When I was looking for ways to save money I noticed that a lot of the advice out there is pretty basic and not relevant to my needs:
Cut out one coffee shop visit a week. Skip a manicure twice a year. Use Coupons.
But I wanted to know some serious ways to save money. I mean, I have had 2 manicures in my whole life.
So here are some of the best ways to save money both for people who are just starting out or who have already made lots of changes and are looking for more.
Oh yeah, and don’t forget to add your frugal tips in the comments!
45 Creative Ways to Save Money
1. Budget
This is pretty obvious but it’s a good place to start. Making a budget is a good way to see where you stand, where your money goes each month and where you might be able to cut back. Get my free monthly budget spreadsheet here!
2. Dump Subscriptions
According to this article, the average cable bill is $128 a month! Even if you pay only $40 a month, that’s $480 a year. Plus, when you stop watching TV you reduce your exposure to advertising, which will help you to feel content with what you already have. A win-win!
Magazines, newspapers, and Netflix (unless you are using Netflix as a replacement for cable, but even then you want to skip it altogether) can cost a lot of money monthly without you even being aware of it. The added benefit of not having lots of TV shows at your disposal is that you’ll have more time for other things like reading up on raising chickens, or growing a garden, or other homesteading skills.
The Internet is a difficult one for many people, including myself. Since I work from home I do need internet access (though I could, theoretically, could go to the library).
3. Ditch the Home Phone and Cell Contract
Get rid of your cell phone or home phone. One or the other is usually enough. If not, look into a VoIP phone provider like Vonage and a pay-as-you-go cell phone. Update: You can now get smartphones on a pay-as-you-go service! I use Tracfone and am very happy with it.
4. Get Rid of Debt
Debt is an expensive and cumbersome “convenience” of modern-day. Do whatever it takes to get out of debt and stay that way. For some people, that means not using a credit card at all because they just can’t trust themselves.
I have found that I can use a credit card responsibly since signing up with mint.com. It keeps track of all of your purchases, even those on a credit card so you know if you are within your budget each month and you know you can pay the full balance of the credit card.
Be sure to use a zero balance credit card for online purchases that you are going to pay back immediately. If you use a card with a balance then you are paying the interest for the whole balance each month. So, if you are carrying a $100 balance and buy something for $20, even if you pay the $20 by the end of the month you are still charged interest for $120 balance.
5. Avoid Bank Fees
Avoid bank fees by only using your bank’s ATM and not overdrawing your account. I use Mint.com to keep track of everything.
6. Learn to Substitute in Recipes
Some things can only be bought at the grocery store in bundles, but what if you only need one? I usually substitute something else if it’s not a crucial ingredient instead of buying a bunch of something that I’ll only use one of.
7. Meal Plan
Meal planning can help you to say organized and only buy what you need at the grocery store. It also helps reduce food waste.
8. Buy in Bulk
Check out my other tips for saving money on groceries.
9. Invest in Food Storage
Buy a deep freezer or build pantry space. This way you can stock up on things that are a good price and you’ll have a place to store it. You can also can or ferment foods for storage.
10. Don’t Eat Out
Bring your lunch to work. Carry snacks and water everywhere you go so that you aren’t tempted to buy something when you get hungry (probably healthier too).
11. Cook from Scratch
Don’t buy meals from the grocery store — buy ingredients. Spend some time on the weekend preparing some freezer meals, snacks, etc. Don’t pay someone else to do this for you.
12. Grow Your Own food
Starting a garden can drastically decrease your grocery bill in the summer and can continue to feed you in the winter if you preserve the bounty by canning, fermenting, or freezing. While you’re at it, why not raise some livestock?
13. Drink More Water
Buying juice, soda or other beverages can add up. If you make an effort to drink mostly water then you can save a lot (plus it’s healthier!). Make hot or iced tea for a treat. If you forage your tea ingredients, there’s even more money saved!
14. Have a Leftover Night
According to this article 40% of the food in the U.S. is wasted. That’s 33 million tons of food! If we make an effort to waste less by eating leftovers every week we can save money (not to mention the social and environmental benefits).
15. Use Power Strips
Electronics use power even when they are off. Plug them into a power strip and turn the power strip off at night or when you go away for the weekend.
16. Wash in Cold Water
Wash laundry in cold water. Simplify your laundry.
