Money Saving Hacks to Slash Your Monthly Budget!

Money Saving Hacks to Slash Your Monthly Budget!

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I know you’re here looking for some fresh inspiration for living, or less. So, this list that I have is in no particular order of importance, but I have got 60 practical, interesting, and somewhat extreme Frugal Living tips and hacks that I think you should try this year. So, let’s go!

Money Saving Hacks to Slash Your Monthly Budget!

  1. Track Your Expenses

The first money saving hacks is to track your expenses throughout the month if you usually use cash or at least once a month if you do most of your spending with a debit card. You just want to know that you’re staying on budget or if you need to wrangle into your activity a bit.

  1. Monitor Bank Account

The next money saving hacks is to keep an eye on your checking and savings accounts a few times a week to make sure no unexpected expenses or fraudulent activity is causing your account to be overdrawn.

  1. Automate Your Savings

Now let’s talk about money saving hacks number three, which is automating your savings. Set up an automatic transfer to your savings account or emergency fund. If you have a set amount automatically going to your savings account weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly, you can build up your savings almost without even noticing.

  1. Know How Much Things Cost

Always know how much things cost before you get to the checkout counter, and make sure it’s something you can afford. If you wait to find out the price at the checkout, you’re less likely to put it back if it costs too much, and you’re more likely to overspend.

  1. Active Cash Back Deals

If your bank account has online banking, look through and activate your cash back deals. You can usually get up to 15% of your purchase back into your bank account from the stores or online vendors where you frequently shop.

  1. Use Multiple Money Saving Hacks to Make Money

Have more than one way to make money. Now, this doesn’t mean that you have to have an ongoing side hustle, but there are times where you need to generate a little extra cash for any number of reasons. So, you want to have a way already in your back pocket to do that. It could be braiding hair, babysitting, or even selling handmade crafts and baked goods.

  1. Save Your Change

The seven money saving hacks is to put spare change or coins you find around the house in a piggy bank or an empty jar every day.

  1. Separate Spending and Bill Accounts

Separate your spending money from your bill money. Just have two separate accounts. For me, it’s just easier to keep track, and it reduces confusion and overspending.

  1. Set Short-Term and Long-Term Savings Goals

By setting short-term goals it helps to keep you motivated by allowing you to achieve those quick wins on your way to your bigger goals.

  1. Pay Bills ASAP

Don’t wait to pay bills when they’re due. Pay them as soon as you have the money because then you’re less likely to end up spending the money on something you’re not supposed to spend it on.

Frugal Money Saving Hacks for The Kitchen

Now here are a few tips I like to employ in the kitchen that you can try this year:

  1. Store Veggies with Paper Towel

Extend the life of fresh veggies by storing them in Ziploc bags with a paper towel to reduce moisture.

  1. Carry Beverages from Home

Use an insulated thermos that keeps hot beverages hot and cold beverages cold. And just carry drinks from home instead of buying them on the go.

  1. Lunch Money Saving Hacks

Pack your lunch for work. This can be leftover food or even frozen meals bought on sale from the grocery store because they’re still cheaper than eating out at lunchtime every day. Just get an ice pack and keep it in an insulated lunch bag.

  1. Stop Eating Out

You can cut down the number of times you eat out, but if you really want to see some savings, don’t eat out at all. Maybe just give yourself a challenge. And this would have been extreme to me before the pandemic, but because of COVID, we didn’t eat out for a year and a half, and I got to see just how much money we could stock up and save.

  1. Make Foods from Scratch

Pre-processed foods always cost more than the raw foods needed to make a meal.

  1. Grow Your Own Food

Even if you don’t have space for an outdoor garden, just try growing your favourite herbs instead of buying them. It’s pretty easy to do right in your own kitchen, and the plants just keep giving and giving at no extra cost.

17. Reuse Disposable Items For Money Saving

Now, if you buy disposable items like resealable bags, plastic utensils, or cups, reuse them a couple of times before throwing them away.

  1. Shop the international food aisle

Shop the international food aisle at your grocery store when you’re looking for spices and grains because, a lot of times, they’re cheaper than the same items in the regular spice and grain aisles.

  1. Use rewards programs As Money Saving Hacks

Sign up for free rewards programs at the stores where you shop most often because a lot of times you’ll get automatic coupons, and you can often redeem the points for free food.

  1. Try Store-Brand Foods For Money Saving

Don’t be afraid to try the store-brand foods when they’re cheaper than the name brands because many of them taste just as good, if not better.

  1. Eat Your Leftovers

Don’t waste food eat your leftovers.

