People Share 50 Frugal Life Hacks That Made The Biggest Difference For Them

According to Sam, from Financial Samurai, a major way to save money is to take on a different perspective on entertaining oneself.

"Entertaining oneself for cheaper has never been cheaper today thanks to all the streaming options online. In the past, we'd have to pay $10 a ticket each to watch a movie, pay for gas, maybe parking, and some food. The total expenditure for two could easily range between $50–$100! Now, we can pay $5–$15 a month for unlimited shows from Apple TV+, Netflix, Disney, and more," the financial expert noted that entertainment now is already cheaper than the alternative.

"The pandemic has also taught us how to enjoy more of all the free things our cities have to offer. From public parks, to free museum weeks, to wonderful hikes in the mountains or on the beaches. You don't need to spend a lot at all to have a great time," he told Bored Panda.

"In fact, being able to enjoy all of my city's amenities for free was one of the biggest surprises of early retirement I didn't anticipate. While working, a lot of us believe we need a lot of money post work to be happy. It's just not true. Due to retirees having more time and freedom, retirees actually need much less money to be happy!"

Sam, the author of 'Buy This, Not That,' explained to Bored Panda that people adapt to new standards of living and circumstances reasonably quickly. Things quickly become the norm for us.

"We will adapt to new lifestyles and living standards within a month and no longer than three months. Hedonic adaptation works both ways. This is why it's important to save money until it hurts each month. If it hurts, it means you are pushing yourself to the limit," he noted.

"After about a month of living on your new lower budget, you will get used to it. Then you should try to increase your saving rate by 5% to feel the pain again. You will eventually adapt and feel just as good as when you didn't save as much," he said.

"However, over a 10-year period, you will end up accumulating way more money than you thought possible if you invest your savings. Here is a guide for how much I think you should save by age to keep you on track."

Some parts of the world are hit by economic uncertainty more than others. For instance, the energy crisis in the United Kingdom is getting pretty bad. Inflation in the country has reached over 10%, and CNN notes that various sources see it rising to as much as 13% and even 18% as natural gas prices remain elevated.

Regular Brits will be paying a lot more for their energy bills than last year. According to analysts, energy bills for households may rise by 80% in October, year on year. Some businesses are already struggling as well. For example, one pub, part of the Greene King chain, reported its energy costs having jumped by 33k pounds (just over 38k US dollars) per year.

Meanwhile, leading British retailer John Lewis Partnership, recently announced that it plans to feed 88k workers over the winter to help them manage the rising cost of living. They’ll be offering free food to all employees during work from October till the end of December. Someone working a single four-hour shift, for instance, will be eligible for one meal. Meanwhile, those working eight-hour shifts are eligible for two meals, CNN Business reports.

British writer Ariane Sherine recently told Bored Panda that the cost of living situation isn’t all that bad yet, but things are definitely going to get worse in October. "And then even worse in January as the energy price cap rises,” she said.

“It's going to affect so many people badly that it's quite terrifying—and so far the government have barely done anything to mitigate this.”

She added: “Everything costs 1.5x the amount in the shops, our energy bills are spiraling out of control, there's a shortage of home appliances and our new prime minister promises to be just as incompetent. So if you can move to, say, France or Germany or Canada instead, I'd strongly advise it!"

The German government just now unveiled a 65 billion euro (64.7 billion dollar) package to help households get through the winter and cope with soaring prices. This is the third such relief package in Germany this year, since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The former two packages totaled 30 billion euros (29.8 billion dollars).

Kitchen expert and incredibly talented pie artist Jessica Leigh Clark-Bojin recently shared her awesome advice for saving money when it comes to food-related costs. She told Bored Panda that cooperating with your family, friends, and neighbors to buy in bulk can help a lot. Freezing food that you bought at a discount also helps. As does reducing the amount of red meat that you eat. There are tons of options available to everyone. Though it does take a bit of thinking outside the box.

"Everyone is feeling the pinch the world over right now—so don’t go it alone! Team up with friends and relatives and develop your cost-cutting strategies together. Your purchasing power is greatly increased when you shop together and you can share tips and keep an eye out for deals together," she said.

"If you are looking to cut back on your family grocery budget, consider adding one or two extra meatless days to your existing schedule. Meat, especially red meat, just costs so much more to raise, process, and transport safely compared with alternate sources of protein. Unless you’re dealing with mystery-meat level fast food processed stuff, it’s never going to be able to compete on price," Jessica noted.

"Buying groceries items in large lots and splitting between multiple families is a great way to take advantage of bulk discounts when your own pay-check doesn’t permit you to go out and invest in 10 lbs of cheddar on your own. Bonus points if you have a friend who is able to buy from restaurant suppliers directly or is part of a co-op!"

As for freezing, it’s a very viable strategy, so long as you do things properly. "You can certainly freeze fruits, veggies, and meat to eat later without sacrificing nutritional value. Just make sure you read up on the correct way to do this to avoid spoilage and freezer burn."