You’ve spent hours perfecting your WordPress website. The design looks great, your content is solid, and your products or services are top-notch. But something’s wrong. Visitors aren’t staying long, and you’re not getting the results you expected.

Sound familiar? You’re not alone. Many small business owners face this exact problem. The issue often isn’t what’s on your site—it’s how people experience it.

Poor user experience is a silent business killer. When your site is slow, confusing, or hard to navigate, potential customers leave before giving you a chance. They head straight to your competitors who offer a smoother online experience.

The good news? You don’t need to be a tech expert or hire expensive developers to fix this. Simple, strategic improvements can transform how visitors interact with your WordPress site.

In this guide, I’ll share 13 practical tips that consistently improve user experience on WordPress websites. These simple changes can dramatically boost your conversions and keep visitors coming back for more.

Why User Experience Matters for Your WordPress Site

User experience (UX) is about how easy and enjoyable it is for visitors to use your WordPress website. This applies whether they’re reading your blog, exploring your services, or making a purchase.

Think about what happens when customers walk into a well-organized store. 🛒

If everything’s easy to find and the checkout is quick, people are more likely to stay longer, browse, and buy.

The same applies to other websites: a clear navigation menu, fast load times, and a clean design keep visitors engaged.

But if your site is confusing, slow to load, or crowded with too many elements, many users will get frustrated and leave. And most won’t come back. In fact, even a one-second delay in page speed can cause conversions to drop by 7%.

That’s why good UX isn’t optional — it’s essential. The right design choices make your site easier to use and help guide visitors toward taking action, whether that’s subscribing to your email newsletter or making a purchase.

And the best part? Many of these improvements are easy to set up, even if you’re not a developer. I’ll walk you through the most effective tips in the sections below.

Here’s a quick overview of all the tips I’ll cover in this guide:

Ready? Let’s get started.

Tip #1: Understand Your Users

Before you can improve your WordPress site’s user experience, you need to know who you’re designing for. A great way to start is by creating simple user personas, which are fictional profiles that represent your typical visitors.

For example, if you’re running a WordPress blog targeting busy parents, one of your personas could be a working mom. She’s looking for time-saving tips, easy-to-follow guides, and parenting hacks to manage her busy life. Let’s call her ‘Sarah

Having user personas in mind helps you tailor your website’s features and content to better serve your audience. To create one, I recommend trying the free HubSpot Make My Persona tool.

Once you understand who your users are, it becomes easier to make design and content choices that actually help them.

It’s even more important to get direct feedback from your visitors if your site is already up and running. In my experience, even a simple feedback survey can uncover valuable insights about your site’s navigation, design, or content.

You can gather instant feedback using tools like UserFeedback. UserFeedback is the best choice if you want to conduct surveys among first-time site visitors. For example, you can create a feedback form asking your first-time visitors what’s working (or what isn’t) on your site.

You might also ask user experience feedback questions like, “Was this page helpful?” or “What information were you hoping to find?” This way, you collect direct, actionable feedback.

If you want to create surveys and polls to gather feedback from existing customers, then use a tool like WPForms. For instance, you could run a quick poll asking which new website features your users would like to see next.

The more you learn about your audience, the better your UX decisions will be — and the more likely your visitors will be to stick around, explore, and take action.

For more details, we have a full guide on how to choose a target audience.

Tip #2: Do a UX Audit

A UX audit is basically a deep dive into your website from a visitor’s point of view. It helps you spot anything that might be confusing, so you can fix it as soon as possible.

One of the first things you’ll want to do is test your site for usability issues. This means checking how easily someone can navigate your site, find what they need, or complete an action.

Even minor issues, like a misplaced or hidden button, can negatively impact the user experience.

I always recommend walking through important steps on your site, like submitting a contact form or making a purchase, just like a first-time visitor would.

Take note of any steps that feel confusing, slow, or frustrating — these are your pain points and bottlenecks to address.

It’s also a good idea to track the time it takes to go from finding a feature to completing the desired action. This way, you know exactly how much time a user typically takes to convert or complete a specific action.

For a full walkthrough, be sure to check out our expert tips for how to do a UX audit in WordPress.

Tip #3: Use Analytics to Guide UX Improvements

User experience isn’t just about design — it’s also about understanding how people actually use your site. By looking at data, you can make smart decisions to improve your website’s usability and get better results.

