Saving money can be challenging. Even if you aren’t’ the type of person to spend a bunch of money on shopping sprees, you may find it hard to pinpoint exactly where your hard-earned income is going. You might have subscriptions that you forget about every month until they take that auto payment out at the end of the month.
You may go to coffee shops every day and forget to add that into your monthly budget. It happens to the best of us, but that doesn’t mean that it’s going to be impossible for you to save money. All you have to do is put your thinking cap on and figure out what you absolutely can’t live without and what you need to get through life. Here are a few small ways to save that you may not have thought of.
1. Spend less on groceries.
It’s easy to go load up on groceries and accidentally spend too much money when you aren’t paying attention to what you are buying. Buying three bags of name brand chips or expensive ice cream may seem like small things at the moment, but these things add up over time. Don’t worry; this is avoidable if you take measures to keep tabs on what you buy weekly or monthly. Try making a grocery list before every trip. Write a menu list of things you plan to cook that week and only buy items required for those recipes.
Try using recipes that require the same ingredients, so you don’t have to waste any of it. Meal prepping is commonly used to combat the difficulty of cooking every day if you are particularly busy during the week. It can save time and money. If you want to go even further with saving money on groceries, try looking into couponing. Clipping coupons is a well-tested way to save a few bucks every month.
2. Cut down on utility costs.
One of the biggest income eaters that most people forget about is utility bills. We often forget to keep an eye on how much we run the water or how much electricity we use until we get the bill. There are plenty of ways to lower monthly utility bills these days. If you need to run your heating or air-conditioning, you can make sure the HVAC system is functioning correctly, so it doesn’t cost you an exuberant amount of money to keep cold or warm.
You can look into things like energy-saving lightbulbs to cut down on your electric bill. You can make sure you aren’t spending an overzealous amount of time in the shower to cut down your water bill. These are all things that you can directly control If you are consistent with monitoring your usage.
3. Cancel your gym membership.
If you were one of the many people who purchased a gym membership that you don’t use for your new year’s resolution, it’s probably time for you to be honest with yourself. Do you plan on using it, or are you just paying every month with no intention of stepping foot in the building? If you aren’t sure, you should probably still cancel and consider working out from your home to cut back on spending if you’re trying to save money. Turn that room you don’t use into an at-home workout station; if you don’t have space consider looking into places that allow you to store your clothes in a storage unit to make room. You can still exercise without a gym membership.
4. Share entertainment.
It’s not hard to lose track of how much you’re spending on entertainment. With streaming on the rise, there are so many different streaming sites that require monthly payments that can add up and eat up your disposable income. An easy way to combat that issue is to look into family plans. You can join these family plans with family members or friends to split the cost between each of you to cut down on entertainment expenses. Plenty of programs offer deals if you decide to go this route.
Saving money isn’t impossible. You have to plan and budget around your everyday needs, and you’ll be able to start saving money in no time.