  1. Use Meal Themes or Capsule Meal Plans

Use meal themes or capsule meal planning to make food shopping simple and cheap. Capsule meal planning, in a nutshell, is just making a lot of meals from a few select ingredients.

  1. Go meatless

Go meatless two times per week and replace the meat with beans or just go vegetarian altogether.

  1. Eat Less Food for Money Saving

Now, if you want the real secret to saving money on groceries, and I know a lot of people are going to think that this is radical and extreme, eat less food. Most of us need to, anyway.

Frugal Money Saving Hacks For Entertainment

Now here are some ways to be entertained and just have fun with family and friends for little to no money.

  1. Alternate Streaming Service For Money Saving

This is one of the most important money saving hacks for entertainment. One thing we do in our house is we alternate between streaming services. So, like one month, we’ll pay for Paramount Plus and then pause the subscription or cancel it altogether and then switch to Stars or any other streaming service depending on whatever new movie is out.

And we also use those free trials to watch new movies, but here’s the trick: as soon as you activate the trial, cancel it. Most streaming services will still let you use the service for the rest of the week, and if not, just put a reminder on your phone or on your calendar to cancel it so you don’t get charged.

  1. Have Family Game Nights For Money Saving

This could be another important money saving hacks. We love to have family game nights, and it could just be the people in your household, or you can invite friends and have some snacks and drinks. We like to do board games, card games, multi-person video games. It costs almost nothing and we have a lot of fun.

  1. Have Movie Night at Home For Money Saving

We almost never go to the movies, but we have movie night every Friday. We pop popcorn, fill our insulated thermoses with Kool-Aid, we have pizza, and just watch the latest release on whatever streaming service free trial we’re working with that week.

  1. Do Date Nights at Home

I recently saw where a couple set up two small canvases on some tabletop easels, turned on a Bob Ross video, and had their own private Painting with a Twist event at home. And you can get the canvases, the paint, and the easels all from the Dollar Tree.

  1. Go to Your Public Library For Money Saving

So this can be another important money saving hacks. You can go to your public library. Not only do they have books that you can borrow for free, but they have DVDs you can borrow, they have free family activities, and in my area in the summer, they serve kids lunch every day during story time. In the fall, they have Halloween costume exchanges. Just look up the libraries in your area and take advantage of whatever they have to offer.

Money Saving Hacks for Utilities

Now here are a few tips for saving on utility bills:

  1. Keep Thermostat 62-73 Degrees For Money Saving

In the winter, try to keep the temperature of your house between 68 and 72 degrees when you’re home and active and no lower than 62 when you’re away or sleep. Having the temperature too much higher than 72 can dry out the air, and having it too much lower than 62 can potentially cause pipes to freeze, among other issues.

  1. Stock up on blankets and sweats For Money Saving

While you’re keeping the temperature of your house low, just use an electric blanket or keep some warm fleece blankets around the house. My personal favourite way to stay comfortable at home in the winter is to have a nice selection of fleece-lined hoodies and sweatshirts.

  1. Turn Off the Lights

Turn out the lights when you’re not in the room, or even when you are in the room, and just open the blinds and the curtains to take advantage of the daylight.

  1. Wash Clothes in Cold Water For Money Saving

Wash clothes in cold water only. So much of the energy used by your washing machine is used to heat the water.

  1. Make your own valances and curtains

Make your own valances and curtains for about four dollars’ worth of material and some hem tape. You can dress your windows to help block light and heat in the summer and let in the light and heat in the winter.

  1. Go One in The Shower For Money Saving

This is when people might really find extreme, but try going number one while you shower. It depends on whether you have an older or a newer model toilet. You can save between one and a half to seven gallons of water by avoiding that one flush. And of course, you save a little on toilet tissue as well. Alternatively, you can just opt to not flush the toilet every single time you go. Of course, please flush if it’s a number two. Just do that for everyone.

  1. Brush Your Teeth with Baking Soda

Here’s one my grandmother taught me years ago: brush your teeth with baking soda. It’s a safe and effective fluoride-free cleaner and a mild whitener for your teeth that helps to neutralize mouth doors, and it’s a lot cheaper than toothpaste.

  1. Use a Sock to Stretch Soap For Money Saving

Use a small sock to get the most from that small piece of soap. You know how your bar of soap gets so small and it breaks, and then it’s hard to use with your washcloth? Don’t throw it out. Grab a small chenille’s footy or a sweat sock and drop those pieces in and put the sock on your hand, wet it, and lather up.

  1. Add water to liquid soap

Now, if you buy liquid hand soap, when you see that the bottle is about half full, just add water to fill it back up, shake it, and stretch that soap. You’ll still get a good lather.