17. Use CFL Light Bulbs
They use less energy, reducing the cost to you.
18. Buy a Programmable Thermostat
I know we have wasted plenty of energy when we have forgotten to turn the heat down at night. A programmable thermostat would fix that and save money!
19. Use Less Expensive Fuel
Use wood, pellet or solar heat instead of oil. (update: oil prices fluctuate, so sometimes it’s actually cheaper than wood or pellet heat!).
20. Invest in Quality
Buy quality things. Don’t waste money on cheap stuff that will break or fall apart. Invest in quality products that will last so that you don’t have to purchase them over and over again.
Buy higher quality clothes. You can get them at a discount if you buy them used and they should still have a lot of wear left in them. Online consignment stores like Thredup have kids and adult clothes and you can browse without having to waste gas.
21. Raise Your Deductibles
Check the deductible on your car or other insurance. If you have an emergency fund that could cover the higher deductible (or the ability to save one now) it might make sense to raise it and pay less each month/year.
22. Make Your Own Household Cleaners
It’s healthier too.
Make household cleaners.
23. Make Your Own Personal Care Products
You can make just about anything from hand soap and face wash to deodorant and wart remover.
24. Don’t Collect
Acquiring and maintaining a collection is costly and frankly, takes up a lot of space. Instead, “flip” your collection for profit. If you are into antiques, buy low and sell high. Keep photos of your favorite pieces for a keepsake.
25. Rethink Gift Giving
Gift giving can be expensive. Consider making gifts instead, or drastically reducing what you do buy. We have found that others tend to be relieved that we have set a lower expectation for gift giving. No one wants to be the one to say, “Hey can we skip gifts or just stick to $20?” but it seems like most people are happy to agree.
26. Entertain at Home
Instead of meeting friends out for dinner invite them over for a home cooked meal and conversation. Not only does it save money, but it’s often more fun.
27. Get Organized
Keep a list of gift ideas and things you need to purchase to save money. Staying organized and on the look-out can save big. I use a universal wishlist so I always have ideas for gifts. It’s also how I keep track of things I want to buy but want to wait on for whatever reason.
28. Buy Decorations After Each Holiday
Buy decorations just after the holiday for next year. You’ll get a great discount on seasonal items that the store wants to move fast. Or better yet, don’t buy any at all to save money! Why not just decorate with natural found materials?
29. Find Free Entertainment
Hiking trails, parks, and community events are great ways to spend a day without spending any money.
30. Cut Your Own Hair
Cut your own hair or barter with your stylist. Most people can at least trim bangs on their own.
31. Pay Bills Online
Pay bills online to save a stamp and the cost of a check. Every little bit counts!
32. Create a Thrifty Wardrobe
Learn how to build a frugal capsule wardrobe by thrifting, swapping, sewing, and choosing wisely.
33. DIY All the Things!
Whatever it is, can you do it yourself to avoid paying someone else? There are lots of DIY books available for just about any subject. It doesn’t hurt to try and ca save money.
34. Don’t Keep Traditional Pets
This is a hard one to accept but cats, dogs, and fish don’t pay for themselves the way farm animals do (cats and dogs could arguably pay for themselves on a farm as pest control). Chickens and angora rabbits are good choices for those uncomfortable with slaughter.
35. Kick Bad Habits
If you smoke, stop! If you’re addicted to sugar, work on removing it from your diet. The cost of these addictions is much higher than the monetary cost.
36. Use the Library
It’s free! You can get books, movies, and computer access as well as free events for children.
37. Barter
One of the best ways to save money is to use your skills to pay for things! Get good at something and use that skill to get other items or services that you need.
38. Conserve Gas
Maintain your car and drive slowly. reduce your trips out as much as possible.
39. Keep an Old Car
Add a car maintenance line to your budget in place of the car payment line. When you pay off a car loan you can also start putting that money into savings for the next car. That way you avoid the interest fees and car payments.
40. Ditch the Second Car
If it’s at all possible, choose to be a one-car family. Even if you don’t have a payment, the cost of registering and inspecting your car, insurance, and maintenance costs can add up.
41. Use Unexpected Income Wisely
You should never use “extra” money to pay for something that has additional recurring costs. Consider investing or saving the money instead of spending it.
41. Make More Money
Start a side business, pick up some freelance work, or sell your stuff on eBay.
