Listen up, everyone: It’s time to save some serious cash! While spending less is often easier said than done, there are countless tips and tricks to lessen the load on your wallet. Today, we’re taking an in-depth look at two dozen clever everyday hacks that will help anyone with ever-increasing expenses. The more of these you implement, the more you’ll save!
1. Get on a Family Plan
If you don’t know, now you know: Family plans are one of the best financial hacks in existence. From cell phone plans to music streaming services, being part of a family plan means substantial financial savings for whoever is on it. The best part is that you don’t necessarily have to be family to be part of them! My brother, girlfriend, and I are all on the same mobile phone family plan that saves us over $100 monthly.
2. Don’t Pay at the Register For Gas
Stop going inside the store to pay for fuel at gas stations. Instead, pay at the pump using a credit or debit card. The reasoning is simple: By bypassing the register, you’ll be less likely to succumb to needless impulse purchases like sodas, unhealthy snacks, energy drinks, and bottled water. In the end, your wallet (and legs) will thank you for paying for fuel at the pump!
3. Stop Buying Water
Speaking of bottled water, buying them is one of the most foolish purchases a person can make. As the world enters 2024, it’s time to take advantage of an abundant and free natural resource (for most of the world, anyway): Water! Stop buying bottled water. Instead, use refillable water bottles and filters to ensure you never go thirsty again. Even tap water in most American cities is suitable for drinking; many towns have modernized their water system to ensure that consumption is always okay.
4. Share Streaming Passwords
Although Netflix recently cracked down on password sharing, it remains the best strategy for indulging in everything from music to television to movies (and everything in between) for countless other streaming services. There’s no shame in sharing passwords; if companies don’t want you to do it, they’d take a page out of Netflix’s book and block customers from doing so. In the end, it’s all about saving you money.
5. Cut Your Own Hair
Getting a haircut is getting more expensive with each passing year. As a culture, we’re far removed from the days of $10 haircuts at the local barbershop. Learning how to cut hair and giving yourself regular haircuts is a sensible and practical way to save money on an expense nobody wants to pay. Of course, your mileage may vary; not everyone is meant to cut their own hair, but that doesn’t mean you can’t give it a shot!
6. Use Discount Mobile Phone Plans
Legacy cell phone service providers like Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile dominate the landscape, but their prices aren’t what many consumers would call affordable. Fortunately, there are other options. Service providers like Mint Mobile and Visible offer extraordinary value, featuring the same speeds you’d expect from the “big guys” while charging far less for those services. If you pay too much monthly for your cell phone, it might be time to switch.
7. Use Your Supermarket’s Smartphone App
Every company and idea seems to have a smartphone app these days, but arguably, there’s none more valuable to shoppers than their local supermarket’s app. By downloading and using these apps, shoppers can unlock exclusive digital coupons and deals that they can instantly apply to their purchases. It’s essentially extreme couponing for the digital age, and I’m here for it!
8. Make Gifts Instead of Buying Them
If you have a creative side, you owe it to yourself to save money on gift purchases by making gifts instead of buying them. Trust me, nothing is more heartwarming than receiving a custom-made gift from someone who truly cares about you. From home decor to homemade art pieces to something even more creative, these presents stand out far more than a typical gift card.
9. Cut Back on Streaming Services
As 2024 is upon us, there are more streaming services than ever, and we’re likely subscribed to far too many of them. These services lure you in with low introductory trial rates and bank on the fact that you’ll forget to cancel your subscription once you are billed the non-introductory rate. Do yourself a favor, take stock of what services you’re subscribed to, and eliminate those you don’t need. I’m sure you’ll be surprised you’re still subscribed to a few of them anyway!
10. Make Coffee at Home
Buying your morning coffee at a dedicated shop every morning adds up significantly over time. Eliminating this habit from your morning routines and making coffee at home can save you thousands of dollars annually. I know it sounds impossible, but brewing coffee at home can taste just as good as it does when you spend $6 at your local Starbucks. This seemingly life-altering change can transform your finances immediately.
11. Eat Out Less
According to experts, it only costs $5 on average to eat a meal you prepare at home compared to $15 to dine at a restaurant. The rationale is straightforward: We’re all throwing money away by eating out so much! The statistics don’t lie: You can save 67% in food costs by making meals at home. If you’re struggling with a significant financial burden and are dining out excessively, you shouldn’t be surprised to find yourself under so much stress.
12. Bring Your Lunch to Work
Getting into the habit of eating out less also translates to the workplace. While it’s beneficial to your mindset to get out of the office for an hour and stop in at a local restaurant, if financial wellness is your goal, it’s time to start packing your lunch every day! Not only will you save money in the long run, but you can tailor-make your meals to ensure you can enjoy many healthy options in the break room. However, shy away from stinky foods for the sake of your coworkers!
