Knowing what survival items you need at a minimum can be a difficult thing to figure out.

Here is a list of suggested items that should be stocked and take precedent over other items you might want, but can live without.

Water (water will be worth its weight in gold)

Canned goods (meats, beans, fruits & vegetables, substitute with dehydrated and freeze dried varieties)

Grains (Wheat, rice, oats & grain mil to grind it up)

Spices (Sugar, salt, pepper keep it simple but dried varieties are best)

Fuel (fire wood, gasoline, kerosene, lamp oil, anything that will burn)

Toilet Paper (gotta have one guilty pleasure)

Building Materials (nails, screws, 2 x 4’s, plywood)

Soaps (bar, liquid, detergent, bleach)

Alcohol (drinking and rubbing)

Cooking oil (or it will be soups and stews for you)

Tools (non-powered variety hammer, hand saw, axe, shovel, multi-tool etc.)

First Aid items (lots of gauze, tape, medicine, antiseptics)

Bio-Chemical hazard gear (masks, gloves, goggles, chem suits)

Garbage bags (especially heavy duty/black bags & 4 mil plastic tarps)

Duct tape (need I say more)

Flashlights, Lanterns & Candles (lots of candles)

Fire Starters (matches, fire steel, lighters)

Warm clothing (blankets too)

Entertainment (books, board games, cards)

Not everything on this list is a “life-saver.”

In fact, many items are more to help keep the sanity in whatever situation you are facing; by starting with this list, however, you will not break the bank and will have a virtually fail-safe stock of supplies for a short to medium term survival situation.

To see other items you can include on the list over time, check out SHTF Preparedness.