49 ‘Poor Person Hacks’ So Practical They Deserve A Finance Award

Need boxes for moving or organizing? Don’t ever buy a cardboard box, EVER (unless you need really big ones, I guess). Go to your local liquor store and ask for boxes, they’ll happily give you as many as you’d like, and they’re pretty sturdy since they’re made to hold heavy objects.

Keep old things as a back up pair. Shoes, glasses etc. Often I wouldn't have money for new things if something broke, so if a pair shoes fell apart I would at least have a crappy pair until I could afford some new ones.

Library library library! My kids ravage through books. We easily save thousands a year using the library.

Parks and trails are free entertainment that make you healthier and less depressed the more you use them.

NEVER go to the grocery store hungry. Always go AFTER you eat.

A 20-50 pound bag of rice in your pantry will pick up a lot of slack in your diet when you’re poor… I’m not poor anymore, but I always have a ton of rice at home.

Rice and rice, rice and eggs, rice and ground meat, rice and a can of chili, etc. I wasn’t always eating good, but I was never hungry.

$5 costco whole chicken 1x week, top ramen, rice, beans and eggs. This got me through months of low income months. It was like $50-60 for a month of 2 meals/day.

Google the fix for something that is broken and if you think you can do it try, the amount of crooks in appliance repair is insane.

Shop thrift stores. And when that doesn't work shop tj Maxx, Ross etc. Can generally find quality without a huge cost.

Carry a reusable water bottle everywhere, don’t buy drinks out. Look for free days at museums and free passes for entertainment/education, like the zoo or symphony, from the library. Check into the health department for free vaccines, testing and other health care.

If it's already broken, there is no downside to trying to fix it yourself.

There are some exceptions, but for the most part, store brand is just as good or the same as name brand. In the case of kirkland, it might be superior.

Beans are a magical food. Even better if you make them yourself - buy a 1lb bag of dry beans for $1.25 and that is a good amount of protein and fiber.

“No dollar days” see how many days you can go without spending $1. Then try to beat your previous records.

Also $3/day = $1,000/year.

Help out your neighbors, without asking for payment, when they're in need and when you are able. 


I've been showered with free food, things, and acts of service from grateful neighbors.

I still use plastic grocery bags for my bathroom and office trash cans. .

Out of tooth paste? Cut the tube open and scrape it clean.

Freezing day-old bread. Keeping bread refrigerated. Always. Lasts forever.

Learning to love my crock pot and eating the same meal for an entire week. An amazing money saver, and I still do it because it was an ingrained habit for years.

If you are absolutely, for sure, going to overdraw and there’s nothing you can do to prevent it, go buy a grocery store gift card before the overdraw hits.

Now you have access to food and gas without having to get dinged for multiple overdraft fees before your next paycheck comes in.

Just make sure that the total overdraft (including the big bill plus the gift card) doesn’t exceed your maximum overdraft.

Better still is to not overdraft in the first place, but when you’re po’, s**t happens.

I stopped eating meat. Lentils, chickpeas, beans, other legumes, and nuts are insanely cheap. Meat is a splurge at this point even though we can definitely afford it.