Saving money is easy – if you know how to do it. Let’s go over some frugal hacks you can try to save money and get ahead in life. Whether you’re saving out of necessity or just want to practice a simpler and more easygoing lifestyle, frugal hacks can help you:
- Reduce decision fatigue with what to eat, wear and more
- Help you build good saving habits for life
- Save money in both the short and long run
I’ll go over different simple frugal living hacks when grocery shopping, managing your home, traveling and undertaking personal care. If you apply frugal hacks to each of these aspects of your life, it’s possible to save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars a year!
Read on for the best frugal hacks so you can save money and get ahead.
Frugal Hacks When Grocery Shopping
Always Meal Plan
First and foremost, when undertaking frugal grocery shopping, you need to have a plan! Set aside a couple hours each week to decide what you’ll eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner in the upcoming week. Frugal cooking means planning ahead and sticking with it. Want to make it easier to build good habits? Choose the same date and time each week. Humans are creatures of habit. When we stick to a routine, we’re a lot more likely to follow through with it.
To practice frugal eating on an even larger scale, try to eat the same thing every day for 2-3 days in a row. Buying items in bulk is generally cheaper. Additionally, when you prepare a larger dish, you’ll also save time since you won’t be cooking every night. Once you’ve prepared your list of meals, create your grocery list.
Price Compare at Different Stores
Next, it’s time to take your carefully-prepared shopping list and head out to the store! Before going to the store, be sure to undertake one very important step: price comparing at different stores! Why is price comparing important? Grocery stores often carry the same product, but at different price points. Even the store that’s generally more expensive may carry one or two items you regularly buy at a different price. If you have a car or if taking transit is quick and easy to nearby stores (say 1-2 miles away maximum), it’s worth using an app like Flipp to find the lowest price on each item.
If the prospect of price comparing multiple items at multiple stores is overwhelming, start simple. Choose two or three staple items you usually buy such as bread, milk and eggs. Compare prices at two nearby stores and buy the lowest priced item at each store.
Go Vegetarian
One of the simplest frugal hacks you can undertake in the grocery and cooking world: cutting out meat. Vegetarian dishes are generally much cheaper than meat-based dishes simply because meat can be quite pricey. Committing to a vegetarian diet can help you significantly shave dollars off your weekly grocery bill.
If you aren’t ready to completely cut out meat (you can’t imagine giving up your favorite chicken enchiladas!), try a Meatless Monday challenge. After having successfully done Meatless Monday for a month or two, slowly add in one or two more meatless days.
Still don’t feel you can commit to vegetarianism? Try adding cheap and frugal foods to your grocery list and integrating them into your meals. Staples like peanut butter, lentils, beans and whole-grain rice are healthy, filling and cheap foods you can start with.
Buy Generic Brands
Did you know that generic brands are generally just as tasty and nutritious as store-bought brands? When you’re at the grocery store next, look above and below eye level. Grocery stores want to make as much profit as possible, so they typically put the most expensive products at eye level. Look for the store brand of your favorite pasta sauce or soup. Trust me – once they’re mixed into your favorite pasta or casserole, you won’t notice the difference!
Buying generic brands can help you save a good chunk of change in the long run. If you buy 5 canned goods and save an average of $0.60 per item, you’ll have saved $3.00 per month. In a year, you’ll have saved over $150 simply by buying generic! While this isn’t a huge sum of money, when combined with other frugal hacks, you’ll be well on your way to saving tons of cash in the long run.
Compare the Cost Per Unit
Buying in bulk is another frugal hack that can help you save money in the long run. When you buy a larger tub of margarine or can of soup, the cost per unit is generally cheaper than the smaller item.
For example, let’s say you’re comparing two jars of pasta sauce. One jar is 380ml and the other is 500ml. The 250ml jar is $2.00 and the 500ml jar is $3.00. While the 500ml jar is more expensive, the cost per unit is cheaper:
250ml jar = $2.00 / 250 ml
500ml jar / 2 = $1.50 / 150 ml
While saving $0.50 might seem silly, again, it really does add up. If you save an average of $10 per week just by calculating the cost per unit, over the course of one year, you’ll have saved over $500 – $520 to be exact!
Frugal Kitchen Hacks
Aside from grocery shopping and meal planning, what about actually preparing and storing food and meals? There are many ways you can be frugal in your kitchen. Let’s get into the best ways to do this.
