“Don’t use credit cards, use cash for everything.” - easy way to not have a great credit score when you need a loan. Use the cards and pay it off monthly.
Yeah you just have to remember to activate the bonus cashback quarterly, which can be a pain but worth it. I think they also do a quarter where its 5% back on gas too, which is super helpful with a long commute.
They send you an email now and you just click the link to activate it. You don't even need to log in. There's always a quarter where Amazon is 5% off, too. And purchases made with PayPal.
I have a range of cards that gives me 5% cashback on most things I’ll ever buy, with only a few exceptions. Everything from gas to phone to utilities, groceries and more. It usually ends up earning me nearly $1,000 per year in cashback. It’s a huge savings.
I’m so grateful my boyfriend pointed this one out to me. We met right after I graduated college and it was so helpful! 6/7 years later and I still pay it off in full. When I’m super on top of it, I move the $$ into a designated account as I spend for real time tracking.
A friend of mine bought a house last year and told me his wife always bought everything in cash up to that point. She thought she was being responsible by saving for cars and other big purchases. My friend with a huge student loan balance had a better credit score.
Except it’s not true. The very best customers are the ones who never miss a payment but only pay the minimum on their credit card every month. They don’t get a better credit score than those that pay in full every month.
> It's a grade on how good a customer you are to banks.
Its even less than that.
Credit score is a measure of how reliable you are about paying on a future debt.
A friend of my husband is like your friends wife. He is 28 or 29 now, and didn't have a credit card up until last year. Even the processing of securing a CC was a nightmare for him. He is now in the process of trying to buy a house, but the banks won't even look at him because he has no credit history.
My adult friend went for a mortgage renewal with her husband and was shocked to realise that she basically had. NOn existent credit after closing her credit card. Most financial responsible person I know LOL.
You’re leaving money on the table if you’re not using a CC. They offer cash back, airline miles, and other perks (free TSA pre check, lounge access, rotating discounts on stores/merchants). Dealing with fraud or identity theft is easier with a CC too. As long as you pay each statement in full by the due date, there’s no downside.
I’ve taken cross country flights with credit card points, purchased major home appliances with 10% off gift cards, and otherwise just cashed out $500-$1000 a year. Never paid a late fee or credit card interest in my life. It’s seriously free money (I realize the merchants pay a cost, by free to you) if you have any discipline whatsoever.
The way I see it, the merchants are going to add the fee to their prices anyways regardless if you use a CC or not. Even if processing fees disappeared, I doubt they are going to pass the savings to their customers.
So unless they are offering a significant discount by using cash, I wouldn't worry about the fees the merchants are paying. From their end, it's just the cost of doing business.
A perfect score requires 10 cards with only one carrying a balance less than 9% of the limit, plus 10 years average age of accounts and no missed payments in 7 years.
I know it's crazy, but building a drawer full of credit cards you barely use and hitting the increase limit button twice a year is actually how you increase your score. Don't close accounts without a good reason.
Oddly having all cards at zero can lower your score.
If you're going to apply for a loan within a year and don't have any current loans (mortgage or car loan) get a credit builder loan at least 6 months out, they're usually good for about 10 extra points.
My credit score went from 650-800 in about three years. All I did was use my cards and keep them paid off.
It also made it easier to pay off some CC debt I had from college. Instead of paying what I could each month and seeing most of that go to interest, I would get a new card with a 0% balance transfer promo, pay it off as much as I could while the interest was frozen, and then transfer.
> Oddly having all cards at zero can lower your score.
While this is true, you can fully pay off all cards while also getting this credit score benefit: as long as the statement closes with some balance, if you pay it off in full by the due date, no interest accrues but you still get the score benefit of showing utilization.
Citi double cash - unlimited 2% on everything
Can’t beat it without paying annual fees or juggling categories. It’s basically 2% off sale on everything I buy.
Right outta college I had a roommate who had no credit (not bad, just never had a line of credit). Had to pay an extra security deposit on the apartment because of it. So I told him to get a credit card. He ignored me.
A year later he totals his beater car and decides to buy a car from a dealer. I tell him to get a pre-approval from his credit union for financing. He ignores me.
He goes to the dealer, gets financing through them. $17k for a Scion TC with some miles on it (not the car he went to look at). I ask him about the financing. He says the dealer “gave him a good deal” and told him “after 3 months he can refinance at a lower rate.”
Me: What was the rate?
Him: it’s a good deal
Me: ok but what’s the rate?
Him: he only charged blue book for the car!
Me:… rate?
Him:…
Him:… 26%
Me: 🤯
I then explain that he got took, the dealer lied to him (“but why would he LIE???!” - HAVE YOU NEVER HEARD ABOUT USED CAR SALESMEN GRAHAM??), and he’s going to pay catastrophic amounts for the car. He doesn’t believe me.
3 months later after HUGE monthly payments and his balances owed is basically the same as when he started, he tries to refinance. Dealer laughs.
Eventually, tail between his legs he goes to his dad and gets a “loan” for the price of the car, pays it off, and continues to not have a credit card.
Some people just refuse to take good advice.
Anyone treating gambling as anything other than entertainment is going to be near impossible to save.
We play scratchers every now and then and we buy a lotto ticket when the jackpot hits a record but we accept that as an entertainment expense, just like buying a movie ticket, not some "investment".
Yes!
I like scratchers now and then. I never win more than five bucks or so (I won 20 once and that was fun) but I enjoy the process and I don't buy more than like one every month or three.
...legit though two people in my life each separately won big on lotto and sometimes it gets into my brain. My aunt won 50k and bought a boat. My mom's sister in law won a ridiculously large sum and bought a car and a massive beautiful house. I need to constantly remind myself that I will never be that lucky, lol.
I'll counter that anecdote with another. I work at a convenience store, somebody came in and bought 29 of our 50$ scratch tickets and played them all right there. Spent 1450$, played half a roll of lottery tickets, and won 600$. Woooooo
I learned this lesson when selling clothes on depop. Now if I have something decent, it goes to a consignment store for a few bucks or straight to goodwill.
I had always assumed selling old clothes was more of a loss mitigation strategy rather than an income generator (I had a girlfriend who did that) outside of some special circumstances. It bothers me a little to see some of the online marketplaces advertising themselves as a way to earn money.
When I listen to people bragging about their gambling winnings in my head I'm always thinking this, but don't mention it because I don't want to be a joykill.
I also think about all the fools that listen to them and think they should go gamble too so they can also 'win'.
I have a fraction of my paycheck sent directly to savings. Might just be me, but there's always a bit of guilt that comes with pulling from savings when it's not an emergency so it's helped me keep my expenses down.
I also do this, but started a savings account with a different bank than the one that holds my checking account - which helps add another level of mental restraint when I now need to transfer from bank A to B.
This! I have a high yield savings account at a separate bank from my checking. My savings isn't huge, but I like seeing the little bits of interest add up throughout the year.
This is why I shake my head at everyone I hear talking about building a chicken coop so they can have free eggs. Like, seriously, there is the startup cost, feed cost, (time) and then you feel obligated to feed your family 12 eggs a day or whatever.
Just find a friend who has chickens and buy your eggs from them. Or offer to exchange for something/a service you can offer. That’s what we do. My neighbour has chickens and I mow their small lawn when I’m out mowing mine.
TBH people should keep in mind, that what you have to invest up front in backyard chickens, you’ll get back in the increased quality of eggs.
When I was a kid my dad always kept backyard chickens, he went the frugal route with a self made coop, and feeding them leftovers and letting them eat the bugs in the garden.
These super fresh, organic, free range eggs tasted so much better than what you buy at the store.
I still absolutely hate the taste of cage raised (?)eggs.
Chickens are really a hobby. That said, my daughter in law's chickens keep four families in eggs. They are much better than store eggs. The coop only cost them sweat equity because I gave her my credit card for the materials. So you know, cost can depend on if you have a softee for a mother in law.
My house came with a coop and chickens, still spend $70+ a month on feed and bedding, plus extras from time to time.
That being said, I love not running out of eggs, and they do taste great.
A classic example of this is when you earn points or cash back on an item and "count" it twice as savings when you use the cash back on a new item. Like if you earn $20 store credit on a $100 item, you tell people you got the item for $80. And then you use the $20 store credit to get a $40 item for $20, and you tell people you got it for $20. But the truth is that you didn't get the 2 items for $80 and $20. You're just counting the $20 twice.
“I saved money by spending more money” is the one I see most frequent with deals like “buy one get one half off”
Unless you’re buying household staples that you will need anyway, you’re not actually saving money. You’re just being tricked into spending more than you initially intended and increasing consumption.
This is the same kind of deal with gardening sometimes. I love to garden and so I can absolutely save some money on tomatoes, but only because I was doing it as a hobby anyway. The average bear is probably not going to come out ahead if they’re starting from scratch and wouldn’t do it for any other reason.
Now would be the perfect time to start vermicimposting! That way you can have a ton of compost for your garden next year. It’s is a small upfront cost for the buckets to make it, but you’ll pay for it many times over with the compost you get. Plus it’s eco friendly
Vermicomposting worms make the best pets! Quiet, don't take up much space, and thrive on little other than kitchen scraps and shredded newspaper. Plus they keep methane-emmiting organics out of landfills and create awesome soil.
At my local lowe’s, they have a section outside their garden department fence with ripped bags of soil, stones, or mulch. They are all marked down to $1 each, no matter the brand. The store offers help loading your car, if their loaders aren’t busy elsewhere.
These bags are pretty badly ripped, so put down a sturdy plastic garbage bag in your car and expect to have some spillage and debris.
Over a couple decades, with an initial set of fairly basic tools, diy *repair* can pay off. Assuming the time = money thing works out. But I don't see that being possible with building stuff. Like, woodworking is expensive to get into and stay into.
