Listen To This Type Of Music While Grocery Shopping To Save Money

While browsing the aisles of most grocery stores in the United States, shoppers can enjoy a steady stream of tunes played at a moderate volume over the radio system. From classical melodies to Top 40 hits by artists like Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber (speaking of which, how much do artists make off Spotify?), such music has become synonymous with the grocery-shopping experience.

However, what exactly goes into the creation of these music playlists heard at the local Acme and ShopRite? Are feel-good and recognizable songs chosen at random by the employees each day, or is there a more intricate selection process? Unbeknownst to many customers, the latter is actually true. Studies show certain types of music can influence shoppers to buy more than they normally would, with grocery stores implementing a song-selection strategy to take advantage of this phenomenon.

Given the fact that grocery stores strategically set up aisles to trick customers into splurging on unneeded items (which is why you should never shop on an empty stomach), it's not surprising music is also used to rake in more revenue. But fear not, you don't have to fall victim to this musical scheme.

The songs played in grocery stores tend to have a soothing quality about them. For this reason, it's unlikely a shopper will hear a rock anthem or rap track, but more than likely standard pop tunes and ballads from the past several decades. That's because music of a slower tempo unintentionally causes shoppers to slow their walking pace, thus allowing them to spend more time in the store browsing, and, in turn, buying more spur-of-the-moment items. And it's a decades-old strategy, too. In a study from more than 40 years ago, published in 1982 in the Journal of Marketing, professor Ronald E. Milliman found that when such music was played, stores saw a 38% increase in revenue.

If slow-tempo songs are the soundtrack of a shopper's local grocery store, "Chic Chef" Nik Fields recommends shoppers bring some headphones with them to play music of a faster pace. This will subconsciously cause them to walk at a quicker speed, keep their anti-marketing wits about them and avoid adding unnecessary items to the cart. "When you listen to music while you're shopping, it grounds you," Fields told GOBankingRates. "By choosing upbeat music, you can determine how long you want to be there."

Therefore, if you're looking for a way to save while acquiring your next grocery haul (by the way, how much of your income should you be spending on groceries?), it may be worth breaking out your favorite workout playlist.

It's not just the tempo of the music that can impact how much (or how little) a customer spends during their shopping trip, though. Another major element at play is the day of the week on which they do their shopping, which can cause the strategic music to be more or less influential.

According to a study by the University of Bath's School of Management and published in 2022 in the Journal of Marketing, calming music has a stronger effect on those who shop Monday through Thursday, versus those who visit the store over the weekend. In fact, such music has been shown to increase weekday shoppers' bills by 10%, per the study's findings. The reason? For many who shop during the week, they're doing so after working a 9-to-5 day, and therefore, they're tired and, thus, more susceptible to the soothing effects of the music. As for their Saturday-shopping counterparts, these customers are typically well-rested and in a better mood.

As Dr. Carl-Philip Ahlbom, who led the music study, explained, "Pleasant music appears to have a mentally soothing effect which impacts the way people shop. At the weekend, people are essentially happier, and so the positive power of music is less noticeable," adding, "In fact, playing music at the weekend may even mean people buy less, possibly because it's an additional stressor in an already busy environment" (via Phys.org).