My husband and I had a Sprint family plan with unlimited texts/calls/data. We were paying $178 monthly for this plan. I looked online at the itemized bill and found that we were being charged an extra $15 for a phone warranty, which we didn't know about. I called and had that taken off right away. We also downgraded our plan to 2GB of data instead of unlimited making our total monthly bill $138 monthly, saving us a total of $40!! If you look at your monthly data usage, you can determine how many GB you actually use and downgrade your plan accordingly. We are always in WiFi range, so we use very little data.
Update 11/11/15: We downgraded even more, to 1 GB between the two of us, and pay less than $80 per month!!
2. Use the envelope system and stick to it
When my husband and I got married we took a Dave Ramsey class which taught us how to budget using the envelope system. We use an app (free) called Good Budget. There are others out there, but we have found that this one works best for us. It took us a few months to nail our budget down, and we still occasionally have to adjust it depending on the time of year, but it is so good to have a place for all of our money. It gives us permission to spend money on things like eating out and fun activities, but also tells us when we have reached our limit for the month. Our envelopes consist of things like: house mortgage, eating out, random (for unexpected expenses and fun activities), gas, phone bill, water/electricity/gas, savings, groceries, car insurance, and cable/internet.
When my husband and I got married we took a Dave Ramsey class which taught us how to budget using the envelope system. We use an app (free) called Good Budget. There are others out there, but we have found that this one works best for us. It took us a few months to nail our budget down, and we still occasionally have to adjust it depending on the time of year, but it is so good to have a place for all of our money. It gives us permission to spend money on things like eating out and fun activities, but also tells us when we have reached our limit for the month. Our envelopes consist of things like: house mortgage, eating out, random (for unexpected expenses and fun activities), gas, phone bill, water/electricity/gas, savings, groceries, car insurance, and cable/internet.
3. Buy store brand instead of name brand
I live by this motto! I typically shop at HEB, and have found that store brand is just as good (sometimes better) as name brand. I have trained myself to go straight to store brand on the shelf. Every once in a blue moon I find name brand is cheaper (if I have a coupon), but 9 times out of 10 store brand is significantly less expensive. They often have in store coupons for store brand items making your savings even greater. Its hard to put a number on exactly how much I actually save, but on average it's $15-30 per grocery trip spending $125-150 per trip. Occasionally I save even more, depending on what is on sale and what I am buying.
Update 11/11/15: I now shop at a place called Aldi. Oh my word! I can buy nearly ALL my groceries for under $100. Wow wow wow!!!
I live by this motto! I typically shop at HEB, and have found that store brand is just as good (sometimes better) as name brand. I have trained myself to go straight to store brand on the shelf. Every once in a blue moon I find name brand is cheaper (if I have a coupon), but 9 times out of 10 store brand is significantly less expensive. They often have in store coupons for store brand items making your savings even greater. Its hard to put a number on exactly how much I actually save, but on average it's $15-30 per grocery trip spending $125-150 per trip. Occasionally I save even more, depending on what is on sale and what I am buying.
Update 11/11/15: I now shop at a place called Aldi. Oh my word! I can buy nearly ALL my groceries for under $100. Wow wow wow!!!
4. Buy frozen produce, or fresh produce on sale and freeze them
I have found that some frozen veggies are cheaper than buying them fresh, and they taste exactly the same when cooked. During the summer, fresh veggies are usually on sale, so I cut them as soon as I get home and freeze them. I used to buy a ton of veggies at once (because I only grocery shop twice a month), but 20-30% of it would go bad before we could eat it all. Things like zucchini, squash, peppers, broccoli, etc. are good to freeze when cut and stored in freezer bags. I also freeze some fruits that are on the verge of going bad and use them in smoothies. By doing this I get more for my money. Lettuce is one thing that does not freeze well, but if you buy a lettuce head or bundled (spinach), it is cheaper than bagged and lasts longer.
5. Downgrade your auto insurance
We are a two car family, which means our auto insurance runs high. After paying off our auto loan, we decided to also downgrade our auto insurance from full coverage to liability coverage on one car. We kept full coverage on our newer car, but raised the deductible since that is our "travel" car. We looked on Kelley Blue Book and found that the pay out for our older car was so low that it was not worth having full coverage. By making these simple changes, we are saving $30 every month.