Put Oldest Items at the Front of the Fridge and Freezer
Want an easy way to save money without cutting corners? Always put your newest foods and ingredients at the back of the fridge. It takes some effort to get into the habit of rearranging your fridge, but it’s worth it. If you always eat the oldest food first, you’ll be a lot less likely to let food accidentally go bad and have to throw it out – literally throwing money down the drain!
To make it easier for you to remember and also avoid letting food go bad, do a weekly fridge, freezer and cupboard cleanout. Pull all items from your fridge, freezer and cupboard. Next, check the expiry label on each item. Put the items closet to expiry and leftover foods towards the front of the fridge. Commit to eating these foods first before they expire!
Always Use Leftovers
Related to using and consuming items before expiry, always, always eat your leftovers! Even if you have a small amount of beans or a handful of leftover raspberries, put them to good use. Top a fresh garden salad with those beans and throw your raspberries into a smoothie with bananas, almond milk and frozen strawberries. Never let food go to waste! When you use leftovers, not only will you spend less on buying new ingredients, you’ll save time by not having to shop or cook less. What better way to be frugal with both your money and time?
Store Jars Upside Down and Invest in Spatulas
You open your fridge and see three jars – one with ranch sauce, one with jam and another with homemade pesto sauce. What do they all have in common? There’s only a little bit of sauce left in each jar. May as well throw them out, right? Not so fast! Next time, store jars upside down when they’re getting close to being empty – say, 1/4 full. Additionally, invest in a few spatulas of different sizes. When it comes time to empty the jar, you’ll easily be able to scrape the last bits of sauce from each jar. When you minimize food waste, you’ll spend less money on repurchasing sauces. Small savings add up over time!
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Personal Care Frugal Hacks
Cut Your Own Hair
If you truly want to save money in the long run and your hair isn’t too high maintenance, why not learn how to cut your own hair? Check out different YouTube channels and experiment on wigs – or other people if they’re brave enough to let you! Haircuts can cost hundreds of dollars per year, especially for women and those who want specialized color or other treatments. Learning how to style your own hair will help you (literally!) significantly cut down on costs in the long run.
Frugal Hacks and Spa Treatments – Do It Yourself
Just like learning how to do your own hair, doing your own nails can save you tons. Invest in four or five classic nail polish colors you love such as red, black, cream, light pink and a statement color such as bright purple or green. Purchase a nail file, clips and moisturizer. Commit to doing a weekly spa routine to treat yourself.
Frugal Home Cost Hacks
Switch Your Lightbulbs and Turn Them Off When Not in Use
Want another easy tip on saving money at home? Switch from regular lightbulbs to LED ones! They last longer and are cheaper to operate. While switching your lightbulbs out won’t make you rich, combined with other techniques, it can help you save. Take some time out of your Saturday to go through your house and switch out your lightbulbs. The time spent is well worth it!
Furthermore, turn off the lights when not in use. By avoiding keeping the lights turned on overnight, this trick has saved me an average of $30 a month on my electricity bill.
Do Laundry with Cold Water
One of the easiest frugal hacks to cut down on your electricity bill: wash clothes with cold water! In the long run, you’ll save hundreds of dollars by simply switching from hot water to cold. Additionally, you’ll potentially make your clothes last longer. Hot water damages clothing fibers over time. When you switch to cold water, you’ll save money on clothes since you won’t have to buy replacements as often.
Negotiate Your Utility Bills
Have you been a loyal customer at your phone or internet service provider? Call them and ask for a discount, emphasizing the fact that you’ve been a loyal customer for however long you’ve been with them (tell them how long!). If no discounts are available or the provider cannot give you any, wait a couple of weeks. After a couple weeks have passed, call the company again and say that you’re switching providers. The company will most likely transfer you to their retention department as they want to keep your business. The customer service representative in the retention department may be more apt to offer you discounts if you threaten to leave! While asking for a discount isn’t a guaranteed way to save money, it’s well worth giving it a shot.
Unplug Appliances When Not in Use
To save a few dollars here and there, unplug appliances when you aren’t using them – especially when you’ll be away from home for a few days or more. Even when plugged in, appliances draw phantom power and use energy. Unplugging appliances can help you save you an average of up to $100 per year.