A great way to see how visitors interact with your pages is by using heatmaps and session recordings. Tools like UserFeedback and Microsoft Clarity can be very helpful here.

Heatmaps show you a visual map of where users click, move their mouse, and how far they scroll on your pages. Session recordings let you watch replays of actual user visits.

This is super useful for spotting areas where people might be getting confused, what they’re paying attention to, or what parts of your layout they might be ignoring.

For example, you might see that users are trying to click on something that isn’t a link, or that they’re not scrolling down to see an important call to action. This kind of direct insight helps you make specific changes to improve your design and guide users better.

This is especially helpful for improving navigation paths or identifying parts of your layout that are being ignored. For more information on this topic, read our guide on how to set up heatmaps in WordPress.

While heatmaps show you what’s happening on individual pages, you’ll also want to understand bigger trends across your entire website. This is where website analytics tools like Google Analytics can help.

Google Analytics is powerful, but it can be a bit technical for beginners, especially with newer versions like GA4. That’s why I often recommend using a plugin like MonsterInsights.

MonsterInsights makes it easy to see your Google Analytics data right in your WordPress dashboard. It simplifies the complex reports and helps you focus on information that can improve your site’s performance.

Our team uses it every day to continuously improve user experience, and it’s been very helpful. For more insights into its features, see our full MonsterInsights review.

With MonsterInsights, you can follow important trends like:

• User Engagement: This shows how much visitors interact with your content, including how long they stay or if they visit multiple pages. High engagement usually means your content is helpful and easy to use.
• Top Performing Content: See which pages and posts are most popular. This helps you understand what your audience likes so you can create more of it.
• Audience Insights: Learn about your visitors, like their location or the devices they use (desktop, mobile). This can help you tailor your site to their needs.
• Behavior Flow: Understand the paths users take through your site and where they might drop off. This helps you find and fix issues in your site’s navigation or content that might be causing users to leave.

These insights, which are accessible on the MonsterInsights Reports page, help you spot what’s working and what needs improvement for a better user experience.

For more information, see our guide on WordPress conversion tracking.

Tip #4: Make Your Site Mobile-Friendly

With more and more people browsing the web on their smartphones, making your website mobile-friendly is essential.

A site that’s hard to use on a small screen can frustrate visitors and cause them to leave. Plus, Google often prioritizes mobile-friendly sites in search results, so it’s important for your SEO, too.

A good starting point is to use a responsive WordPress theme, as these automatically adjust your site’s layout for different screen sizes.

I also recommend paying attention to your buttons and other clickable elements.

On mobile, these need to be large enough for users to tap easily with their fingers, without accidentally hitting something else nearby. This helps prevent frustration and makes your site much easier to navigate on the go.

Next, think about how your text appears on smaller screens. It’s important that your content is readable without users needing to pinch and zoom.

You can do this by choosing clear, legible fonts and ensuring the font size is large enough to read. Good contrast between your text and its background also boosts readability on mobile devices.

Another important feature is your site’s navigation. A menu that works well on a desktop might be too hard to use on mobile devices.

For instance, long or complex menus can overwhelm users on a small screen. It’s often better to use a collapsed menu, sometimes called a “hamburger” menu (an icon with three horizontal lines), or a simplified menu showing only the most essential links for mobile visitors.

Finally, make sure any forms on your site are easy to fill out on a mobile device. This can be a common pain point for users, so it’s a good idea to keep your forms as short as possible.

Using a single-column layout, making form fields large enough to tap into easily, and ensuring labels are clear will make a big difference. This makes it much simpler for users to complete sign-ups, contact forms, or checkouts on their phones.

Testing your site on different mobile devices is always a good idea to catch any usability issues.

The good news is that you can preview the mobile layout of your site from your WordPress content editor.

Some page and theme builders even let you customize the mobile version of your site from the editor.

For more detailed steps, you can check out our guide on how to make your WordPress site mobile-friendly.

Tip #5: Improve Accessibility for All Users

Did you know that websites are considered “places of public accommodation”? That’s why the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) allows individuals to file complaints if a website fails to meet accessibility standards.

This is a good reason to make sure your site is inclusive for all users, including people with visual, hearing, or motor impairments.

But making your website accessible doesn’t just help people with disabilities. It also improves the user experience for everyone.

One easy accessibility adjustment you can make is adding alt text and titles to your images.

