raising the prices on beer, and grocery staples like milk, beef, and eggs are expected to become more costly too.
The basics at Starbucks, like plain old coffee or a latte, went up by 5¢ to 15¢, while some of the fancier drinks rose by as much as 30¢, per the Chicago Tribune.
Meanwhile, Anheuser-Busch and MillerCoors seem to be in a little collusion, both announcing on the same day that they’ll separately be making frosty beverages more expensive in the near future. The WSJ estimates that the average 12-pack will cost $1 more.
Food prices are likely to go up too. According to the NY Times, staples like beef, milk, and eggs, which had experience price dips during the recession, are expected to rise again as the economic outlook improves.
What can you do to save money? Brew your own coffee for one thing. That’ll easily save $2 or more per day. You can brew beer too. I’ve done it, and loved tasting the (extremely) fresh-brewed result. But honestly, it’s fairly time-consuming and a little tricky. One tiny wrong step and your batch of home brew is ruined, your money wasted.
With groceries, there’s so much competition among supermarkets, and so many coupons and specials to take advantage of, that there’s always some way to get a leg up. Might be time to consider doing some of your shopping at a salvage grocery store too.