Hosting a Game Day watch party shouldn’t mean fumbling your entire grocery budget for the week, so this year, we challenged ourselves to pull off a killer spread for 8 people for under $40. By leaning on trusty pantry staples and sticking to familiar, crowd-pleasing ingredients, we scored a hosting touchdown! As you can see from the receipt below, we made every single penny count, bringing our grand total to just $37.51. By keeping things simple with high-flavor budget boosters like jalapeños, sour cream, and those life-saving $3.98 bakery cupcakes, we kept the menu top-notch without taking a hit to the wallet.
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A Game Day Spread for 8 People on a Budget
Football season is here, and if you’re having friends and family over to cheer on your favorite team, you’re going to need plenty of snacks and food to keep everyone happy between plays. If I were throwing a Game Day party, this is exactly the kind of spread I’d put out!
We’ve included a mix of meaty and meatless options, so there’s something for everyone to munch on. We also ended up grabbing the ingredients we needed for this spread at Walmart. Like I mentioned in our $40 4th of July cookout post, Walmart is the biggest player in the U.S. grocery market. In fact, more than 90% of the U.S. population lives within 10 miles of a Walmart store! That’s why we like to shop at Walmart whenever we put together these budget menu challenges. Being able to shop in one place makes it a practical, budget-friendly option for most people who want to recreate the spread in one trip (and, nope, we’re still not sponsored by Walmart!).😉
Grocery List
- Hawaiian sweet rolls ($3.48 – You can get these even cheaper if you can find store brand! My Walmart was sold out.)
- 16 oz. dry pinto beans ($1.00)
- Green onions ($1.07)
- 1 green bell pepper ($0.86)
- 1 jalapeño ($0.16)
- 4 yellow onions ($3.47)
- 15 oz. can whole kernel corn ($0.72)
- 4 oz. can diced green chiles ($0.88)
- 28 oz. can diced tomatoes ($1.62)
- 6 oz. can tomato paste ($0.78)
- Ripple potato chips ($1.50 – or whatever you like to pair with dip!)
- Tortilla chips ($2.02)
- 8 oz. block cream cheese ($1.56)
- 1 lb. sharp cheddar cheese ($3.58)
- 14 oz. sour cream ($2.32)
- 1 rotisserie chicken ($5.97)
- Bakery cupcakes ($3.98)
Scroll down to see our receipt!
Download our Game Day for under $40 grocery list here!
Budget Saving Tips
It’s safe to say we know a thing or two about shopping smart since we cost every recipe on this site down to the penny! And after putting together our $40 Easter and 4th of July spreads, we’ve learned a few extra tricks for entertaining on a budget too. So, if you want to be the host with the most (savings!), here are a few budget tips we always follow:
- Start with what you already have. These recipes rely on a few pantry basics, like spices for the chili and butter for brushing the slider buns. Check what you already have before heading to the store so you’re not buying ingredients twice.
- Shop smart! We originally had wings on the menu (they’re a Game Day staple, right?). But I almost threw a penalty flag at the grocery store because when I got there, chicken wings were so insanely expensive at $2.64 per pound, and you need a lot of wings to satiate a crowd! Instead, we pivoted to cheesy pull-apart chicken sliders using a $5.97 deli rotisserie chicken. They’re cheaper and more filling, too! If you still want a handheld chicken option, I also spotted chicken drumsticks for $1.17 per pound, so our baked chicken drumsticks would be a great option too!
- Make it a potluck. There’s no rule saying the host has to make everything! I’d happily ask everyone to bring a dish, then you only need to worry about whatever you assign yourself.
- Make ingredients work double duty. We specifically chose recipes that can share the same ingredients, and some of the finished dishes can be repurposed across the spread too! The chili, for example, also works on the nachos, and the onions add flavor to both the sliders and the French onion dip.
- Store brands for the win! If you look at the ingredient photo above, you’ll notice we grabbed Great Value Walmart store-brand products wherever we could. The savings add up quickly, and there’s no need to splurge on a pricier option unless you really want to. They work perfectly well and taste delicious in this spread (promise!)