Alt text is a short description of an image that screen readers read aloud. It can help visually impaired users while also giving search engines more context about your visual content for better image SEO.

On the other hand, image titles can appear when users hover over an image, providing additional context. You can add these directly through your WordPress media library.

When it comes to fonts, you’ll want to pick options that are easy to read for everyone. This often means choosing clear, simple font styles.

For example, sans-serif fonts are generally recommended for web content due to their clean appearance.

But simply choosing a good font isn’t enough. You also need to make sure there’s enough contrast between the text and the background color. If the contrast is too low, it can be very difficult for people to read your content.

You can check your color combinations using free online tools like the WebAIM Contrast Checker.

Even with the right font and good contrast, some users may still struggle to read the text if it’s too small. One simple way to make your site more accessible is to make sure that your site design allows visitors to resize the text, which many modern web browsers support.

You can also use a WordPress accessibility plugin to add other helpful features. For example, a plugin like WP Accessibility can add “skip links,” which allow users with screen readers to jump directly to the main content, bypassing menus and headers.

All that said, true ADA compliance goes beyond just these basic steps. It involves adhering to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), which provide a comprehensive framework for making web content accessible to people with disabilities.

For more in-depth insights, check out our guide on how to improve accessibility on your WordPress site.

Tip #6: Simplify Your Website Navigation and Search

Confusing navigation is one of the fastest ways to lose visitors. But the good news is that you can avoid this with an intuitive navigation menu. You’ll want it to be clear, simple, and easy to follow.

To improve navigation, it helps to walk through a few simple steps.

You can start by creating a logical menu structure. Stick to familiar terms like “Home,” “About,” “Blog,” “Shop,” and “Contact” so users immediately know where to go.

For example, if you’re running a business website where you sell software, your navigation should make it easy for visitors to learn about your products. In this case, key links might include “Features,” “Solutions,” “Pricing,” and “Resources.”

Plus, you may want to group similar content under dropdowns to avoid cluttering the top menu with too many items. Just make sure the dropdowns are easy to use on mobile devices.

A mega menu can be particularly helpful for larger sites. This basically consists of multiple dropdown menus to help organize large amounts of content, products, or information.

For more information, see our guide on how to add a navigation menu in WordPress.

It’s also a good idea to add breadcrumbs, which are small links that show users where they are on your site (like Home > Blog > Article Name).

Breadcrumbs make it easy for visitors to backtrack and are especially helpful for blogs and online stores with lots of content.

Finally, if you want to provide your visitors with the best possible navigation experience, I suggest optimizing your WordPress search.

You’ll want to make sure the search bar is easy to tap and works well on mobile devices.

The default search function isn’t always the most accurate or helpful. So, upgrading it can make a big difference, especially if you have a content-heavy site where users need to quickly find posts, products, or resources.

To do this, I recommend starting by reviewing your site’s search stats. This can show you what visitors are looking for, what they can’t easily find, and whether your current search function is meeting their needs.

From there, you can improve your WordPress search to deliver faster, more accurate results. Learn more about it in our guide on how to improve WordPress search.

Tip #7: Use Clean, Minimalist Design

A cluttered website can overwhelm your visitors and make it hard for them to focus. It can be tempting to overdo your design with fancy features, loud colors, and animations, but it’s not always the best option.

On the other hand, clean design helps guide people’s attention to what really matters — whether that’s your content, products, or call-to-action.

That’s why I strongly recommend using clean, minimalist design principles.

For starters, it’s usually best to stick to a consistent color scheme and limit your font choices to two or three. This keeps things looking polished and makes your content easier to read.

Instead of focusing on the exact fonts or colors used on other sites, aim for consistency and readability across your own pages.

Using plenty of white space also prevents your layout from feeling crowded or cluttered. It not only looks modern but also makes your site feel more organized and professional.

I also recommend keeping each page focused by limiting the number of elements, like popups, banners, and widgets, unless they serve a clear purpose.

Too many distractions can make it hard for visitors to choose what to do next, which often leads to confusion or even higher bounce rates.

In contrast, a clean and minimalist design improves the user experience. This can also increase conversions, generate more leads, and boost engagement.

One of the easiest ways to ensure a good balance of color, fonts, and white space is by using a well-designed theme.

For tips on picking the right theme, check out our guide on selecting the perfect theme for WordPress.

