36 Practical Money-Saving Hacks for Cheapskates

I am a self-proclaimed cheapskate. If yous are frugal and looking for practical money-saving hacks, keep reading.

I am fairly frugal (though non always), but sometimes I take it too far: I have T-shirts with holes in them, I never purchase new clothes, we're shopping for a new couch considering our current one has holes in it, and I ran my current pair of running shoes until the soles cruel off.

Withal, I have gradually learned to exist frugal in many means that I would recommend to others. I don't recall you should take holes in your couch, and y'all should definitely replace your running shoes more often than I do, but in that location are many means to cut back on spending and live a more than frugal lifestyle.

Why alive frugally? First, because information technology allows you to spend less than y'all earn, and use the difference to pay off debt, save or invest. Or all three. 2nd, because the less you lot spend, the less you demand to earn. And that ways you lot can choose to work less, or work more but retire early. Or take mini-retirements. You have more options with a frugal lifestyle.

So, if you'd like some tips on frugal living, hither are just a few, from a cheapskate. I should annotation that I do most, only not all, of these tips.

1. Go with one motorcar. Many families take ii or more cars. As well your firm, your car is probably your near expensive particular. If you can do with ane, yous should.

2. Become with a smaller house. Just because y'all can afford a larger business firm, doesn't mean y'all should live in i. Live in every bit modest a business firm equally yous can and still be comfortable. I don't mean you should live in a one-room apartment with a family unit of 4 … y'all know what I mean. You can salve thousands a year with a smaller house. Many times, if you get rid of a lot of ataxia, you don't need a large house.

three. Become with a smaller machine. Once again, you tin salvage thousands past going with a smaller machine. A car instead of an SUV, for example, is a large savings. Be comfy, but don't overdo it. You'll save a lot on gas this fashion as well.

4. Rent rather than ain. This volition probably spark a huge debate. The affair is, merely don't presume that buying is the better investment. If you calculate the interest you pay on a mortgage, the cost of insurance and maintenance, buying is frequently much more than costly than renting … and if you rent, save coin, then invest the difference, you can really end up well ahead in the long run. Now, it'due south not a given, so exercise a comparing, factoring in all expenses.

5. Look for used first. If you need something — I mean really need it, not just want it — see if someone you know has one that they don't use or need anymore. Send out an email to family or friends, or simply ask effectually. You might be surprised. I was about to buy a printer, and then plant out my mom just bought a laser printer and didn't need her former inkjet … saving me coin. If no one y'all know owns i, attempt craigslist.org. Then expect to purchase used, at garage sales or austerity shops. You can observe a bargain if y'all await around.

6. Eat out less. Ane of the biggest expenses in our daily lives is eating out — the average person spends well over $2,000 a year on eating out. Restaurants are expensive, including fast-foo. It's much cheaper to cook your own food. Our family creates a weekly bill of fare, then we buy the groceries, and cook dinner (and lunch) each evening. Lately I've even been prepping it in the morning, then it'southward a snap when nosotros get dwelling house.

7. Brown bag it to work. Instead of eating out for lunch, bring your lunch.

8. Adopt a minimalist wardrobe. This tip won't exist for everybody, just I effort for a minimalist wardrobe. I generally wear jeans and a t-shirt. Plainly, solid colors are my favorite. Everything goes with everything else, and I don't take too many clothes. This saves me the stress of picking out an outfit, and I don't need as many clothes.

9. Don't shop. Don't get to the mall or other shopping surface area or department shop to look around and shop. Go to a store if y'all know what yous need, and and then get out. Many times people go shopping, with a vague idea of what they want, and get defenseless up buying much more. Or they go only for fun, as a form of entertainment. That ends upward costing a lot. Information technology tin can actually add together upwards. Instead, stay abroad from shopping areas and notice other means to have fun.

ten. Employ a 30-day list. To adjourn impulse buys, create a 30-mean solar day listing. When you want to buy something, other than a true necessity (medicine or food, for example), put it on this list, with the date y'all added information technology to the list. And make it a rule that you lot can't buy anything for at least 30 days after you put information technology on the list. And stick to information technology. Y'all'll find that you purchase a lot less with this system.

eleven. Cutting out cable. I've talked about how I cut out cable before. It saves me money every month, and also forces me to practise things like read and have conversations and go outside. Win-win.

