Easy Frugal Living Tips with a Big Impact
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As a long time frugal stay at home mom, I have a lot to say about saving money. I guess I get it honestly, my grandma and mom were frugal too. Even though I am frugal, I don’t like to do things that are not enjoyable and/or take up too much time. In other words, I like to make saving money fun!
For me personally, I don’t want to change tires on my car to save money. I would rather find bargains online or find ways to watch things that I like without spending money on cable.
These frugal living tips that I am sharing will make a big impact on your budget. They are things that will save you hundreds or thousands of dollars each year.
Consider this post the ultimate guide to frugal living for beginners. Like I mentioned earlier, these ideas are not hard to implement. Beginners will find that these tips make a big impact on their spending, without being complicated.
Here are 20 thrifty tips and tricks to show you how to live cheap, but still enjoy your life!
1. Shop Online
It might seem like shopping is spending money rather than saving it! But, I like to make it a game and see how much I can save on items I need anyway. Then, I can use a little of my saved money for something I want!
I like to go to Ebates or TopCashBack first. Then I type the store I want in the search bar. Once I do this I can push the “Cashback” or “Shop Now” button. Because I do it that way instead of going straight to the store, I end up getting a percentage back from my purchases. I love receiving these checks in the mail! It is like free money because I was going to have to buy the items anyway.
If you have never used Ebates you can get $10 right away! Click here to get your $10 from Ebates. If you have never used TopCashback before, you can sign up here. (TopCashBack gives great cashback for Vitacost!)
One of the stores that helps me to save on items I need is Walmart. They have some really good prices on salmon, rice, and some other staples in our house. Here are some items I buy from Walmart that save me some major money:
- Wild Alaskan Salmon is usually around $4.00 a can. That can make some really cheap and quick dinners!
- Jasmine rice is a steal at only $15 for 20 pounds! That means you can have a side dish for 4 people for around 50 cents!
- The Great Value canned peaches were an awesome price last time I ordered. They were $1.64 for 29 oz.
- Walmart has organic extra virgin coconut oil in 54 oz containers for under $15.00. That is a great price for a very healthy oil.
Walmart has free 2 day shipping on many items if you order at least $35. Don’t forget to go through a cashback site to save even more.
Another place that I love to save money is Ebay. They have some great deals on items that I buy a lot. I recently ordered dishwashing gloves from Ebay and saved a lot! Ebay also has great prices on printer ink-it is so much cheaper than the store!
Related: Cheap Things to Buy on Ebay
2. Eat Out Less and Save A LOT
Even if you simply eat out 1x less a week, you could probably save around $40-$100 a month. Because it is super cheap to eat food that is cooked at home.
If you are short on time, you can cook something simple that can be doubled or even tripled (like spaghetti). Then you can reheat the leftovers and have a meal that is even quicker than takeout!
3. buy the Cheapest Healthiest Foods
I spend a lot less on groceries than most people by regularly buying the cheapest healthiest foods that I can. Then, I make meals that incorporate those cheap foods. I can usually make a meal for my family for around $5-$6.
Of course, buying healthy food also helps us to stay healthy which saves a whole lot of time and money!
4. Stock Up on Meat When You See a Sale
This is one of my favorite frugal living tip with a big impact on our family budget-I stock up on meat when I see a great sale. When my favorite healthy chicken goes on sale, I buy a lot and freeze it.
I use gallon size freezer bags and freeze portions that are big enough to feed us between 2-4 times. That way I can cook once and have meat available in the fridge to make other meals. (For example, use leftover chicken to make yummy chicken fried rice.) If you do this you will be eating the same meals you love, but saving hundreds a month!
5. Buy Cheap Produce
You can buy fruit cheaply with a few different methods. Check out my post about how to buy really cheap fruit-you will be amazed how much less you can spend on fruit!
As far as vegetables, you can buy them in season. That will save quite a bit. You can also just buy vegetables that are always cheaper-I list the cheapest ones in this post.
6. Shop at Aldi
One of my favorite thrifty tips and tricks is to shop at Aldi. Aldi has some really great deals! Coconut oil is a great price there. They have grass fed beef for the best price I have seen anywhere. Ditto for eggs and snacks like healthy chips.
7. Eat Cheap Snacks
Snacks can get expensive fast. Some snacks are way more expensive than meals! There are a couple of ways to make your snacks cost less. One is to make your own-we make popcorn a lot and it is so cheap! It is also very easy to make.
Katie from Kitchen Stewardship is like the queen of healthy snacks. I love her cookbooks because they are so detailed, and you can tell they are written by a real mom-she knows what kids like! You can check out her snack cookbook here.
If you would rather purchase snacks, definitely check out Aldi’s snacks. They have some really great prices. Thrive Market also has good prices on things like chips.
Related: Thrive Market VS Vitacost
8. Declutter and Make Money
I love to declutter. It is so satisfying knowing that I am making my life easier for myself and my family. I find that we have more time and are less frustrated when we don’t have too much stuff. (And more time can definitely help your savings efforts-you could use that time to work on saving more in other areas.)
Another great benefit of decluttering is making extra money off of your old stuff! There are so many ways to do this.
- Consignment stores will take your old stuff (if it isn’t extremely worn out). This is a really easy way to sell stuff. Make sure to call ahead because some consignment stores require you to have an appointment to drop off stuff.
- Ebay is a great place to sell things. Make sure that you understand their terms before you sell. Most of them are commonsense-like telling the truth about the condition of your item and shipping in a timely manner.
- Facebook has groups dedicated to selling things. You can choose a group near you so that you don’t have to ship your item. You could choose a place to meet, or have them come to your house if you feel comfortable with the person (safety first!).
