At SavingsHackers we're always looking for creative ways to save money. We've compiled 69 ways to maximize your savings and sorted it into easy-to-understand categories.
Some of these are no-brainers, others might surprise you. And in the future, this post should act as a living document you can refer to time-and-again. The ULTIMATE resource is what we hope to create, and someday, there might be 690 ways to save money!
For right now, let's not get too far ahead of ourselves.
Here are 69 ways you can save money fast.
Budgeting
Everyone needs a budget. Seriously. If you're not tracking your spend and adjusting your outflow to meet your financial targets, you're just wasting money.
In the first link "Make a budget and stick to it" I've linked directly to a post that goes into more detail. However, if you choose to stay on this page, the 4 highlights are below.
- Make a budget and stick to it
- Reduce unnecessary expenses
- Track your spending
- Use a budgeting app
Deals
A huge bang-for-your-buck will always be deals. I mean, who doesn't love a good deal? Below is pretty general advice, admittedly, however in the future you should see this full of links and how-to's.
For now, use these 7 tips as a sort-of brainstorming session. "Where can I find deals?" or "Wait, what are the best tax breaks I can get this year?" - this is designed to get you thinking.
- Shop for sales and deals
- Use coupons and promo codes
- Buy in bulk
- Buy used items instead of new
- Take advantage of free trials
- Use a rewards program
- Take advantage of tax breaks
Negotiation
Right from the jump I'm saying this, I LOVE negotiation. Sure, deals are great, but did you know that even things that aren't deals can become deals with proper negotiation techniques?
Or, wait. Did you know that you can negotiate double your salary with certain strategies? I've helped countless people do this, so when I tell you that negotiation is important, that's an understatement.
If you take one thing from this section it should be this. Anytime money is changing hands, a deal can be negotiated.
- Refinance loans
- Negotiate bills, such as cable and internet
- Shop around for insurance
- Raise your insurance deductible
- Bundle insurance policies
- Negotiate a salary increase
Cutting Costs & Reducing Usage
This the #1 way to save money. Forget that there are 9 items in this list, there are really hundreds of ways to iterate on this concept.
The point is that this exercise requires you to analyze where you're spending money and forces you to look at ways you can cut costs or reduce usage to save.
Combine this with Budgeting + Negotiation and you've got yourself a stone cold strategy for serious savings!
One trick I like to use is calling up my cable and streaming services under the guise of potentially cancelling my service and then asking what kind of deal they can offer me to get me to stay.
Sneaky? A little bit, sure, but it's a game. They want money from me, I want to pay as little as possible.
If you want to keep me as a customer, I need to be rewarded. Otherwise (and they know this) they'll have to spend more money trying to acquire a new customer when a simple discount would have retained me.
- Cut cable and switch to streaming services
- Switch to a low-cost cell phone plan
- Cancel subscription services
- Reduce water usage
- Reduce electricity usage
- Turn off lights when you leave a room
- Reduce heating and cooling costs with automated products such as electric thermostats and energy efficient appliances.
- Buy generic or store-brand products
Quick Cash: Income, Offsetting Costs & Selling
This could be a 5,000 word article in its own right. There are limitless ways to pull in quick cash, and eventually, long-term revenue.
Instead of looking at this definitively, look at it like a mental challenge.
Can you rent out a room?
Do you have a vehicle you can rent out on Turo?
Are you crafty enough to sell products on Etsy or Shopify?
Can you freelance in areas such as digital marketing, copywriting, graphic design – even language tutoring?
The sky isn't even the limit. Your imagination is.
- Rent out a room in your home
- Start a side hustle
- Sell unused items
- Participate in online surveys
- Sell handmade goods online
- Rent out a room on Airbnb
- Participate in focus groups
- Sell photos online
- Sell handmade crafts on Etsy
- Rent out your car on Turo
- Sell digital products
- Offer dog-walking or pet-sitting services
- Participate in paid online studies
- Offer freelance services
- Participate in paid product testing
- Rent out your parking space
- Sell items on eBay
- Sell your blood or plasma
- Participate in paid medical studies
- Offer odd jobs for cash
- Participate in paid research studies
- Sell items on Facebook Marketplace or OfferUp
- Get cash back when you refer a friend
- Use a cash-back credit card
Debt Repayment
This is short for a reason. If you have debt, any kind of debt (aside from a fixed-rate mortgage), it's advised to pay it down as soon as possible.
If you combine proper budgeting with debt repayment, you've got a winning combo for not only reducing you debt load, but maximizing your savings.
- Pay off student loan debt
- Pay off credit card debt (use our credit card debt payoff calculator)
Savings & Investment
A bright financial future is going to require savings and compound interest. It's really as simple as that. You might think "Well, I'm living paycheck-to-paycheck right now so that's not possible", but I assure you, it is. Every little bit counts, and with compounding interest, over time your savings will continue to grow.
Emergency fund is right at the top of this list because it's the most important financial tool you can have at any stage in life. After that, it's about growing your savings and eventually investing to reap the rewards of that lovely compound interest.
- Create an emergency fund
- Save for retirement
- Automate your savings
- Use a high-yield savings account
- Invest in stocks or mutual funds
DIY
There are thousands of things you can DIY to save money and reduce overall costs. Sure, you can't realistically build your own house from lumber in your backyard, or create your own version of Netflix shows, however you certainly can learn to do things like grow your own food, make household products you use daily and cook at home!
Thanks to the magic of YouTube, thousands of DIY projects are well within your reach.
- Do-it-yourself instead of hiring someone
- Make your own cleaning products
- Grow your own food
- Do home and car maintenance to avoid costly repairs
- Insulate your home
- Use energy-saving products
- Cook at home instead of eating out
Alternatives
Not every alternative is viable, and not every product or action has an alternative. However, for those that do, those alternatives can be huge money savers.
If you look at your budget and note the core items you spend the most money on, chances are there's a far cheaper alternative.
- Housing: Renting vs. buying.
- Food: Cooking vs. eating out.
- Heating: Warmer clothes vs. turning up the heat.
The list could really go on and on, but instead of a never-ending list, here are 5 quick ones to get you thinking.
- Plan and pack a lunch for work
- Use a bike or walk instead of driving
- Use a clothesline instead of a dryer
- Carpool or use public transportation
- Make coffee at home instead of buying it
