Everyone talks about saving money but not everyone is willing to spend the time and effort needed to reduce spending. Money-saving tips and tricks range from advice on how to use casino promotions to save at Uptown Pokies gaming.
If you’re willing to do the work, you can cut hundreds of dollars or even more from your yearly household budget on everything from repairs and energy to food and travel.
Some money-saving ideas include:
Savings Account
Savings accounts at banks are notoriously wasteful. The interest is minimal and the demands on how the bank can use your money put all the eggs in the bank’s basket. There are high-yield savings accounts that offer rates of 0.50% APY and more that are worth exploring. You can also research various pension plans as well as short-term certificates of deposit, Series I Bonds, S&P 500 index funds, value stock funds, dividend stock funds, short-term corporate bond funds and short-term government bond funds.
Cash
Train yourself to make cash purchases. A study by Avni Shah, Tanya L. Chartrand, Noah Eisenkraft and James R. Bettman and published in The Journal of Consumer Research demonstrated that by paying cash, we value what we buy more and feel more committed to it.
Other research has shown that if you pay in cash, you spend less. In addition, if you have larger bills ($50, $100) you’re less likely to spend it on frivolous or impulse purchases. Using cash makes it easier for you to create a budget and stick to it. You can more effectively track how you’re spending your money and watch your income as opposed to your spending.
Energy
There are dozens of things that you can do to save on energy costs without laying out a dime. Some are obvious and others less so.
Use natural light whenever possible and switch from incandescent bulbs to LED which use less electricity (and last longer). Regardless of the type of bulbs that you’re using, use the lowest possible wattage to keep electricity costs low. Keep the expenses of heating hot water down by taking shorter showers and not letting the hot water run while you’re shaving or brushing your teeth.
If you keep unused electronics unplugged you’ll eliminate standby power which can account for 10% of an average household’s annual electricity usage. Laptops use less electricity than do desktops so if you can manage with a laptop, do so. Get rid of old appliances like old TVs that may be energy-guzzlers and keep your heat low and your air conditioning off when you’re not home. Even when you are at home, every 2 degrees that you lower your thermostat saves you 5% on your heating bill.
Your washing machine will actually clean your clothes better, for less money, if you make a practice of running it only when you have full loads (much of the cleaning action comes from the agitation of the clothes within the machine so you don’t want to overload it either – but if it’s a full load, there’s more agitation). You can certainly get the clothes just as clean by using cold water washes and you’ll save money by not having the water heat up (unnecessarily).
Save water by installing filters on your taps including a filtered showerhead. Filters cut down water usage by 50% or more. As mentioned, don’t let the water run unnecessarily – while you’re brushing your teeth, washing the dishes, shaving, etc.
Use a toaster oven, microwave or crock-pot whenever possible instead of a full-sized oven. The smaller appliances take less than a fourth of the energy and do the job just as well as the oven. Using a slow cooker in the winter will add humidity and heat to a room if you keep the slow cooker filled with water and the temperature set to low – kudos if there’s actually something that you’re cooking which means that you’re saving even more money!
Travel
When you are traveling, don’t book upgrades – wait until you get to your destination and then ask if there’s a possibility for an upgrade. If there is a possibility you can get your upgrade without adding the money that you would have spent if you would have added it to your booking.
If you’re renting a car, skip the rental car insurance. Many major credit cards and private auto insurance policies have their own insurance policies, meaning that you’re already covered.
Online
In addition to the price differential on many items, shopping online offers its own opportunities for savings. To save when shopping online, subscribe to company newsletters and read them to find out which exclusive online shopping orders are waiting for you. Similarly, if you follow brands that you like on social media, you’ll be able to keep up-to-date regarding exclusive deals and promotions as well as give-aways and contests that are being featured. Signing up for rewards programs offers additional brand give-aways.
Before you make a purchase, search for the company’s promo codes. Sometimes the codes that are printed are out-of-date or were never applicable to begin with but often, it’s worth the effort to check them out. You can use the Honey extension to find these deals – Honey runs in the background of whatever site you’re perusing, activates when it detects a deal and automatically applies the best promo code to your purchase.
Big tip of online shopping experts: put an item in your cart and then just let it sit. If the company sees that you’re not acting on the purchase, they will often send you a discount coupon so that you’ll complete the purchase.
There are many ways for you to save money with little effort!
