5 Easy Money-Saving Habits Smart Savers Swear By — Even if Others Judge Them
In a culture where convenience is king and social media encourages you to spend, spend, spend, being frugal can seem boring or even strange. For example, some people might be criticized as "cheap” by friends for not going on a vacation with them or skipping a meal at a fancy restaurant.
However, there’s a big difference between being cheap and being responsible with your finances. Many frugal habits that attract judgment can actually help save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars each year.
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Here are six frugal habits that can pay off in the long run, even if others judge you.
1. Driving an Old Car That Still Works
Some people upgrade their cars every few years, even when their current car still works perfectly fine. While there’s nothing wrong with that (as long as they can afford to upgrade), it’s probably not the most financially responsible thing to do if you’re already on a tight budget.
According to CarEdge, the average monthly car payments on new vehicles have increased to over $700 per month. So, even though you might get judged for driving an older car, avoiding a monthly car payment can literally save you hundreds of dollars every month.
2. Bringing Lunch to Work
Bringing your own meals to work can seem boring when your coworkers are all ordering boba and poke bowls for lunch, but eating out every day is one of the fastest ways to drain your budget. Even if you spend just $15 a day ordering takeout or going to a restaurant, that’s $300 a month — assuming you work 20 days. When you bring food from home, you can cut that cost dramatically.
3. Buying Secondhand Items
Some people automatically assume that if you thrift secondhand items or shop on Facebook Marketplace, you’re broke. But that’s not true at all.
Being thrifty is about affordability and getting the most for your money. If you know how to look, you can find lots of hidden gems that are barely or gently used, and are just a fraction of the retail price. For example, on Facebook Marketplace, you can often find furniture and home decor items that are hundreds of dollars cheaper than the original price.
4. Saying No to Lifestyle Inflation
When income increases, many people immediately upgrade their homes, cars and spending habits.
If you still live a modest lifestyle even after making more money, that can sometimes be viewed as unnecessarily cheap or restrictive. Of course, as long as you’re not depriving yourself, keeping your expenses low while your income goes up is one of the fastest ways to build wealth.
5. Using Coupons
Some people hear the word coupon and immediately think of those people who spend hours clipping newspaper inserts on the reality TV show "Extreme Couponing." There's nothing embarrassing about finding ways to pay less for something you were already planning to buy, though.
While coupons might only save you a few dollars here and there, over the course of a year, that could add up to hundreds of dollars in savings.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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