42. Downsize Your Living Space
Evaluate your living space honestly. Could you get by with less sq. footage? What if you got rid of some of your stuff on eBay first? Less space means less to clean up too!
43. Use What Ya Got
If at all possible, avoid buying new materials for homestead projects. Places like habitat for humanity sell used/leftover materials for a fraction of the cost, but what’s even better is if you can find something you already own.
44. Fix Instead of Replace
Starting with a quality item helps here too. Instead of replacing tools or appliances, try to fix them instead. Many fixes are simple if you just look online for the problem.
45. Go Off-Grid (ish)
Going off-grid can really put in perspective what things we need and how much energy we use. Being accountable for every bit of energy we use can help us focus on conserving. Obviously, this is a huge step, so start by camping for a few nights which can give you the same perspective.
There’s always off-grid power too. Though there’s an up front cost to solar energy, it may be cheaper in the long run.
Want to Manage Your Money Better?
Click here to download the budget template that helped me avoid credit card debt and finally start saving money.
What are Your Tips to Save Money?
Tell us in the comments below!
All great ideas! It just depends on how much you are willing to sacrifice. I would give up cable in a minute, except my hubby is a HUGE sports fan. My weakness is the Homegoods store and Target. So, when I find something I like, I either wait for it to go on clearance or I wait a day or two and if I just can’t live without it then I decide how much I really need it. :) Budgeting is so important so you know where your money is going. I created a free printable worksheet to help track our spending. (http://www.creativelysouthern.com/2013/01/save-money-on-budget-and-free-printable.html)
I agree! I could live without TV but I don’t know about Matt :)
Great tips! It’s always a good reminder for people to see tips like this even if they’ve seen them before. You might enjoy my blog as well: http://www.simplysavemn.com.
I’ll check it out :)
Brilliant. So good to find tips that I’m not already doing. Bookmarking this so I can remember to put your ideas into practice and am following you now. Found you from Thrifty Thursday and am glad I did.
Thanks for these tips on saving money.
Excellent! (Stopping over from Wildcrafting Wednesday!)
Great list! I just made some liquid hand soap for the first time yesterday and was amazed at how much I got from one cup of soap flakes!
I could live without cable but convincing my daughter and husband has been an ongoing “discussion” :)
I am printing this out, really need to start budgeting. My issues are: I have our 90 year old mother in law living with us. She can’t see but loves her CNN, so I can’t get rid of cable (and I would love to) and we need a landline for her because she can’t use a cell phone. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
That can be tricky. If she only really wants to watch CNN have you thought about buying a Roku or other streaming device (some gaming systems work like Xbox or Wii)? A quick google search brought up this link which helps you to watch TV shows including CNN for free. Even if you have to pay a small fee for it it might be cheaper than cable. As for a land line you can try Vonage or magic jack. If you are interested in Vonage email me and I’ll send you a referral link so we can both get a month free :) I hope that helps!
Mmm, we ARE already doing lots of these things! :)
The one thing I saw on the list and plan not to do is give up my lovely magazine subscriptions: Mollie Makes and The Simple Things. They are such a highlight of my month that I couldn’t give them up unless I was starving! :D
It’s important to keep one or two “luxuries” so we don’t feel deprived :)
This is a great list!! I do most of these things. Regarding pets, we found that gerbils can double as a paper shredder! :-) They are really cheap to feed, too; they don’t eat much, and you can mix up a chow for them using ordinary ingredients like oatmeal and nuts.
Here’s my big list of thrifty tips–a lot of overlap with yours, but I also have a bunch of recipes for using up food scraps and some other tips.
I’m using a lot of these tips already, but DEFINITELY see several I should start using like YESTERDAY. lol. Loved this list so much I shared it with my readers on http://www.tipsfromfrugalpeople.com/ :)
Thanks :)
Don’t forget going to garage sales! This is how we survive! I buy school clothes and have even found new items that I can put away for Christmas gifts- for so cheap! If you have patience and a little time, this can really pay off. Don’t forget to shop for winter items even when it’s hot because where I live it’s too cold to garage sale in the winter.
very true! You must be very organized too :)
Great tips. Another saving I made was to get rid of all my credit cards. I got a prepaid visa moneycard instead for online shopping only. I put a small amount on it each week and only use it for online shopping e.g. flight tickets. There is a small upfront charge but it’s a fraction compared to the interest I was paying on credit cards.
great idea!
