Question by livin_my_oh_dream: Anyone have any good tips on how to save money when on a tight budget?
Best answer:
Answer by david scott m
see whats on sale
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
Anyone have any good tips on how to save money when on a tight budget?
Leave a comment
bargan shopping or comparison shopping
dont spend any money
stop buyibg things you don’t need
-no coffee
-no mags
-no outside food
and if you smoke/drink- don’t
Yeah. Have your savings direct deposited so you don’t see them in your check. Follow the ‘pay yourself first’ principle.
i started out really small saving all of my spare change and putting away 5 dollars a week. remember that every penny counts.
Walk more , Eat Less , Turn off master switch for any appliance to save electricity, DON’T GOT SHOPPING and think positive
Get a compact station car for most commuting and errands. You’ll save money on gas. Also, buy all your supplies and toiletries at the dollar store instead of the grocery store.
Don’t eat out, cut out coupons, plan out trips to the grocery store, don’t just “drive around”, limit the things/cut out completely things you buy that you don’t need – cds, games, magazines, etc.
Get rid of things that are not a neccessity and save, save, save. for example cut out cable t.v., starbucks coffee, nails and pedicure, video game and movie rental, fast food and restaurant dining, etc. a little bit saved here goes a long way.
The best way to save money is to STOP spending it, or spend less.
try Frugal Village :
http://www.frugalvillage.com/
buy clothes that are pretty but not brand name and are cheap, make homemade things such as hair spray(a few teaspoons of lemon/lime and water),cleaning product (vinegar, or water and baking soda), and other things like that.
Stop eating out for one. Bring lunch or whatever with you. If you are smoker…..start rolling your own cigarettes. This alone will save you so much money it is ridiculous! (E-mail me if you have any questions in that regard)
do not make same day buy/purchase decisions. leave your money in the bank…NOT in your pocket or handbag. No impulse spending… ever. Sleep on it (or think about) your needs. is it necessary or is it just some you want?
I’m in the same situation as you are. I recently bought a good book at Borders that I recommend. It is called Bonnie’s Household Budget Book. It’s in the business/financial section of Borders Book stores.It costs about $ 13. It has sheets that you can keep track of your expenses on and has tips(lots of them) on how to save on everything from cars to movies.
Other ways to save money are to shop at the cheapest grocery store in town, shop at W,al-mart, use coupons, buy generic brands of groceries and prescriptions, Go to the movies in the afternoon for matinee prices, and go on to Mapquest.com to find out the lowest gas prices in your area. I’m sure there are many other tips, but this should get you started!
You can save money if you can limit yourself to eat out, go to the movies, buy stuff what you don’t really need like more clothes, shoes, hats, or go on vacation.
from one penny pincher to another, this is what i do. and doing it like this i actually get my bills paid a month a head.
buy in bulk. u shop less often and save more money. have and use only the essentials. figure up what u need extra cash for like smokes, gas, etc.. and put back as much as u can from each pay day. whatever is left from each payday put in a jar. by end of the month u have extra cash and aren’t struggling as bad.
hope this works as well for u as it does for me
Clip those coupons for food savings. buy gas in the early morn in the winter cause gasoline condenses in the cold and ya get more for your dollar. Tire pressure, check at least once a week and more often if the weather temp. dropsdramatically as this will cause air pressure to change as well, low inflated tires get lousy gas milage. Turn down the thermostat and put on a sweater. If ya pay your own water bill, turn the water on low flow instead of wide open cause a lot of times the water meter won’t read . Water heater, turn it off while not at home, turn on to do dishes, turn off till morning, getting up a 1/2 hr early then turning it on for a shower will save you on gas/electric for that appliance
You don’t know me but I am going to save you $ 1,000 a month now for free. In 50 years this will be equivalent to around half a million dollars!!!
OK, here we go:
- Drive diesel car like VW Golf TDI 2002 (half the price on fuel because fule consumption is much better comapred to regular cars).
- Don’t eat outside at all! Learn to cook and eat home or take food with you when you leave home if needed. Food will actually be cleaner this way more healthy and much cheaper.
- Buy fruits and vegetable in the market like china town not grocery stores. you should not exceed $ 300 a month on food this way while still enjoy good variety and some treats from time to time like frozen blueberries with ice cream – super delicious (!) but still much much cheaper than desert in a restaurant.
- don’t buy anything you do not really need. don’t buy anything unless you planned to buy it when you left your home.
- limit yourself to no more than $ 3 a day “fun” spending outside, like coffee, pizza, etc. if you go to Mcdonalds for example do not take their “combo” etc. but rather just the sandwich ($ 1.5 double cheeseburger – now that’s a good deal!)
- use each razor to shave for half a year, just shave gently it will be fine, don’t replace them more often than every 6 months as you do not really have too.
- by at craigslist.com used stuff in great condition will cost you 1/4 of the regular price.
- excercise. yes, you will be healthier and have 0 expense on meidcine and doctors.
- minimize your expense on phone, mobile, cable tv and internet – find out the absolute best deal possible. it is worth spending a lot of time on these becasue each dollar you save a month you can multiple by 100 to get 10 years savings as they are constant monthly expenses not just one time.
- you did not mention your age but buy or rent a small 1 bedroom apartment or 1+den. do not marry a materilaistic woman or man that will expect a big house. it will kill you from within.
Now here is what’s most important advice:
spending much less is agreat start but if you want to achive true freedom and not work for someone but rather be your own boss and WORK WHEN YOU WANT TO WORK, then you have to invest (do not call it work, invest). Learn about passive income. read the book “rich dad poor dad” – a MUST read. consider investing in real estate to generate passive income. Good luck. and when you are rich, remember my email because yes, as you can see there are free meals!
If you mean savings account, put the money in first and then try to live off the rest. Other than that, get rid of all extras and shop carefully and only for necessities. Or go to school, get an education so you can get a better job. That will require a scholarship but then you will be so busy working and going to school, you will not have time to spend any money.
Make sure your budget is written. Put savings on the budget in the expense section. Treat it like a bill; you have to pay it no matter what.