What’s in This $40 Game Day Spread
There’s a little bit of everything in this spread, from cheesy, saucy, scoopable favorites to something sweet at the end. A lot of it can be prepped ahead too, which makes Game Day way easier once everyone starts arriving!
Vegetarian Chili
Jess: When football season rolls around, a massive pot of vegetarian bean chili is an absolute MUST HAVE for any Game Day spread, in my opinion! It’s cozy, hearty, packed with comforting flavors, and incredibly budget-friendly. By using spices you already have on hand, plus inexpensive beans, diced tomatoes, and corn, you can easily feed a whole crowd for pennies.
To really capture the magic of this veggie chili, take a page out of my playbook and let those tomatoes simmer to bring out their rich umami flavor. And whatever you do, don’t skip my secret ingredient: a couple tablespoons of molasses! It adds the perfect amount of depth and sweetness to balance the chili’s heat. This is a completely vegan crowd-pleaser that’s meant to be loaded up with avocado, cheese, and pickled onions (whatever you have, really), and it tastes even better the next day, so it’s a great option for making ahead.
Want to stretch it further? Add nachos to your Game Day spread and serve a few scoops of this over tortilla chips and top with your favorite nacho toppings. Make once, eat twice = SCORE!
Nachos
Jennie: Is it even a Game Day spread without nachos? I took the vegetarian chili Jess made for our $40 spread and repurposed it into the perfect chili cheese nachos. Then I topped them with ingredients from our budget shop, including sharp cheddar, jalapeño, and sour cream (which we shared with the French onion dip too!). I even added some leftover rotisserie chicken from the chicken sliders to make these nachos extra hearty.
That’s the main thing I love about nachos. They’re incredibly flexible, so you can use whatever toppings you have or turn leftover chicken, chili, or other odds and ends into something everyone wants to eat. You can literally tailor them to your guests, and no one will be disappointed. No waste here!
Chicken Sliders
Melissa: These chicken sliders are the first thing I’m reaching for at a tailgate or Game Day party! Sweet Hawaiian rolls are stuffed with a creamy rotisserie chicken filling, plenty of melty cheddar cheese, and finished with a savory seasoned butter topping for the perfect bite.
I also make a few smart swaps here to really stretch our budget. Instead of red onions, I use the same yellow onions we bought for the French onion dip. They’re not only cheaper, but you won’t even notice the difference. I also skip buying mayonnaise and use the same sour cream we purchased for the dip! The sour cream is flavorful and still gives these sliders its signature creamy filling. Utilizing the same ingredients across multiple recipes is one of my favorite simple ways to stretch your grocery budget without sacrificing flavor. Then all that’s left to do is sit back, relax, and enjoy the game!
French Onion Dip
Jennie: If there’s one thing I know about game day, it’s that a good dip disappears fast. For this French onion dip, we shared the sour cream with the chili and chicken sliders, and stretched the budget even further by using just ½ pound of onions. At just 50 cents for the onions, they’re the cheapest ingredient in this dip, but once they’re slowly caramelized, they create the rich, savory backbone. Add a few pantry staple spices, sour cream, and cream cheese, and you’ve got a game day winner. It’s hard to stop at just one scoop!
Store-Bought Cupcakes, but Festive!
Jess: When I saw this $3.98 tray of 12 festive mini cupcakes at Walmart, it was an immediate yes. Into the shopping cart they went, no second thoughts! They’re cheap, cheerful, and completely prepped, saving me from a sink full of dirty bowls and sticky piping bags! While I love whipping up sweet treats, trading scratch baking for a quick bakery shortcut gives me my busy day back. Instead of scrubbing muffin tins, I actually had time to focus on the main event: our Game Day spread!
Prepping the table with our photographer, Rebecca, was totally stress-free and fun. We styled the layout, cranked out the snacks, and placed these cute little cupcakes right in the center. Under Rebecca’s camera, that four-dollar tray looked like a million bucks!
Click the image above to download our free grocery list for this Game Day spread for under $40!
