Snack Ideas Kids Will Love
If your kids are anything like my kids, than they seem to always be hungry. My kids can eat through a pantry of snacks quicker than I can count to ten! Over the years I have started brainstorming cheap snack ideas for kids so that they can fill up their ever growing bodies, be (somewhat) nutritious, and also won’t cost me an arm and a leg.
Below you will find a few of the best frugal snack ideas for kids. These snacks are perfect for on the go, after school, or everywhere in between. Budget friendly and parent approved! Yay!
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Homemade Cheap Snack Ideas For Kids
These frugal snack ideas will require a little bit of preplanning and effort in the kitchen. But I promise the result is worth the extra time!
Homemade Graham Crackers
My kids love when I make these homemade graham crackers. They are easy, delicious and fun to customize the shape depending on the season!
Muffins
Muffins make for great snacks and are super quick and easy to whip up. There are so many different types of muffins, a couple of our favorites are this Whole Wheat Banana Chocolate chip muffin recipe, and this Huckleberry Muffin Recipe.
Banana Bread
Don’t throw away bananas that are overripe, instead use them to make this quick banana bread recipe. This recipe is so moist and easy. It’s been a favorite in my family for a few generations!
Homemade Popsicles
Homemade popsicles aren’t just for summer, they make a great treat for all year round! We love to make popsicles with juice, leftover smoothies, or pureed fruit, it really just depends on what we food we have in the fridge.
Smoothies are also a great way to use up any extra produce before it goes bad. We freeze our popsicles in popsicle molds bought from Amazon!
Cake Mix Cookies
Stock up on box cake mix when it goes on sale and use it to make these 3 ingredient cake mix cookies. They are easy to customize to meet your current craving, and super easy to throw together.
Partly Homemade Snacks For Kids
If you don’t have the time or energy to make homemade snacks from scratch, you might want to try some of these partly homemade snack ideas. They will require a little bit of effort to throw together, but not as much as the ideas above.
Popcorn
Popcorn is a staple at my house. It’s cheap, quick to prepare, and somewhat healthy. I like to buy popcorn kernels and pop them over the stove in a little bit of oil, or you could buy a popcorn maker from Amazon for a decent price.
You can even change up the flavor by sprinkling on some yummy seasonings. My kids especially love using parmesan cheese, salt, garlic powder or seasoning salt.
Cinnamon Toast
I learned about cinnamon toast from my husbands family and I’ve loved it ever since. It’s super simple and the kids love it!
All you have to do is butter a slice of bread, sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on top and then bake it in the oven at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until toasted. It’s so good!
Cheese Quesadilla
Cheese Quesadillas are another cheap snack idea you can easily make at home. They are delicious and quick to throw together for after school or when you’re rushing out the door. Tortillas are fairly cheap to buy at the store, and even cheaper to make yourself.
Smoothies
I love stocking up on fresh fruit when it’s in season and then freezing it in bulk. The frozen fruit is perfect for making budget friendly smoothies.
Frugal bonus tip: Pour any extra smoothie into a freezer container and store it in the freezer. The frozen smoothie can be put into your kids lunchboxes for a quick and easy school lunch treat. These are a huge hit with my kids!
Ants On A Log
Ants on a log is a fun and quick snack. It’s made by spreading peanut butter on top of celery and then adding a few raisins! Easy peasy!
Yogurt Parfaits
Making a yogurt parfait is easy. Just layer yogurt with berries and then top it off with granola. You could even try making your own yogurt (something I haven’t tried yet….) for even more savings!
Cinnamon Sugar Tortillas
Another quick to fix snack for kids is cinnamon sugar tortillas. All you have to do is spread butter over the top of a flour tortilla and then sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Bake the tortilla in the oven at 350 degrees for 10-20 minutes, or until golden and crispy. Lastly, cut it into triangles using a pizza cutter and enjoy! It’s one of my kids favorite after school snacks.
- Related: How To Make Flour Tortillas
Grab and Go Snack Ideas For Kids
If you are in a hurry, or just don’t feel like cooking, try a few of these grab and go cheap snacks for kids. They require little/none preparation and are tasty, but frugal!
Frozen Grapes
Have you ever tried frozen grapes? They are so so SO delicious! I love to stock up on grapes when they go on sale, and then freeze them in a freezer bag. They taste like a yummy popsicle and are the perfect cheap snack for kids.
Fresh Fruit
One of our favorite frugal snacks is fresh fruit. I like to watch sales at local grocery stores and buy whatever fruit in on sale. I’ve learned that if I set fruit out on the counter, my kids are much more likely to grab it when they are looking for a snack.
Cheese & Crackers
Who doesn’t love cheese and crackers??? It’s a classic cheap snack and for good reason! Stock up on crackers when they go on sale so you can help your kids enjoy cheese and crackers for an easy and frugal afternoon snack.
Raisins
Raisins are great to grab and eat on their own, or you can mix them with some nuts and chocolate chips for a cheap trail mix snack. Make sure to buy the raisins in bulk for the best value.
Apples and Peanut Butter
We love the delicious apples and peanut butter snack at our house. You can serve the peanut butter as an apple dip, or our favorite thing to do is slice the apples with a mandolin and top each slice with peanut butter and chocolate chips! So yummy!!!
Cheerios
Ok, I know it’s basic, but cheerios is one of the best cheap snack ideas for kids because it’s not only frugal, it’s also quick, easy and loved by all! Basically a win all around! Make sure to watch grocery sales because cheerios are often marked down and available as a rebate with many cashback apps.
Cheese
Cheese is the perfect quick snack! I like to buy a large block of cheese (Costco usually has the best prices) and cut it into individual slices/cubes for even more convenient snacking.
Applesauce
I love canning jars and jars of applesauce every fall. I try to buy a couple of boxes of apples when the price drops to 50 cents/lb and turn them all into applesauce.
It’s true that not everyone loves to can, and that’s fine! You can buy applesauce and it is still a frugal snack.
Pretzels
Pretzels are another cheap snack idea for kids. They are perfect for a quick grab and go snack or as a lunchbox filler. Pretzels are consistently one of the cheaper snack options in the grocery store, and almost always kid approved! Yay!
Best Frugal Snacks
There are so many options when searching for the best frugal snacks! We can feed our kids and their love for snacks without having to hurt our grocery budget.
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