Saving money can feel like an impossible goal. Everything is so expensive and temptation lies around every corner. The trick to saving money is simple…spend less than you have (easier said than done, of course). And these frugal tips will help you do just that so that less money is going out of your wallet each month.
1. Meal Planning Helps Frugal People Save Money
For many of us, our grocery bill is one of the largest expenses next to our rent or mortgage. That means the grocery store is a great place to look for money saving opportunities.
However, the grocery store is literally designed to get you to spend money…and the longer you’re in the store the more money you’re going to spend. So one of the best frugal living tips is to know what you need to purchase and to get in and out of the store as quickly as possible in order to save money on groceries.
That, my friends, means you need a specific grocery list that comes from a good meal plan. This allows you to get what you need without having to stroll up and down every aisle wondering what you need for the week.
So that time you spend planning out your weekly meals is time that saves you money…and possible major money…on your food bill.
2. Always Comparison Shop & Look At Unit Pricing
Just as it’s important to know what you need to purchase at the grocery store, it’s equally important to be knowledgeable about prices.
Here’s a little secret that frugal people know…grocery stores have one goal and that is to get as much money out of your wallet as they can.
And that means that you, my friend, must know what is a fair price and be able to spot a great deal when you find one. Getting sidetracked or bedazzled by things like pretty displays and great smells can end up costing you a lot of money.
To help you win the war of the wallets at the grocery store I advise that you keep a price book and that you always take your calculator to the store with you. That way when you see the display for hot dog buns (that are “on sale”), you can check your price book to determine if you’re getting a really good deal or if the display is simply designed to make you think you’re getting one.
Because, yes…there is a difference.
3. Paying Cash Discourages Overspending
Now I know that we all love to whip out our debit card and just pay for the groceries the easy way. But there’s something about knowing that you have a certain amount of money in your pocket and that you can’t spend any more than you’ve got. The best frugal tip I can think of is to never – ever – blindly shop without knowing what the final tally is going to be.
This forces you to really pay attention to every item you’re throwing in the cart and to pay attention to the prices. I’ve watched my daughter get out her calculator and determine how much each roll of toilet paper in a pack was going to cost (taking sheets per roll into account) because she only had so much money on her. She’s incorporated frugal living tips into her lifestyle and her bank accounts are benefiting (I’m so proud of her!)
This also prevents the sticker shock you frequently get when you get to the checkout. If you’ve had your calculator out and are keeping a running total of what you’re spending, you not only know what to expect for the final tally, you’re where you can put some things back if you decide that you don’t want to lay out that much cash.
There’s definitely something constraining about counting out real money that makes you reconsider what you’re buying.
4. Take Advantage Of Every Work & Store Perk You Can Get
Another way to save money is to take advantage of work perks that offer you “free money”. This means that if you’re employer offers any kind of money matching for savings, you’re smart to take them up on it.
Whether it’s matching the amount you put into a 401k or other retirement account, or whether they’ll do some kind of matching as you pay down student loans, anything you can take advantage of at your job that puts dollars into an account is a smart move on your part.
Choosing not to take an employer up on these programs is literally taking money out of your pocket.
Another smart frugal living tip is taking advantage of store loyalty programs.
I’m going to admit right here that I personally do not love those store loyalty cards. I kind of resent that I’ve had to fork over my phone number or email address in order to get the store’s best price. I always feel like I’m entitled to the lowest price whether I’ve given them personal information or not.
However, whether I like it or not, you can get some incredible deals when you use the store’s loyalty card. So in the name of frugality I give the information the request. I know good and well that the information is given to advertisers and that it helps the store track what kind of things I’m buying. But since I’m not buying anything I’m ashamed of (except for maybe too much Diet Sprite) I figure it’s a trade off that’s worth it.
However, I know people who absolutely refuse to give any information they don’t have to and I respect that. It boils down to what you’re comfortable with and the trade-offs you’re wiling to make to save some money and be frugal.
5.Minimize Your Wardrobe
Most of us probably have a lot more clothes than we really need. In fact, I’ve heard it said that most of us are wearing 20% of our clothes 80% of the time. That translates to a lot of unused clothes hanging on closet rods or folded in drawers that seldom see the light of day.
Now, I love clothes as much as the next person, but I have noticed that I tend to wear the same clothes (or at least the same type of clothes) day in and day out. As my lifestyle and life stage has changed I have less need for the wider variety of clothes that I needed when I was working full time away from home.
So these days I buy less clothes. Probably 90% of the time you’ll find me in a pair of black pants or a black skirt with a simple knit shirt. And I’ve narrowed my tops down to just three main colors: cobalt blue, turquoise, and fuchsia (plus a few black and white tops). Since I’ve done that I’m no longer shopping for tops in a rainbow of colors…which saves me money.
After all, once you look in your closet and realize you’ve already got five cobalt blue tops it’s harder to justify purchasing and bringing home another.
6. Have A “Cooling Off” Period Before Making Purchases
Impulse items can really wreck your budget and eat up any money that you might be saving on other items.
When you’re tempted by more expensive items it’s helpful to walk away and tell yourself that if you really, REALLY must have something, then you can wait at least 24 hours before making the purchase. You’ll find most of the time that once the waiting period has passed (and the initial euphoria with it) that you really don’t need the item after all.
But what about those impulse items that don’t cost much?
The items that cost less than $10 still have a way of adding up to be a chunk of change. And the insidious part is that we’re often telling ourselves that the small cost isn’t really a big deal.