It is easier than you think to make money on your stuff! If you want it to be as easy as possible, take the items that aren’t worth as much (smaller items) to a consignment store. I like to do this with clothing, decorations etc. Sell items that are worth more on Ebay or Facebook.
If you are motivated, you can sell everything on Ebay or Facebook. It will take more effort on your part, but you can make more money this way!
9. Lower Your Bills
One easy way to save money is to find out if you can pay less for your bills or debts. Simply call the company and ask if there is a way to lower your bill. It is a good idea to be prepared ahead of time by knowing what the competitor’s prices are.
If you are considering switching to a different company, let your current company know why. They may offer you a lower price for their services.
Here is a frugal living tip with a big impact that you may not know: Medical bills may be lowered if you offer to pay up front. My parents were able to reduce some of their crazy high medical bills by asking what the bill would be if they paid in cash. If you do this you may save thousands. If you don’t have the money to do this, consider selling something or finding a temporary job. It may truly be worth it.
10. Spend Less on Books
You can get almost any book you want at the library. If your local library doesn’t have a certain book, ask about an interlibrary loan. This means that your local librarian will check and see if another library has the book and get the book sent to your library.
You can also buy used books for WAY cheaper than new ones. Biblio has a good selection of used books.
11. Spend Less on Gas
If you run your errands efficiently, you can save a lot on gas. Check out my tips for running errands the cheapest easiest way.
12. Save Money at the Dollar Tree
The Dollar Tree has saved me a lot of money over the years! You can find great prices on these items:
- greeting cards
- frames
- craft supplies
- wrapping paper
- holiday decorations
- reading glasses
13. Lower Your Electric Bill
We try to use smaller appliances when we can. For example, if we can use the toaster oven instead of the regular oven, we will. Our toaster oven does a great job roasting vegetables and reheating leftovers.
Make sure that your windows and doors are sealed properly. This can help you with heating and cooling bills.
Last winter my electric bill went really high. I couldn’t figure out the problem. I called the electric company and they could tell that on the coldest days was when I was using a lot of electricity. But, I still wasn’t sure what was making my bill higher than it had ever been before. Obviously, it had to do with the heating, but I didn’t know what was wrong.
Later, I had a repairman look at the unit, and there was a burnt wire. This meant that the unit was relying on the heat strips to heat since the unit wasn’t working properly. Heating with heat strips is very expensive! I tell you this so that hopefully it will help you if your electric bills suddenly go really high!
14. Watch Cheap TV
Here are some ways to watch your favorite TV shows and movies. If you use some of these suggestions, you can cancel cable and keep a whole lot more money in your pocket!
We use a Firestick to stream TV shows and movies that we want to watch. This is way cheaper than cable. You can stream Youtube for free using a firestick. I find lots to watch on there.
You can also consider getting Amazon Prime. You will get access to lots of movies and tv shows plus fast free delivery from Amazon. There are other benefits too-check them out here.
If you are looking for safe and meaningful TV for your kids, Minno has carefully selected shows so that you can feel great about your kids screen time. Minno is only $6.99 a month!
15. Choose Free or Cheap Activities
We have found some things we love to do that are free or really inexpensive. We like to go to the park with friends. Our park has a walking trail, frisbee golf, a playground, and picnic area.
We also enjoy museums, aquariums, and zoos. There are often days that the admission is discounted or free.
Movie theaters also sell cheaper tickets at certain times or on certain days.
Play board games with your family. We enjoy Catan, Uno, and Set.
16. Go Thrift Shopping
We have found lots of good deals at thrift stores and yard sales. Books, DVD’s, and board games are often super cheap. We have also found high end clothing for really great prices. Sometimes you can find really good furniture also.
17. Join Facebook Shopping Groups
If you join local shopping groups on Facebook, you can find nearby deals on items that you normally wouldn’t want to pay shipping for-like furniture.
I also like to join groups that sell used homeschool curriculum. It is a great way to find good prices on expensive curriculum.
18. Learn Simple Sewing Skills
You can always go all out and learn to make or fix all kinds of clothing and other items. Or you can simply learn how to fix a torn hem and put on a button that has fallen off. Just google it and I am sure you will find simple instructions on how to do things like that. And you will save a lot by not having to take your items to a professional.
19. Minimize Food Waste
We used to waste too much food. I am sure we still do sometimes! But, I have found one thing that has helped us a lot. We label our leftovers. Now we don’t have to guess whether food is good or not. I am sure we threw out a lot of good food before we started doing this. We keep tape and some little papers and a pen or pencil in the kitchen to label our leftovers.
Another good habit is to check your pantry, fridge, and freezer before you go shopping. You might be surprised at how much food you already have.
20. Exercise for Free or Cheap
Gym memberships can cost a lot! You can exercise for free by walking, or running.
Frugal Living for Beginners–How to Live Cheap Without Getting Overwhelmed!
If you are new to frugal living, I have a few suggestions:
- Start with the idea that appeals to you the most. If you find saving money fun, you are a lot more likely to keep going!
- Track your spending so that you can see your progress. If you realize you have been spending $800 on food a month, and then implement some of these tips and only spend $650 the next month, it is very motivating. I have a free food expense tracker here.
- Build in rewards (Like, for every $50 I save on groceries, I get to spend $10 on something I want).
- Set aside a certain amount of time to work on one of the thrifty tips and tricks in this article. For example, set aside 30 minutes to work on lowering your bills (tip number 9 in this article).
I hope you have enjoyed these money saving tips from a veteran frugal stay at home mom!
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