13 Small Budgeting Tips That Will Help You To Save Money

If you are like myself, you are probably finding as many ways as possible to save extra funds to add to your rainy day emergency fund. 2020 has been a challenging year for sure and finding ways to save a few bucks here and there can be tough, which is why I decided to share 13 small budgeting tips that will help Millennials, Gen Zer’s or anyone honestly… to save money. Let’s take a look at different areas that will help you to cut some corners and save some dough.

Stop Eating Out & Cook More At Home

Eating out or ordering takeout is super convenient, especially after a long day at work as you are wiped and simply ready to unwind and relax. The  issue is that eating out can be super expensive as compared to cooking the same meal at home. You can save big here if you are eating out a lot and not only will you be saving money but the home cooked meal is also a much healthier option than take out food. My family and I still enjoy takeout once or twice a month but gone are the days of eating out 3 or 4 times a week and our savings account is thanking us for it.

Compare Grocery Stores & Shop Weekly Taking Advantage Of Their Weekly Specials

Cooking more meals at home means you should consider switching grocery stores or shopping at multiple stores depending on their promotions for that particular week. Compare the stores in your area for prices and make sure that you shop at the one with the best sale prices. If you have the time to shop at multiple stores…that is another way to save even more as you can shop their different sale prices. My grandmother used to make a list each week and she would shop at one store for her fruits and veggies as that particular store had the best produce prices…and then she would shop at another for her meats and dairy as that particular store had the best prices on those items. She would shop via the weekly circular that the stores provide and she would save big time this way. You also want to shop weekly as you do not want to waste any foods plus shopping weekly is the perfect way to prepare your menu for the week as you can plan ahead. 

Cut Back On Your Memberships

If you are like me, you may have found yourself with multiple memberships such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Spotify and more. This is the perfect place to cut back as you can simply narrow down and figure which of these services are most important to you and cut back on the others. For things like Spotify… you can consider getting together with your friends and/or family to switch to a family plan. A family plan on Spotify allows up to 6 people to listen so you can all go in on it together and instead of paying full price… you each just pay $2 or $2.50 depending on the price of your plan to cover the Family Plan. This is a great way to cut back a bit and save a few bucks as every little bit adds up.

There are other ways to cut back on membership costs too. Maybe you have a gym membership or you go to a yoga class. Instead get the Yoga equipment you need at home and practice Yoga at home free. There are lots of great Yoga DVD’s that you can follow at home for inspiration too. As for the gym… because of the gyms being closed in my area due to covid… I purchased a stationary bike that I can use for cycling indoors and it only cost me $200 and works beautifully  I use that cycle daily instead of paying for a gym membership which helps me to save even more money. I also ride my bike around my neighborhood, go for long walks and hit the local parks for some hiking which is all Free!

Take Advantage Of Free Local Events

If you are looking for a fun day out, or a fun night on the town…. there is no need to head to the same local bar or restaurant and spend $50 or more on drinks. Instead…check out free events near you. You can find these online, on Facebook or even on your city’s event calendar. This will help you to find free or really cheap activities like, outdoor concerts, flea markets, festivals, food truck festivals, culture expos, corn mazes in the fall and more. This will help you to have some fun, save a few bucks at the same time and meet some new people. It’s a win win!

Get A Library Card

Another way to save money is to get a library card. The libraries these days have an amazing selection of books, movies, CD’s and so much more. The best part… it is all FREE! I head over to my local library each week to snag a few DVD’s for me and my husband to watch and I turn them back in before the due date for totally free in home entertainment. If you are an avid book reader… you should also be utilizing your local library as they have the perfect book to suit everyones tastes and genres and again… it is totally free and a fabulous resource for everyone to utilize.

Enjoy A Picnic With Friends

When you have a gorgeous day on your hand and you are not sure what to do… try enjoying a picnic. Instead of heading to a pricey restaurant with your friends… back together a fabulous lunch and head to your favorite park to sit and hang out. There is nothing better than delicious food and drink while basking out in the sunshine with friends plus… it is much cheaper than eating and drinking out.