If you already know you want something minimalist and easy to set up, you can take a look at our list of the best simple WordPress themes for a professional, clutter-free design.

Alternatively, you can use a page builder like SeedProd to create custom layouts that give you more control over design elements.

SeedProd lets you drag and drop elements to build landing pages, sales pages, coming soon pages, and even entire WordPress themes — no coding needed.

It’s a flexible option for beginners and non-technical users who want a completely custom look without starting from zero.

To get started building your custom pages, see our expert checklist of key design elements for an effective WordPress website.

Tip #8: Present Content in a User-Friendly Way

When you show your content in an organized and user-friendly way, you’re more likely to get your message across and make it easier for visitors to understand.

To organize your content better, I recommend starting by using clear headings. They are like signposts that guide visitors along your page and help them find what they’re looking for.

You can also use these headings to create a table of contents, like we do on the WPBeginner blog. That way, readers can quickly jump to the parts of a post or page that interest them most.

Many of our posts also start with a brief overview and then break into actionable steps using bullet points. Here’s why that helps with content organization:

• Big blocks of text can overwhelm readers who skim.
• Bullet points highlight key details quickly, while short paragraphs keep content light and digestible.
• Together, they make your posts and pages more engaging, encouraging visitors to stay and interact longer.

Visuals can make a big difference, too. Adding images, videos, or infographics can help illustrate your points and simplify complex ideas.

In our A/B test tutorial, for example, we included a screenshot of our test results. This visual comparison helped readers quickly see which version won and why it was more effective, making the concept of A/B testing more concrete and actionable. (You’ll learn more about A/B testing in Tip #10!)

Additionally, a quick explainer GIF can help keep visitors engaged and make your content more memorable.

Want to boost interaction? I also recommend including interactive polls, sliders, or fun quizzes using WordPress plugins. These small touches can make your content feel more dynamic and invite visitors to actively participate.

Looking for more details on how you can improve the way you present content? Check out our guide on how to write a great blog post and structure it.

Tip #9: Speed Up Your Website

How quickly your website loads plays a big role in user experience. A delay of just one second can cause people to lose interest and leave your site.

That’s why improving your WordPress website’s speed and performance should be a top priority.

To start, you’ll want to use a caching plugin. Caching stores a ready-to-go copy of your site, so it loads much faster for repeat visitors.

Plugins like WP Rocket or WP Super Cache make this super easy to set up in just a few clicks. I use WP Rocket on a lot of different websites, and I’ve found that it drastically improves website loading speeds.

Most caching plugins also let you fine-tune your setup for even better results. For example, enabling mobile caching helps your site load faster on smartphones and tablets.

If your site includes logged-in users — like customers on a WooCommerce store or members of a private membership site — turning on user caching helps pages load faster for them, too.

Finally, enabling lazy loading delays loading images until they appear in the visitor’s viewport. This keeps your initial page load light and fast, especially on media-heavy pages.

Even a few of these settings can noticeably improve your load time and reduce bounce rates, helping users stay longer and engage more with your content.

If you’d like help configuring these features, check out our full guide on how to properly install and set up WP Rocket in WordPress.

Another way to boost your speed is by adding a CDN (Content Delivery Network).

A CDN stores copies of your site’s files on servers around the world, which means users load your site from the server closest to them. This can dramatically cut down load times, especially if you have visitors from different parts of the globe.

If you’re not sure where to start, we have a handy guide on how to set up Cloudflare’s free CDN in WordPress.

It’s also important to compress your images. Large image files are one of the biggest reasons sites slow down.

You can shrink your images without losing quality by using tools like TinyPNG or plugins like EWWW Image Optimizer that automate the process for you.

While you’re at it, consider switching to modern image formats like WebP. These formats offer better compression compared to traditional JPEG or PNG files, so your pages load even faster without sacrificing image quality.

Finally, don’t forget to test your site’s performance regularly. Free tools like GTmetrix or Google PageSpeed Insights can analyze your site and give you specific suggestions to make it even faster.

For more information and tips on improving site speed, refer to our ultimate guide to boosting WordPress performance.

Tip #10: Test Website Changes with A/B Testing

When it comes to improving your site’s user experience, small tweaks can lead to big results. But how do you know what actually works?

That’s where A/B testing comes in.