I can’t believe how many of these things I do already. I am frugal but not cheap, I just bought a new car almost all cash so I am trying to pay of the small balance by Feb. to save on interest costs. My ex husband left me enough to almost buy a car when he passed, we were still friends. Insurance companies will give you a discount if you do not exceed 13000 miles per years. I keep track of my mileage. If you drive about 30 miles a day or less you qualify for that discount. They do not tell you so go and ask. I keep a small date calendar with the amount of days since I bought my car and I take the average miles per day I make sure I stay under 30 per day it is simple and you would be surprised how much money in gas when you start to consolidate trips to the market, grannies house etc.
that’s good to know, I bet I qualify for that discount, thanks!
Another thing I do is through all the small coins cents, 5 cents etc into a large jar. Last year I had saved €400 that way I couldn’t believe it!
wow, nice!
We do most measures you list here and many, more more but I take offense to #37 Choose not to have (traditional) pets. This is a hard one to accept but cats, dogs and fish don’t pay for themselves the way farm animals do (cats and dogs could arguably pay for themselves on a farm as pest control).
You mustn’t have every seen the numerous health savings reports from owning a ‘traditional’ pet! http://www.helpguide.org/life/pets.htm
That’s definitely something to consider when deciding if owning a pet makes sense financially. Thanks for sharing.
I love the list! The other items you might want to consider about dogs and cats are these:
1) Pest control–If you live in apartments (downsizing), sometimes your neighbors aren’t as clean as you wish they were. And there’s nothing you can do except have a pet (and his smell) around to discourage the pests.
2) Protection–if you live in or near an area where it’s less than safe (downsizing), a dog can be a good bodyguard or at least an alert.
3) Entertainment/workout–skip paying for a gym! Pets are just plain entertaining, or there wouldn’t be about a million YouTube videos. With a dog, the walks and playing outside can help with working out. With cats and dogs, you can still play lots of games and spend time.
4) Dating–this is more for dogs again, but I’ve heard more than one person end up on a date because of walking their pooch.
Of course, dogs are more expensive, so it makes sense they need to make up for their costs! :)
That’s all I have outside of the health benefits!
good points!
My husband would never go for getting rid of cable. I already do most of those things.
I have been sewing since I was 15 (and I’m a senior citizen) I repair and update clothes until they are threadbare.
When I had my first daughter, we were poor and grateful to the lady that gave us a sack of baby boy clothes. I put lace and rick-rack on just about all of it. She looked like a girly girl in those clothes. When she got older, I used fabric scraps and remnants to make her little dresses and dresses for her little sister.
I also make gifts. I made my grand-daughter a mermaid doll and a poncho that she makes excuses for keeping with her. Sewing is the biggest blessing.
I would add that we need to ‘read’ all loan contracts, and do ‘research’ on mortgages and car loans. What you don’t know will hurt you! We got a 15 year mortgage and paid it off early. I insisted on only looking at homes that we could qualify for with a 15 year fixed interest loan. It meant buying a smaller house. This is where most of the country has messed up.
