Meal Plan Template with Grocery List
Pick dinners for the week and the grocery list writes itself: every ingredient added up, duplicates merged, sorted by store aisle. Try the free planner below, then get the full spreadsheet kit if you want your own recipes in it.
Most free meal plan printables give you a planning grid on one page and a blank shopping list on another, so you still copy every ingredient across by hand. Planner apps fix that, but usually with a monthly fee and an account. This page and the kit sit in between: the plan and the list are linked, and you pay once (or not at all).
Free planner: try it with 24 starter dinners
What the spreadsheet does with the same week
The sample week below is pre-loaded in the kit. On the Weekly Plan tab you pick these seven dinners; the Grocery List tab then shows the result underneath, with no copying and no formulas to write.
| Day | Dinner | Serves | Ingredients |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Sheet-Pan Chicken and Vegetables | 4 | 7 |
| Tuesday | Black Bean Tacos | 4 | 7 |
| Wednesday | Spaghetti with Meat Sauce | 4 | 7 |
| Thursday | Vegetable Fried Rice | 4 | 6 |
| Friday | Homemade Pizza Night | 4 | 6 |
| Saturday | Slow Cooker Chili | 6 | 8 |
| Sunday | Leftovers / Clean-Out-the-Fridge Night | 4 | 0 |
Grocery List tab (auto-generated) - garlic from two recipes becomes one line of 6 cloves; cheddar from two recipes becomes one line of 8 oz
- ☐ potatoes - 1.5 lb
- ☐ bell pepper - 4 each
- ☐ red onion - 1 each
- ☐ garlic - 6 clove
- ☐ romaine lettuce - 1 head
- ☐ lime - 2 each
- ☐ yellow onion - 2 each
- ☐ green onions - 1 bunch
- ☐ mushrooms - 8 oz
- ☐ chicken thighs - 1.5 lb
- ☐ ground beef - 2.5 lb
- ☐ pepperoni - 4 oz
- ☐ cheddar cheese - 8 oz
- ☐ parmesan - 2 oz
- ☐ eggs - 4 each
- ☐ mozzarella - 8 oz
- ☐ sour cream - 8 oz
- ☐ corn tortillas - 12 each
- ☐ pizza dough - 1 lb
- ☐ spaghetti - 1 lb
- ☐ white rice - 2 cup
- ☐ black beans - 30 oz
- ☐ crushed tomatoes - 28 oz
- ☐ kidney beans - 30 oz
- ☐ diced tomatoes - 28 oz
- ☐ salsa - 1 jar
- ☐ soy sauce - 3 tbsp
- ☐ pizza sauce - 1 jar
- ☐ smoked paprika - 2 tsp
- ☐ ground cumin - 2 tsp
- ☐ dried oregano - 1 tsp
- ☐ chili powder - 3 tbsp
- ☐ olive oil - 3 tbsp
- ☐ vegetable oil - 2 tbsp
- ☐ frozen mixed vegetables - 16 oz
How the template works
- Recipe library. Each recipe has a name, serving count, time and a short method on the Recipes tab, and its ingredients on the Ingredients tab: one row each, with quantity, unit and aisle. You enter a recipe once and reuse it every week.
- Weekly plan. Seven days, four slots a day (breakfast, lunch, dinner, extra). Each slot is a dropdown of your recipes, but you can also type "Eating out" or "Leftovers". A batch column handles doubling and halving.
- Grocery list. It adds up every ingredient from every planned meal and merges matching lines (same ingredient and same unit). Then it sorts the list into the aisle order you set, so you walk the store once.
- Your store's layout. The Aisles tab is a plain list. Drag produce to the end if your store puts it at the back, or add a "Bulk bins" aisle. The grocery list follows that order.
Want to understand the method or build your own version? The guide how to make a grocery list from a meal plan explains it step by step, and the grocery list by aisle guide lists which items go in which section. For inspiration, see sample weekly dinner plans.
Meal Plan + Auto Grocery List Kit - instant download (ZIP)
- Spreadsheet (.xlsx): weekly plan with breakfast, lunch, dinner and an extra slot for 7 days
- Grocery list tab that fills itself, merges duplicates and sorts by your store's aisle order
- Reusable recipe library: 24 starter dinners, room for 200 recipes and 600 ingredient rows
- "Other things to buy" box for non-recipe items, batch sizes (double, half), serving counts
- Printable PDFs in Letter and A4: blank weekly planner, aisle-grouped grocery list, recipe cards
- Sample week PDF and a starter recipe book PDF
Works in Excel 2010+, LibreOffice Calc and Google Sheets. No macros, no account, no subscription.
Buy the kit for $7Questions
Do I need a particular spreadsheet program?
No. The file is a standard .xlsx using only classic formulas (no macros, no scripts), and it works in Excel 2010 and newer, LibreOffice Calc and Google Sheets. In Google Sheets, upload the file and open it.
Can I use my own recipes?
Yes, that is the main point. Delete the starter recipes or keep them. You can store up to 200 recipes and 600 ingredient rows.
What if two recipes use different units for the same thing?
Lines merge only when the ingredient and the unit match ("2 cup rice" + "1.5 cup rice" = "3.5 cup rice"). Different units stay on separate lines so nothing is converted wrongly. The Start Here tab gives tips for keeping names consistent.
Is this a subscription?
No. You pay $7 once and download the files. There is nothing to cancel.
Does it give nutrition or diet advice?
No. It is a planning and shopping tool. You decide what to cook.