I wrote these tips almost ten years ago and thought it would be a good time to share them again as our financial future is very uncertain right now. These are tips that you can apply right now and also in the future when things return to normal, or our new normal, to continue saving money for your family. This is part two in a four part series for a total of 100 money saving tips. Obviously not everything is going to work for every single person, but the beauty of it is you can pick and choose what will work for you and your family. If you missed Part 1, click here to read tips 1-25 on how to spend less and save more!
Tip # 26 Preserve your harvest
If you followed tip # 25 and decided to grow your own vegetables or herbs, make sure you use or preserve as much as you can!! Think drying herbs, freezing or canning veggies, or giving away to those friends and neighbors! There are tons of “How-to” websites so don’t be intimidated if you’ve never preserved anything before!
Tip # 27 Get rid of that extra car!
Ok, so I realize that this is something everyone cannot do, but if you’re in the position where you have two cars (or more) and there is a possibility you could make it work, you should strongly consider the option! My husband and I had one car for 12 years!! More out of luck and neccesity than to be frugal, but it was seriously so easy when we lived near public transportation! We were fortunate enough to work close together and have similar schedules so carpooling was not a challenge at all, and it was actually been nice to spend that extra time together during the commute. We didn’t even realize how much money we were saving until a few years later (think: one car payment, one insurance payment, maintenance for one car, gas for one car)!
Tip # 28 Use Public Transportation
If you can’t part with that second (or third) car, or if you can’t give up your only car entirely, consider using public transportation. Unfortunately, everyone doesn’t always live in an area where this is entirely possible. If you’re lucky enough to live in a city with decent transportation, just look into the pricing, and you might be surprised. Plus there’s the added bonus of avoiding road rage and being able to catch up on things or read while riding the train/bus.
Tip # 29: Cut dryer sheets in half
Seriously. A half of a dryer sheet does the job just as well as a whole one. And you can usually score these for free or cheap with coupons!
Tip # 30 Never pay ATM fees!
This is one of those things that may not seem like a lot at the time, but it sure can add up over a lifetime! If you know you are going to need cash, just plan ahead and swing by your bank’s ATM before heading out. OR, if you’re lucky enough to have a bank that reimburses ATM fees (like us – I love that feature!) make sure you save those receipts!!
Tip # 31 Join your local library
Libraries are an often overlooked source for free entertainment. In addition to books, libraries have a lot of recent movies available. Remember this the next time you get ready to head out to Blockbuster for a movie night! You can also score free passes to zoos and museums!
Tip # 32 Reuse Ziploc Bags
Ok, before you say “Ewww” and stop reading this blog forever, just hear me out! I’m not talking about washing out your bags and hanging them inside out to dry. I’m talking about reusing a bag once or twice, and only if it had dry, easy to clean up ingredients inside of it (think croutons, cereal, crackers). The only other time I’ll reuse ziploc bags is if I’m using them to contain something I already wrapped in the freezer to eliminate freezer burn.
Tip # 33 Eat from the freezer/pantry!
About once every one to two months, consider an Eat from the Pantry/Freezer Challenge. Not only will you save money by not going to the grocery store, but you may find some food hidden in the back of your cupboards or bottom of your freezer that needs to be used up! This is a great way to re-evaluate what you have in your kitchen as well. Still have that box of instant cheese gritz sitting on the shelf? Then you may not need to buy 4 boxes the next time it is on sale just because you have a coupon!
Tip # 34 Look into benefits and discounts at work
Some companies are better than others at making sure their employees are aware of all of the benefits they offer. Aside from the obvious health insurance, vacation, retirement, etc, there are often many other discounts that are available through your work. All you have to do is ask your HR representative.
Here are a few of the benefits I have been able to take advantage of through the years:
- $10 off a Sam’s Club or Costco membership
- 22% discount on Verizon Wireless
- Financial Finesse (Basically free meetings and advice from financial planners)
- Commute Smart (You can earn $120 just for carpooling and logging your commutes. If you continue to participate and log a certain number of “clean air” commutes each quarter, you get an gift card for free gas!)
