Inflation has been up 8%–30% in the post-pandemic world (depending on the country). All the money printing has got to have some effects on our economy. This is why more and more people are looking for ways to live more frugally and to save more money.
This article is going to cover 18 frugal living tips you should definitely give it a try today!
Table of Contents
What does it mean to be frugal?
Frugality is the idea of living simply, using less money, not living extravagantly, and being prudent with spending.
In a world where everyone throws out half-used items while obtaining more, many have thought up the idea to live more simply. Being frugal can create less of a burden on the environment while helping you save money.
When you don’t need something, don’t get it. You don’t need a lot of stuff to be happy. This is the central idea of being frugal.
1. Bring snacks with you when you’re out
This will prevent you from eating out. Eating out is one of the easiest ways to rack up a large bill.
If you bring a snack with you, you won’t give in to your temptation as much. You can get a box of granola bars for $2. Make sure you get the kind that you like even if it has a bit more calories because you’ll feel more satisfied with it and less likely to order from a vendor or a restaurant when you’re out.
2. Don’t get a pet
I know some of you grew up with a pet and think having a pet is a basic necessity of everyday life. It’s not. Having a pet is a privilege that not everyone can afford. If you want to live frugally, don’t get a pet. A pet can rack up a lot of bills. Not to mention how much you’d be spending if they ever get sick. Many pet owners don’t have pet insurance and once their pet becomes sick, they realized they have to give up their pet for adoption as they can’t pay the $2000 in vet bill. If you have a pet, you might want to consider getting pet insurance.
3. Don’t use a dryer to dry your clothes
Washing and drying clothes using the washer and dryer is actually bad for the environment. People don’t realize how much energy it takes and the extent of damage from the waste that it creates— all of which could end up in the streams polluting the sea.
Using a drying rack like this one, instead of a dryer could help save you money on electricity bills as well as reduce your environmental footprint.
4. Use Honey to save on purchases
Honey can be installed as a free extension on your browser. It’ll scour the web for coupons so when you buy something, it can save you money. It’ll also tell you the price history of items on Amazon so you can decide whether it’s a good deal.
You can add items to the droplist watchlist so you’ll be notified when the price drops.
If you don’t like paying full price for something, use Honey. I mean why won’t you want to know whether there’s a discount on something you are planning to buy? Honey works fast and is super convenient. I’ve been using Honey for years and it saved me a lot of money.
Click here for Honey.
5. Buy second-hand items
There are certain things that you shouldn’t buy used: mattress, shoes, underwear, etc just to name a few.
Things that you can buy used, however, include tables, chairs, lamps, dressers, fans, shelves, books, paintings, decorations, microwaves, clothes, etc.
You can always go check out your local thrift store for items that you might have bought elsewhere. Sometimes you’ll find brand new items selling for much cheaper.
6. Don’t pay for more than one streaming service
Many of you are paying for more than one streaming service, you’re just wasting your money. You won’t have that much time to watch it all anyway.
Cancel all others except one and once you’re done watching all the shows you want to watch with that streaming service, you can cancel it and sign up for another.
The funny thing is that many only watch the same show again and again. They could’ve bought all the seasons on DVD multiple times over with all the money that they spent watching “Friends” over and over again throughout the years.
Currently, I’m not paying for any streaming service. There is a lot of free educational content on YouTube. More than enough for me to watch while I eat meals. Depending on the type of videos you like to watch, YouTube may be enough for you. In which case, don’t pay for a streaming service. That $11/month adds up to an astronomical amount over the years.
7. Don’t install shopping apps on your phone
A lot of you ladies out there have shopping apps on your phone. Apps like (cough) Shein. I’m guilty of it. You can collect points that can be redeemed for discounts when you check in every day. You think you’re only collecting points and you aren’t there to shop? Think again.
Apps like Shein are designed so that you’ll have to get through many pages with many products out in the open for you to see until you can get to the check-in page. By then, something may have caught your eyes. Sure, you may not buy it right away but it’ll simmer in your mind until you decide to redeem your point to purchase the item. I mean it’s $3 off on a $15 item so why not? Then, it tells you that buying another $15 will give you free shipping.
Before you know it, you just spent an extra $50/month that you otherwise wouldn’t have.
You aren’t saving money at all with that daily check-in. In fact, it’s taking money out of your wallet!
Uninstall shopping apps on your phone. Only install it when you have to buy something. Un-bookmark it on your laptop as well.
8. Buy newer cars instead of older cars
Now hear me out. I’m not telling you to get the latest model of the car you want. I’m saying sometimes older cars can end up costing you more money down the road even if you get it second-hand and paid thousands less for it.
A ten-year-old car could rack up more bills in the maintenance category every year than a five-year-old car. Even if you do pay $3000 less for it, you may still end up paying for the same amount if not more once you take into account how much money you have to spend on maintaining it. And all that time that you wasted taking your car to the mechanic, waiting for the car to be fixed, creates time loss that you can’t get back.