And while it’s true that ONE tiny purchase might not be a big deal, several of those “tiny” purchases can add up to equal a larger purchase…and our definition of the word “tiny” tends to get a little bigger each time we give in.
It all adds up to money going out of your bank account for things that likely you won’t even remember at the end of the month.
I’ve found this motto to be helpful...if it’s not on the list, it doesn’t exist.
This is an especially good rule to follow when it comes to unplanned purchases. So if something wasn’t on your shopping list, don’t put it in the cart.
7. Move Money To Savings BEFORE You Start Paying Bills
Frugal people know that out of sight, out of mind is the best financial strategy. Because if you wait to put money into your savings account after you’ve paid everything for the month, it’s amazing how there often is nothing left.
If you’ve got the option to have a set amount of money moved from your checking account to a savings account automatically, you’ll never even realize the money was there. This is the best way to start building an emergency fund or growing that savings without having to feel like you’ve sacrificed.
Just put it on autopilot…you don’t miss what you never see.
8. Take Lunches To Work And/Or School
Yes, I know it’s fun to go out to eat. But have you ever sat down and done the math to figure out how much money you’re spending?
Let’s just go through a very simple – and cheap – example, shall we?
Let’s say you spend only $5 per day eating out (and that really is cheap…like fast food cheap, which we know you’re probably not doing every day). $5 a day x 5 days per week = $25. $25 x 4 weeks per month = $100 x 12 months = $1200.
And that’s with an example of eating the cheapest thing you can find at the cheapest places. Realistically, you could easily double this amount estimated and still be underestimating what you’re spending if you eat out every day.
Instead, packing a lunch from home is so much cheaper! If you’ve got some leftovers from dinner, take them to work the next day. Making a launch from sandwiches or other other home items is so much cheaper and will help you save money. And there’s nothing that says you and a couple of co-workers can’t enjoy lunch together in the park or someplace other than the break room at work.
In fact, I used to have a colleague who purposely cooked extra every evening so that she and her hubby both had their lunches ready to take to work the next day. She was saving money (and time) and everyone in the teacher’s lounge drooled when she’d heat up her leftovers.
After all, it’s really the company that makes going out fun, right? You can still enjoy the company of other people without having to break the bank to do it.
9. Eat At Home!
Likewise, when you get home from work at the end of the day, often the last thing anyone wants to do is start cooking dinner. This is when we often default to take out or delivery…which always cost more than a home cooked meal.
So in order to prevent the “I’m tired and can’t face cooking” problem, a bit of advance planning goes a long way.
Meal planning so that the decision of what to make is already made prevents much of the “I’m too tired to cook” syndrome.
Advance planning also allows you do put some meals in the freezer for those nights when you don’t want to start cooking from scratch. One of the easiest ways to put extra meals into the freezer is to double up when you cook. It’s just about as easy to make a double recipe of spaghetti or lasagna when you’re already cooking, and you’ll be glad to pull it out on nights when you’re too exhausted to cook.
Another strategy I’ve used is Once A Month Cooking. This is where you plan out meals with several main types of meat and do one large cooking session to put the meals in the freezer. This does take some work and requires a real time commitment. It makes for a long cooking day but once you’re done you’ve got meals in the freezer to last the rest of the month while you coast along in the evenings.
Honestly, I always tended to split my Once A Month into Twice A Month so that it wasn’t such an ordeal. I’d spend one Saturday cooking recipes with hamburger and other beef cuts. The other Saturday would be devoted to cooking and freezing chicken recipes.
It got the job done but was less exhausting.
Once you’ve done the cooking and freezing, all you have to do is thaw and cook. Easy peazy.
10. Don’t Carry Your Credit Card With You
It’s so easy to whip out that credit card, isn’t it?
And since that ease is so hard on our ability to save money, it makes sense that anything that makes it harder to whip out the credit card would be a good thing, right?
So let’s do it…let’s make it much harder to get to that credit card in the first place.
Leaving your card at home is a good start. But since many of us have thoroughly embraced online shopping, simply having the card at home often isn’t going far enough.
Perhaps having your credit card stuck in a lock box where it’s harder to physically get to is an option. Or freezing it in a glass of water so that you’ve got to let the ice thaw in order to get to it.
And don’t cheat, either! No memorizing the card number and then hiding the card. That won’t help your bank account either.
11. Set A Specific Goal Of Something You’re Saving For
Often the best way to save money is to have something specific that we’re saving up for.
I find that when we put our savings goal into concrete terms it helps. Nebulous goals are too easily pushed aside, but specifics are motivating.
For example, we’re saving to purchase a new refrigerator. Or we’re saving $2000 to put into our retirement account. But setting a specific amount for a specific purpose helps us stay on track when we’re tempted.
Whether this is a major purchase of some kind or a luxury we’ve been coveting, having a specific financial goal encourages us to save money because every time we start to spend, we’re reminded that we’re postponing something else.
One method that motivates me is a visual reminder. In my financial planner I’ve got a savings chart that you can print out and put on your refrigerator on in your planner or wherever you’ll see it to help keep you motivated.
Implementing Frugal Tips Is Worth The Effort
It’s not impossible to save money. But it’s not super easy either. It requires some planning on your part and implementing every frugal tip and money saving strategy you can find. But the payoff is definitely worth it when you find yourself with a savings account that is growing or a bank balance that hasn’t run out before you get to the end of the month.
I help older women get past their fear and mindset issues so they can create a plan to pursue their goals and dreams.