Easy--I count how many things I really, really need so I can remember them (bleach, apple cider, toilet paper, cat food---four things). Then I can be as random as I want with everything else. When I get to the check out, all I have to do is remember the number--in this case four--make sure that, at a minimum I have those four things and then I'm good to go. P.S. Guess what four things I need to pick up on the way home tonight.

I'm a menu planner and obsessive list maker. My grocery bills staying reasonable and ability to put together quick healthy dinners is dependent on this system. However my brand new condo (closing in a month) is directly over a whole foods and I think that's about to all go to hell.

I make a list once a week on a sheet of looseleaf and divide it into sections (produce, dry goods, dairy, meat, frozen, household) and when I make our weekly menu, I fill in what we need. It saves an incredible amount of time at the supermarket, prevents us from buying excess, and also ensures that we get what we need for our meals during the week. Real Simple and others make such lists, but I find that designing my own is both more effective and cheaper.

Depends. Big grocery trips, absolutely. But for "oh I want to make this tonight" type trips to the store, nope. Shame too cause I'm terribly guilty of going in knowing I need 4 things and walking out with 3!

I'm an aisle wanderer, but I love making lists. We keep a small paper one on the fridge to write down things we definitely need.

Here was my shopping list from May 2009 to September 2010.

I keep one on my phone synched with SimpleNote so either me or my girlfriend can add to the list. With that said, I use it more casually and referencing it when I am not sure. Unfortunately, I often forget to check it before leaving the store and I miss stuff.

I use the Grocery IQ app on my phone. Makes things pretty simple, especially since things are organized by aisle. I sit down with the ads once a week and tap in whatever is on special. Plus I know I won't forget my list at home, something I used to do ALL of the time. It's a lot less likely I'll leave the house without my phone!

I'm an obsessive list maker; organized by department, and order within the department if I'm feeling particularly crazy. The lists aren't for budget or diet, I just have a really terrible memory. More than once I've forgotten key ingredients (everything for an apple pie except flour), and needed to make a second, or third trip. Making hyper organized lists pretty much eliminated multiple trips from my life.

I use my Google tasks (via Google calendar) to keep a list. I can then sync that to my phone. Super handy.

I usually just list the things I absolutely need and then wander the aisles for inspiration.

My husband and I have "My Shopping List" apps on our phones and they sync nicely. We have one shopping list categorized by store and each of us has a to-do list (that the other can add things to!) It works great because my phone is always there when I happen to realize we need more contact solution or whatever, which minimizes trips to the store for things we may have forgotten.

I write down a list, in store aisle order, and I wouldn't go to the grocery store without it. Otherwise I might as well just hand the clerk $100 and walk out with some gourmet cheese and a banana.

Since i'm usually shopping with my kids with me, i have to bring a list that is organized by department, otherwise i'd leave with a wagon of pointless crap. between my meal planning obsession, limited time to shop and the distraction of having kids with me, I'm a lost cause w/o a list.

My wife and I have both have a shared account with the "Our Groceries" android app. We can also access the list from their website with our computer in the kitchen. Once I get to the store I might add a few things but it helps me remember what I came there for.

Once I started menu planning (based on what I have) I had no choice but to start creating shopping lists. Now I'm truly sunk without one. I use Springpad to track this stuff, but still either copy it out onto all-too-cutesy paper, or just print it out before leaving the house.

:) lyssabee!

I keep mine on the Shopper app on my phone. Not organized by aisle or store or anything—just one list for everything. I use it to replenish things that have run out as well as to make specific recipes.

I voted "critical" because I'm casual about bringing or making the list but I have never NOT forgotten something without it. We keep a wipe-off board on the fridge for when we run out of stuff, and I jot it down on a used envelope (usually junk mail) to take to the store.

I am in awe of all the folks commenting here, I wish I was that organized. @Kjt I used to do that also but by the 5th or 6th item I inevitably forget something! @Christie I loved the "wagon of pointless crap", LOL!

A small piece of paper has a permanent home on our fridge. As soon as we run out of something, we write it on the list. We go to the grocery store on scheduled days and bring the list. It makes shopping go a lot faster. After we've taken care of list items, I have some time to stand around in the produce aisles debating what other random stuff to buy.

I used to be a wander-the-aisles person, and it frustrated my boyfriend to be wasting time in the grocery store, plus I inevitably forgot something (and realized it as soon as I got home).

I make a list of what I need to get to make something delicious that week. Then I also shop off of it. It's bad. I also have to write my husband his grocery lists and e-mail them to him, then he calls me at the store and uses my memory as his own grocery list while he shops. Basically, he tells me what aisle he is in, and I tell him what to get (he is at grad school so we are not in the same state/house). He must look insane.