You’re absolutely right. When we buy a house our plan is to do something similar :)
Keeping cash, such as always using the ATM only to get cash out can be great to help keep track of where money is going, but it can also be a safety risk as well as make you even LESS aware of where the money went. It is a very common refrain, “I got paid 3 days ago, where did my money go?” Another idea as far as paying bills is to NEVER use the merchant’s website to pay bills because they often require you to give them your account number and routing number and you may end up giving them access that is extremely difficult to revoke. Most banks these days offer free bill pay services where they will send the payment, electronically or by corporate paper check, for you. You just have to enter the payment info and then tell them when and how much to pay and the bank will send the payment for you! There is usually a guarantee of some type, stop payments on lost paper checks may be free, and you get a receipt or proof of payment. I use my bank’s bill pay service and I LOVE it, it helps me to make sure that I am not missing any of my bills, I can schedule the payments in advance and I can choose when I want the payment to be sent, I am the one in control of when that payment goes out (instead of the merchant deciding when they are going to cash a check or pull the electronic funds from my account), and some bills I pay twice a month (for example, my cell phone bill is too much for me to do in one paycheck, so I pay half of the bill each check. I have not written a paper check in over a decade, even things like paying my children’s school fees go out through my bank’s bill payment service! Another idea is to sign up for free text messages or emails from your bank about account activity to help monitor for anything that might be unauthorized so you can catch it faster. You should also make sure that your account’s debit overdraft is turned off so that regular purchases (like at the grocery store or whatever) will not be allowed to overdraw your account. This won’t prevent ALL overdrafts, but it will make it much less likely and reduce the fees for making a mistake. Lastly, consider using a prepaid debit card from your bank when making purchases at unfamiliar retailers or online. Yes, there is usually a fee, but I consider that fee to be totally worth it for the extra protection that I get from knowing that anyone that gets that card number won’t be able to take everything I have in the bank! If I am shopping online, I get to the point that I know how much the purchase is going to cost, then I use my phone and log in to my account and move the money from my checking account to my prepaid debit card, then I go back and give the online merchant the prepaid debit card info and send the transaction through. This can also help with budgeting if you put how much money you are going to spend on a shopping trip onto the card and then when the money is gone, your shopping trip is over because the card stops working.
Thanks so much for sharing! A cash system is a really great idea and it looks like you’ve found a great way to shop online without using a credit card while staying protected.
i probably do 35-38 of these already. so my addition is to winterize your place of residence, it will lower heating costs. and it helps hold heat in when your furnace unexpectedly stops working. my temprature in my apartment only fell to 60 last night with out any heat and an unresponsive landlord. and the outside temp dipped below 30 last night :( brrr.
That’s amazing! What a great suggestion, thanks for sharing.
Great article! You are right that so much of the advice out there isn’t practical for the “homesteader” types. One of my goals for this year is to tighten our budget (again). Since returning to working full-time, I have been slipping.
Now if I can just get my husband to go along with some of the tips you shared…
Getting spouses on board can be tricky but you’d be surprised how they catch on just by watching you. :)
I almost didn’t answer, but then saw that you just found this great blog too. You might ask Hubby what he thinks a good savings goal is. Whatever he answers (high or low to what you think) use it and if low, ask if he thinks you two could do a little more. By setting a savings goal, the budget part will follow suit. You might need to review where you are at now in order to have a do-able and appropriate goal.
I’m already using about 30 of these ideas and I recently downsized my living space. I was forced into living a cash only lifestyle after my life partner left unexpectedly 10 years ago. Without his income it was difficult for me to make payments on bills and provide for our son. The only thing I was able to maintain was the home we were living in. I refused for my child to be homeless. If I didn’t have enough cash to buy what we needed, we did without. I’ve been living that way for over 10 years now and I have not missed using credit cards. I have always lived a somewhat frugal lifestyle and took the loss of household income as a way to step up my game. In the summer I do most of my cooking outdoors with wood. When I see someone taking down a tree I ask for the wood. When the city is trimming trees I ask for the wood. If I see a downed tree I find a way to get the wood. All for free. I cook from scratch and I’ve found it very helpful in controlling my Type 2 diabetes. I won’t be cutting the cable cord anytime soon, I need internet access because I work from home and our local company provides a bundle package that makes it worthwhile. My employer provides several discounts that I have been able to take advantage of. I get a discount on my cell phone bill and employees in our home state also get a discount on their gas/electric bill. Since most of my cooking is done from scratch the bulk of my waste is compostable, recyclable or reusable. What garbage I do have I dispose of in several ways. The local waste site is close and I can pay $3 to dispose of a 30 gal bag. I’ve also had neighbors that I’ve shared waste disposal costs with since my household only fills 2 plastic grocery bags a week. I’ve taken my garbage to my brother’s or a friend’s house for free. As I said I work from home so we found a temperature that worked for both of us. The thermostat is set and no one touches it. If you’re cold get a blanket, put on a sweatshirt, a hat and/or socks. We also conserve water. Compared to my family and friends they spend more than twice what we spend on our water bill. We take short showers. When we run the hot water we catch the cold water that comes out first in a bucket and use it to flush the toilet, water houseplants or rinse out the tub. We don’t let water run down the drain and we water our garden with a rain barrel system.
You may want to contact your local water company to see if they’ll give you a discount for not returning ‘gray’ water. Many places charge both ways. Just a thought…