- Virgin Health Miles (Depending on how active you are, you can earn up to $500 cash in one year!)
Other common employer benefits include discounts on gym memberships and public transportation.
Tip # 35 Avoid unnecessary fees
Overdraft fees and late payments are two things that make me want to hit my head against the wall when they happen to me! Fortunately, it’s only happened once or twice and luckily I was able to either go into the bank or call the credit card company to ask them to waive the fee as a “one time forgiveness.”
To avoid overdraft fees, make sure you give yourself a little cushion in your checking account. I know some people who keep thousands in their account and some people who let it dwindle down to pennies in between paychecks. While it’s beneficial to keep most of your money in an interest-bearing savings account, you don’t want to end up worrying that you’re going to overdraw from your checking account every month. Whether you decide on a $100 cushion or a $1000 cushion, just remember that something is better than nothing!
As for the credit cards? Hopefully you are paying them in full, but regardless just try to get in the habit of paying them as soon as you get them in the mail (or your inbox).
Tip # 36 Shop through a cashback site when shopping online
I have to admit, I really don’t like shopping online because I hate paying for shipping & handling. But there are times when even the most savvy shopper needs to buy something online (and sometimes even with the S&H, you can get a better deal online).
So if you have to buy through the web, at least go through a cashback site. All you do is create an account, click on the website you want to go to (through the cashback site), and when you accumulate a certain amount of cashback, you’ll receive a check in the mail. Simple as that!
Tip # 37 Do a search for online coupon codes
After you click through your cashback site, do a quick search for any coupon codes online. Retailmenot is probably my favorite site to look for any additional discounts. Or you could always just use google and see if anything turns up.
Tip # 38 Take advantage of your credit card reward programs….
….BUT ONLY IF YOU DON’T CARRY A BALANCE AND PAY IN FULL EVERY MONTH! And whatever you do, do not sign up for a credit card just because of it’s reward program. But if you already have a credit card that you use regularly (and pay off every month), by all means, look into their rewards program! If you’re going to be using the card for everyday purchases anyways, you might as well get a little something extra from it!
Tip # 39 Budget for EVERYTHING!
Everybody should have a budget. Yeah, I said it. It’s really not that hard to do, and it can be as simple or complex as you want it to be! You can use a spreadsheet with formulas (lots of resources on my Pinterest Budgeting Board) or you can write it on a piece of paper in a notebook. Here is an easy way to get started:
- Write down your take home pay for the month.
- Then write down all of your monthly expenses (rent/mortgage, heat/gas, water, phone, cable, internet, cell phones, gas, car payment, gym membership, daycare, etc, etc , etc)
- Substract that amount from your monthly income. (If this puts you in the negative, sign up for Financial Peace University right now! Go do it!)
- What you are left with you then divide up between groceries, household supplies, pet care, various savings, emergency fund, etc, etc.
- Every dollar should be budgeted for, but don’t be afraid to give yourself a little bit of wiggle room, you know, in case you live in Alabama in the summer and your electric bill DOUBLES!
Once you have your general household budget in place, it is important to think ahead and “budget” for upcoming expenses (special events, travel, car maintenance, Christmas, day care, etc, etc, etc)
Tip # 40 Do your research!
Before making any big purchases (or even “minor” purchases for that matter), do your research! It should only take you 15-20 minutes online to do a few searches and read some reviews. You can find reviews for just about anything online, from irons to trash cans to vacation destinations and hotels. Some common sites I uses are Amazon, Expedia, & TripAdvisor. Even Target & Walmart offer reviews so you can see additional feedback before buying it.
If you have a little more time, go ahead and comparison shop at a few different stores (Lowes vs. Home Depot for home improvement, Best Buy vs. others for electronics, Walmart vs. Target, etc, etc). Some stores even beat competitor pricing so be sure to ask about that too!
Tip # 41 Combine the last 5 tips when making big purchases online!
