How Much Eating Out Is Really Costing You

We order out a lot and don't cook as much anymore.  So how much money are you throwing away each time you do it?  "Forbes" magazine looked into it.  And the answer is, get ready for this, about five times what it costs to make the same thing at home.

They looked at over 80 different dinner recipes and compared what they cost at the average restaurant to what they cost if you make them from scratch.

And they found the average dinner from a restaurant is $20.37, including a $5 delivery fee compared to $4.31 if you make the same thing at home.  So a $16 difference.

That means if you order delivery three times a week, it costs you about $48  or roughly $200 a month.  And guess what that's just for one person.

It really is cheaper to eat at home because some of the meals with the biggest markups include spaghetti with meat sauce, $21 compared to $3 at home, pork chops, $25 compared to $3, and chicken wings, $20 compared to about $2 per person if you make them from scratch.

They also looked at how much more it costs to use a meal kit service, like Blue Apron.  And if you think you are saving by using them, think again it's about three times more expensive per meal than if you just bought the ingredients and made it yourself.