How to Grocery Shop on a $20 Budget, According to a Grocery TikToker

Intentional and organized grocery shopping can significantly impact how effectively you maximize your grocery haul without overspending. While some shoppers may easily spend more than $100 in a single trip, others strive to maintain a more disciplined approach to keep their total below $50. Your spending largely hinges on your grocery planning, the number of people you’re feeding, the meals you prepare, and, of course, your budget.

One standout voice in the world of budget-friendly grocery shopping is Rebecca Chobat, the creator behind Dollar Tree Dinners. Based in Virginia, Chobat went viral in November 2024 for crafting a complete Thanksgiving feast using Dollar Tree ingredients — all for just $20. 

Chobat’s content focuses on providing affordable, accessible recipes and grocery lists aimed at helping families cook nourishing meals without breaking the bank. On her TikTok account, she showcases her creativity with a series on how to grocery shop for an entire month on $100, or how to prepare family dinners for four with just $20. Her approach is simple, highlighting versatile, practical ingredients from the Dollar Store that can be used across multiple meals.

Chobat’s mission resonates with a wide audience — over three million followers on TikTok regularly tune in for her tips and ideas. In one video where she demonstrates how to prepare an Easter dinner on a $20 budget, a commenter writes, “Thank you for doing this and helping families with special holiday dinners. With money being tight and groceries getting more expensive, things like this are so valuable.” 

Here are several tips on how you, too, can save on groceries at your local Dollar Tree.

Create a balance between easy-to-prep and high-effort ingredients

One key element of Chobat’s approach is teaching her audience how to strike a balance between high-effort and low-effort cooking by pairing time-consuming ingredients (such as homemade tortillas) with pre–cooked ingredients (such as refried beans) that only take minutes to prepare. In a video demonstrating four family dinners on a $20 budget, she explains that she “reused ingredients across recipes, balanced high-effort cooking with quick shortcuts, and ended up with a meal plan that felt way more comforting and complete than the price tag suggests.” 

For instance, she made pierogies from scratch but opted for instant mashed potatoes in the filling “to keep it realistic and save time,” she says. 

Use shelf-stable ingredients to make complete meals

Chobat also created her extremely popular “Meal in a Bag” series, which showcases complete dinners — such as Minestrone soup or a five-can chili — using only shelf-stable pantry ingredients from Dollar Tree. Each meal fits neatly into a ziplock bag, offering a convenient solution for those who need ready-to-make, low-cost meals. These bags are not only helpful for her followers, but Chobat also donates them to local food pantries and blessing boxes to assist others in need.

Some pantry staples she frequently highlights from the Dollar Store include four-cheese instant mashed potatoes, refried black beans, canned green beans, garlic and herb biscuit mix, and boxed mac and cheese. These items are affordable, easy to store, and adaptable for a variety of recipes.

Recreate fast food meals at home, which can often be cheaper (and more nutritious)

Another popular element of Chobat’s content is her fast food recreation videos. She shows viewers how to make their favorite restaurant-style meals at home — often for less money and with healthier ingredients. In one video, she recreates Chick-fil-A chicken sandwiches using a single large chicken breast sliced into three thinner pieces. For her family of four, she uses two chicken breasts to create six crispy chicken sandwiches.

In another video, she demonstrates how to make a homemade version of Starbucks’ Ham & Swiss Croissant using a can of Crescent roll dough, deli ham, and sliced cheese. These recipes not only satisfy cravings but also help avoid the markups and delivery fees associated with eating out.

Dollar Tree Dinners has become a trusted resource for anyone looking to stretch their grocery dollars while still putting flavorful, comforting meals on the table. Chobat’s recipes are not only budget-conscious and easy to follow, but also inventive and satisfying, proving that delicious food doesn’t have to come at a high cost.