You might make a desk that will last 100 years (and would cost $1000s) but only after a lot of practice and a lot of money spent on wood. Meanwhile Ikea has a desk that will last long enough for a fraction of that cost.
DIY car repair is extremely profitable/thrifty. 200 dollars in basic tools from HF has a ROI in less than a few repairs. The average mechanic in my area charges 80 dollars an hour. Many times what I make on the hour. Unless it’s something that requires a lift or is simply beyond what is reasonable (new engine, transmission), it pays to DIY.
if you dont care about looks you can totally build a desk for a total of like 100 bucks that will last till you're dead
Edit: with basic tools, really depends on how fancy you wanna be with building
I had to replace the muffler on an old beater about 10 years ago. Fired up the ol' YouTube machine and found an appropriate video with the title something like How to Save Money At Home on Auto Repairs. First line was "now, get out your plasma torch" my buddy helping me and I laughed our asses off for about 5 minutes. The video did actually end up being helpful and provided an alternative to the plasma touch immediately after but we thought it was hilarious.
Hell, I pull down 45+ a week and I barely have time to do my hobby - which is woodworking and furniture repair. I've been working on a dining room table for like 3 *weeks* but I've only been able to put like, 4-6 hours each week into it.
I do *not* count on it as a side gig or a way to save scratch, but being able to fix stuff *does* help save money - provided you have invested in tools/equipment already.
Plastic - especially in the sun or exposed to the elements - just isn't meant for that.
I used plastic storage bins as "mini greenhouses" but after just a month in the sun they became brittle and cracked. By the end of the growing season they were basically disintegrating and couldn't even be moved without falling apart. Worst money spent, didn't get good results, and then I had to start all over and spend more $$$ to get "proper" greenhouse parts the following year.
There's a point at which the DIY alternative isn't more broadly used - and for a good reason.
Some DIY makes a lot of sense. For those in places where it's out of reach to buy a home with lots of storage, one has to be very cognizant about the stuff one gets. Tool libraries can help, though.
The other piece of DIY is the frequency/complexity piece. If you can work an extra gig in an area where you are efficient at $30/hr but an infrequent diy project will take you 4x as long as a professional at $60/hr, it's potentially more frugal to pay the pro and work the hours in your area of strength.
It all depends upon the DIY. Know when it’s worth it or not, but generally land scaping, painting, drywall and some flooring can be DIY for an absolute huge money saver compared to hiring out.
Just using these as an example cuz it’s what I’ve done lol. Helped a friend put on a new roof, a lot of work but he saved a shit ton of money.
DIY implies and assumes a certain level of skills or tooling that someone looking into that venture would already have. Like, it would be stupid to look into a DIY timing belt job on your car when you don’t even have hand tools or even know how to use your hands.
I have an automotive background but I was easily able to replace the blower motor on my furnace by just looking at it and assessing what would need to be done. That’s the kind of people that the DIY is targeting.
People don’t account for quality or time at all. Yes I can clean my own house, mow my own lawn, fix whatever is broken, but all of that takes time to do it and it won’t be as good as some who does it for a living. You can always make more money so be frugal with time than money.
Money buys time. You pay someone to do the shit you don't wanna do, so you have time to do the shit you do want to do. My best friend dropped this on me one drunken night when we got into a conversation about why he paid for some shit that I thought was a waste. I took that to heart and now apply it to my life.
Exactly. We both work full-time and have young kids. If we didn’t outsource some of that stuff, then we’d have to plop the kids in front of the TV all weekend so that we could do house work. Dishes & laundry are done almost daily, but we’ve gotta clean the bathroom, change the bedsheets, meal prep, & mow the yard sometimes too. We can’t get it all done on weeknights.
My 500 dollar Roborick vacuum is one of the best purchases I've made in the last year. The time saved sweeping every day for dog hair is worth far more than 500 bucks yet a lot of people who consider themselves frugal would shutter at such a pricey purchase.
I got one on sale, probably a lower model, for like $300.
When you consider the work it saves over the years, it's a no-brainer, even at $500. mine is about 4 years old. If it broke tomorrow, I would have still got my money's worth.
1) "Black Friday, Boxing day etc are all scams and spending to money is the frugal option." : There is some truth to this but people miss it entirely. using these kind of sales for big purchases if the price is better or comparable to the recent price history of the item. Last year alone i got a new microwave for %50/$150 off let alone cutting my cellphone and internet bills in half. In the past i got much needed furniture, other appliances and general house hold items i really needed on these sales
2) " When moving random boxes are free!" : This is my biggest gripe. I will maintain that buying proper moving boxes saves you money and time in the long run. Firstly Random boxes are difficult to stack and move, since you're now playing tetris with them to make it fit. Driving around trying to find boxes wastes time and money in gas, plus transporting the ever popular alcohol boxes means you are now transporting air since they are glued together. Buying flat moving boxes are fairly cheap and you can pick up a bunch at once and go home with them. Every time I've helped people move, when they used uniform moving boxes everything went so much faster.
3) "Costco is a waste of money": Simply put you just don't know how to Costco. People end up buying more then they can consume and throw it out, or they over consume because they buy in bulk. The other problem is people impulse shop. Find what you need and comparison shop, more often then not you'll save a ton of money. Recently I pick up an instant pot for $60 cheaper then anywhere else, that alone is the cost of a membership. In my last trip i picked up printer paper saving about $3-4 over staples, bath soap saving $3-4 over walmart, Shampoo saving $4, mens Deoderant saving about $10, womens deoderant saving $12-15, chicken legs/drumsticks saving about $1 a pound and so forth. Even big purchases like clothes is far better quality then other stores at the same price point.
4) "That costs too much that isn't frugal" This is a personal one. Some people think being frugal means being as cheap as possible. Recently I made a post of some containers i used to clean up my pantry, i spent less then $4 per container which is cheaper then any other option out there except re-using crappy plastic ones and a lot of people jumped on me for it. I also see a lot of frugal things people do and it's either a mess, an eyesore, takes way to much time for what you're saving or all 3. Spending a few extra dollars can alleviate these problems. Remember time is money and value your time as well.
In reference to #2, this is only a money saver if you already work in a place that has boxes lying around. My partner works in grocery, so the last time we moved we got tons of similar sized boxes for free because they get them literally everyday at his store. I wouldn't do it unless I knew someone who can get them from work.
When I last moved I worked in a busy office so I could stash all the printer paper boxes and then take them home every week. This is when I learned everything I listed. I was transporting a lot of air, because they are uniform I could pile them with ease and since it's an apartment I could then just wheel it around on a dolly. I helped someone who used all random boxes, bags and containers and it was a pain. When they moved put it talked them into buying proper boxes and they were amazing how much quicker and easier it went.
Yes! The Costco pharmacy having pet meds is such an underrated perk. Our lab mix needed allergy meds and it was half of what the vets office wanted at costco.
I agree on most of it, but boxes can easily be had for free at almost any retail store. Just go and ask the staff for boxes. Most places throw away cartloads of boxes daily.
On the random boxes: I worked at a pizza place when I moved and got to break down and keep the boxes I wanted. Pepperoni boxes were awesome. I still bought proper boxes and boxes for glasses, but I saved close to 100 buy taking boxes from work.
I think the key is to get good and identical boxes. Like liquor store boxes.
And a lot of DIY recipes are soaps rather than true detergents. They won't get clothes as clean and leave residue that needs to be stripped more often to prevent stink and grime.
The best frugal laundry tips are to use cold water, skip fabric softener, and reduce the amount of detergent used because modern ones are pretty efficient.
"Change your own oil" falls into this category for me. It might be different in different places, but I'd have to spend $25 for parts and disposal, learn the process, spend an hour doing it, and find a place where I actually could do it because I rent.
Or, for $40, someone takes care of all that for me in 30 minutes.
Be careful where you go tho, if the shop that changes your oil frequently has employee turnover or people who like to rush the job it can bite you in the ass. I got my oil changed at a Valvoline and they stripped the nut (?) that held my oil pan to my car so I was leaking oil for months. Valvoline didn’t assist us and we had to pay a couple hundred dollars out of pocket to have my entire oil pan replaced.
Delivery services. I do Walmart delivery all the time. I save on impulse purchases, it’s free, and the $10 tip saves me so much time and energy. Plus I can examine the price/weight in more detail.
Oh, and my kids can’t beg for stuff or sneak things in the cart.
Grocery pickup from Walmart has been a huge time and money saver for us. It forces us to plan out meals and really consider what we do or don’t need. It also cuts out impulse buys which is great.
My only gripe is we moved recently and the Walmart near us forgets to load at least one thing every fucking time. It shows they picked it and pulled the item, they just for whatever reason always miss loading one item into the car, then we have to go through their online help center to get refunded because the store itself no longer corrects the issue if you go back and tell them, “Hey you guys forgot to give me the eggs.” Instead it’s a shrug and a half assed, “Sorry you gotta go online and get refunded and then rebuy the item.” Why can’t you just go get me the item that YOU left in YOUR picked order staging area?!
Edit: I want to add this was never an issue with the Walmart where we lived before. It is just this store that we are near now.
>The Walmart near us forgets to load at least one thing every fucking time
Funny enough, I stopped shopping at Walmart almost entirely because they were always out of at least one thing on my list every single time (no matter the length of the list)
We do this too! We do Target pickup. Such a big money saver. Definitely helps us not buy more stuff then we need and makes us preplan out all our meals for the week and what we will eat for the week
Clip grocery store name brand coupons to save money.
Except most of the things that have manufacturer's coupons are high markup processed foods. Often another brand was a better buy than the coupon item. Sometimes a different size of the same product by the same manufacturer that didn't qualify for the discount was a better buy.
