Since the pandemic hit two years ago (can you believe that?), many people have embarked on home-making journeys – and one of the first things people decided to bake from scratch is bread. And now, with the economy in shambles, people are again looking for cost-effective solutions.
While there are many benefits of owning a bread machine and making homemade bread, one major question most consumers have is whether or not it’s really cheaper to make your own bread at home. After all, bread can be a bit time-consuming and finicky. Why bother if it ends up being the same price?
Hey! I’m Michelle, and I’ve enjoyed baking bread for years. It’s so much fun to test out different flavors – although I still stick to the classics like sourdough, too. What I’ve learned is that it’s cheaper to make your own bread at home, especially if you plan to make it regularly.
Let’s find out more about pricing, eh?
Contents
Is it Cheaper to Make Your Own Bread at Home?
Is making your own bread cheaper? There are two things you need to know: the price of a loaf of bread bought at the store or bakery and the cost of the ingredients (and equipment, energy, etc.) purchased separately.
How Much is a Loaf of Bread in the Store/Bakery
The price of bread in the local grocery store and bakery will vary depending on two factors: where you shop and what type of loaf you’re buying.
For example, a simple white sandwich bread at a big-box store typically hovers around $1, although some “fancier” versions are closer to $5. On the other hand, artisan bread handmade from an exclusive bakery can reach close to $10 – if not more.
So, before understanding whether or not bread will be cheaper to make at home, decide which types of bread loaves you regularly purchase and will recreate in your kitchen.
How Much Does it Cost to Make Bread At Home?
Essentially, a loaf of bread at the store or bakery will cost anywhere from $1 to $10. Now, let’s discover how much it costs to make a loaf at home.
Ingredients
The first thing to pay attention to is the ingredients. After all, you won’t be making your loaf of bread without the essentials. Let’s break it down.
- Flour. Flour is going to be the most essential part of bread-baking. It’s the “root” or “base” of all loaves of bread. Most bags of flour will cost about $1.
- Yeast. Most loaves of bread require yeast in order to rise. You can purchase small packets separately or buy them in bulk. Regardless, the amount will be less than $1 (typically $0.05 to $0.50 per loaf.)
- Salt. Most people add salt to their bread loaves to enhance the flavor and halt yeast overproduction. Needless to say, salt is very cheap. You only need a bit, and a whole container will cost about $0.25 to $2.
- Extra ingredients. Sometimes, you will need to add additional ingredients, depending on the type of loaf you’re baking. For instance, some loaves need butter, eggs, olive oil, and other items. Add these to the price (about $5 to $10, but less than $0.50 per loaf).
While the price will vary depending on the type of bread you’re making, an “average” loaf of homemade bread will be less than $2.
Tip: Buy ingredients in bulk to save even more money!
Electricity
Less than $2 sounds awesome, right? But don’t forget to include the cost of electricity!
The average oven uses 2.3kWh per hour, and most bread will need at least an hour (or less) to bake up. While the price of energy varies depending on where you live, the average cost of running a 2.3kWh oven for one hour equates to $0.30.
You can cut the cost even further by purchasing a bread machine. Just make sure it uses less kWh than your oven. Otherwise, the savings will be negligible.
Time and Effort
Have you ever heard the term “time is money”? Well, it wasn’t just a catchy slogan that stuck – it’s true. Your time and effort must be considered when deciding whether it’s really worth it to bake bread at home.
Sure, you might be saving a few bucks here and there – but if baking bread takes up too much of your time or makes you feel stressed, it may end up costing more in the long run.
If bread-baking is taking up a lot of your time, but you’re not willing to give up, consider buying a bread maker. They can help you every step of the way – especially when it comes to the hassle of kneading bread dough.
Equipment
If you take a piece of my advice and purchase a bread maker, for one, your hands, wrists, and stress levels will thank you. Secondly, you will need to add this cost to your homemade bread. Bread machines can vary price-wise, with some models under $100 and others well over.
When deciding whether or not to buy a bread machine, consider one thing: how often do you make bread? If you bake bread regularly, it’s a must-have kitchen appliance. If you’re just playing around with a loaf here and there, it’s probably not worth it.
There may be other necessary equipment for bread-baking to add to the final cost, too. For example, if you want to make sourdough bread loaves, you will need a handy Dutch oven to see you through.
FAQs
Needless to say, baking bread at home can be cheaper than purchasing it in the store or bakery. If you want to learn more, check out these interesting FAQs.
How much money do you save by making your own bread?
If you only bake bread once or twice a year, you won’t be saving much money. But if you bake a loaf of bread, assuming you’re saving $2 per loaf, that adds to almost $100 a year. So, think about the long-term when it comes to saving money by making homemade bread loaves.
Is it worth making your own bread?
There are so many benefits to making your own bread. The biggest perk is that you’re in complete control of the ingredients, leaving you in charge of the final product and taste.
That said, you also don’t have to worry about unknown elements entering your loaf, making a potentially healthier loaf you can feel confident in.
Do you save money with a bread maker?
A bread maker can be a great way to increase your cost-effectiveness when making homemade bread. That’s because it uses less energy compared to an oven. It will also be much easier for you, which means less time and energy wasted on your behalf. It’s just easier – especially if you make bread often.
Is Homemade Bread Cheaper?
Homemade bread is cheaper than loaves purchased at the grocery store or baker, and the more you make it, the more you’ll save. However, the final amount of savings will depend mainly on what type of loaves you bake.
Do you bake your own bread at home? Do you think it’s cheaper? Share your thoughts!
About Michelle
Karena Andrusyshyn
I have calculated the cost of baking really good sandwich bread at home, and using bread flour bought at 24 cents per 200 grams, and powdered milk, yeast, baking powder, brown sugar and salt I calculate that each lovely loaf costs me between $125 to $1.50. The cheapest bread in the store is terrible. The bread that matches my bread is about $4 and up per loaf. So that is a savings of $2.50 minimum per loaf and I bake daily. I use a bread maker and my recipe works well every time. I get a loaf that is nearly and inch higher than the bread pan and it is light, fluffy, sturdy and yummy. It takes me about 5 minutes to put the stuff in after the yeast is left to process in the water/milk and sugar for ten minutes. So, I do this while cooking other stuff, so the time is 5 minutes or less per day. My family eats a loaf every day. That is a savings of at east $17,50 per week or nearly $75 per month, totalling nearly $900 per year. While we might not buy quite that much bread from the store annually, none goes to waste and we eat really great bread with lots of other stuff. I usually get to the bread first, so I get the top slice warm and buttered. That is breakfast. I also make a few other kinds of bread each week, and I save even more on those fancy breads, but they total less as I make less of them. However, I expect I actually save about $1000 per year on various breads and cakes done in the bread maker. I can buy a lot of veggies with that money.
Michelle
Awesome, Karena! Thanks for sharing.