Update 11/11/15: I did some more car insurance shopping and we are now paying a little over $100/month for 2 cars (same coverage). Also, many insurance companies charge a monthly fee of $5 but if you pay 6 months at a time, it is not charged.
I have found that some frozen veggies are cheaper than buying them fresh, and they taste exactly the same when cooked. During the summer, fresh veggies are usually on sale, so I cut them as soon as I get home and freeze them. I used to buy a ton of veggies at once (because I only grocery shop twice a month), but 20-30% of it would go bad before we could eat it all. Things like zucchini, squash, peppers, broccoli, etc. are good to freeze when cut and stored in freezer bags. I also freeze some fruits that are on the verge of going bad and use them in smoothies. By doing this I get more for my money. Lettuce is one thing that does not freeze well, but if you buy a lettuce head or bundled (spinach), it is cheaper than bagged and lasts longer.
5. Downgrade your auto insurance
We are a two car family, which means our auto insurance runs high. After paying off our auto loan, we decided to also downgrade our auto insurance from full coverage to liability coverage on one car. We kept full coverage on our newer car, but raised the deductible since that is our "travel" car. We looked on Kelley Blue Book and found that the pay out for our older car was so low that it was not worth having full coverage. By making these simple changes, we are saving $30 every month.
Update 11/11/15: I did some more car insurance shopping and we are now paying a little over $100/month for 2 cars (same coverage). Also, many insurance companies charge a monthly fee of $5 but if you pay 6 months at a time, it is not charged.
6. Work out at home/park or find a cheap gym
Personally, I have a hard time being motivated to work out at home, but if our budget ever became super tight to where we couldn't make ends meet, my gym membership would be one of the first things to go. When joining a gym, I did a ton of research before committing to one. I had a few requirements that the gym had to meet: free (and good) childcare, free classes, close to my house, hours that worked for my schedule, and monthly payment of less than $25. While that sounds impossible, I wasn't going to waver from these requirements. If I couldn't find a gym with all of these things, I simply wasn't going to get a gym membership, because the truth is, if it was missing one of these, I probably wouldn't actually go to the gym and it would be a waste of money. Good news is, I found one! It is not a big gym and doesn't have a ton of fancy amenities, but it is perfect for what I was wanting.
Personally, I have a hard time being motivated to work out at home, but if our budget ever became super tight to where we couldn't make ends meet, my gym membership would be one of the first things to go. When joining a gym, I did a ton of research before committing to one. I had a few requirements that the gym had to meet: free (and good) childcare, free classes, close to my house, hours that worked for my schedule, and monthly payment of less than $25. While that sounds impossible, I wasn't going to waver from these requirements. If I couldn't find a gym with all of these things, I simply wasn't going to get a gym membership, because the truth is, if it was missing one of these, I probably wouldn't actually go to the gym and it would be a waste of money. Good news is, I found one! It is not a big gym and doesn't have a ton of fancy amenities, but it is perfect for what I was wanting.
7. Do your research before buying (compare prices)
I am not about spending hours comparing prices. My time is more valuable than that, but in some cases it can save a ton of money. I typically research items costing more than $15 such as diapers and one time purchases (ex. furniture, electronics, etc.).
I am not about spending hours comparing prices. My time is more valuable than that, but in some cases it can save a ton of money. I typically research items costing more than $15 such as diapers and one time purchases (ex. furniture, electronics, etc.).
8. Pay off loans if possible
The Dave Ramsey class that we took when we got married taught us to avoid debt when possible, but if it us unavoidable, then pay it off as soon as possible. We have been very blessed to not have much debt. We did not have school loans or credit card debt, however we did invest in a nicer (not new) vehicle. Living in a big city and my husband driving 30 minutes to and from work each day, we decided that having a dependable vehicle was a priority. We paid as much as we could comfortably afford in cash, and the rest was taken out in an auto loan. Our interest rate was 6.25% (which isn't great) and our payments were over $250 monthly. We were paying $50 every month just in interest. That's $600 per year that we could have been saving! When I started staying home, our number one priority was to pay this off. When we received our tax return, we used the entire amount to pay toward our loan. We also took a large amount of savings to pay the rest. Although our savings took a big hit, we decided that in the long run it would be worth it. Our interest totaled $600 per year and with almost four years left to pay, we ended up saving $2400 total. Plus that was one less monthly bill we had to worry about.