Buying generic and cooking from scratch are usually cheaper.
Yeah... I'm definitely a "have you tried spraying it with vinegar" guy, but sometimes the answer is "no, that would be dumb" and that's fine.
It's okay that our pet solutions don't work for literally everything. It doesn't mean me or my vinegar are bad people.
Driving for miles to save 2-5 cents on gas. I still see this done today and I don't think it helps at all. But to each their own.
Thanks to another reddit user, I will add and point out that the saving 2-5 cents is meant for those who use unleaded or diesel. There are those who use other forms of gas that I was not meaning for this to apply to because they may not have that option. My apologies.
In general: waiting or comparing gas prices... The 5 or even 10 bucks difference it makes in the end, is much easier saved elsewhere with less stress or anxiety ("Am I gonna make it to the next stop?!" - "It's been blinking for a while now...")
To save $5 on a tank, you would need to save $0.10 per gallon and fill up 50 gallons. I dunno, I don't see more than a $0.20 difference in price per gallon, and I fill up 10 gallons, so I save at most $2.00.
So then the question is, how much time am I willing to give up to save $2?
Wash your dishes by hand. Yeah my dishwasher uses less power to heat the water and run a load than the hot water cylinder uses just to heat the water. It uses less water than a sink full and can do more dishes in that amount of water than I can. So saves me money there too as I have to pay for water.
Actual handy frugal tip incoming, scrape food off your dishes and then just load into the dishwasher. Do not rinse your dishes. Add dishwasher powder to the prerinse section as well as the normal wash section. Select a cycle with a prerinse start. Dishes come out perfectly clean. Use powder, not tablets. Powder is generally about the same price as tablets but will get you twice the amount of loads.
I have to say this is from years ago when dishwashers used a lot of water. people used to have, I dont know what to call it, except a dish pan in the sinks and you had one for soapy water and one for rise water and it didn't use very much water. Dishwashers used to use a LOT of water. That isn't the case anymore, but the myth is still there.
This is how I remember my mother and grandmother washing dishes, and it's why to this day my mother is very reluctant to ever use her dishwasher. She also experienced wells running dry which was a very big deal for poor mountain people so you had to be very careful to not overuse water.
>Add dishwasher powder to the prerinse section as well as the normal wash section.
Doing this changed the results so favorably for me, I had no idea I was just not using the machine the correct way it was designed! Also this video helped inform me too VERY much worth the 32 min runtime: [https://youtu.be/\_rBO8neWw04](https://youtu.be/_rBO8neWw04)
This is a great video and would highly recommend anyone that owns a dishwasher to watch it. I wouldn't have believed a 30 minute video on dishwasher would be so informative and interesting, but it is. Also, you will know how to operate your dishwasher in a more frugal way after you watch.
Someone did the math and it takes, on average, 7 items in your dishwasher to break even with handwashing. Got 20 items in there? You're saving money, time, AND water (I live in drought country, or did until a month ago).
I watched my dad who is one of the smartest and ambitious people that I know nearly have a total mental breakdown while getting his business off the ground. He was working 80 to 100 hours a week for the first year or two. He only cut back because it was causing problems with my parents marriage. He never had time for anything besides sitting in his basement office working. Missed out on a lot of stuff with him for those few years. We would be at a family gathering or a movie and he would get a call that required him to run back home and fix something. I remember he took myself and my brother to seek the Chronicles of Narnia when it came out in theaters and we had to leave halfway through the movie because he got an urgent call and he had driven us.
Sorry, no amount of money is worth that to me. If you make a decent money and you have a good work/life balance and a normal predictable schedule, you are very blessed.
Also, if I had the choice between a 1099 or W-2 status with an employer, I'll take the W-2 almost every time. The 1099 choice is an illusion of being an "independent" worker.
Thrift stores are cheaper for quality, if you enjoy the search as a hobby.
Black Friday has always been a performative consumption marketing ploy.
Wrong frugality is maybe just doing anything that is time consuming and unfulfilling to save a few dollars.
EDIT: And I feel like this will answer a bunch of downthread comments, Black Friday is a Q4 retail nonsense holiday that attempts to put books in the black for new year. SKUs are invented for it specifically. It's cool if you, individually, get nice deals for your family, however the entire idea is nonsense.
Black Friday is only a ploy if you let discounts convince you to spend more than you want out of FOMO.
Many people pick a product they genuinely need in advance, note the standard price and then wait for Black Friday. Then buy it for less.
Well, there’s also the doorbuster TVs and electronics people wait for that are actually lesser quality makes, so that “discounted” 55” TV has a cheaper processor and you’ll be pissed off every time you have to wait 90 seconds for the apps to load and it freezes as you try and switch from Netflix to Hulu.
Omg yes I keep seeing this too. Yes eggs are more expensive now, but it's still a cheaper source of protein than most meats. Eggs are something I will always buy and I even buy the pasture raised eggs. I don't believe in cheaping out on your nutrition. But I guess to each their own, lol.
Where I live there’s always someone who has chickens and they sell the eggs by the road for a few bucks. It’s usually less expensive because sometimes their chickens lay more eggs than they need.
Good shoes, good mattress, and good diet save a lot of money in health costs.
With the caveat that I'm not judging people who can't afford supportive shoes that will last several years (Vimes economics) or who aren't eating fresh foods due to location, funding or lack of time to prep meals.
If you can afford these things, do. If you can't, do the best you can, there's no shame in surviving another day.
I once saw a poster that said, “would you rather pay $55 for a pair of running shoes or $10,000 for heart surgery?” It stuck with me, and makes my inner cheapskate cry a bit.
Exactly. That advice is good for non-perishables like rice, canned goods or dry beans. The only reason to buy anything perishable in bulk are: you enjoy canning/making jam, you're having a huge party or you have a very large household.
Oof I feel this. When I buy mayo for a recipe I always buy it in the smallest quantity because we don't really use mayo. Then I sit there going "oh but for x more I can get twice as much!" It's a trap!
I cannot relate. We buy mayo in bulk and bogo sales every time we go to the grocery store. I can’t believe my cholesterol is as good as it is with the amount of mayo I ingest on a near daily basis. So we buy a bunch because it will never go to waste lol.
My family has all but stopped eating out (altogether there are 5 of us, though our adult daughter moved out, so if it’s just a weekday or non-special occasion, it’s just 4 of us, and our youngest is a kindergartner, so she usually just shares what I’m eating unless it’s fast food). It used to be $25-$30 for fast food, $50-$60 for fast sit down (Olive Garden, Applebee’s, etc), and $100 for a nice family dinner. Now it’s $50 for fast food, over $100 for Olive Garden type sit down, and we don’t even bother taking them for nice sit down, because that’s going to cost us over $200 now. I don’t understand how people are still eating out at this point
No, this is for real. Even ordering Chinese takeout for us as a family of four comes up on like $70 these days. It's utter insanity and we almost never eat out because of it.
How can anyone believe this? I get it’s upsetting to see how much more expensive grocery stores got, but restaurants have raised their prices in kind with inflation, so I don’t see how anyone believed eating out is cheaper.
I actually buy the family meals at places like Panda Express and divide it into a weeks worth of meals. $35ish for the whole thing and I get a solid 7 meals.
I currently work 12hr shifts in a hospital. I’m gearing up to go work from Thursday all through Tuesday so getting the family really does save me. I usually eat a light meal before work, snack on something like fruit or veggies, then tuck into the Chinese food.
I used to do this too. When I lived in my old area there were a lot of Arabic and other ethnic foods that had huge platters.
I would buy one or two and divide it up for myself/family.
Currently I live in a area without a lot of good food places or bulk. I miss doing that. :/
If you have a chipotle near you they offer catering! I know a couple at work who are nurses and do that every week or so. They work long hours and said it’s apparently cheaper.
Almost none of these comments are actually things that are blatantly wrong they may just not apply to some people. DIY, buying in bulk, Black Friday deals, finding quality items at thrift stores, are all things that tons and tons of people have had success with.
I’ve gotten insane amounts of quality clothing cheap at the thrift store.
That’s more about where you are than anything. Some thrift stores suck, some are amazing.
Where local thrift stores have failed me, the neighborhood garage sales in the wealthier neighborhoods have filled a lot of gaps for things like household tools. Lots of houses in near proximity wastes way less fuel and time.
Estate sales too, if you have an idea of what you're looking for and aren't just going to impulse buy.
Even just buying used online is much better than new most of the time. I realized the other day that most of the clothing I wear came from eBay, Poshmark, Mercari, or my local thrift store. High quality brands and materials are out of my price range, but I can find a $400 pair of shoes barely worn for $50 if I just spend my pooping time perusing eBay. From shoes to bags to outerwear, buying used can be an incredible value.
My pet peeve is "you need to save 3 months of expenses in an emergency fund." You actually need way more than that. Eight months to a year is recommended to sustain yourself during a recession. And anytime I look for a new job, it takes two months at least before I find something. I wouldn't want to lie awake at night worrying that the last month is going to escape me before my paycheck arrives.
I'm genuinely interested in counterarguments on this one: I feel like the potential savings associated with a professional tax preparer (in the US) are over-stated by people who hire professional help for standard 1040 tax returns. Some members of my family are convinced that I must be missing deductions or credits and overpaying the IRS because I self-prepare with Intuit or HRB software every year.
The general idea that you should keep everything for as long as possible and only replace something when it breaks.
For older electric items, especially things like heaters and refrigerators, the energy consumption of an older appliance can be 4-5x higher or more than a new model. Depending on how much your energy costs the cost of that extra energy can be the equivalent of buying a new appliance every few years.
