This is a list of common things my wife and I do to save money on a regular basis. Luckily, we are both frugal by nature, and we actually do most of these things without needing to discuss it much. Note: in most cases, “I” is interchangeable with “we,” and “my” with “our.” 
Here are 25 ways to save money:
1. Make it automatic. Before I see my paycheck, a good portion of it is diverted to my 401(k) and savings.
2. Keep minimum funds in checking account. We make our money work for us by funneling extra funds into our savings account where it will earn more interest than in our checking account.
3. Don’t pay banking fees! I use my bank for free bill pay, automatic deposits, free checks, and free reimbursements for all ATM fees. I won’t pay for any of those services. (I bank with USAA, which is an awesome bank if you are eligible!). I also use ING, which is another great online bank with outstanding interest rates. ING $25 referral bonus.
4. Use rewards credit cards. I get cash back on every purchase and I pay the card off every month so I don’t pay any interest fees. I recommend reward cards, but only if you have no current credit card debt, and can afford to pay the balance every month! Here are 10 reasons why credit cards are good. I use gas rewards cards and other cash back cards to maximize my returns.
5. Actively search out deals. It never hurts to try and find a better deal, or request a better deal from your service providers. Read about how I saved $1,000 by making two phone calls. I also actively search other money saving deals that can net me free money through sign ups and referrals.
6. Use a programmable thermostat. Programmable thermostats save you an estimated 10-20% on your heating and cooling bills. When we aren’t home, or we are sleeping, our house is quite a bit warmer or cooler, depending on the season. We save a substantial amount on our utilities compared to our neighbors!
7. Use ceiling fans, floor fans, and space heaters. My wife and I program the thermostat to go to the mid-50s at night during the winter. Why so cold? Because we close the door to our room and use a space heater for heat. There is no sense heating an entire house while we sleep. We also use ceiling fans and floor fans to assist with heating and cooling – depending on the season of course! In our computer room we use an air vent booster to increase air flow.
8. Install CFLs to save energy. Compact fluorescent lights use about a quarter of the electricity of normal incandescent bulbs. They also need replaced much less often.
9. Drive smoothly. I accelerate smoothly and at a reasonable rate, and I coast to a stop as often as possible. I also use cruise control on the highway. My car is rated to get 26 mpg around town and I regularly get 29. That’s not quite hypermiling, but it’s not bad! You can also use these tips to save money on gas, and use gas rewards credit cards to save money on fuel costs.
10. Plan and research major purchases. My wife and I recently did this to save money on a vacation. A little planning on our end saved us over $2,000.
11. Buy quality products. Quality items may cost more up front, but they last longer and generally provide better results than cheaper, inferior products. Examples of items you should buy higher quality – furniture, clothes and shoes, vehicles, and other items that will see a lot of use. I used this premise to build a professional wardrobe on a budget.
12. Buy generic where applicable. Yes, I just wrote “buy quality,” but you can save a lot of money on generic items for which the brand name product is essentially the same as the store brand. Food and medicines come to mind as items where generic products are good deals.
13. Use coupons and rebates. We use coupons for oil changes, groceries, books, on-line purchases, and just about anything else we can find. You can even find coupons on the back of receipts. A great on-line resource is Ebates, which is an on-line rebate company. Ebates is free to join, and you can get great savings on on-line purchases (Ebates review). You can currently get $10 just to sign up!
14. Use store rewards cards. We do our grocery shopping at Kroger, and we “save” at least 10-15% every trip. (Personally, I dislike the savings cards because I believe the stores actually mark everything up to force their customers to get the cards, but that is another story…) We still save a lot of money on groceries, so we use it. You can currently get $200 in free groceries from Kroger! (expires July 31, 2008).
15. Cook at home. My wife is a great cook and we both enjoy cooking and eating at home more than we do going out. We only go out about once a month, but when we do, we prefer to make an evening out of it and go somewhere fairly nice. We enjoy this method of eating out much more than eating out several times a week at chain restaurants such Chili’s or TGI Friday’s.
16. Eat leftovers. I grew up eating leftovers, and I still love them (as long as they are not leftover from when I was a kid! yuck!). I estimate I save a minimum of $20 a week by bringing my lunch to work. It is also healthier, and on the rare occasion I go out to lunch with coworkers, I enjoy it more.
17. Use the library. My wife and I borrow movies from the library almost every week. New releases aren’t always available, but lately, we have been watching a lot of classic movies from the 40s and 50s. My wife also borrows CDs and books, but I still have a lot of unread personal finance books to catch up on so I skip borrowing books!