A/B testing is a method for comparing two versions of a webpage or element (like a button or headline) to see which one performs better.

Here’s how it works: You create two variations (A and B), show them to different groups of visitors, and track which version gets more clicks, conversions, or engagement.

With tools like Thrive Optimize, setting up an A/B test is straightforward. It can automatically measure which version performs better for goals like clicks, signups, or purchases.

You can test things like:

• Headline variations
• Button color or text
• Page layout or section order
• Different images or testimonials

For example, I ran a test in Thrive Optimize where I changed the color of the call-to-action button on a landing page. After editing the variation, I split the traffic between both versions and let the test run.

The process was simple, and the data clearly showed which version performed better. It’s a great way to improve pages based on actual results — not just assumptions.

You might find that a shorter headline keeps users engaged longer, or that placing your CTA higher on the page increases conversions.

Most A/B testing tools will automatically switch to the winning version once enough data is collected, helping you continuously improve your site’s performance.

For details on how to do it, just see our guide on how to do A/B split testing in WordPress.

Tip #11: Be Selective With Your Content

If your posts or pages include too much unnecessary content, it can make it harder for your audience to understand your message.

That’s why it’s always best to keep your content focused and intentional. Every page should have a clear goal, and every section of content should support that goal.

If you’re building a landing page, for example, the layout and copy should guide visitors toward a single action — like signing up for your newsletter or downloading a free resource.

For tips on building landing pages, see our complete guide on increasing your landing page conversions.

When it comes to writing blog posts, the same rule applies. Publishing every idea that comes to mind might fill your site with content, but it won’t always serve your readers.

It’s better to focus on topics that align with your niche and help your audience solve real problems.

To take it a step further, you can group related posts around a main pillar page using a content cluster strategy. This helps improve navigation and build authority in your niche.

We have a full tutorial on how to build content clusters in WordPress, including how to plan them around your areas of expertise.

It also helps to do regular content audits. Over time, some posts stop performing well, either because they’re outdated or because search intent has changed.

This is called content decay. For example, a blog post titled “Top SEO Tips for 2020” might no longer rank well in search results because SEO practices have evolved.

So during your content audits, take time to review older pages and decide: should I keep, update, or delete this content?

A little cleanup goes a long way in keeping visitors engaged and helping them find exactly what they need.

Tip #12: Encourage User Interaction 

When people can actively interact with your pages, they will naturally stay on your site longer.

Creating opportunities for user interaction can make all the difference. It encourages visitors to stick around, share feedback, and even return later.

A great place to start is your comments section. If it feels outdated, clunky, or inactive, people might not bother leaving a reply.

To give it an update, you can add like/dislike buttons. This way, your visitors can engage with the conversation even if they don’t want to post.

Alternatively, you might want to feature a simple user ranking system. For instance, you can pin top comments or award badges to users who consistently leave helpful remarks.

To make these improvements, you can upgrade your comment system using a plugin like Thrive Comments. It helps create a better experience that encourages more interaction and discussion.

For more options, see our pick of the best WordPress comment plugins.

You can also boost engagement by adding polls, quizzes, or quick feedback forms with a plugin like WPForms. These interactive elements encourage participation without requiring a full comment.

If you’re not sure where to start, here’s our guide on how to create an interactive poll in WordPress.

Another great strategy is gamification. This means rewarding visitors for completing certain actions — like leaving a comment, making a purchase, or finishing a quiz. You can offer points, badges, or levels that make your site more fun and encourage users to come back.

These small touches not only increase engagement, but they also boost the amount of time that users spend on your website and help build a stronger community around your content.

Tip #13: Build Community with Live Chat or Chat Rooms

Want to take user interaction to the next level?

Adding live chat or real-time discussion spaces can turn passive readers into active participants, and help build trust faster.

When visitors can ask questions, get instant support, or connect with others in real time, they’re far more likely to stay, return, and engage with your content or product.

This kind of interaction boosts retention and makes your website feel more dynamic and responsive — like a real community instead of just a static page.

If you’re running an eLearning, support-based, or membership site, adding a live chat feature can make a big difference. It allows users to ask questions about course material, get help with platform features, or feel supported as part of a larger group.

For stores or service-based websites, live chat offers instant support. It lets you answer product questions, clarify service details, or resolve issues in real time. This helps reduce cart abandonment and improves customer experience.