A list? ALWAYS.

(and, it's in the order I walk through the store... and, it's not just the supermarket. I write lists like this for everything.) Lists lists lists! They organize my thoughts and give me a sense of accomplishment when I cross things off.

I've got a bit of a problem, to be honest. :-)

I have to make a list, otherwise I either forget critical items I really need or I forget (later in the week) what I had planned for dinner, end up ordering takeout, and have to toss some produce that went with a recipe I can no longer remember or find.

How does having a piece of paper (or smart phone) in your hand keep anyone from buying off the list.

Don't get me wrong. My jeans pockets are filled with scraps of paper with lists on them, but this is just to remember the vital items. When I have time, I love to wander and pick up random fun things and figure out what to do with them later.

I use "Notes" on my iPhone/iCloud account. I can update it on my phone or desktop, and they'll sync up automatically. Because my husband has a Droid, we can't stay completely synched on one app. However, he's in school full-time, and I take care of most of the grocery shopping/household main. for the time-being.

If he's running to the store, I use the email function to send him the list. He pulls the email up on his phone, then sends it back after he's removed what he bought.

I make a list that includes the things I need for whatever specific things I want to make, but I wing it for everything else (mainly lunches and breakfasts). It keeps me from forgetting things, but it's still flexible.

I'm obsessive about my grocery list and make sure I get everything on it BUT inspiration comes while wandering and I always pick up something else.

For me, going shopping without grocery list is a huge waste of time.

my partner and i use an app too that syncs and has a web interface (springpad). I do the shopping and so it allows him to add things to the list he needs. It makes it really easy to make sure nothing is forgotten. I usually plan my meals every weekend at the computer so I can reference recipes and what is on sale at the store as well so its nice to be able to just add ingredients to the list from a web interface. Its still fun to browse the store a bit but without a list i would never remember everything i need to get dinners, breakfasts and lunches together for the week (we only eat out maybe once a week).

Absolutely. If I use a couple of cans of tomatoes, then I put "2 cans tomatoes" on the list. That way I never run out of my staples and I rarely have to do an inventory.

Not only do I use a list, I created a detailed, comprehensive form just for my use. I can quickly tick off what I need and don't have to write it down. It doesn't keep me from buying off the list, but it insures I get what I need, and anyone in the family can shop for me.

I live a long way from the grocery store, so I have to make my time and miles count.

I've always made lists, but now that I use a grocery app (Out of Milk), I'm like a power-lister. I use mine not only for getting what we need and staying on budget, but also for keeping track of gourmet treats I can only get on sale or when I bet a coupon for them in my Kroger app - it happens so seldom I know I'd forget and be sad later to return and the store is all out. Plus, in OOM there's also a pantry list that you can populate with your barcode scanner, you can check it for ingredients while trying a new recipe instead of going through the shelves, and move items to the grocery list when you run out. I love it, everyone should get one of these apps, there's many to choose from and they aren't hard to use.

If I don't have a list on my phone, I forget items I desperately need and spend too much on stuff I don't.

The phone also keeps track of my previous purchases so it's easy to see what I've already stocked up on. Nothing quite like buying a big jug of olive oil that will last a year only to get home and realize I already bought one last week.

No planning, and no lists. I hate feeling tied to something that I decided to make without the full knowledge of what is fresh in the shops that day.

I would never go to the grocery store without a list. I make a list based on my menu plan for the week, which in turn is based on a combination of what's seasonal and what's on sale. I write my list in the order of the store aisle. This is because 1) I don't want to buy food I won't use so I put a lot of thought into what I actually need that week 2) I usually go grocery shopping with a zipcar so I need to get through the grocery store and back home on a strict time limit!

I never did until recently. After many frustrating attempts to figure out what to make last minute based on the random stuff I'd bought without a plan (and running out to pick up missing ingredients at the last minute) I've started meal planning so I need to plan ahead for shopping. More effort upfront but so much easier in the big picture. We buy off-list too and make changes to the meal plan as needed, but at least we have something to work from.

I use an Android app called OI Shopping List, which I have set up to automatically categorize items alphabetically by department. I have a list for each store where we shop (co-op, Sam's Club, grocery store, Target, Trader Joe's, etc.)

Since my husband usually does the shopping, I just email him the list. Our daughter likes being in charge of checking off items and shaking the phone to make them disappear from the list!

Things that I'll be very annoyed to have forgotten go on a list if there are more than three or four (or if I am feeling particularly scatterbrained.) Everything else is a crap shoot.

I just started using a list recently. I actually have a really handy app for my phone that categorizes items by isle and everything. It makes shopping super simple, I don't forget anything, and I'm usually in and out in a snap (something my boyfriend greatly appreciates).