18. Use parks. My wife and I love to go hiking. We have 2 great parks nearby that we visit often. We get great exercise and the only costs to us is the gas to drive there.
19. Take care of things. I treat things I own with respect and take good care of them. This includes doing things such as cleaning our house, washing our cars, and polishing shoes. Things last much longer when you take good care of them.
20. Buy insurance. Health insurance, home owner’s insurance, auto insurance, and other types of insurance are designed to save you money! Sure, you may end up paying premiums for years and never file a claim, but in the event you need to file a claim, your premium will likely be small compared to what you would have had to pay. You’ll be very happy if you ever need it!
21. Bundle cable and internet. You can save a lot of money by bundling these together rather than purchasing the separately. You can save more if you bundle your phone as well, but my wife and I actually save money by not paying for a landline.
22. Use cell phones – skip the landline. My wife and I each have a cell phone, and we do not use a regular telephone. We have been doing this for years and have never had a problem. Here are some tips to save money on your cell phone bill, and how to cancel your cell phone without paying early termination fees.
23. Cancel subscriptions. We don’t get the newspaper or magazines. Almost everything we want can be found on-line for free.
24. Home improvement. Once upon a time I was an aircraft mechanic in the USAF, so I am fairly handy with tools. I am comfortable repairing most items around the house, and I always attempt to repair problems before calling a professional. However, I am not afraid to hire out anything dangerous or that I don’t have the tools to do. (usually electrical or plumbing).
25. Avoid debt. We have a mortgage, which we don’t mind because we would either have a mortgage or pay rent. But we are free of any student loans or consumer debt including credit cards, automobiles, home equity line of credit, or anything else. This means we pay very little interest and are able to make more of our money work for us instead of work for someone else. And that’s the whole point of saving money, isn’t it?
Bonus tip: I actively seek out free money and other savings! This includes things like sign up bonuses, rewards credit cards, and freebies like the free Blockbuster trial or the free Netflix trial.
I know some of these tips won’t apply for everyone, but they work for my wife and I. I’m sure there are many more things we can do to save money, and there are a few places where we can plug some money leaks, but overall, I think we are doing a good job. I hope these tips can help a few other people out there!
Inspired by: Frugal For Life’s 25 Ways I Save Money. Dawn’s original article was posted in September of 2006, and for some reason, I just found out about it. Better late than never. Great article Dawn.
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{ 53 comments… read them below or add one }
I do most of the tips you have listed here and they really do work and they are easy to do. I also have a list of the 25 ways I save money on my site so I would be happy if you looked at it.
I have gone cellphone only for about 5 years now and that was one of the best decisions I have ever made.
I am still working on #25 because I do not make enough money now to go completely credit card-less….but I am working on it.
Ryan,
Well done – I like that you added home improvement.
I have added your post to the list as well!
Regarding tip #2 – keeping minimum funds in a checking account – My bank (Fitchburg Savings in MA http://www.fsbfsb.com) pays 6.01% on my checking account. I have to have direct deposit, eStatements, and use my debit cards 10 times a month to get the rate, but I was doing all that anyway. I don’t have to keep a minimum balance and there’s no fee. I used to agree with your tip completely, but we frugal people need to keep our eyes open for great deals like this!
lulu, #25 is the end-goal for most people. I’m sure you’ll make it there. I will be sure to check out your list.
Dawn, Thanks for adding me to the list! As far as home improvement, well, I hate paying for something I can do myself!
Melissa, that sounds like a great bank! If I had a similar option, I would do the same thing to get those rates! I just wrote what works for me.
Thanks for the comments!
Hi,-
Great Blog! I really appreciate your dedication to the environment and I always like to hear about simple ways I can live a greener life.
I have recently purchased an air-vent booster – it works by drawing additional air into my problem room that is always way too cold. These can be purchase at most home improvement stores.
I am so happy because not only does it lower my utility bills, it helps conserve a massive amount of energy.
It is a really easy way to save money and help save the earth.
Have a green day and keep writing!
Ryan: Great read! I am doing most of these except for “Drive smoothly” – That one may take a while.
Hello D4L,
I’m glad you enjoyed the post. I admit driving smoothly was the hardest for me to do, and sometimes I break that one. But most of the time I am good with it.
Ryan’s last blog post..Save Time and Money by Trading in Your Car
Excellent list, Ryan. I do many of them and am working on most of the others.