You can follow our tutorial on how to add free live chat in WordPress to get started.

To boost user interaction even further, I recommend creating private chat rooms or discussion boards using a tool like BuddyBoss.

It’s especially useful for membership communities or online courses, where learners benefit from peer support and group interaction.

Check out our guide on how to create chat rooms in WordPress to learn more about adding this functionality to your site.

Bonus Tip: Detect Design Issues with Visual Regression Testing 🕵️

Sometimes, even a small theme or plugin update can break your layout without you noticing. That’s where visual regression testing comes in.

Visual regression testing (VRT) helps you make sure that updates to your website don’t accidentally mess up its look or design.

The process is simple – your VRT software takes ‘screenshots’ of a page before and after you make changes to it. It analyzes the code or pixel differences of these pages to catch any visual issues early, before they hurt the user experience.

The VRTs plugin is one of the best tools for automating this process. For step-by-step instructions, you can read our guide on how to do visual regression testing in WordPress.

I hope my tips and tricks help you improve user experience in WordPress. Next, you might want to check out our guide on how to add a forum to your site and our expert picks of key design elements for an effective WordPress website.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Improve User Experience in WordPress (13 Practical Tips) first appeared on WPBeginner.

• We almost always get our weekly groceries at Aldi, and we've learned some money-saving tips.
• The budget grocer already has pretty good prices, but the weekly deals are often worth following.
• I try to stick to the store's perimeter and avoid looking through the Aldi Finds aisle.

My partner and I buy groceries on a budget, and we're dedicated to Aldi.

The grocery chain already offers great prices, but we've begun doing a few things there to stretch our dollars even further.

Here are a few extra things we do to save money shopping for groceries at Aldi.

We read the weekly circular before we shop.

One of the first things we do when we walk into Aldi is grab the weekly circular, which is usually stationed on a rack right by the main entrance.

The ads showcase Aldi's current deals, so it's a great guide for anyone looking to save. Oftentimes, we deliberately plan our meals around which items are on sale.

When we focus on discounted items, we also get less sidetracked by flashy deals on products we didn't intend to buy.

We avoid Aldi's premade meals and heat-and-eat dinners.

We try to avoid premade meals, heat-and-eat dinners, and specialty deli items like dips and cheeses.

Although convenient, they tend to be significantly more expensive per serving than cooking something from scratch. Instead, we stick to buying staple ingredients, like fresh produce, canned beans, tortillas, and chicken.

By focusing on these core items, we've created a weekly meal plan that's cost-effective and healthy for our lifestyle.

Although the Aldi Finds are tempting, we also try to avoid them.

The Aldi Finds aisle features unique items, seasonal treats, and specialty goods that aren't part of the store's regular inventory.

The signage might make shoppers feel like they're getting some sort of deal, but this aisle can be a trap for impulse buys.

Sometimes, we find hidden gems here, but Aldi Finds are usually not essential to our weekly shopping list. Looking through them can just lead to us spending more money.

We usually skip this aisle entirely so we're not tempted.

An empty produce box helps us carry our groceries for free.

Aldi has a bring-your-own-bag policy, so bags are not free at the register. Instead of buying them, we usually grab a large, empty produce box from the shelves.

Most Aldi stores have a section where you can find these boxes in a bin with recyclables, so it's pretty easy.

You can also just bring your own reusable bags, but we've found that the box is an even better solution for us.

It's much easier to pop one box in the trunk of our car and carry it into the house in a single trip. Once we're home, we reuse the box for storage or recycle it.

We stick to the perimeter of the store.

Shopping around the store's perimeter helps us stick to our budget.

In most Aldi locations, more basic essentials, like produce, dairy, and meats, are located around the outer edges of the store.

In contrast, the center aisles usually have Aldi Finds, holiday items, household goods, snacks, and other products that are more likely to encourage impulse purchases.

When we shop, we literally snake our way around the perimeter, only detouring into the aisles when we need something on our list. It keeps our shopping trip efficient and minimizes our exposure to nonessential items.

This story was originally published on December 12, 2024, and most recently updated on April 28, 2025.

• I tried "6-to-1" method for buying groceries to see if it'd save me money and make my life easier.
• The method focuses on picking up a few ingredients to make a mix of meals throughout the week.
• I saved money and minimized food waste, so I plan on using the method again.

Grocery shopping can feel expensive and tiring, but some people have developed methods they believe can make it easier and better.