13. Stop Upgrading Your Tech
Do you really need to upgrade your iPhone every year so you can be seen using the latest model? Of course, you don’t. Yet millions of Americans upgrade their iPhones every year anyway. Like most pieces of technology, smartphones are nothing more than status symbols, and the “Keeping up with the Joneses” mentality is one of the quickest ways to drain your bank account while desperately searching for unneeded clout.
14. Meal Prep
Countless people credit meal prepping as making them healthier and saving them money. But let’s be honest: It’s hard work! Setting aside a few hours at the end of your week to prepare meals for your next five days is arduous despite the apparent benefits. If you know your way around a kitchen and want to embrace this frugal strategy, there’s no reason you shouldn’t! Thankfully, if you’re on the fence, approximately a million YouTube videos can guide you in the right direction.
15. Shop For Used or Refurbished Items
Consider buying used or refurbished when you can’t find particular electronics on sale. Amazon, in particular, has an extensive refurbished electronics marketplace that often yields significant savings over standard “new” items. These items aren’t dirty or broken. In most cases, these refurbished items were opened and returned immediately; I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the condition of everything I’ve bought over the past few years!
16. Sell What You Don’t Use
My closets are filled with clothes I never wear, electronics I stopped using, and random odds and ends that I forgot existed. One of these days, I will take inventory of the clutter and start selling off my belongings individually. I have three different computer keyboards that I’ve bizarrely kept over the last decade; if I can get even a few dollars for them, it should be considered a massive success. Don’t let items sit around; there’s money to be made by selling them!
17. Downsize Your Vehicle
One of the most savvy financial decisions I ever made was to downsize my vehicle. I was driving a new Jeep Wrangler for years and made the tough decision to trade it for a more sensible crossover vehicle. Although the Wrangler had always been my dream car, I knew I would appreciate the savings a different vehicle would bring. Now, I drive in comfort and style in a new Hyundai Tucson that gets 33 miles per gallon on the highway, a far cry from my Jeep’s 14 miles per gallon.
18. Be on the Lookout For Deals
There are always money-saving deals; you just need to know how to find them! There are countless deals, from websites to internet forums to individual retail stores’ smartphone apps. Please take advantage of these; in most cases, it’s as straightforward as applying a coupon code or clipping a digital coupon. If you’re paying full price for an item you found online, you’re doing it wrong.
19. Get Rid of Cable
Cable TV has been a pillar of American culture for decades, and it’s considered by many to be an essential utility in households. However, if you’re still at the mercy of your local cable company and saddled with sky-high monthly rates, it’s time to jump ship and save a few dollars by jumping headfirst into the world of streaming. You can even take this further and cancel cable while avoiding services like Netflix and Hulu. Free streaming content is everywhere these days and easier than you think to find!
20. Embrace the DIY Lifestyle
The following is an incomplete list of household things that cost money: Repairs, painting, furniture, decor, lighting. What do all of those things have in common? They are things that become surprisingly affordable if you embrace a do-it-yourself lifestyle! Why pay somebody else for a repair when you can do it yourself? Why pay a company for furniture when you can make it yourself? For countless Americans, considerable money is saved by converting their handyman skills into a full-on do-it-yourself lifestyle.
21. Cancel Your Gym Membership
Are you taking advantage of your pricey gym membership multiple times weekly, or do you keep telling yourself, “I’ll start going to the gym tomorrow?” If the latter is true, it’s time to cut your losses and consider canceling your gym membership. A money drain is a money drain no matter how you look at it, and if a gym is taking a chunk of money out of your account monthly, it makes financial sense to pull yourself out of that situation.
22. Make Money Via a Side Hustle
Although the neverending quest to save money on everyday expenses may seem daunting, one of the best options is to get a side hustle! There’s money to be made in countless ways. Here are a few: Neighborhood handyman work, freelance writing, copy editing, lawn care, selling your things on eBay; the list goes on and on. Having a supplemental income massively eases your financial burden!
23. Ask For a Raise
In life, it’s crucial to know your worth. If you’ve been working the same job for years without a raise, it’s time to ask for one or find another occupation. Ensuring that more money comes in every month is one of the savviest financial hacks available. Step one is to receive a raise (that’s the hard part). But then, almost like magic, your everyday expenses won’t be as unbearable as usual.
24. Turn Off the Lights
Keeping lights on uses electricity, and an average homeowner’s energy bill can creep up in price when you least expect it. It’s time to be more responsible with your home’s lighting; turn off the lights when you leave the room, people! At the very least, replace your old light bulbs around the house with energy-efficient LED bulbs. If you insist on keeping the lights on, you may as well save money while doing it.
