Join two million breath-taking readers: By Leo Babauta Confession time: Go with one car.
How To Live Cheap: 18 Ways To Save Money
Many families have two or more cars. Besides your house, your car is probably your most expensive item. If you can do with one, you should. My wife and I both work, and we have six kids, and yet we have learned to manage with one car. Go with a smaller house. Live in as small a house as you can and still be comfortable. You can save thousands a year with a smaller house. Go with a smaller car. Again, you can save thousands by going with a smaller car. A car instead of an SUV, for example, is a big savings. Rent rather than own.
Living on a budget? How trendy! Frugal bloggers live on the cheap, by choice
This will probably spark a huge debate, as it always does. If you calculate the interest you pay on a mortgage, the cost of insurance and maintenance, buying is often much more costly than renting … and if you rent, save money, and then invest the difference, you can actually end up well ahead in the long run.
Look for used first. Send out an email to family or friends, or just ask around. You might be surprised. If no one you know owns one, try freecycle. Then look to buy used, at garage sales or thrift shops. You can find a bargain if you look around. Restaurants are expensive, including fast-food not to mention the health hazards.
Our family creates a weekly menu, then we buy the groceries, and cook dinner and lunch each evening. If you do eat out, check out these money-saving tips.
Lessons from living on the cheap
Brown bag it to work. Instead of eating out for lunch, bring your lunch. Adopt a minimalist wardrobe. I generally wear jeans or casual pants, a T-shirt or Polo-type shirt, and sandals or shoes. Plain, solid colors are my favorite. Stop online impulse buys. This was a problem for me before I canceled my credit card.
I used to buy online a couple of times a week. See day list tip below. Go to a store if you know what you need, and then get out.
Many times people go shopping, with a vague idea of what they want, and get caught up buying much more. Or they go just for fun, as a form of entertainment. That ends up costing a lot. It can really add up.
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Instead, stay away from shopping areas and find other ways to have fun more below. Use a day list. To curb impulse buys, create a day list. When you want to buy something, other than a true necessity medicine or food, for example , put it on this list, with the date you added it to the list. And stick to it. Instead of buying books, check them out.
The library often also has a great selection of DVDs depending on your area , saving you even more. Now who needs cable? Find cheap ways to have fun.
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Entertainment often ends up costing a lot of money, if you go to the movies, buy concessions, or go out at night, go to the bar, etc. Here are a few ideas. Here are some tips. An ounce of prevention, and all that. We all have days when we don't feel like cooking, but dining out can be so expensive and you should never spend money … [Read More Tips to manage your money, including career advice, college savings, budgeting, debt, credit and cars. How to feed your family for less , plus coupons, recipes, tips and restaurant coupons and deals. How to find the best deals on everything from clothing to groceries to electronics, online or in the stores.
How to Get the Best Deals. Keeping up with family life, including kids, weddings, pets, entertaining, DIY and cheap family fun.
How to buy, sell, rent or maintain a home, plus advice on mortgages, home improvement and gardening. Save money and time on computers, home electronics, cellphones and home entertainment. Skip to primary navigation Skip to secondary navigation Skip to content Skip to primary sidebar Skip to footer. Tips and Tricks for Eating Out for Less. Food and Drink How to feed your family for less , plus coupons, recipes, tips and restaurant coupons and deals. Family and Entertaining Keeping up with family life, including kids, weddings, pets, entertaining, DIY and cheap family fun. Home and Garden How to buy, sell, rent or maintain a home, plus advice on mortgages, home improvement and gardening.
Almost every day, you'll receive one email listing all the deals, discounts and free events published in the last 24 hours at Living on the Cheap. Whether you stop by the stores to buy groceries or for something else and whether it's by purpose or accident, you can be rewarded to go there. You can redeem your points for gift cards or merchandise see image above for samples. You can also earn extra points by scanning products and shopping in-store and online.
If you are like me who goes to stores to buy groceries and other things, you are going to make some good rewards from Shopkick. Get things at the lowest possible prices. Check out and be part of these Facebook group communities. They are the frugal-type communities with people sharing their saving hacks and store glitches:. Opening up an Amazon baby registry is good. As someone who tries to squeeze the most value from even a penny, FREE stuff, especially from Amazon, is divine. My wife recently opened an account, and these are see image below what she got.
She got swaddle, diapers, baby wipes, and a lot more. You'd want to get these before buying things in bulk so you don't waste spending money on things you may not like for your newborn. I once thought that having a ton of shows to watch is a dream come true. I realized that I was wasting money by having a cable subscription. Cable companies charge a whole lot.
What do I do if I want to watch TV shows? It's the perfect entertainment deal we've gotten so far.
Click here to start using Hulu. Get grocery food by using coupons. I was once addicted to couponing, but it has gone to a steady level now. But in all seriousness, I use coupons all the time. I get free products just by using coupons. Yes, I got a lot for zero dollars. I donated most of the goods , reserved some for my family, and gave the rest to my extended family.
Save money by choosing store brands, which are comparable in value with those of branded products. They are as good as their branded counterparts, and they are cheaper, too. For me, I don't need to buy branded ones because the cheaper, non-branded ones provide me the benefits I need. Save money by avoiding bottled, store-bought water. There have been a lot of studies, which indicate that tap water is healthier, better, or as good as the water products bought in-store. On the other hand, bottled water is governed by the FDA to be safe when bottled.
Plus, tap water is almost free. I say practically free because I still get charged for the water, which is included in the water and sewer fees I pay every month. If you do prefer bottled water, make sure to buy the caseload instead of the individual ones because the individual ones cost a lot more. Stick with one car when possible. But I chose to stick with what I have. My car runs well.
I make sure all the car maintenance are current and that I drive or whoever drives my car drives sensibly. I live cheap by not wasting food.
I never waste food not even the tiniest grain of rice on my plate. That's what I learned from the PlateJoy plan. My plate is always clean, and I like it that way. I learned from my parents to not waste food. As a result, every single meal I have gets devoured completely. When it comes to parties, I only take what I think I can finish. If I finish the food and my stomach needs some more, then, I would go back. My father-in-law who is absolutely a great chef would re-invent our leftovers into something. Good thing everyone is open to new food and new taste.
If you think leftovers can no longer be re-created into something else, think again. I suggest you grab any of these leftover recipes and start re-inventing your food and elevate your palate to a new level:. Re-use or repurpose old, worn out things.