The Dave Ramsey class that we took when we got married taught us to avoid debt when possible, but if it us unavoidable, then pay it off as soon as possible. We have been very blessed to not have much debt. We did not have school loans or credit card debt, however we did invest in a nicer (not new) vehicle. Living in a big city and my husband driving 30 minutes to and from work each day, we decided that having a dependable vehicle was a priority. We paid as much as we could comfortably afford in cash, and the rest was taken out in an auto loan. Our interest rate was 6.25% (which isn't great) and our payments were over $250 monthly. We were paying $50 every month just in interest. That's $600 per year that we could have been saving! When I started staying home, our number one priority was to pay this off. When we received our tax return, we used the entire amount to pay toward our loan. We also took a large amount of savings to pay the rest. Although our savings took a big hit, we decided that in the long run it would be worth it. Our interest totaled $600 per year and with almost four years left to pay, we ended up saving $2400 total. Plus that was one less monthly bill we had to worry about.
9. Plan your meals
I try to base my grocery list off of what I am going to make for dinner in the next few weeks. I plan my meals according to what is in my freezer and buy the few random items I may not have. I have also found that if I plan ahead, we are less likely to be tempted to go out to eat.
I try to base my grocery list off of what I am going to make for dinner in the next few weeks. I plan my meals according to what is in my freezer and buy the few random items I may not have. I have also found that if I plan ahead, we are less likely to be tempted to go out to eat.
10. Make lunch the night before
My husband has been very diligent about making his lunch the night before. When we were both working, we bought lunch quite often because we would run out of time in the mornings to make lunch. I usually try to make extra food for dinner so that he has an easy lunch to pack and also to give him a variety (PB&J gets old, fast).
My husband has been very diligent about making his lunch the night before. When we were both working, we bought lunch quite often because we would run out of time in the mornings to make lunch. I usually try to make extra food for dinner so that he has an easy lunch to pack and also to give him a variety (PB&J gets old, fast).
11. Use coupons
I have never been able to be an extreme couponer. I feel like it takes too much time, and from watching the shows, its a bunch of stuff I don't need anyway. In college, I would cut coupons from the newspaper and try to use as many as I could, which wasn't good either. Yes, I would save around $60 per trip, but would end up spending WAY more that what I had originally planned and was stuck with things I would never use. Now, I make my grocery list first, and then look online for coupons that are applicable to what is on my list. It doesn't save a ton of money, but a few extra dollars per trip adds up.
12. Make your own detergent
I have never been able to be an extreme couponer. I feel like it takes too much time, and from watching the shows, its a bunch of stuff I don't need anyway. In college, I would cut coupons from the newspaper and try to use as many as I could, which wasn't good either. Yes, I would save around $60 per trip, but would end up spending WAY more that what I had originally planned and was stuck with things I would never use. Now, I make my grocery list first, and then look online for coupons that are applicable to what is on my list. It doesn't save a ton of money, but a few extra dollars per trip adds up.
12. Make your own detergent
Laundry detergent is expensive! I found a recipe that takes 3 ingredients and costs less than $0.03 per load. It only takes about 15 minutes to make too! You may be thinking, "Does it really clean you clothes?" The answer is YES! It cleans just as well, if not better than store bought detergent, plus it smells amazing.
13. Look at expiration dates
When vendors stock the shelves, they are trained to put the newer items on the back of the shelf, which makes sense because customers typically pick the front item. I always pick items furthest back on the shelf. Think about it newer items = later expiration dates. While many expiration dates are "suggested to use by" dates and can last a little past the date printed on the package, there are a few items that are pretty true to their expiration date, such as milk. We drink a lot of milk at our house, and I usually buy 2 gallons per grocery visit, but the shelf life is typically about two weeks. If the milk has already been on the shelf for a few days, that's that many less days its going to last in the fridge at home. Although these are not direct savings, it does make for fewer grocery visits, which in turn saves money.
When vendors stock the shelves, they are trained to put the newer items on the back of the shelf, which makes sense because customers typically pick the front item. I always pick items furthest back on the shelf. Think about it newer items = later expiration dates. While many expiration dates are "suggested to use by" dates and can last a little past the date printed on the package, there are a few items that are pretty true to their expiration date, such as milk. We drink a lot of milk at our house, and I usually buy 2 gallons per grocery visit, but the shelf life is typically about two weeks. If the milk has already been on the shelf for a few days, that's that many less days its going to last in the fridge at home. Although these are not direct savings, it does make for fewer grocery visits, which in turn saves money.