For people like chef Will Coleman, the "6-to-1" shopping method is a helpful way to meal plan and reduce food waste.

In a TikTok video, the chef said this method involves buying six vegetables, five fruits, four protein sources, three starches, two sauces or spreads, and one "fun" item.

According to Coleman, focusing on simple ingredients and sticking to a short list can help shoppers save money.

As someone who shops for myself and my partner, I was curious if this could cut down our grocery spending and maybe even simplify our meal-planning process.

Here’s how the 6-to-1 method worked for me.

It took a minute to get the hang of grocery shopping using this method, but I was pleased with my haul

My usual shopping process involves planning my meals, checking my kitchen for what I already have, collecting coupons, and making my grocery list.

Coleman’s method seemed adaptable, as a shopper could go into the store, buy the items they like in each category, and then meal plan based on what they purchased.

At first, seeing six veggies and five fruits on my grocery list intimidated me. I followed a vegetarian diet when I tried this, but it still sounded like a lot of produce to stock up on.

However, I quickly maxed out in these categories.

Throughout my shopping trip, I struggled to decide on three starches and got creative with the categories. For example, I bought Greek yogurt, which could be a protein, to fit into my sauces category.

I left with the following groceries:

• Vegetables: carrots, spinach, salad mix, bell peppers, jalapeño, and mushrooms
• Fruits: apples, cherry tomatoes, bananas, blueberries, and frozen raspberries
• Proteins: great northern beans, chickpeas, eggs, and tofu
• Starches: spinach-and-ricotta ravioli, petite potatoes, and whole-wheat English muffins
• Spreads or sauces: plain Greek yogurt and Hershey’s chocolate-shell topping
• "Fun" item: pistachio ice cream

Only focusing on what I needed to build meals and skipping random items or add-ons that didn't fit into my plan helped me save money.

I spent about $60 on all of my items this trip. Normally, I spend between $70 and $85 on groceries each week.

I repeated my breakfast and lunch meals throughout the week to save time

I usually switch between one savory and one sweet breakfast throughout the week. My lunches typically involve a salad or leftovers, and I usually just switch between two meals.

So, I did the same when I tried the 6-to-1 method.

For the first breakfast, I chose to eat whole-wheat English muffins with nut butter, honey, and bananas or blueberries. The second meal consisted of English muffins, egg, cheese, spinach, and hot sauce.

For lunch, I mixed chickpeas and fresh apple slices into spinach and a pre-bagged salad mix. These meals were simple but utilized a lot of produce and saved time on meal planning.

My meals were more creative on evenings and weekends

I have more time to cook during evenings and weekends, so I tried to add variety to these meals.

One night, I made a spicy bean-and-tofu burrito with a Greek-yogurt dip.

I also made spinach-and-ricotta ravioli with pesto that I had in the freezer, and added mushrooms and cherry tomatoes I'd purchased to it.

Another pasta dish I made included bucatini and Parmesan I already had, as well as spinach and tomatoes. On the weekends, I roasted, quartered, and shredded potatoes for hash browns and made veggie and fried-egg dishes. 

It was nice not having to think too hard about which ingredients I had to use up since I'd only purchased a few items in each category.

During the week, I ate more fruit with the desserts I made

As a fun treat for my partner, I made our favorite chocolate-chip cookies with pantry staples and the frozen raspberries, which turned out delicious. 

I also enjoyed my "fun" grocery pick, pistachio ice cream, with fruit and Hershey’s chocolate-shell topping when I craved something sweet.

Overall, the 6-to-1 method was handy, and I'd use it again

Although I did use a few staples I already had on hand to make this method work, I'd say my week was pretty successful.

I used almost all the groceries I purchased for this experiment and spent less than I normally would on food this week. A few items that weren’t eaten after seven days, like the ravioli and carrots, were easy to save for later.

This 6-to-1 method seems especially helpful for people who struggle with making and sticking to lists, avoiding impulse buys at the grocery store, or using up food before it goes bad.

Although I won't use this every week, I'd use it again on grocery trips when I need to simplify meal planning or tighten my budget.

The plan also seems flexible, so I may swap out sauces and spreads for dairy or dairy alternatives next time. I think those would've been helpful to have on hand.

This story was originally published on February 23, 2024, and most recently updated on April 28, 2025.