There comes a time in everyone's life when they realize that they need to save money for something. Whether it be a new car, house, etc. And since money doesn't grow on trees, like my mom use to say, I would suspect that the best place to obtain or save money would be to first look into your own finances. So lets state the obvious. You need to at least have some type of income before you can start to save money. Spending money is easy, it's saving money that's hard work. If you're ready to start making some changes and sacrifices in your life, then you're already one step closer to reaching your goals.
So let's get to it.
1. Analyze your income and spending for each month.
Write down all of your spending for the month and organize each item into categories. Decide what you absolutely need and what you don't need. Sometimes it takes writing things down and seeing them on paper to really understand what you're actually spending your money on. This action helps you recognize purchases that were really unnecessary and track your spending each week and analyze what you're spending. This will help you figure out where you need to cut back. Look through you're bank statements, credit card statements and start saving your receipts so that you can analyze your spending in the best way possible.
2. Cut cable.
Due to the modern age of technology, we don't have to depend on cable anymore for entertainment. There are so many other companies out there that offer monthly services for a fraction of the price. Most people who use cable, hardly utilize all the channels anyway. Many people have dedicated shows they like to watch, sports channels, movie channels, etc and really only have the cable for those particular viewings. Research companies that offer the same shows or sports channels you love to watch. Examples of these companies are Hulu, Yippee, Amazon Prime, PureFlix, Netflix, (which I don't support anymore), Disney, and many more. You can use these apps through a firestick, XBOX, and most smart TVs. However, most of these services do require wifi service so you will need to have that. You can also share subscriptions with friends. For example, let's say you have a subscription through Hulu and your friend has a Disney subscription for their children, you can swap logins so that you can share those services. Another thing you can do is watch YouTube. There are plenty of great channels on this platform that are entertaining. Just be sure to place parental controls on for your children if they will be utilizing these apps or services. If you decide to purchase a subscription of some sort, find out if they have a yearly subscription available. Sometimes the yearly subscription is overall cheaper and saves you money in the long run. Many of these companies also offer a FREE 30 Day Trial so that you can make sure that you really enjoy the services before you move forward with purchasing them. Which leads me to the next tip.
3. Cut Subscriptions you are not utilizing.
Raise your hand if you've been guilty of signing up for a FREE monthly subscription and forgetting to cancel? I have two words for you. DON'T FORGET!!! Write it down and post it somewhere. Add an alarm to your google calendar. Do whatever it takes to make sure YOU DON'T FORGET. If you're not paying attention to your finances this can easily become unnoticed and it can add up. If you're living on a tight budget, some of those subscriptions can even cause you to overdraft your account.
4. Utilize Shopping Rewards
There are free phone apps out there like Fetch, Rakutten, Ibotta, etc that can earn you cash or gift cards from everyday shopping. You can read about some of these apps here. I'm not exactly sure how these apps use the information from your shopping experiences, but they are legit and can help with savings. Whatever you earn from these services will help cut back on you spending your own money, therefore increasing your savings potential. These are also not quick ways to make money. These are just ways to earn cash while purchasing your everyday items. You may earn only one to two gift cards a year, but a penny saved is a penny earned.
5. Use Prepaid Phone Services
Many prepaid phone companies offer newer phones at a cheaper monthly rate. My husband and I never thought twice about prepaid phones until just a couple of years ago. We always kind of looked at them as a NOT-SO-GOOD- SERVICE option. But...it wasn't until we canceled our commitments with phone companies that we really saw the benefits of these services. These prepaid service phones use the same towers as the larger companies but with the benefit of not having to pay all of the service fees.
6. Shop Clearance.
This is a great habit to get into. Whenever you plan to shop, whether it is online or in-store, get in the habit of checking out the clearance sections EVERYTIME. You can find some great deals! You can find toys for birthdays, clothes, and even items for holidays such as Christmas. Believe it or not, this is where we get most of our items. Buy things when you see them on clearance and have a stash place for them in your home. Then when birthdays come around you have these items to use or gift away. SHOP CLEARANCE FIRST! Which points me toward the next item on my list and that's to
7. Buy clothes out of season.
If there is any way you can save money, it's here. We all need clothes and these items can be really expensive. If you're a person who loves name brands then this is definitely the best time for you to buy. When you buy clothes out of season, you find the best deals. Stores are looking for ways to bring their new merchandise in and find that significantly reducing the price of there previous seasons' clothes, they can easily get there newer stuff on the shelves faster. The only downside to doing this is that you need a place to store these extra clothes. You can always buy bags or tubs to store them in and place them in places like your attic, shed or garage, if you have one. If you have minimal space, buy storage bags with vacuum seals and place them under your beds, in closets, whatever crevice you can find.
8. Shop at Thrift Stores.
Thrift stores and consignment shops can have some really good deals. It really depends on the location of the store and the time you go to it. Sometimes you find nothing at these places and than other times you find great deals. It really just depends. Sometimes you find brand new items with the tags still attached to them.
9. Utilize coupons.
There are coupons for everything these days. From fast food, dining out, activities, services, etc. Search for coupons before you go out to dinner or take the kids out for activities. Most places these days have coupons. Some stores have apps to where you can just scan the item in the store and it will give you the option to clip a coupon electronically. There is an app that we use just about every Saturday and if you spend twenty-five you get five dollars off your purchase. Buy things that you need and would use regardless like toilet paper, paper towels, laundry detergent, soap, etc.
10. Plan out ALL Meals before grocery shopping.
This is extremely important and really should be at the top of my list. If you go to the grocery store without a list and a plan, you will SPEND MORE MONEY. Which defeats the whole purpose of what we're trying to do here. Another tip is to never go to the grocery store hungry. You will spend much more than you anticipated.
11. Take Notes when shopping.
Take mental note of the items that you buy when it comes to bulk buying. This may sound surprising but sometimes it's just cheaper to buy things individually. Look at the amount you're buying in comparison to the price. Pay attention to the different meals you are seeing in the frozen section. Could you make the exact same thing from home for cheaper? Maybe do some batch cooking and make several freezer meals? Write down these items or snap pictures of them on your phone as a reminder for when you do your meal planning.
12. Learn how to do things yourself.
This is huge!!! You tube is fantastic when it comes to this concept. We have learned how to do so many things just by watching other people. EX car maintenance, hair cuts, building furniture, fixing things around the house, etc. Utilize this resource as much as possible. You can also read books on the things you're trying to learn or ask a friend or family member to teach you.
13. Shop online.
If you're a person who impulse buys, try shopping online to avoid those temptations when in the store. You can do this with groceries, especially if you have lots of kids. However, if you do need to shop in the store with your little ones, here are some tips to help you get through. Shopping online has its perks because you can get coupons online and it saves you so much time!
14. Make your own stuff.
If you're someone who has the extra time to invest in this its definitely worthwhile. This could be anything from seasonal decorations, curtains, laundry detergent, cleaners, home care products, etc. This is SUPER EASY and can save you a ton of money if you have the time.
When you're trying to save money in any situation, its best to figure out what's going to work for you. If you don't have a lot of free time, than some of these options may not work for you. Either way, I hope some of these tips were helpful and I hope you find ways to save money! Thanks for reading!