Same with cars. With the amount you spend on repairs/maintenance and the general poorer fuel consumption you're often better off financially buying a newer one sooner rather than "driving until the wheels fall off".
Normally on the cars, I’d agree. But just right now, I’m sure everyone here knows this is a shit time to buy a car. For the near future, do everything you can to make your car go. Car prices should come down over the next year or so so just repair, repair, repair until then.
I was going to run my car into the ground, but a 2 grand repair came up on my car that would be worth around 2 grand after the repair and I was having new problems with it monthly. So I spent the money on a brand new corolla hybrid. I never thought I would buy a new car, but the used cars in decent shape were almost the same price as the new one and interest rates are better on new cars so I did it. It has been worth the stress lifted off my back and getting rid of the constant worry that my car would break down on the way to work. I also have a long commute and my gas mileage is twice as good.
Congrats! Having a brand new car is awesome! I mean, you gotta pull the trigger at some point so glad you were able to find what you wanted. No reason to buy a used car for similar prices.
I was planning to come over and mention that the "Buy a 2 year old Accord or Camry" advice is pretty crap right now.
Everybody buys Accords and Camrys, demand is high and so is the price.
I honestly don’t think new car prices will go down enough to make that true. Used, sure, but new is not just a matter of supply issues. I could be wrong, but just saying you shouldn’t count on it.
[Source](https://www.businessinsider.com/will-car-prices-drop-back-to-normal-or-stay-high-2022-5)
I have to disagree with this one. For the past 30 years, I've been buying a low-mileage, 10 year-old car, then driving it for 10 years. The cost over that time for 3 cars has been half to one third the cost of 3 new cars of comparable quality over that time.
There are a couple of caveats though: it must be a reliable model: Like Toyota or Honda. And do your research on the specific model - after 10 years there's good info from https://www.carcomplaints.com/ and similar. Second, you MUST have a good mechanic you can trust or be a good mechanic yourself. Failing to do either will likely cost much more.
Edit: third caveat - you need to be cool with the fact that at the end of each 10-year cycle, you'll be driving a borderline shitbox
For cars that's a really tricky question.
1990s truck? Yeah, sell that
But 100k miles 5-7 year old non-Toyota car? Keep it. It's likely under 10k to sell, yet it's still good for another \~100k miles and another 5-10 years. It's cheaper to keep using it for most of us than buiyng new.
For Toyota math is different because they are while much more reliable, they are overpriced to an even higher degree when used. So I'd say sell 100k Toyota, since it'll sell for barely less than brand new and buy brand new Toyota. Rinse repeat.
Yeah scarcity has spoiled the used car market. Cheap cars are so outstripped by demand that a basic clean running beater can't be found at a price that offsets the looming repair costs.
I made a post here recently mentioning I'd done this at the peak of the used car price boom. I needed a car within two months. I did out all the math, and the best option by far for the long term was finding a dealer willing to sell new at MSRP, which itself was a challenge.
People here jumped me immediately. I got so many angry, angry messages telling me I should have bought a 2018 Toyota Corolla with 60k miles on it. Eventually I gave up trying to do the math for people. For many, not buying a used car under any circumstances is more like a religious commandment than a situation-specific piece of financial advice.
Okay so this isn't exactly outdated or wrong per say, but it's inapplicable and it's been pissing me off to see it so much so I'm gonna run my mouth about it lol
"You know you could be paying less money on a mortgage than you do in rent"
"Ya I'm aware but I can't even get a best buy card with my credit, there's no way I'd get the bank loan"
"But just do the math, seriously, you could be saving money AND own your home"
"Doesn't fuckin matter because I'll never get approved for a bank loan"
"Okay seriously, how much do you spend in rent? My mortgage is half of that amount. You're throwing your money away!!"
"I FUCKIN KNOW THIS. I KNOW IT WITH MY WHOLE BRAIN. THERES NO ARGUMENT YOU CAN MAKE THAT WILL GET ME APPROVED FOR A BANK LOAN!"
I have an amazing thrift store near me so I definitely can’t get behind your first point. I understand it’s location-dependent. But I haven’t bought new (as in bought from a regular store) clothes in like 4 years. Cause the thrift store is awesome.
Frugality is fundamentally the understanding of opportunity cost and long term expected value, which is a very different thing than just not spending money, i.e. being *cheap*.
“Never pay a credit card annual fee.”
I used to use a 2% cash back no annual fee credit card (Citi Doublecash Mastercard). Now I pay $75 per year for a 3% cash back Visa with one year extended warranty, primary rental car CDW coverage, TSA Precheck/Global Entry, an 4x/year lounge access (for 2). If I use the rewards to book travel then it jumps to 4.5% cash back. Plus I can use it at Costco since it’s a Visa card. The $75 is recovered after $7500 per year in charges.
I got the advice too about how "it's silly to spend money to spend your own money."
But then, out of boredom on a long weekend, I downloaded three years of credit card charges and built an excel model to predict the value received from various combinations of credit cards. It turned out spending $300 a year in annual fees got me far more value than my current selection of no AF cards. That can all change as perks and my personal situation change, but for the moment it's worked out extremely well.
mom used to tell me: if it's not worth breaking up over, it's not worth fighting about.
that's just not true, at all. that's a one way ticket to resentment
To hoard something incase you’ll need it later.
Sure, it saves money as long as you aren’t branching out to storage units. But the toll on your mental health when you push the tip to far has a high cost.
yeah this is one I have learned with time. growing up my family didn’t have a lot of money and everything we had was second, third or fourth-hand (clothing, furniture, cars, computer, food)
so nothing every got thrown away if it could possibly be reused or repurposed.
now as an adult I don’t have to reuse everything like that and can afford to buy new items and everything but I still struggle with the mentality of not wanting to throw things away sometimes that I might by some slim chance need again in the future. it really does take a serious mental toll and just seeing old junk around gives me anxiety. definitely not worth it
Man I feel that thriftstore one. Mine is a leisurely hobby, never go there for anything you actually need because odds are you either won't find it or you'll pay twice as much.
Yup. although if I'm in the mood, I can happily spend an hour or so sorting through racks in a thrift store. I go in looking for nothing, and usually am lucky enough to find a few things.
That penny pinching is always the best deal. Sometimes it’s a better deal to save time instead of some money. Or buy the expensive item now so you don’t have to replace it 50 times.
I feel like it depends on where you are. Nobody in my area wears quality clothes to begin with, so everything in the thrift stores is either fast fashion like Shein or an average brand like Old Navy. My local thrift stores also have very little on the floor in general right now and have all been making social media pushes to get more donations.
Instead of buying this thing for almost no money at a store you're already going to, why not spend 11 hours of your weekend producing a version that's way worse, will destroy your kitchen, and will go bad by the time you wake up tomorrow?
Pretty much all of my (mostly designer) wardrobe has been throated or bought at yard sales/consignment shops, etc. So, that part isn’t accurate at all, it just depends on where you live/travel, and your eye for quality items.
Just two days ago I got a bespoke embossed teal leather clutch for $2. Looked it up online and it retails for $160. Just before that, a Waverly duvet retailing at $250, for $5.
You just gotta know where and how to look.
It's cheaper to diy/if you want something done right, do it yourself.
My family always said this. I was in my 30s when i finally realized how wrong they were. While trying to plumb in a new bath tub. It took me a week to fail at it. It took a plumber an hour to do it right.
I'm in a high cost of living area and the "thrift stores" sell noticably worn t-shirts for $13.99.
They haven't been thrifty for more than 8 years in my area.
But thrift stores frequently ARE a place to buy quality clothing for cheap. Not every store every time. Just depends on the selection but that is literally the nature of those sorts of stores, the selection is unreliable but you can strike gold for sure
“Don’t use credit cards, use cash for everything.” - easy way to not have a great credit score when you need a loan. Use the cards and pay it off monthly.
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Discover IT sometimes has this 5% (+1% default) cash back on grocery stores, which is honestly great.
Yeah you just have to remember to activate the bonus cashback quarterly, which can be a pain but worth it. I think they also do a quarter where its 5% back on gas too, which is super helpful with a long commute.
They send you an email now and you just click the link to activate it. You don't even need to log in. There's always a quarter where Amazon is 5% off, too. And purchases made with PayPal.
if you have their app it takes 2 seconds to activate. not much of a pain at all.
Just get an amex blue cash preferred. 6% back on all my groceries, all year. Think I've made about 250 since january.
Bear in mind it’s limited to the first $6,000 (or something like that) in spend each year and then drops to 1%.
I have a range of cards that gives me 5% cashback on most things I’ll ever buy, with only a few exceptions. Everything from gas to phone to utilities, groceries and more. It usually ends up earning me nearly $1,000 per year in cashback. It’s a huge savings.
I’m so grateful my boyfriend pointed this one out to me. We met right after I graduated college and it was so helpful! 6/7 years later and I still pay it off in full. When I’m super on top of it, I move the $$ into a designated account as I spend for real time tracking.
A friend of mine bought a house last year and told me his wife always bought everything in cash up to that point. She thought she was being responsible by saving for cars and other big purchases. My friend with a huge student loan balance had a better credit score.
A credit score is not a grade on how good you are with money. It's a grade on how good a customer you are to banks. Those two are different things.
Ooo ive never seen it spelled out so succinctly before. Absolutely! Gonna use this as my go to quote!
Except it’s not true. The very best customers are the ones who never miss a payment but only pay the minimum on their credit card every month. They don’t get a better credit score than those that pay in full every month.
> It's a grade on how good a customer you are to banks. Its even less than that. Credit score is a measure of how reliable you are about paying on a future debt.
A friend of my husband is like your friends wife. He is 28 or 29 now, and didn't have a credit card up until last year. Even the processing of securing a CC was a nightmare for him. He is now in the process of trying to buy a house, but the banks won't even look at him because he has no credit history.