Whenever you need to pay a lot of money for something online (plane tickets, vacations, or you finally saved up enough money to buy that new computer), follow these simple steps.
- First go through a cashback site (Even 1% cashback on $1000 is $10 for free!)
- Search for any additional discounts (A lot of times you can get something like $50 off a purchase over $500 or 15% off your total purchase, etc)
- Make the purchase using a credit card that offers a percentage cashback or certain amount of points per dollar spent.
But remember, you are only doing this sequence of events if you have first budgeted and saved up the cash and done your research. This way you can pay your card off in full as soon as the bill comes in.
Tip # 42 Shop at the right time of the year
Believe it or not, there are certain times of the year that are better to buy almost everything! Not only will you get a better deal, but this allows you to save up enough cash for whatever it is you need to buy! Here is an article that breaks it up by month and by “food” and “non-food” items.
Tip # 43 Use tupperware instead of ziploc bags
Use small tupperware containers instead of ziploc bags for things like croutons, chips, cookies, crackers, candy, cereal, or other small treats. I’ve not officially done the math on the cost of buying the initial tupperware and then washing it as opposed to buying the ziploc bags, but at least you’re creating less waste this way!
Tip # 44 Make your own seasonings
It’s so easy to make your own Taco Seasoning or Italian Seasoning, and there are tons of recipes available on allrecipes.com or food.com. You can also find recipes for salad dressings or marinades and you might be surprised how easy (and tasty) it is to make these things for yourself!
Tip # 45 Turn off those lights!!
Hopefully they are at least energy efficient lightbulbs. We always turn the lights off when we leave for the day, but it was kind of scary when I made a conscious effort to pay attention to how many lights were on when no one was in a particular room. While you’re at it, turn off the water while you’re brushing your teeth and unplug those appliances that are rarely used!
Tip # 46 Kick that bad habit
Whatever it is, chances are it’s eating away at your budget. Alcohol and cigarettes are the two most expensive bad habits that come to mind, but for all of you candy addicts and Diet Coke drinkers, that can add up too! If you can’t completely kick your habit, try to significantly limit it. Your wallet (and probably your heart and or lungs) will thank you!
Tip # 47 Trial a hobby before going full force ahead
There are a lot of hobbies that are great, but also can be really expensive. Make sure you do your research and talk to different people before you decide you want to go “all in” for your new project. Maybe just buy a pair of knitting needles and ONE spool of yarn or talk to some friends who homebrew before going out and buying all of the necessary supplies.
Or maybe just really consider the time commitment before starting something up (say, a frugal blog!)
Tip # 48 Don’t spend money on things you don’t need!
This sounds so obvious, but the world has done a good job convincing us we need things that we really don’t. Looking at kitchen items alone there are tons of gadgets that it is easy to fall into the trap of buying. Chances are you already have a knife/pot/bowl, etc that you can use instead…it just might take a little more of your time.
One example I can think of off the top of my head is a KitchenAid Mixer. I want one so bad!! But my 6 year old, $5 hand mixer works just perfect for what I need it for. Maybe someday I’ll invest in a heavy duty mixer, but for now, I’ll get along just fine with my little one.
Tip # 49 Follow frugal bloggers via Pinterest or email
This is a great way to get motivated to be more frugal and to find out about new deals as they become available. Search on Pinterest for Budgeting Boards by clicking here. This is a fantastic place to start.
Tip # 50 Sign up for free samples
One of the benefits to following frugal bloggers via a feed is that they are always the first ones to let you know about free samples available. Free samples are a good way to trial a new product or stock up on travel size products. Many of them come with high value coupons as well. To decrease an accumulation of clutter in your house, only sign up for the free samples you will actually use. I probably only sign up for 1/4 of the samples that I see advertised on various blogs.
So there you have it, the second 25 tips to help you save money in this four part series. Stay tuned for the next 25!
Disclaimer: Mom.Wine.Repeat earns a small percentage from each sale and earns a small commission from Amazon for any items purchased through the above link at no cost to you!