Frugal Life Hacks for Travel
If you’re like millions of other people around the world, your next holiday is just weeks away! Wait a minute – aside from creating a travel budget for you or your family, have you ensured you’re getting the lowest price possible on accommodation and other major travel expenses? Even a couple hundred dollars saved here and there can really add up in the long run. Read on for the top frugal hacks to save on travel.
Compare Hotel and Flight Prices
When shopping around for hotel and flight prices, it’s easy to just find something that seems like a good deal and book it. After all, that sweet deal will slip out of your hands if you don’t, right? Wait a minute! Before you hit the ‘book’ button on that poolside resort, take some time to compare hotel and flight prices. Use an app or website like Skyscanner to compare flights and Trivago to compare hotel prices.
Track Prices and Buy As Early as Possible
Related to comparing hotel and flight prices, if you want to save money, try to buy your flights and hotel accommodation as early as possible. While it is sometimes possible to snag some last-minute deals – especially during the off-season or shoulder season – is it really worth waiting to see if the price will drop another $10 or $20 when it’s already a good deal? If the prices have begun to already rise, just go ahead and book. Constantly being worried about price borders on being cheap instead of frugal. Remember – being cheap can cost you in the long run!
One more thing – after you’ve booked your tickets, don’t look at the price again. Yes, the price might have gone up – and it’ll be a great feeling to see that you’ve gotten the tickets or reservation at a lower price. However, If you see that the price has dropped, you’ll likely feel buyer’s remorse – something you really don’t want to feel when you’ve just purchased something fun and exciting. Traveling is fun, so don’t set yourself up for feelings of disappointment or remorse!
Stay in Accommodation with a Kitchen and Fridge
Want a simple way to save potentially hundreds of dollars on your vacation? Book accommodation with a kitchen and fridge. When you’re able to shop for groceries and cook most of your meals on vacation, you’ll save a lot of money. Eating out is a lot pricier than buying your own groceries and cooking.
However, don’t let your frugal mindset get in the way of enjoying your experiences traveling. Find a balance between being frugal and being cheap. If you cook all of your meals at your accommodation and fail to sample just one local dish, you’re missing out. How many times will you be in Paris? Be sure to set aside some funds to enjoy at least one meal per day.
If you want to save money on eating out, choose one designated meal per day. Be sure to meal plan just as you would when at home. Lunch is typically a lot cheaper than dinner at restaurants. Additionally, many restaurants have weekday lunchtime specials in order to attract more business, as this is typically the slowest time in their week. Another great way to save money on food is to stock up on protein-heavy grocery store snacks. Choose options like protein bars, nuts and peanut butter and apples to stay full and minimize your vacation food expenses.
Limitations of Frugal Hacks
While the frugal hacks and tips listed are great ways to save money make better habits, they have their limitations. For example, if your hair needs special care or is complicated to cut, it’s probably best to go to a hairdresser. If you aren’t great at painting your own nails, you’ll be best off going to a salon and getting it done by a professional.
Trying to cut corners in every aspect of your life, also known as being extremely frugal, isn’t sustainable. While extreme frugal living is an advisable way to save money in the short-term, it isn’t good to do long-term. Frugal living is all about finding a balance between saving money and enjoying life. When you’re constantly trying to save as many dollars as possible through extreme frugal living, it’s hard to enjoy yourself. Find balance!
However, if you’re on a low income, in between jobs or are on a single income, you’ll need to save as much as possible and there’s nothing wrong with being as frugal as possible. Try your best to increase your income by taking on a side hustle, going back to school or reaching out to your local government to see which financial assistance programs are available. There’s no shame in getting help!
Conclusion – Frugal Hacks to Save Money and Get Ahead
If you’re looking to save money, get ahead and build healthy financial habits for life, try one or more frugal hacks. From your grocery shopping habits, what you eat, where you get your hair and nails done and how well you plan ahead for vacation, you can save hundreds of dollars per month. Start with trying out one or two frugal hacks. Once you’ve successfully integrated them into your life, you can try more out. Have fun with it and enjoy!
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Janita is a frugal living expert and owner of Frugal Fun Finance. With over five years of personal experience finding and trying out the best ways to make and save more money, she's eager to share her knowledge. Janita's strategies have helped her save thousands of dollars for funding investments and traveling to over 20 countries.
Janita completed training in personal finance at The University of Western Ontario and McGill University, two prestigious Canadian universities. Her expertise has been shared on GoBankingRates, Yahoo Finance, and NASDAQ.com.