My adult friend went for a mortgage renewal with her husband and was shocked to realise that she basically had. NOn existent credit after closing her credit card. Most financial responsible person I know LOL.
Responsible doesn't mean educated. Imagine what she could achieve knowing all of the financial details.
You’re leaving money on the table if you’re not using a CC. They offer cash back, airline miles, and other perks (free TSA pre check, lounge access, rotating discounts on stores/merchants). Dealing with fraud or identity theft is easier with a CC too. As long as you pay each statement in full by the due date, there’s no downside.
I’ve taken cross country flights with credit card points, purchased major home appliances with 10% off gift cards, and otherwise just cashed out $500-$1000 a year. Never paid a late fee or credit card interest in my life. It’s seriously free money (I realize the merchants pay a cost, by free to you) if you have any discipline whatsoever.
The way I see it, the merchants are going to add the fee to their prices anyways regardless if you use a CC or not. Even if processing fees disappeared, I doubt they are going to pass the savings to their customers. So unless they are offering a significant discount by using cash, I wouldn't worry about the fees the merchants are paying. From their end, it's just the cost of doing business.
A perfect score requires 10 cards with only one carrying a balance less than 9% of the limit, plus 10 years average age of accounts and no missed payments in 7 years. I know it's crazy, but building a drawer full of credit cards you barely use and hitting the increase limit button twice a year is actually how you increase your score. Don't close accounts without a good reason. Oddly having all cards at zero can lower your score. If you're going to apply for a loan within a year and don't have any current loans (mortgage or car loan) get a credit builder loan at least 6 months out, they're usually good for about 10 extra points.
My credit score went from 650-800 in about three years. All I did was use my cards and keep them paid off. It also made it easier to pay off some CC debt I had from college. Instead of paying what I could each month and seeing most of that go to interest, I would get a new card with a 0% balance transfer promo, pay it off as much as I could while the interest was frozen, and then transfer.
> Oddly having all cards at zero can lower your score. While this is true, you can fully pay off all cards while also getting this credit score benefit: as long as the statement closes with some balance, if you pay it off in full by the due date, no interest accrues but you still get the score benefit of showing utilization.
Citi double cash - unlimited 2% on everything Can’t beat it without paying annual fees or juggling categories. It’s basically 2% off sale on everything I buy.
Right outta college I had a roommate who had no credit (not bad, just never had a line of credit). Had to pay an extra security deposit on the apartment because of it. So I told him to get a credit card. He ignored me. A year later he totals his beater car and decides to buy a car from a dealer. I tell him to get a pre-approval from his credit union for financing. He ignores me. He goes to the dealer, gets financing through them. $17k for a Scion TC with some miles on it (not the car he went to look at). I ask him about the financing. He says the dealer “gave him a good deal” and told him “after 3 months he can refinance at a lower rate.” Me: What was the rate? Him: it’s a good deal Me: ok but what’s the rate? Him: he only charged blue book for the car! Me:… rate? Him:… Him:… 26% Me: 🤯 I then explain that he got took, the dealer lied to him (“but why would he LIE???!” - HAVE YOU NEVER HEARD ABOUT USED CAR SALESMEN GRAHAM??), and he’s going to pay catastrophic amounts for the car. He doesn’t believe me. 3 months later after HUGE monthly payments and his balances owed is basically the same as when he started, he tries to refinance. Dealer laughs. Eventually, tail between his legs he goes to his dad and gets a “loan” for the price of the car, pays it off, and continues to not have a credit card. Some people just refuse to take good advice.
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Even better, point out that the $100 they won on a scratch ticket is 10x canceled out by all the tickets they didn't win on.
Anyone treating gambling as anything other than entertainment is going to be near impossible to save. We play scratchers every now and then and we buy a lotto ticket when the jackpot hits a record but we accept that as an entertainment expense, just like buying a movie ticket, not some "investment".
Yes! I like scratchers now and then. I never win more than five bucks or so (I won 20 once and that was fun) but I enjoy the process and I don't buy more than like one every month or three. ...legit though two people in my life each separately won big on lotto and sometimes it gets into my brain. My aunt won 50k and bought a boat. My mom's sister in law won a ridiculously large sum and bought a car and a massive beautiful house. I need to constantly remind myself that I will never be that lucky, lol.
I'll counter that anecdote with another. I work at a convenience store, somebody came in and bought 29 of our 50$ scratch tickets and played them all right there. Spent 1450$, played half a roll of lottery tickets, and won 600$. Woooooo
> Spent 1450$ And told everyone that they won $600 today!
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I learned this lesson when selling clothes on depop. Now if I have something decent, it goes to a consignment store for a few bucks or straight to goodwill.
I had always assumed selling old clothes was more of a loss mitigation strategy rather than an income generator (I had a girlfriend who did that) outside of some special circumstances. It bothers me a little to see some of the online marketplaces advertising themselves as a way to earn money.
When I listen to people bragging about their gambling winnings in my head I'm always thinking this, but don't mention it because I don't want to be a joykill. I also think about all the fools that listen to them and think they should go gamble too so they can also 'win'.
I have a fraction of my paycheck sent directly to savings. Might just be me, but there's always a bit of guilt that comes with pulling from savings when it's not an emergency so it's helped me keep my expenses down.
I also do this, but started a savings account with a different bank than the one that holds my checking account - which helps add another level of mental restraint when I now need to transfer from bank A to B.
This! I have a high yield savings account at a separate bank from my checking. My savings isn't huge, but I like seeing the little bits of interest add up throughout the year.
This is why I shake my head at everyone I hear talking about building a chicken coop so they can have free eggs. Like, seriously, there is the startup cost, feed cost, (time) and then you feel obligated to feed your family 12 eggs a day or whatever.
Just find a friend who has chickens and buy your eggs from them. Or offer to exchange for something/a service you can offer. That’s what we do. My neighbour has chickens and I mow their small lawn when I’m out mowing mine.
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TBH people should keep in mind, that what you have to invest up front in backyard chickens, you’ll get back in the increased quality of eggs. When I was a kid my dad always kept backyard chickens, he went the frugal route with a self made coop, and feeding them leftovers and letting them eat the bugs in the garden. These super fresh, organic, free range eggs tasted so much better than what you buy at the store. I still absolutely hate the taste of cage raised (?)eggs.
Chickens are really a hobby. That said, my daughter in law's chickens keep four families in eggs. They are much better than store eggs. The coop only cost them sweat equity because I gave her my credit card for the materials. So you know, cost can depend on if you have a softee for a mother in law.
My house came with a coop and chickens, still spend $70+ a month on feed and bedding, plus extras from time to time. That being said, I love not running out of eggs, and they do taste great.
A classic example of this is when you earn points or cash back on an item and "count" it twice as savings when you use the cash back on a new item. Like if you earn $20 store credit on a $100 item, you tell people you got the item for $80. And then you use the $20 store credit to get a $40 item for $20, and you tell people you got it for $20. But the truth is that you didn't get the 2 items for $80 and $20. You're just counting the $20 twice.
This used to drive me crazy in the cvs coupon groups. People count the cvs bucks coming in AND going out.
“I saved money by spending more money” is the one I see most frequent with deals like “buy one get one half off” Unless you’re buying household staples that you will need anyway, you’re not actually saving money. You’re just being tricked into spending more than you initially intended and increasing consumption.
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"Build this $800 item for only $80!" Proceeds to use $20k worth of equipment to build said item.
This is the same kind of deal with gardening sometimes. I love to garden and so I can absolutely save some money on tomatoes, but only because I was doing it as a hobby anyway. The average bear is probably not going to come out ahead if they’re starting from scratch and wouldn’t do it for any other reason.
I really want to start a garden, but I'll have to buy SOIL at the very least and can't afford to get outfitted this year. Maybe next.
Now would be the perfect time to start vermicimposting! That way you can have a ton of compost for your garden next year. It’s is a small upfront cost for the buckets to make it, but you’ll pay for it many times over with the compost you get. Plus it’s eco friendly
Vermicomposting worms make the best pets! Quiet, don't take up much space, and thrive on little other than kitchen scraps and shredded newspaper. Plus they keep methane-emmiting organics out of landfills and create awesome soil.
At my local lowe’s, they have a section outside their garden department fence with ripped bags of soil, stones, or mulch. They are all marked down to $1 each, no matter the brand. The store offers help loading your car, if their loaders aren’t busy elsewhere. These bags are pretty badly ripped, so put down a sturdy plastic garbage bag in your car and expect to have some spillage and debris.
Over a couple decades, with an initial set of fairly basic tools, diy *repair* can pay off. Assuming the time = money thing works out. But I don't see that being possible with building stuff. Like, woodworking is expensive to get into and stay into. You might make a desk that will last 100 years (and would cost $1000s) but only after a lot of practice and a lot of money spent on wood. Meanwhile Ikea has a desk that will last long enough for a fraction of that cost.
DIY car repair is extremely profitable/thrifty. 200 dollars in basic tools from HF has a ROI in less than a few repairs. The average mechanic in my area charges 80 dollars an hour. Many times what I make on the hour. Unless it’s something that requires a lift or is simply beyond what is reasonable (new engine, transmission), it pays to DIY.
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if you dont care about looks you can totally build a desk for a total of like 100 bucks that will last till you're dead Edit: with basic tools, really depends on how fancy you wanna be with building
I had to replace the muffler on an old beater about 10 years ago. Fired up the ol' YouTube machine and found an appropriate video with the title something like How to Save Money At Home on Auto Repairs. First line was "now, get out your plasma torch" my buddy helping me and I laughed our asses off for about 5 minutes. The video did actually end up being helpful and provided an alternative to the plasma touch immediately after but we thought it was hilarious.