Excuse me. I have to go seethe with jealousy over the concept of Melissa’s 6% chequing account. I can’t get that up here on a savings account, never mind on chequing. Though I suppose I shouldn’t complain too loudly. The only way to raise interest rates substantially in Canada is for the Bank of Canada to raise Prime. And I really don’t want that to happen while I’ve still got student loans…
Excellent list, I am following most of them (whatever available in my country India)especially the cooking at home it saves me huge sums.
I didnt understand how we save money by visiting parks?
I am already in debt so avoid taking more but the current one is eating my head on a daily basis.
Hi Chef,
You can save money by going to parks (which have free entrance) for entertainment or exercise instead of going to places that cost money such as the movies, out to eat, shopping, etc.
A lot of people do things that cost money simply because they think they have to. There are many free things to do that cost little or no money, and are just as fun as going somewhere and spending money. Thanks for the comment.
Ryan’s last blog post..Contest – Win a Free Book and Tacos!!!
Way to go on the frugal married couple life article!
You and your spouse really know how to keep those dollar stay inside your wallet.
You have provided a lot of super useful tips to save money on most life aspects.
I think you might save more money getting rid of your cell phones and just using the land line. I did that recently without paying those big early termination fees using http://www.cellswapper.com
Jeremy, getting rid of our cell phones for a land line would probably save us money, but we both like the freedom and convenience of having cell phones. Our families both live in different states, so the majority of our calls are long distance. For us, having the cell phones is the best choice.
Ryan’s last blog post..A Penny Saved is Worth More Than a Penny Earned
I was wondering if you could correct the link back as that would be very helpful. Thanks!
Hi Dawn – Done!
Good luck with the new web address!
Excellent list (yeah, late to the party as usual but here via stumbleupon). Where we fall down is that we’re not handy at all – but we do know contractors and handymen, and when we use them keep them very sweet. This results in timely work and very few extras. Which is nice.
Always better late than never! Not everyone is handy around the house, but there are many things that you can learn to do with a simple set of tools. You can literally save hundreds by keeping up on routine maintenance and not letting things break from neglect.
Great list, I really need to work on number 16.
I spend 15 dollars on average for lunch and snack. I tried packing lunch but then I always forget it. Will there be a second part to this list???
Great suggestions. I agree with you about USAA bank. I do a lot with them and they are awesome. I have their cash rewards card and charge everything to it just as you’ve mentioned, and then pay it off every month.
I also agree with you about insurance. Yeah you may have to pay a little now, but if you ever need the insurance, you will be very glad you invested. The potential rate of return on your investment plus the peace of mind you get are well worth the cost in premium.
Gotcha!!! Very interesting, easy to follow tips. Absolutely, # 25 I think is the best tip because without debt you will have your peace of mind, that you can manage your life to the fullest because your at peace! Hope to read more about your articles! Thanks!
I grocery shop at Aldi’s,it’s very inexpensive compared to places like kroger and Walmart even. I put $5 a week in my savings account no ifs,ands,or buts. I try to do most of my errand running in one trip if possible. I buy all my toiletries and cleaning supplies from Dollar General,they have name brand products too for less than what Kroger would want. I drive an older car that I paid cash for so I have no car payments. I have a housepayment that includes the taxes and insurance and my payment is really a STEAL at just under $300 a month. that’s because i got a great deal on the house.
I also choose to pay just under $20 a month for cable t.v. instead of $55 by not having any upper channels,it’s not that bad really. Although I admit I DO subscribe to Netflix but that’s STILL a great deal LOWER than paying $55 for full cable.
Loved your 25 tips. We are doing pretty good but will now add some of your tips into our life. Thanks for sharing.
convenience is right
but there is a way to cut costs while owning a cellphone.
i’m on the road a lot due to business so need a cellphone, and sometimes i end up paying more than i’m willing to. a friend told me about free directory assistance at 1-800-411-SAVE, it was hard to believe at first but now i’m hooked! i crunched the numbers, and it turns out i can shave up to $20 off my cellphone bill. : )
kevin_g2975,
Not a bad deal! Thanks for the tip!
Hey, have you read the 27 page long Material Safety Data Sheet on what to do if you break a CFL bulb? The mercury can be deadly for children and elderly, and can cause mercury poisoning in healthy adults. Air out the area for 15 minutes, and it it requires safety gear (not QUITE a full radioactivity suit) to clean up the spill.
Let’s not forget that CFLs are still a risk for migraine sufferers and epilepsy patients as they still have the same light-vibration issue as regular florescent lights. It’s not as bad at full power, but if you use the wrong wattage, or are in brownout conditions (or they are not running at full power for any reason) it’s WORSE than if a regular florescent is running at low power.