  1. Shine Shoes with Petroleum Jelly For Money Saving

Here’s one I learned from my grandmother just to save a little of money on shoe shining: you can put a little of Vaseline on your hands and rub it on your shoes. Just don’t try it with suede or really soft leathers; you might regret that.

  1. Buy A Die-Cutting Machine

Now, if you are someone who loves to personalize gifts and home decor, invest in a die-cutting machine like a Cricut Joy or a Cricut Maker and do the customizations yourself. Custom personalization can get expensive, and for the cost of the materials to do it yourself, you can do about 10 customizations versus the one getting done by somebody else. Over time, it’s going to save you a lot of money.

  1. Exercise at home

Exercise at home instead of paying for a gym membership, and there are so many dance and exercise channels you can just subscribe to on YouTube to help you keep fit.

  1. Travel with A Capsule Wardrobe For Money Saving

Pack a capsule wardrobe when traveling to save on baggage fees. And if you’re not sure what a capsule wardrobe is, I put a few links in the description.

  1. Use Google Maps to Find

Use Google Maps to find the cheapest gas near you. Just type in gas, and it’ll show you the price of the gas stations in your area instead of you driving around trying to find the cheaper gas, wasting gas trying to save money on gas.

  1. Wear the Same Clothes Often

Now, this goes back to having that capsule wardrobe. Even at home, this way you focus only on having a few qualities classic pieces that are interchangeable instead of spending a lot of money on the latest style of this and that. Just remember, one good pair of basic black pants will go with everything.

  1. Avoid Dry-Clean-Only Clothe For Money Saving

Avoid dry-clean-only clothing when it comes to things you plan to wear regularly. Check the tags before you buy to make sure that they’re machine washable. Those dry-cleaning bills will really add up.

  1. Shop at Dollar Tree For Money Saving

Buy hats, gloves, and scarves from the Dollar Tree. Every year, they come out with cute new little sets, and the ones I have gotten from there have lasted me for years.

  1. Use Half Cup of Detergent

Only use half the cup of clothes detergent. The agitation cycle in the washing machine is doing most of the work, anyway.

  1. Use Raw Food Oil for Your Hair For Money Saving

Use raw foods and food oils for your hair instead of buying expensive hair treatments. You can use bananas for deep conditioning, apple cider vinegar for clarifying your hair and scalp.

  1. Make Your Own Cleaners

Use dish liquid and water as a quick clean-up spray. You only need a drop or two of the dish liquids, and the spray is going to last you for weeks.

  1. Accept used items For Money Saving

Accept used items such as furniture from friends, clothes for your kids, or for yourself. If someone is giving you free stuff and you can use it, take it. Then you can focus on spending your money on things that people aren’t giving you for free, like electricity or water.

  1. Don’t Replace, Repair

Don’t replace, repair whenever you can. Fix what’s broken instead of just running out and buying a new whatever it is.

  1. Shop at Thrift Stores For Money Saving

Buy clothes and furniture from thrift stores.

  1. Buy used cars

Buy used cars and use YouTube to learn how to fix and maintain them.

  1. Charge Your Phone In AM

Charge your phone in the morning instead of keeping it plugged in unnecessarily all night long.

  1. Trim or Cut Your Own Hair For Money Saving

If you’re not sure how, you’ll know where to go. Learn it on YouTube.

  1. Reuse your paper towels For Money Saving

Reuse your paper towels. If you use a paper towel to dry your hands after thoroughly washing them, just hang it to dry and then use it again the next time you wash your hands.

57. Split Two Play Tissues

If you buy two-ply paper towels or facial tissues, there are times when you really just don’t need the full strength of both layers. Just separate the sheets and stretch that box of tissue or whatever roll of paper towels.

  1. Save Plastic Shopping Bags

Save your plastic shopping bags to use as small waste basket trash bags.

  1. Learn New Skil

Use or learn a new skill. It can be a crafting skill like making your jewellery or clothing or learning how to do basic repairs on your car or your home. When you pay for a product or a service, so much of the cost of it is just the labour. So, you can save a lot of money when you just know how to do certain things for yourself.

  1. Upcycle and Repurpose For Money Saving

Upcycle and repurpose as much and as often as possible. Before you buy anything, ask yourself, Do I have something around the house that I can use to make what I need? And I’m a crafter, so over the years, I have built up a decent supply of tools and materials that I need to craft a lot of things. But really, there’s no telling what you can come up with when you decide to spend less and just create more.

Conclusion

I hope that this money saving hacks has been really helpful and you’ve gotten some tips and some tricks that you can use this year. And if you like the blog, please share it with your friends and family.