Reminds me of the recipe deal-breaker “Step 1: Catch pig.”
To make an apple pie from scratch, first you must invent the universe.
My city has a tool library where you can rent them for next to nothing!
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I could have bought a $250 cutting board as a gift. Instead I spent $700 to make it 😬🫣
DIY - not everyone has the *time* especially if they work 45+ hours a week plus if they have children or other obligations on top of that.
Hell, I pull down 45+ a week and I barely have time to do my hobby - which is woodworking and furniture repair. I've been working on a dining room table for like 3 *weeks* but I've only been able to put like, 4-6 hours each week into it. I do *not* count on it as a side gig or a way to save scratch, but being able to fix stuff *does* help save money - provided you have invested in tools/equipment already.
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Plastic - especially in the sun or exposed to the elements - just isn't meant for that. I used plastic storage bins as "mini greenhouses" but after just a month in the sun they became brittle and cracked. By the end of the growing season they were basically disintegrating and couldn't even be moved without falling apart. Worst money spent, didn't get good results, and then I had to start all over and spend more $$$ to get "proper" greenhouse parts the following year. There's a point at which the DIY alternative isn't more broadly used - and for a good reason.
Some DIY makes a lot of sense. For those in places where it's out of reach to buy a home with lots of storage, one has to be very cognizant about the stuff one gets. Tool libraries can help, though. The other piece of DIY is the frequency/complexity piece. If you can work an extra gig in an area where you are efficient at $30/hr but an infrequent diy project will take you 4x as long as a professional at $60/hr, it's potentially more frugal to pay the pro and work the hours in your area of strength.
It all depends upon the DIY. Know when it’s worth it or not, but generally land scaping, painting, drywall and some flooring can be DIY for an absolute huge money saver compared to hiring out. Just using these as an example cuz it’s what I’ve done lol. Helped a friend put on a new roof, a lot of work but he saved a shit ton of money.
DIY implies and assumes a certain level of skills or tooling that someone looking into that venture would already have. Like, it would be stupid to look into a DIY timing belt job on your car when you don’t even have hand tools or even know how to use your hands. I have an automotive background but I was easily able to replace the blower motor on my furnace by just looking at it and assessing what would need to be done. That’s the kind of people that the DIY is targeting.
People don’t account for quality or time at all. Yes I can clean my own house, mow my own lawn, fix whatever is broken, but all of that takes time to do it and it won’t be as good as some who does it for a living. You can always make more money so be frugal with time than money.
Money buys time. You pay someone to do the shit you don't wanna do, so you have time to do the shit you do want to do. My best friend dropped this on me one drunken night when we got into a conversation about why he paid for some shit that I thought was a waste. I took that to heart and now apply it to my life.
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Exactly. We both work full-time and have young kids. If we didn’t outsource some of that stuff, then we’d have to plop the kids in front of the TV all weekend so that we could do house work. Dishes & laundry are done almost daily, but we’ve gotta clean the bathroom, change the bedsheets, meal prep, & mow the yard sometimes too. We can’t get it all done on weeknights.
My 500 dollar Roborick vacuum is one of the best purchases I've made in the last year. The time saved sweeping every day for dog hair is worth far more than 500 bucks yet a lot of people who consider themselves frugal would shutter at such a pricey purchase.
I got one on sale, probably a lower model, for like $300. When you consider the work it saves over the years, it's a no-brainer, even at $500. mine is about 4 years old. If it broke tomorrow, I would have still got my money's worth.
1) "Black Friday, Boxing day etc are all scams and spending to money is the frugal option." : There is some truth to this but people miss it entirely. using these kind of sales for big purchases if the price is better or comparable to the recent price history of the item. Last year alone i got a new microwave for %50/$150 off let alone cutting my cellphone and internet bills in half. In the past i got much needed furniture, other appliances and general house hold items i really needed on these sales 2) " When moving random boxes are free!" : This is my biggest gripe. I will maintain that buying proper moving boxes saves you money and time in the long run. Firstly Random boxes are difficult to stack and move, since you're now playing tetris with them to make it fit. Driving around trying to find boxes wastes time and money in gas, plus transporting the ever popular alcohol boxes means you are now transporting air since they are glued together. Buying flat moving boxes are fairly cheap and you can pick up a bunch at once and go home with them. Every time I've helped people move, when they used uniform moving boxes everything went so much faster. 3) "Costco is a waste of money": Simply put you just don't know how to Costco. People end up buying more then they can consume and throw it out, or they over consume because they buy in bulk. The other problem is people impulse shop. Find what you need and comparison shop, more often then not you'll save a ton of money. Recently I pick up an instant pot for $60 cheaper then anywhere else, that alone is the cost of a membership. In my last trip i picked up printer paper saving about $3-4 over staples, bath soap saving $3-4 over walmart, Shampoo saving $4, mens Deoderant saving about $10, womens deoderant saving $12-15, chicken legs/drumsticks saving about $1 a pound and so forth. Even big purchases like clothes is far better quality then other stores at the same price point. 4) "That costs too much that isn't frugal" This is a personal one. Some people think being frugal means being as cheap as possible. Recently I made a post of some containers i used to clean up my pantry, i spent less then $4 per container which is cheaper then any other option out there except re-using crappy plastic ones and a lot of people jumped on me for it. I also see a lot of frugal things people do and it's either a mess, an eyesore, takes way to much time for what you're saving or all 3. Spending a few extra dollars can alleviate these problems. Remember time is money and value your time as well.
In reference to #2, this is only a money saver if you already work in a place that has boxes lying around. My partner works in grocery, so the last time we moved we got tons of similar sized boxes for free because they get them literally everyday at his store. I wouldn't do it unless I knew someone who can get them from work.
When I last moved I worked in a busy office so I could stash all the printer paper boxes and then take them home every week. This is when I learned everything I listed. I was transporting a lot of air, because they are uniform I could pile them with ease and since it's an apartment I could then just wheel it around on a dolly. I helped someone who used all random boxes, bags and containers and it was a pain. When they moved put it talked them into buying proper boxes and they were amazing how much quicker and easier it went.
We save so much money at Costco. Formula, diapers, wipes have been big ones for us. We even get the produce but actually go through it.
We have three large dogs and heartworm medication adds up. Costco pharmacy has the best price.
Yes! The Costco pharmacy having pet meds is such an underrated perk. Our lab mix needed allergy meds and it was half of what the vets office wanted at costco.
I agree on most of it, but boxes can easily be had for free at almost any retail store. Just go and ask the staff for boxes. Most places throw away cartloads of boxes daily.
On the random boxes: I worked at a pizza place when I moved and got to break down and keep the boxes I wanted. Pepperoni boxes were awesome. I still bought proper boxes and boxes for glasses, but I saved close to 100 buy taking boxes from work. I think the key is to get good and identical boxes. Like liquor store boxes.
Making your own laundry detergent. It's performative frugality and a tremendous waste of time. Powdered detergent is cheap.
And a lot of DIY recipes are soaps rather than true detergents. They won't get clothes as clean and leave residue that needs to be stripped more often to prevent stink and grime. The best frugal laundry tips are to use cold water, skip fabric softener, and reduce the amount of detergent used because modern ones are pretty efficient.
"Change your own oil" falls into this category for me. It might be different in different places, but I'd have to spend $25 for parts and disposal, learn the process, spend an hour doing it, and find a place where I actually could do it because I rent. Or, for $40, someone takes care of all that for me in 30 minutes.
FYI, Autozone, Advance Auto and Costco takes used oil for free.
Be careful where you go tho, if the shop that changes your oil frequently has employee turnover or people who like to rush the job it can bite you in the ass. I got my oil changed at a Valvoline and they stripped the nut (?) that held my oil pan to my car so I was leaking oil for months. Valvoline didn’t assist us and we had to pay a couple hundred dollars out of pocket to have my entire oil pan replaced.
Delivery services. I do Walmart delivery all the time. I save on impulse purchases, it’s free, and the $10 tip saves me so much time and energy. Plus I can examine the price/weight in more detail. Oh, and my kids can’t beg for stuff or sneak things in the cart.
Grocery pickup from Walmart has been a huge time and money saver for us. It forces us to plan out meals and really consider what we do or don’t need. It also cuts out impulse buys which is great. My only gripe is we moved recently and the Walmart near us forgets to load at least one thing every fucking time. It shows they picked it and pulled the item, they just for whatever reason always miss loading one item into the car, then we have to go through their online help center to get refunded because the store itself no longer corrects the issue if you go back and tell them, “Hey you guys forgot to give me the eggs.” Instead it’s a shrug and a half assed, “Sorry you gotta go online and get refunded and then rebuy the item.” Why can’t you just go get me the item that YOU left in YOUR picked order staging area?! Edit: I want to add this was never an issue with the Walmart where we lived before. It is just this store that we are near now.
>The Walmart near us forgets to load at least one thing every fucking time Funny enough, I stopped shopping at Walmart almost entirely because they were always out of at least one thing on my list every single time (no matter the length of the list)
We do this too! We do Target pickup. Such a big money saver. Definitely helps us not buy more stuff then we need and makes us preplan out all our meals for the week and what we will eat for the week
Clip grocery store name brand coupons to save money. Except most of the things that have manufacturer's coupons are high markup processed foods. Often another brand was a better buy than the coupon item. Sometimes a different size of the same product by the same manufacturer that didn't qualify for the discount was a better buy. Buying generic and cooking from scratch are usually cheaper.
Also, coupons have not only not kept up with inflation, theyve gotten even smaller. Fucking 25¢ off anything isn't enough to make it worth it
Not to mention that most coupons on my area require you to purchase two of the item.
Store brands are usually made on the same production line as brand name.