Hoping I can buy enough incandescent lights to last my lifetime before they’re illegal after congress passed the law making them illegal after 2014… frugality is not losing time at work or being in the ER and paying medical bills because of trying to save money over a stupid light bulb.
Brigette,
I have not read the 27 page MSDS for CFLs and I do not plan to. I have read more MSDSs for various products and chemicals than I ever cared to and I am positive there are dozens of common household chemicals that are worse than CFLs. CFLs are only bad when/if they break, which is an uncommon occurrence (they can be taken to disposal centers when they no longer work). If the CFLs do not break, there are no associated health problems caused by mercury.
CFLs actually release less mercury into the environment than incandescent bulbs, as shown by this Energy Star report by the US government. Basic cleanup instructions are also in the report.
CFLs also use less wattage and produce less heat than incansecent bulbs which is safer, particularly in older homes with old wiring .
No, CFLs are not perfect, but neither are incandescent bulbs. Right now it comes down to personal preference. I do not mind CFLs, so I use them because they are better for the environment, produce less heat, and cost less to run over the lifetime of the bulb.
You have the choice to use the incandescent bulbs, and surely have the option of purchasing a lifetime supply of them.
You did really good with this article. I am very young but hope to be in very good standing financially later in life and to reach that goal i look at all the ways to save. also i like that you were in the USAF and did the same thing as my uncle. my family is an Air Force family. That must be why we are all so very smart.
Thanks for the great info!!
1 way to save up money is dont throw away a change always save up change and take it to a bank and cash it. Do not use coinstar! 8-9 cents taken out of each dollar that adds up!
Seconding Justin’s point right above, another important point (not strictly “saving” per se, but “keeping”) is to make sure you keep every cent of the pay you *do* earn – pick up those pennies, store your coins in a coin jar, etc., get them rolled up and redeposit them – you don’t want leaks like that in your paycheck!
Excellent list! I cancelled my cable 3 years ago…and I haven’t missed it (okay, maybe a little). I watch everything online and subscribe to Netflix ($8/month).
That is a great list. Bookmarked this site. I don’t do all of those, so it is nice to have a list to tick.
I give any leftovers to my chickens, and in return they give me a free egg…
Great list! Its so important to save money these days. And Yeah i agree, you can watch almost everything online nowadays that it seems pointless to have cable. But i find there are other little areas where you can cut back and save without losing to much. I got out of my cell phone contract and switched to prepaid. This way i only have to pay for the minutes i need and i dont have to worry about overage charges or any of that stuff. And with my tracfone the service charge per month is like 7 bucks. And there are a lot of little things like that can help save you some money.
These are practical save money tips that anyone should be able to apply easily. Tip no 22 is an interesting one. I would have thought that having a land line and getting rid of the mobile phone would be more economical.
I took a time share in June I took the whole family it was great we only paid $200 for 2 nights 3 days stay at Myrtle Beach SC we had an Ocean front room. We had to agree to a 90 MIN tour as they call it basically they walked us around this resort and tried to up sell us the resort was nice and I would have got into it but my budget for this year would not allow me I found out about it by googling Myrtle Beach getaways a couple of sites came up like expedia and travelocity but I wanted a time share about half way down the page was a site called vacation bailouts they was great easy to book I was on my way that following week might even be easy to google the name of the company sorry not sure about the URL.
My wife and I rent an older house. The first winter we were in it, we got hit with a giant heating bill. That led me to discover the benefits of weather stripping doors and windows. That simple act saved us a lot on the follow-up bill. The experience energized me to find new ways to cut expenses, such as…
Ditto #4: Gas Cards – We use the Chase Perfect Mastercard which only gives us 3% cash back, but you can use it at any gas station, which means if you research the cheapest local station first, then you’re getting 3% off the lowest price.
Ditto #8: CFL’s – After the weather stripping, I replaced every conventional light bulb in the house with CFL’s. The result? Our electric bill decreased 30% in one month!
Another Tip: For those who use Cox Communications for their Internet connection, they have an unadvertised “basic high-speed” Internet that’s $20 a month cheaper. And while they claim it’s slower, I’ve never noticed a difference since switching over… That’s $240 a year!
Great list. I’d love to get rid of my landline, but it’s linked to my broadband subscription at the moment – and I’m getting a good deal on that.
It’s too easy to let these things drift. I may go on a big expenses slashback soon I think!
I’ll add to your #20 Buy Insurance. You should insure only for catastrophes. Self-insure as much as you can; have big deductibles. Pay cash for the small problems, don’t file small insurance claims.