Use Money Saving Apps

This is one of my favorite things these days as it really makes a huge difference when shopping online. Use money saving apps like Wikibuy that literally will pop up and scan anytime you are shopping online for any money saving coupons. I have had this app save me $20 on a single purchase so believe me this is the perfect way to save some big bucks while shopping for the essentials you may need each and every day.

There are also money saving apps that you can use like Clarity, for example. Clarity helps you to set a budget, keep track of recurring bills and expenses and it shows you how much money you’ve spent on certain items over the course of several months or for a year. This is the perfect way to see where your money is going and can be a nit of a reality check which is a good thing for your savings account as sometimes we do not realize how much we are spending…or wasting and seeing it makes it easier to stick to a budget.

Use Coupons

Using coupons is seriously the perfect way to save money and once you start doing it… you can get really good at it. I know we have seen those individuals at the registers with tons of coupons, but honestly… they are onto something as they are walking out with a lot of stuff for very little dough. Many stores now even have apps that make finding and using coupons much easier than clipping so definitely look into using coupons as much as possible, whether they are virtual or paper coupons because every penny saved is a penny earned.

Save & Use Your Points

If you have credit cards that earn points and cash back… then use those as much as possible for the things that you need every day like gas and groceries and then pay them off every month. This will earn you cash back that adds up and then when you want to splurge on that new handbag or pair of shoes… you can use your cash back or your points to purchase them instead of using cash out of your savings. The trick is to leave your points or you cash back rewards alone until it builds up and once it does… you can treat yourself.

Cut Back On Your Utility Bill

This one will remind you of your parents but the fact of the matter is… watching how much water or electricity that you use will help to cut back on your utility bills and ultimately save you money. Cutting back on your shower by 5 minutes each time will dramatically reduce your water bill and the same is true for the electric. When you leave a room…turn off the lights and/or TV as it is simply wasteful to leave it on and by turning them off you will save money and it is good for the planet as you are not wasting resources. 

Cut The Cable Cord

This is a big one and can save you big bucks. I recently cut the cable cord and am saving close to $150 a month! I kept my internet from my cable company but subscribed to YouTube TV for my TV viewing needs. There are other options too like Sling TV, HULU Live TV, Fubo and more so do your own research. Ithonestly depends on what you are looking for in your package and the other features that come with so for me YouTube TV worked best as I have 5 people that have their own TV in my home and YouTube TV allows 6 devices to stream which worked perfect for me plus they have unlimited DVR service which many of the others make you pay extra for. If I did not have 5 TV’s in my home to cover…. I would have gone with Sling TV as their pricing is much lower than YouTube TV and is perfect for 2 or 3 devices.

Sell Your Unwanted Stuff

If you are like me and have lots of clothes in your closet that you never wear or kitchen utensils or small appliances that you never use… then thank about selling them! You can take your clothes to a local consignment shop or use a service like Thread Up or Poshmark. You can literally go to Thread Up and request a shipping bag that they will send to you in the mail… you load it up with your lightly worn clothing, send it back and in a few weeks you will receive a credit or money for your items…. whichever you choose.

You can also sell items on the Facebook Marketplace which is fabulous and works perfectly at getting rid of something that you no longer need and you can simply add the funds that you make on the sale to your savings account. Another selling platform that I love is eBay. You can list pretty much anything on eBay and when someone purchases… you simply pack it up and send it to the purchaser. eBay pretty much takes care of everything for you and the money goes directly to you and into your pocket which mean you can add it to your savings. It also helps you to declutter and get rid of all of the stuff you never use which is fabulous as you are making money and freeing up space! Besides this, you can check this ebay listing software for boosting your sales.

Switch From A Bank To A Credit Union

This is a new one for me as my husband just recently switched our accounts to a credit union. We have always had a bank account but after doing some research, we found that credit unions offer more ways to save money. They have lower fees, higher interest rates on savings accounts and lower interest rates on loans which is huge. Again… you will not be saving huge amounts of money all of the time, but it all adds up and that is truly what it is all about. 

So what do you think of these money saving tips? Do you have additional tips that should be added to the list? If so leave some comment love below and tell me all about them as I love sharing frugal money saving tips that everyone and anyone can use to ensure they save and have money on hand for a rainy day. Thanks for stopping by and leave your comment below as I always love hearing from you!