A lot of people buy older cars thinking it’ll save them money only to realize how much more they’d have to pay for the car insurance each month. Car insurance companies do take into account the age of your car.
Certain older car models that don’t have an anti-theft system are easier to steal thus, for this reason, you may have to pay more in car insurance. Older cars lacking certain safety features may also incur a higher car insurance fee.
The best car to get is a car at 5 years old. It’s relatively new that it may not require as much maintenance compared to a 10-year-old car. It’s got some of the latest safety and anti-theft features which are good for you and your wallet. And, it’s not so new that it depreciate in price as fast as a brand new car.
9. Get a Costco membership
Side note: you can share a Costco membership with a few of your friends and family members. This drives down the price you have to pay although it may not be the most ethical thing.
Buying in bulk can save you a lot of money. If you know you’ll always need peanut butter, get it at Costco in bulk to save money.
Costco also has chicken that they sell at a loss to drive their customers into its doors.
When you go to Costco, have a shopping list in mind so you don’t get sucked into their strategic product placement and end up buying something you don’t need. You’ll get the chicken, peanut butter, milk, and noodles. This way, you can save money, stay on budget, and get a super cheap delicious chicken for dinner!
10. Wait a week before getting something you want
Not everything we want to buy is something we need. A lot of times we buy something and quickly grow bored of it within a few days. This is why we need to give it some time before deciding whether we should get something.
I typically wait two weeks to two months before I get something I want but don’t need.
You should give it at least 2 days to a week before you buy the thing you think you want so much right now but could completely forget 2 days after receiving it.
11. Think about how many boxes you need when you move
Depending on how big your home is and how much stuff you have your answer could be, “Well, maybe 10 boxes. I need a box for kitchen gadgets, a box for livingroom decorations…” or, you’ll say something like, “Geeze, I don’t know. Maybe somewhere between 50–100?”
Thinking about you physically moving all the stuff you moved into your home will deter you from buying things you don’t need.
An average American changes house every 4 years. That’s a lot of moving!
When I was at college, I had to move every year and I’ve since been so sick of moving that I make sure I only buy the things I need. Nothing more.
12. Donate the stuff you don’t need
There are a lot of less fortunate people out there who don’t have enough clothes to wear or enough things to use. You can donate the clothes you no longer wear and the stuff you no longer use.
This can be a way for you to clean up your home and start over, this time with frugality in mind.
13. Decide on the daily products you use and stick to it
How many of you have more than one shampoo in the shower? Or more than one tube of moisturizer on the counter? How about more than one type of painkiller in the cupboard?
You don’t need that many tubes of the same skincare product or that many shampoos that all do the same job although smell different.
You don’t have to throw out that half-used bottles now. Finish using it and make sure you don’t get two of the same thing next time you’re at the store.
14. Check to see if you left anything when you leave a place
I used to be very forgetful and when I leave a place, I’d leave some of my personal belongings behind and I had to get it replaced many times. Thankfully, none of what I left behind are too costly.
When you leave a place, be it your seat at a coffee shop, the subway, the bathroom, etc, check the surface of the table, bottom of the chair, top of the counter, to make sure you aren’t leaving anything behind.
It can be costly and time-consuming to have to get replacements.
15. Use it until the last drop
This can be toothpaste, shampoo, soap, ketchup, you name it. Use it until the last drop. Cut open the toothpaste tube if you have to. It may save you another 3 days of teeth brushing.
I like to add some warm-hot water into the chocolate jar and then drink the chocolate-flavored water to make sure I get every last drop. You’ll notice how much more you can get out of a seemingly empty bottle.
16. Thinly peel certain vegetables when cooking
I know not everyone likes to eat the peels on certain vegetables and there are some vegetables that you must peel if you want to cook them thoroughly. I’m not saying you should keep the peels on, I’m saying thinly peel the vegetables.
I see a lot of people cutting potatoes peels with a knife. They would leave so much flesh on the skin that it could’ve been made into a separate meal.
You’ll realize how much potato flesh you can get out of an unpeeled potato when you peel it thinly. The same logic applies to other types of vegetables. Don’t go overbored with the peeling.
17. Don’t throw out the chicken soup
This example is quite specific. I do see a lot of people throwing out a perfectly good chicken soup because they aren’t making chicken soup that day. They just want to boil the chicken and eat the chicken.
Just because the recipe doesn’t call for a chicken soup, doesn’t mean you can’t save it for another day.
This is also true for all other kinds of cooking leftovers. Don’t throw out the juice from a meal, save it to add to your next meal. You may discover how much flavor these throwaway foods actually contain.
Afterthought
There are certainly many ways you can save money by living frugally. I hope these frugal tips can help you save some money and help you live more frugally.
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