Tips to save small amounts of money?

[shaggy]

Good ideas in here! My tip is to find things you can do without.

* I never use fabric softener anymore, and I don't notice any difference.

* My mother taught me to wash every article of clothing after it's worn once; now I only wash clothing if it's dirty.

* I hardly ever buy books. There is plenty of free reading material around, including the library and classic books in the public domain.

* When I get small unexpected checks, I deposit them into savings rather than my regular account. I just got a $260 check from a class action lawsuit and that will be deposited to savings.

* If friends want to meet for coffee/tea, I eat beforehand and just order a cheap drink at the café. Those expensive pastries add up, both in money and calories.

* I buy plain sponges for doing dishes. I don't need the expensive "scrubbing' sponges very often, so I save them for when I have a gnarly pan to clean and use regular sponges for light duty washing.

* I make my own cleaning products at home. I prefer to use diluted ammonia, or diluted bleach, for most cleaning (the only exception is using granite cleaner in the kitchen; and if I'm just doing a quick job, I'll use Windex). But for the big jobs, I make my own cleaning solution and it saves a ton.

* I quit using cream rinse.

* I quit dying my hair. I like the natural look, and it feels more age appropriate to show my gray forelock.

[TheKayla]

- I also quit dying my hair ... I see a trend coming on I stopped getting it cut as well, and am letting it grow out naturally. In the process I've gotten my hair re-dyed a few times just to blend with my natural color as it's grown out. I've even been experimenting with going shampoo free (theres articles about it online, much better for your hair)

- Have a 'pantry week' at least once a month, where you don't go out and buy any food -- from fast food, restaurants, or the grocery store. Use up what you already have in your pantry; the things you never got around to eating.

- Opening the windows instead of running the air, turning down the fridge/water heater, turning off the lights, etc. Better electricity usage all around

- I get creative and crafty with any gift ideas I need to bring anywhere, and have even re-gifted some things (be careful with that though, haha)

- For most small things I get the urge to buy, I look up if there's any natural alternatives to use, or alternatives with products I already have around the house.

- Anytime I buy any particular thing, especially online, I do a quick Google search for a coupon.

- I eat 'closer to the Earth', meaning I eat more fruits and vegetables from the produce isle, and less in boxes and pre-packaged/frozen foods. I've been able to eat mostly organic this way, and still save over 50% on what I used to buy in groceries.

- I generally use less of everything that whats recommended on product labels -- the amount I feed my cat (which more correctly aligns with how much my vet told me to feed her anyway!), how much laundry detergent I use, I stopped using fabric softener all together, shampoo/conditioner, and even portion sizes on the food I eat.

[ginene]

Everytime I go to the market I choose debit and get back $3 and then I put it in my envelope until I reach my goal for the week then I check that goal off the list.

[wendyjames2]

Secret bucket

What I do is pretty simple. When I go out and take home some change I place them in a bucket (any container for this matter. I just leave it there and not touch it. Last week I just opened and counted the bucket I have been saving for 1 month, to my surprise I managed to save $1,216.45

I already started my next bucket and this time I am intending to keep it that way for 3 months see how much I can save from small changes I set aside.

[lorraineb]

What I do is pretty simple. When I go out and take home some change I place them in a bucket (any container for this matter. I just leave it there and not touch it. Last week I just opened and counted the bucket I have been saving for 1 month, to my surprise I managed to save $1,216.45

I already started my next bucket and this time I am intending to keep it that way for 3 months see how much I can save from small changes I set aside.

Great concept, but your numbers seem a little far fetched. If what you say is true, you were bringing home $40 in change everyday for the month. If that is actually true, I would hate to think what you were spending to come home each day with that much change.

[Permanent Temp]

I kicked my Starbucks habit. Learned how to make cold brewed coffee and iced chai at home and even have coffee and chai cubes. I bought a few tumblers and so it feels like I'm out even though it's from home.

I research the ads and buy in bulk for costly items like toilet paper, soap etc. And I eat a mostly veggie diet by choice. Buying fresh produce cuts down costs a lot and we use it up to 3 days for all sorts of meals so its cost effective too.

Investing in a Brita filter and using that water instead of buying it has saved a lot of money as well.

I just lowered the amount of money I let myself spend and put it in an envelop for each week. I've been saving 20-30 a week this way for a while now.

[johnt78]

When many people try to find how to save money each month they often end up finding little ways to save here and there. Don’t get us wrong, saving small amounts of money is good, but the smartest thing to do is to look for the big savings first. If you focus on the biggest savings first, you should be able to save thousands of dollars per year and begin to really get ahead.

[krantcents]

Start small! I started with taking my lunch to work one day a week forty years ago. I eventually went to five days a week. I keep my thermostat low in the winter and high in the summer. I keep the water heater on warm. I use a cold water wash in my washing machine 100% of the time. I have the lowest utilities compared to my friends and neighbors. I took all these savings and invested it and it helped me achieve financial freedom at 38 years old. Obviously, there were more savings!

[wenice]

One of my ways is to stick to my needs and often disregard my wants. I find it very effective because my needs are just the basic and I don't go into debt so I can have additional savings. I'm happy to live with simplicity and occasionally I can grab the stuffs I want without making a debt for it.