There are many little purchases people make each day that can either be eliminated or reduced. However, many people tend to avoid making the little changes when it comes to cutting costs because they view small changes as too insignificant to really make a difference in their overall financial picture. The truth is, every little bit helps and can add up to a whole lot of savings.
Here are my top 10 little ways to save money every day.
Only Buy On Sale- Whether you are at the grocery store or your favorite clothing store, only buy the items that are on sale. Love The Gap? Skip the overpriced clothes in the front and head to the back of the store where everything is on sale AND is just as cute as the clothes in the front of the store. Shop at Albertsons and love sourdough bread? Buy brand that is on sale. Don’t ever pay full price for anything, regardless of where you are shopping.
Skip Your Morning Coffee Run- Instead of hitting up Starbucks or The Coffee Bean on your way to work, opt to make coffee at home before heading out the door OR wait until you get to the office and take advantage of the coffee machine in the break room. By cutting out your daily morning trip to the coffee shop, you can save at least a few bucks each day, resulting in hundreds of dollars in savings each year.
Make Your Lunch Instead of Buying It- When lunch hour rolls around, many people go buy their lunch. While you may think this is saving you time, it’s not. It takes the same if not more time to wait for someone else to make your food as it does for you to make your food before you head to work in the morning. Buying your lunch doesn’t save you time and it definitely doesn’t save you money. Before you head out the door to work in the morning, make your lunch.
Rent Instead of Going to the Theater- No movie is ever important enough that you absolutely must go see it while it is in theaters. Wait until movies come out on DVD, and then rent them. Yes, this might put you a little behind in regards to keeping up with trends, but it will put you ahead of everyone else in regards to your finances.
Don’t Throw Away Yesterday’s Leftovers- If given a choice between eating leftovers and eating fresh food, most people will choose eating fresh food. However, by eating all your leftovers before you start in on a new meal, you will never let food go to waste (which is the equivalent of throwing money in the garbage) and you will have to cook less. For example, say you have half a sandwich left from last night’s dinner. Eat it for lunch the next day. That’s one less meal you have to spend money on and prepare!
Carpool- If you and a neighbor are going to the same store on the same day or work in the same neighborhood, carpool! You can drive one week and your neighbor can drive the next week. By doing this, you will cut your gas bill in half.
If You Must Eat Out- take advantage of happy hour specials. Yes, you might have to eat dinner a little earlier, but if it saves you $20 on your meal, it is worth it.
Don’t Buy, Swap Instead- If there is a book you want to read or movie you want to see and you have a friend who owns it, offer to do a swap with them by letting them borrow a book or movie of yours. This way you can save on rental fees or the cost of buying a new book (or a used one).
At Fast Food Restaurants- If you go inside to eat and order a drink, DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES order a large drink if the soda fountain is self serve. Order the smallest drink option possible, then refill as much as you want. Trust me, the extra $1.00 for a large is not worth not having to get up halfway through your meal to refill your drink. If you eat at a fast food place once a week and implement this strategy for a year, you may only save $52, but that’s about one week of groceries. Every little bit adds up.
If You Aren’t Using It, Turn It Off- Whether it is a light in the next room or the TV, when these are on they use electricity. Electricity costs money. If you aren’t using whatever is on, turn it off and reduce your electric bill.
By doing these small things, you can save hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars each year. There is no reason not to implement at least one or two of these into your daily routine. After a couple months, see how much you have saved. Guaranteed, these little money saving changes will have been so simple to implement that you will want to keep utilizing them in order to continue watching your savings add up.
Have any more tips not listed here? Share them in the comment section!