12. Use the library. Instead of buying books, check them out. I like to use the Libby app to download ebooks and audiobooks. The library often likewise has a peachy pick of DVDs (depending on your area), saving you even more.

xiii. Find free entertainment. Find cheap ways to have fun. Entertainment often ends upwards costing a lot of money, if you become to the movies, buy concessions, or go out at night, go to the bar, etc. The average person spends virtually $one,800 a year on amusement (not including eating out). Now, I'thou not saying you shouldn't accept fun … but there are cheaper ways to practice it.

14. Stay healthy. Easier said than done, I know, but staying healthy tin save you tons of coin on doctor's visits, hospital bills, and medicine over the long run. An ounce of prevention, and all that. Eat healthily, and do. Simple and effective.

fifteen. Carpool or ride the coach. Find a friend or neighbour who works most you, and arrange a carpool. Or take public transportation. Elementary advice, but something a lot of people ignore.

16. Walk. Often we bulldoze to the corner store, or to a school that's less than a mile abroad. Leave a few minutes early, walk, fire some calories, and salve gas.

17. Sell your clutter. This is not so much saving coin as making information technology, simply the frugal, simplifying cheapskate, like myself, volition want to declutter and make a few bucks doing information technology. Hold a garage sale or sell it on eBay. It'southward amazing what some people will buy.

xviii. Frugal gifting. Gifts tin price a lot of coin over the grade of a twelvemonth. Look for ways to exercise information technology cheaply. Make a souvenir, or give a consummable. My family enjoys getting and giving cookies, for example.

xix. Quit smoking. Not the easiest way to save, I know. It'due south hard. Just then many others have. Not only volition you salvage on cigarettes (which are expensive over the long run), just you'll also salvage on the huge, long-term medical costs.

20. Alcohol in moderation. If y'all beverage one beer or a few beers a day, that adds upwards to big money each calendar month. Some drink fifty-fifty more than that. Information technology's expensive. If you can cut your drinking to the occasional party, and one time in awhile with friends (not all the time), yous'll salve tons.

21. Drinkable water. Often we drink lots of calories through sodas, coffee, alcohol, juices, tea, etc. And that costs a lot as well. Potable water, save money, salvage calories.

22. Batch your errands. Instead of running an errand or 2 every solar day, batch them into one errand day, and plan your about efficient route, to save gas and fourth dimension. Too practise every bit much pecker-paying online as possible, to eliminate some errands.

23. Stay home. Becoming a homebody might not audio like a lot of fun, but it really tin be. I honey staying home with my family unit. We can practice all kinds of fun things at home. Or I tin can spend a day lone, if the family is at school, and really enjoy it. It's serenity and peaceful, I can read or sentinel a practiced picture or respond to comments on my blog or write. Staying home tin can save tons, in eating out expenses, shopping expenses, gas, and incidentals.

24. Stop using credit cards. Credit cards are not evil. I realize that they can be used to proficient purpose. If that's how y'all use them, and then that's good, skip this tip. For others, credit cards brand buying too easy, and stop up making them buy likewise much. Non only that, only if you don't pay your pecker in full each month, they will cost y'all a lot in interest. The average American with at least 1 credit menu has more than $8,500 in credit card debt. Don't make that fault.

25. Cancel subscriptions. With the wealth of information and entertainment online, practise y'all actually need magazine subscriptions? With all the news online, exercise you actually need a newspaper subscription? If you can become DVDs for gratis or cheap, do you really need a Netflix subscription? Don't flame me if you think yous do need any of these — I'm simply asking you to consider whether they're really essential — the answer might be yes. Too consider other subscriptions you might exist paying for — I'm not saying yous should cancel everything, but seriously consider whether they can exist canceled without much loss of value.