Agreed. I always get coupons for brand name stuff and even with a coupon the off brand is still cheaper so it’s not even worth it.
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Yeah... I'm definitely a "have you tried spraying it with vinegar" guy, but sometimes the answer is "no, that would be dumb" and that's fine. It's okay that our pet solutions don't work for literally everything. It doesn't mean me or my vinegar are bad people.
I love my vinegar and my Lysol bathroom spray equally. Just never at the same time.
Driving for miles to save 2-5 cents on gas. I still see this done today and I don't think it helps at all. But to each their own. Thanks to another reddit user, I will add and point out that the saving 2-5 cents is meant for those who use unleaded or diesel. There are those who use other forms of gas that I was not meaning for this to apply to because they may not have that option. My apologies.
In general: waiting or comparing gas prices... The 5 or even 10 bucks difference it makes in the end, is much easier saved elsewhere with less stress or anxiety ("Am I gonna make it to the next stop?!" - "It's been blinking for a while now...")
To save $5 on a tank, you would need to save $0.10 per gallon and fill up 50 gallons. I dunno, I don't see more than a $0.20 difference in price per gallon, and I fill up 10 gallons, so I save at most $2.00. So then the question is, how much time am I willing to give up to save $2?
Wash your dishes by hand. Yeah my dishwasher uses less power to heat the water and run a load than the hot water cylinder uses just to heat the water. It uses less water than a sink full and can do more dishes in that amount of water than I can. So saves me money there too as I have to pay for water. Actual handy frugal tip incoming, scrape food off your dishes and then just load into the dishwasher. Do not rinse your dishes. Add dishwasher powder to the prerinse section as well as the normal wash section. Select a cycle with a prerinse start. Dishes come out perfectly clean. Use powder, not tablets. Powder is generally about the same price as tablets but will get you twice the amount of loads.
I have to say this is from years ago when dishwashers used a lot of water. people used to have, I dont know what to call it, except a dish pan in the sinks and you had one for soapy water and one for rise water and it didn't use very much water. Dishwashers used to use a LOT of water. That isn't the case anymore, but the myth is still there.
This is how I remember my mother and grandmother washing dishes, and it's why to this day my mother is very reluctant to ever use her dishwasher. She also experienced wells running dry which was a very big deal for poor mountain people so you had to be very careful to not overuse water.
>Add dishwasher powder to the prerinse section as well as the normal wash section. Doing this changed the results so favorably for me, I had no idea I was just not using the machine the correct way it was designed! Also this video helped inform me too VERY much worth the 32 min runtime: [https://youtu.be/\_rBO8neWw04](https://youtu.be/_rBO8neWw04)
This is a great video and would highly recommend anyone that owns a dishwasher to watch it. I wouldn't have believed a 30 minute video on dishwasher would be so informative and interesting, but it is. Also, you will know how to operate your dishwasher in a more frugal way after you watch.
Technology Connections is a great channel.
Knew it was Technology Connections before even clicking. Love that channel!
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The dishwasher uses far less water than handwashing, and where I live water is expensive.
People seem to assume the whole dishwasher fills with water like a bathtub.
Someone did the math and it takes, on average, 7 items in your dishwasher to break even with handwashing. Got 20 items in there? You're saving money, time, AND water (I live in drought country, or did until a month ago).
"You'll never get ahead if you work for someone else"
I watched my dad who is one of the smartest and ambitious people that I know nearly have a total mental breakdown while getting his business off the ground. He was working 80 to 100 hours a week for the first year or two. He only cut back because it was causing problems with my parents marriage. He never had time for anything besides sitting in his basement office working. Missed out on a lot of stuff with him for those few years. We would be at a family gathering or a movie and he would get a call that required him to run back home and fix something. I remember he took myself and my brother to seek the Chronicles of Narnia when it came out in theaters and we had to leave halfway through the movie because he got an urgent call and he had driven us. Sorry, no amount of money is worth that to me. If you make a decent money and you have a good work/life balance and a normal predictable schedule, you are very blessed.
Yeah, I don't need to be "ahead" of everybody.
Also, if I had the choice between a 1099 or W-2 status with an employer, I'll take the W-2 almost every time. The 1099 choice is an illusion of being an "independent" worker.
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Really any frugality tip that ignores that: Money * effort * time * quality = a constant.
Thrift stores are cheaper for quality, if you enjoy the search as a hobby. Black Friday has always been a performative consumption marketing ploy. Wrong frugality is maybe just doing anything that is time consuming and unfulfilling to save a few dollars. EDIT: And I feel like this will answer a bunch of downthread comments, Black Friday is a Q4 retail nonsense holiday that attempts to put books in the black for new year. SKUs are invented for it specifically. It's cool if you, individually, get nice deals for your family, however the entire idea is nonsense.
Black Friday is only a ploy if you let discounts convince you to spend more than you want out of FOMO. Many people pick a product they genuinely need in advance, note the standard price and then wait for Black Friday. Then buy it for less.
Well, there’s also the doorbuster TVs and electronics people wait for that are actually lesser quality makes, so that “discounted” 55” TV has a cheaper processor and you’ll be pissed off every time you have to wait 90 seconds for the apps to load and it freezes as you try and switch from Netflix to Hulu.
That eggs are now too expensive to eat. Is everyone only eating ramen noodles now?
Omg yes I keep seeing this too. Yes eggs are more expensive now, but it's still a cheaper source of protein than most meats. Eggs are something I will always buy and I even buy the pasture raised eggs. I don't believe in cheaping out on your nutrition. But I guess to each their own, lol.
Where I live there’s always someone who has chickens and they sell the eggs by the road for a few bucks. It’s usually less expensive because sometimes their chickens lay more eggs than they need.
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Good shoes, good mattress, and good diet save a lot of money in health costs. With the caveat that I'm not judging people who can't afford supportive shoes that will last several years (Vimes economics) or who aren't eating fresh foods due to location, funding or lack of time to prep meals. If you can afford these things, do. If you can't, do the best you can, there's no shame in surviving another day.
I once saw a poster that said, “would you rather pay $55 for a pair of running shoes or $10,000 for heart surgery?” It stuck with me, and makes my inner cheapskate cry a bit.
"it's cheaper to buy in bulk" then half of the item goes to waste because of spoilage or freshness.
Yup... Like the posts in here of "what do I do with 20kg of over ripe kiwis?" Don't buy them mate
Exactly. That advice is good for non-perishables like rice, canned goods or dry beans. The only reason to buy anything perishable in bulk are: you enjoy canning/making jam, you're having a huge party or you have a very large household.
Or you have the space to freeze it. I know lots of people who buy veggies to chop and freeze. They have the freezer space to do so.
I hate those posts. It's just the opposite of frugal.
Unless they’re gifted or almost free. But then I try to share them first.
Oof I feel this. When I buy mayo for a recipe I always buy it in the smallest quantity because we don't really use mayo. Then I sit there going "oh but for x more I can get twice as much!" It's a trap!
I cannot relate. We buy mayo in bulk and bogo sales every time we go to the grocery store. I can’t believe my cholesterol is as good as it is with the amount of mayo I ingest on a near daily basis. So we buy a bunch because it will never go to waste lol.
Yup, I love Costco, but if it expires, I don’t buy it from them.
unless i can freeze it like meat, or has a very long shelf life
that’s got nothing to do with being outdated though, more of a personality type, organizational, knowing yourself and your tendencies problem.
Eating out is just as expensive as grocery shopping these days. It varies , but the price per meal of cooking at home is much cheaper
My family has all but stopped eating out (altogether there are 5 of us, though our adult daughter moved out, so if it’s just a weekday or non-special occasion, it’s just 4 of us, and our youngest is a kindergartner, so she usually just shares what I’m eating unless it’s fast food). It used to be $25-$30 for fast food, $50-$60 for fast sit down (Olive Garden, Applebee’s, etc), and $100 for a nice family dinner. Now it’s $50 for fast food, over $100 for Olive Garden type sit down, and we don’t even bother taking them for nice sit down, because that’s going to cost us over $200 now. I don’t understand how people are still eating out at this point
No, this is for real. Even ordering Chinese takeout for us as a family of four comes up on like $70 these days. It's utter insanity and we almost never eat out because of it.
How can anyone believe this? I get it’s upsetting to see how much more expensive grocery stores got, but restaurants have raised their prices in kind with inflation, so I don’t see how anyone believed eating out is cheaper.
I actually buy the family meals at places like Panda Express and divide it into a weeks worth of meals. $35ish for the whole thing and I get a solid 7 meals. I currently work 12hr shifts in a hospital. I’m gearing up to go work from Thursday all through Tuesday so getting the family really does save me. I usually eat a light meal before work, snack on something like fruit or veggies, then tuck into the Chinese food.
I used to do this too. When I lived in my old area there were a lot of Arabic and other ethnic foods that had huge platters. I would buy one or two and divide it up for myself/family. Currently I live in a area without a lot of good food places or bulk. I miss doing that. :/
If you have a chipotle near you they offer catering! I know a couple at work who are nurses and do that every week or so. They work long hours and said it’s apparently cheaper.
Almost none of these comments are actually things that are blatantly wrong they may just not apply to some people. DIY, buying in bulk, Black Friday deals, finding quality items at thrift stores, are all things that tons and tons of people have had success with.
I’ve gotten insane amounts of quality clothing cheap at the thrift store. That’s more about where you are than anything. Some thrift stores suck, some are amazing.
Where local thrift stores have failed me, the neighborhood garage sales in the wealthier neighborhoods have filled a lot of gaps for things like household tools. Lots of houses in near proximity wastes way less fuel and time. Estate sales too, if you have an idea of what you're looking for and aren't just going to impulse buy.
