Quick answer: Hunger switches your brain into a general "get" mode that spills over from food to everything else. In a 2015 PNAS study, hungrier shoppers spent 64% more on non-food items. Eating before you shop, online too, and doing a quick hungry-angry-lonely-tired check before checkout protects your budget.
Part of our complete guide: Why Do I Spend Money? The Psychology of Spending, Explained.
Everyone knows the rule: never go grocery shopping hungry. But what if hunger makes you overspend on everything — shoes, skincare, a lamp, a jumper you didn't need? According to research published in one of the world's leading scientific journals, that is exactly what happens.
What does the research say about shopping hungry?
In 2015, researchers Alison Jing Xu (University of Minnesota), Norbert Schwarz (University of Southern California) and Robert S. Wyer Jr. published a series of five studies in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) called "Hunger promotes acquisition of nonfood objects".
- The binder clip study: participants were offered free binder clips — a completely inedible, unexciting office product. Hungry participants took about 70% more of them than people who had just eaten.
- The shopping study: researchers surveyed shoppers leaving a department store and checked their receipts. The hungrier shoppers had spent 64% more on non-food items than the less hungry ones — even after accounting for how long they had been in the store.
Importantly, hunger made people want to acquire more, not necessarily to like things more. They didn't find the items more attractive — they just felt a stronger pull to take them.
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Why does hunger make you want to buy?
Psychologists believe the drive that tells you to "get food" is not very precise. When your body is in need, your brain switches into a general acquisition mode: get, gather, collect. That urge spills over from food to whatever is in front of you — including a basket full of things you don't need.
Add tiredness, a long day, and the fact that many of us shop online on our lunch break or late in the evening before dinner, and you have a perfect recipe for unplanned purchases. (Late-night carts have their own psychology: see the 11:47 PM shopping cart.)
When am I most at risk of hungry spending?
- Online shopping on an empty stomach in your lunch break.
- Browsing "just for a minute" while dinner is cooking.
- Big shopping days (Black Friday, Christmas shopping trips) where you skip meals to "get it all done".
- Long days of caring for others, when your own meals come last.
How do I stop overspending when I'm hungry?
- Eat before you shop — online too. A snack before a shopping trip or a browsing session is the easiest money-saving habit there is.
- Plan Black Friday with a meal in it. Make your list after breakfast, not at midnight.
- Do a quick "HALT" check. Before you check out, ask: am I Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired? If yes, pause first.
- Keep a snack in your bag. It is cheaper than any impulse purchase.
- Shop from a list written on a full stomach. Your fed brain is a much better shopper than your hungry one.
Is my body part of my budget?
We often treat money as pure maths, but research like this shows how much our bodies — hunger, fatigue, stress — shape our spending. When you understand your own triggers, you stop blaming yourself and start designing around them.
The Matriarch's Money Brain Workbook is a gentle, printable guided journal that helps you discover your personal spending triggers — physical, emotional and habitual — so you can make calm money decisions instead of hungry ones.
Know your spending triggers
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FAQ
Does being hungry really make you spend more?
Yes. Research found hungry shoppers spent significantly more on non-food items, not just snacks.
Why shouldn't you shop online on an empty stomach?
Hunger triggers a general urge to acquire things, which makes unplanned online purchases more likely.
What is the HALT check?
A quick pause before acting to ask whether you're Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired, since each one makes impulsive choices more likely.
Keep reading:
- Why Do I Spend Money? The Psychology of Spending
- Why do I fill my cart and never buy?
- Why do I spend money when I'm stressed?
Source
- Xu, A. J., Schwarz, N. & Wyer, R. S. (2015). Hunger promotes acquisition of nonfood objects. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112(9), 2688–2692. Summary: ScienceDaily.