26. Brand your ain. I won't get into all the possibilities here, but many times we buy things when actually, we could brand them ourselves for much cheaper if we become a little creative. Now, this might have a piffling more fourth dimension and effort, only information technology tin can be fun, especially if y'all make it a family project. We recently made our own (very uncomplicated) bookshelves with simply a couple of pieces of lumber, instead of ownership them. If you don't know how to make something, search for it online. You lot'll most likely observe some instructions.

27. Do it yourself. Instead of hiring someone to do something, endeavour doing it yourself. Sure, it takes some time and effort, only it's satisfying, and of course cheaper. It's likewise educational, if you don't know how to do information technology — once more, practise an online search, read up on it, and give information technology a go. Frugality freaks are DIYers.

28. Reduce convenience foods. Frozen foods, microwaveable stuff, junk food … annihilation that'southward packaged and prepared for our convenience is not merely more expensive than something you lot cook yourself, but besides most likely less good for you. I'one thousand not proverb to eliminate these completely, but reduce consumption.

29. Maintain stuff. This is a no-brainer, but we don't often think about it: if you take intendance of what yous have, it will last longer. You'll and then spend less on ownership new stuff. When you buy something worth maintaining, take a few minutes to read the maintenance manual, and create a maintenance checklist that you tin adhere to the item. For important things like your car'south oil changes or tune-ups, put them in your calendar.

30. Save free energy. At that place are petty things yous tin can do to lower your ability bill. For example, when you get out the room, turn out the lights.

31. Program alee. Sure, like shooting fish in a barrel to say, difficult to implement. But if you make it a addiction to think ahead to things that are coming up in your life, you can save a lot of money. For instance, if you think well-nigh where you lot're going to become your meals when y'all become out to do errands, yous can pack a dejeuner or dinner instead of eating out. If you lot pack a large container of iced water, you don't need to buy expensive bottled water. If you know that a birthday is coming up, you lot tin can buy a gift on sale instead of spending more at the last minute.

32. Cook ahead. If you take 1 free day a week (or even a month), cook food in big batches and freeze in dinner-sized portions. I don't do this all the time, merely I have done information technology and it saves coin (buying big can often save) as well equally fourth dimension. You have to program it out a chip, coming up with a menu and shopping, cooking plenty meals for a calendar week or a calendar month. Just in one case you're done, your meals each night (and for lunch if you lot like) are quick and easy. This saves you from eating out or eating convenience food when you're hungry only as well tired to cook.

33. Wash wearing apparel less. Some people clothing clothes and then wash them, just I've gotten into the habit of wearing my clothes more than than once if they're not really dirty. I utilize my olfactory organ every bit a exam — I don't desire to habiliment clothes that scent, only most times the clothes are yet perfectly clean. This saves on washing.

34. Eat less meat. I'1000 not proverb yous take to go a vegetarian, but once in awhile, consume meatless dishes. Pasta, vegetarian chili, vegetarian Indian or Thai dishes, falafels with hummus and pitas and tomatoes and lettuce … there are plenty of tasty dishes without meat. And equally meat is expensive, you'll relieve money on meatless dishes.

35. Salve on groceries. For my family of 8, groceries is a major expense. With some simple habits, we've been able to save a lot of coin. See my article 36 Insanely Easy Ways to Save Money on Groceries.

36. Frugal Christmas. Christmas is expensive, especially in America (if yous live in an expanse that doesn't celebrate Christmas with a huge amount of ownership, or doesn't celebrate information technology at all, skip this tip). People go on crazy shopping gorges. It's insane. While information technology makes the retailers and manufacturers happy, it doesn't brand our bank accounts happy. Interruption out of the wheel and observe cheaper ways to celebrate Christmas. Read my article: The Best Free (or Inexpensive) Gifts to Give Your Kids This Christmas.

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