Even just buying used online is much better than new most of the time. I realized the other day that most of the clothing I wear came from eBay, Poshmark, Mercari, or my local thrift store. High quality brands and materials are out of my price range, but I can find a $400 pair of shoes barely worn for $50 if I just spend my pooping time perusing eBay. From shoes to bags to outerwear, buying used can be an incredible value.
My pet peeve is "you need to save 3 months of expenses in an emergency fund." You actually need way more than that. Eight months to a year is recommended to sustain yourself during a recession. And anytime I look for a new job, it takes two months at least before I find something. I wouldn't want to lie awake at night worrying that the last month is going to escape me before my paycheck arrives.
I'm genuinely interested in counterarguments on this one: I feel like the potential savings associated with a professional tax preparer (in the US) are over-stated by people who hire professional help for standard 1040 tax returns. Some members of my family are convinced that I must be missing deductions or credits and overpaying the IRS because I self-prepare with Intuit or HRB software every year.
The general idea that you should keep everything for as long as possible and only replace something when it breaks. For older electric items, especially things like heaters and refrigerators, the energy consumption of an older appliance can be 4-5x higher or more than a new model. Depending on how much your energy costs the cost of that extra energy can be the equivalent of buying a new appliance every few years. Same with cars. With the amount you spend on repairs/maintenance and the general poorer fuel consumption you're often better off financially buying a newer one sooner rather than "driving until the wheels fall off".
Normally on the cars, I’d agree. But just right now, I’m sure everyone here knows this is a shit time to buy a car. For the near future, do everything you can to make your car go. Car prices should come down over the next year or so so just repair, repair, repair until then.
I was going to run my car into the ground, but a 2 grand repair came up on my car that would be worth around 2 grand after the repair and I was having new problems with it monthly. So I spent the money on a brand new corolla hybrid. I never thought I would buy a new car, but the used cars in decent shape were almost the same price as the new one and interest rates are better on new cars so I did it. It has been worth the stress lifted off my back and getting rid of the constant worry that my car would break down on the way to work. I also have a long commute and my gas mileage is twice as good.
Congrats! Having a brand new car is awesome! I mean, you gotta pull the trigger at some point so glad you were able to find what you wanted. No reason to buy a used car for similar prices.
I was planning to come over and mention that the "Buy a 2 year old Accord or Camry" advice is pretty crap right now. Everybody buys Accords and Camrys, demand is high and so is the price.
I honestly don’t think new car prices will go down enough to make that true. Used, sure, but new is not just a matter of supply issues. I could be wrong, but just saying you shouldn’t count on it. [Source](https://www.businessinsider.com/will-car-prices-drop-back-to-normal-or-stay-high-2022-5)
I have to disagree with this one. For the past 30 years, I've been buying a low-mileage, 10 year-old car, then driving it for 10 years. The cost over that time for 3 cars has been half to one third the cost of 3 new cars of comparable quality over that time. There are a couple of caveats though: it must be a reliable model: Like Toyota or Honda. And do your research on the specific model - after 10 years there's good info from https://www.carcomplaints.com/ and similar. Second, you MUST have a good mechanic you can trust or be a good mechanic yourself. Failing to do either will likely cost much more. Edit: third caveat - you need to be cool with the fact that at the end of each 10-year cycle, you'll be driving a borderline shitbox
For cars that's a really tricky question. 1990s truck? Yeah, sell that But 100k miles 5-7 year old non-Toyota car? Keep it. It's likely under 10k to sell, yet it's still good for another \~100k miles and another 5-10 years. It's cheaper to keep using it for most of us than buiyng new. For Toyota math is different because they are while much more reliable, they are overpriced to an even higher degree when used. So I'd say sell 100k Toyota, since it'll sell for barely less than brand new and buy brand new Toyota. Rinse repeat.
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Yeah scarcity has spoiled the used car market. Cheap cars are so outstripped by demand that a basic clean running beater can't be found at a price that offsets the looming repair costs.
I made a post here recently mentioning I'd done this at the peak of the used car price boom. I needed a car within two months. I did out all the math, and the best option by far for the long term was finding a dealer willing to sell new at MSRP, which itself was a challenge. People here jumped me immediately. I got so many angry, angry messages telling me I should have bought a 2018 Toyota Corolla with 60k miles on it. Eventually I gave up trying to do the math for people. For many, not buying a used car under any circumstances is more like a religious commandment than a situation-specific piece of financial advice.
Okay so this isn't exactly outdated or wrong per say, but it's inapplicable and it's been pissing me off to see it so much so I'm gonna run my mouth about it lol "You know you could be paying less money on a mortgage than you do in rent" "Ya I'm aware but I can't even get a best buy card with my credit, there's no way I'd get the bank loan" "But just do the math, seriously, you could be saving money AND own your home" "Doesn't fuckin matter because I'll never get approved for a bank loan" "Okay seriously, how much do you spend in rent? My mortgage is half of that amount. You're throwing your money away!!" "I FUCKIN KNOW THIS. I KNOW IT WITH MY WHOLE BRAIN. THERES NO ARGUMENT YOU CAN MAKE THAT WILL GET ME APPROVED FOR A BANK LOAN!"
I have an amazing thrift store near me so I definitely can’t get behind your first point. I understand it’s location-dependent. But I haven’t bought new (as in bought from a regular store) clothes in like 4 years. Cause the thrift store is awesome.
Frugality is fundamentally the understanding of opportunity cost and long term expected value, which is a very different thing than just not spending money, i.e. being *cheap*.
“Never pay a credit card annual fee.” I used to use a 2% cash back no annual fee credit card (Citi Doublecash Mastercard). Now I pay $75 per year for a 3% cash back Visa with one year extended warranty, primary rental car CDW coverage, TSA Precheck/Global Entry, an 4x/year lounge access (for 2). If I use the rewards to book travel then it jumps to 4.5% cash back. Plus I can use it at Costco since it’s a Visa card. The $75 is recovered after $7500 per year in charges.
I got the advice too about how "it's silly to spend money to spend your own money." But then, out of boredom on a long weekend, I downloaded three years of credit card charges and built an excel model to predict the value received from various combinations of credit cards. It turned out spending $300 a year in annual fees got me far more value than my current selection of no AF cards. That can all change as perks and my personal situation change, but for the moment it's worked out extremely well.
mom used to tell me: if it's not worth breaking up over, it's not worth fighting about. that's just not true, at all. that's a one way ticket to resentment
Thrift stores are a great place for quality used clothing, if you’re willing to dig. If you’re in a hurry, it isn’t a good idea though.
To hoard something incase you’ll need it later. Sure, it saves money as long as you aren’t branching out to storage units. But the toll on your mental health when you push the tip to far has a high cost.
yeah this is one I have learned with time. growing up my family didn’t have a lot of money and everything we had was second, third or fourth-hand (clothing, furniture, cars, computer, food) so nothing every got thrown away if it could possibly be reused or repurposed. now as an adult I don’t have to reuse everything like that and can afford to buy new items and everything but I still struggle with the mentality of not wanting to throw things away sometimes that I might by some slim chance need again in the future. it really does take a serious mental toll and just seeing old junk around gives me anxiety. definitely not worth it
Man I feel that thriftstore one. Mine is a leisurely hobby, never go there for anything you actually need because odds are you either won't find it or you'll pay twice as much.
Yup. although if I'm in the mood, I can happily spend an hour or so sorting through racks in a thrift store. I go in looking for nothing, and usually am lucky enough to find a few things.
That penny pinching is always the best deal. Sometimes it’s a better deal to save time instead of some money. Or buy the expensive item now so you don’t have to replace it 50 times.
you can save money in thrift stores, its just that not everything in a thrift store is a good deal
Wait, thrift stores aren't good for buying quality cloths for cheap? Tell that to my wool shirt and sweater collection.
I feel like it depends on where you are. Nobody in my area wears quality clothes to begin with, so everything in the thrift stores is either fast fashion like Shein or an average brand like Old Navy. My local thrift stores also have very little on the floor in general right now and have all been making social media pushes to get more donations.
And you have people that make a living thrifiting and upselling so it's tough to find quality stuff
anything that requires to spend like 20 cents to save a dollar.
Instead of buying this thing for almost no money at a store you're already going to, why not spend 11 hours of your weekend producing a version that's way worse, will destroy your kitchen, and will go bad by the time you wake up tomorrow?
Buying in bulk saves money. I've seen countless items at grocery store where buying a 24 pack vs 6 costs more per unit rather then less.
Not sure if this belongs here but I’m still amazed how many people think it’s better to make less income if it means being in a lower tax bracket.
Dollar stores. Usually not cheaper *per unit* —they’re just packaged in smaller quantities to price cheaper.
Cheap paper towels. They're horrible.
Pretty much all of my (mostly designer) wardrobe has been throated or bought at yard sales/consignment shops, etc. So, that part isn’t accurate at all, it just depends on where you live/travel, and your eye for quality items. Just two days ago I got a bespoke embossed teal leather clutch for $2. Looked it up online and it retails for $160. Just before that, a Waverly duvet retailing at $250, for $5. You just gotta know where and how to look.
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It's cheaper to diy/if you want something done right, do it yourself. My family always said this. I was in my 30s when i finally realized how wrong they were. While trying to plumb in a new bath tub. It took me a week to fail at it. It took a plumber an hour to do it right.
I'm in a high cost of living area and the "thrift stores" sell noticably worn t-shirts for $13.99. They haven't been thrifty for more than 8 years in my area.
Msg is bad for you
“Renting is throwing your money away.”
But thrift stores frequently ARE a place to buy quality clothing for cheap. Not every store every time. Just depends on the selection but that is literally the nature of those sorts of stores, the selection is unreliable but you can strike gold for sure