I agree with having as large a deductible as you can afford and not filing small claims, but not everyone can afford to self-insure. So I think a broad statement to assess your insurance needs regularly and adjust accordingly would be a better fit for most people.
hey, these are great tips. i probably use about half of them right now. eating at home saves me a LOT of money each money. i just started a website all about saving money, avoiding fees, getting discounts, etc etc.
I have concluded that the best way to save money is to have an overall frugal approach to anything that costs money. Not to be cheap but to learn to be conservative with your utilities for example, or shop the sales at the grocery store and department store, eat at home more and avoid unnecessary expenses in general. You will be surprised at how all the saving will add up!
Nice list. The internet is teeming with lists. What I have to say though is that one interesting tool that helps me save money is my Ipod. I did not say Iphone, but Ipod. Realtime updates on bank balances and credit card balances via Mint, email and other interesting websites are pushed to you realtime, while you save on putting on the clunky desktop at home to check these things. Others include digital music and audiobooks which you can load on and play in your car or elsewhere without having to buy.
The library is also a good one. Many people are marketed to so much that the first thing they think about when they see a form of media is how they can purchase it instead of how they can get a copy from their library. I have a post on my blog about how to save with the Ipod. The most important thing there is to have wireless internet at home and this costs less than 40 dollars for the router.
I find that in order for anyone to save money, you have to find a balance between spending and saving. The issue is, we spend much easier than we can save. One could say we can be frugal with everything we do, but then what are we working so hard for? Following these tips would help anyone save money, while living an enjoyable life. I follow many of these tips myself, and do not find myself living a decent life.
Great article. Read it and use it.
Thanks for the list. If I could employ just half of these great money saving tips I could increase my bank account handsomely! I look forward to any other advice that you may have regarding money savings. Thanks again!
Another great way to start saving money is doing some research on what you are paying for your monthly payments, are there ways to cut those payments down? I’m all about saving money so I thought I’d also share how I saved money on my auto payments. I read a blog post on AOL’s walletpop the other day about a company called MoneyAisle. It does the online research for the consumer and has banks bid on us online, where we receive the top 3 rates to choose from for auto refinancing. I went through the process and ended up saving $75 a month on my payment, which basically pays off my insurance. Right now the search process for the best rates is such a pain and dealers try to get the highest dollar amount, so this is a super awesome tool. I def suggest taking a stab at going through the process, you will be shocked when you see what you get as a rate compared to what you are currently paying or what you are given by other banks/dealers. Hope this also helps!
@Lauren – Thanks for the car refinance advice. I didn’t know you could do that. Cool!
Credit card for me is an backup cash resource in noways i have used it for my random shopping etc..so i can strike tht off. Rest all i can follow up at some extent that too…
Thanks for your article. It has shown me new ways to save some money. You mentioned using space heater to heat your room instead of the entire house at night. I use this technique in the summer time by using a smaller window air conditioner in my bedroom instead of of using the central air conditioner.
Order flowers directly from the florist. Order takers like FTD and Telaflora take a huge cut (upwards of 30%); so for your $100, your receipient will be lucky to get $70 worth. You will get much more for your money if you look up a florist on the web, thru your GPS or smartphone.
I take $ off of the mortgage. Instead of cashing in my points, or obtaining a gift card, I put them on my mortgage. It takes $2500 to earn $25 but when you consider it’s for bills I’m paying anyhow, I charge them monthly to credit card and then pay it off monthly. So far I’ve taken off almost two years off of the mortgage, and saved a ton of money in interest. Also another way to save $ for lunches is to save your scraps (not from people’s plates), but when you have only a little bit of leftovers in the container or a few veggies in the frozen freezer bag. Put them in ziploc storage bags and then make soup in the crock pot. Usually I just have to add a can of diced tomatoes and beans, or throw in some leftover pasta. I usually get about two weeks worth of lunches and a nice minestrone soup which is also good for the waistline.
I remember when in my childhood my grandma used to say “Don’t think about saving money, think about earning more money”. That was wise. You guys try the same. I know it is hard !
Thanks! I’ll have to try to turn some of these tips into habits. I’m really good at eating at home and usually use leftovers as lunch for the next day. One thing I’ve done is added the Blockbuster Movie Pass to my DISH account. I know it sounds counterproductive but by spending that extra ten bucks every month, I save in a bunch in movie rental fees and go out less. I’m not sure I would have tried it if I didn’t work for DISH but I do and I love it. Another way I save is by not having internet service. I have an Android phone and use the hotspot to provide internet service to other devices. It’s prorated on my monthly bill so I just turn it on and off as needed.