Saving up money might seem easy in theory, but in practice, whenever you put aside a certain amount of money, all sorts of expenses tend to start coming your way. Be it the car making weird, expensive-sounding noises, the landlord increasing the rent, or the rising prices mercilessly serving hits to your wallet one after the other—there’s always something to spend money on.
That’s why it might be a good idea to always try to be frugal with money and save some for a rainy day. Redditors recently discussed tips for staying frugal after user ‘Rei_Slade’ shared their hopes of finding information that would be a game changer in the new year. Netizens covered everything from meal prepping to doing all your shopping in one designated day a week, and more, so scroll down to find their advice below and see if you can find something that might work for you, too.
#21
Reminder to call your Cable & Cellular provider to make sure you’re on the Best plan for your Budget.
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22points
#22
Really just live within your means.
Just $5 a day is $1,800 a year. S**t adds up real fast.
I cook nearly anything I eat and rarely eat out. Anything frozen I eat was probably on sale like lottza mottza pizzas or whatever are sometimes 2 for $10 or $12. Usually they’re $8-12 on their own.
I cook almost all my meals and have absolutely no issue eating the same thing 3 days in a row every meal if I cook a larger amount. I usually don’t break $5 a serving unless it’s nice steak or something.
Also a decent amount of the food I buy is because it’s on sale. Meat is so often on sale I’ll buy and and just freeze it. I usually have about 1 months worth of meat in the freezer and I’ll just largely focus on that till it’s gone.
As much as spending $20 on take out every dinner on a variety of foods would be nice and I could afford it, I prefer having a tuna steak and steamed Brussels sprouts for dinner for like $5 instead
21points
#23
I’m learning how to do diy. You can learn almost anything on YouTube.
My husband just installed two new plugs in our house. This would have cost thousands.
I just remortared our patio so that it looks like new.
Its so satisfying to see your hard work!
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21points
#24
Learn to repair or repurpose your clothing. I'm learning to patch jeans and free tshirts are sleep shirts then get turned into blankets when they're worn out.
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20points
#25
Get a rice cooker. Get a slow cooker or pressure cooker. They will stop you from eating out purely because of their convenience
19points
#26
my biggest frugal "tip" is to learn to do with less. i know for me, it was so easy to grow accustomed to more and more things that aren't necessarty. frugal is a mindset and it starts with changing one's perspective.
18points
#27
1. Cut down my phone bill from 30$ to 15$ since we have wifi at work
2. Bought some coffee beans, kettle, grinder to use with my french press - reduce outside coffee consumption
3. Meal prep to the best of my abilities
4. Maintain my health- being sick is expensive
5. Eat out only once a week
6. Use credit card points when traveling
7. Really use up my face stuff before buying new ones
2. Bought some coffee beans, kettle, grinder to use with my french press - reduce outside coffee consumption
3. Meal prep to the best of my abilities
4. Maintain my health- being sick is expensive
5. Eat out only once a week
6. Use credit card points when traveling
7. Really use up my face stuff before buying new ones
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16points
#28
Join a local Buy Nothing group. Give and receive!
Explore your local library's website: there are likely many resources you never knew they offered.
Learn how to do tasks yourself and only hire out tasks you really can't do (I can't climb the ladder up to the roof so I got help).
You might have more stuff than you realize. One lent season, I gave up buying anything unless I was actually out of the product or food. This freaked people out when I mentioned it. Yes, I could buy fresh food as needed. I initially thought I would run out of lotion sometime during lent. Oh I was so wrong. It was nearly a year before I had used up all of the various lotions in my apartment. I also journaled about my thoughts on money, shopping, and buying things. At the time, I did this challenge because a friend had commented on how much time I spent shopping. I hadn't realized how much time I spent looking at stuff. I found this to be an incredibly healing and liberating practice.
Focus on your goals rather than what sales people and companies are trying to get you to focus on. You will be less distractible than if you let them tell you what you need.
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16points
#29
1. Eating cheap isn’t cheap. I only buy fresh fruits, veggies, and meat from upscale grocers for this reason.
2. Time is the most valuable resource you have. When I was growing up, my dad would spend hours clipping coupons and driving around to different stores to try to save a few bucks. When he was on his deathbed, he said he wished he would have spent all that time with his family instead.
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15points
#30
Have a graduate to celebrate this spring? Wait til after NYD and buy all the 2024 plates and party decor while it’s stupid cheap and hold on to it until the party in May
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11points
