15 Genius Frugal Habits You’ve Never Heard Of
Written by
Sean Bryant
Edited by
Gary Dudak
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Are you looking for ways to save money but feel like you have tapped out all of the traditional methods? If so, it’s time to look into some lesser known frugal habits.
By utilizing creative thinking and a few unconventional tactics, anyone can reduce their expenses and increase their savings without sacrificing too much. In this article, we’ll look at 15 frugal habits you may have never heard of before.
You don’t have to master all of these habits to be frugal. Choose one or several that resonate most with you. It’s better to gain one new frugal habit that you will stick with long-term than to try many that you give up after a few days. Check them out.
Set a Purchase Wait Period for Yourself
If you’re an impulse shopper, implementing a purchase wait period for yourself might help. With a purchase wait period, you force yourself to wait a certain number of days before purchasing something you want. Typically, this works well for larger purchases over a certain amount. You may find that you no longer want the items after the waiting period.
Make Your Cleaning Products at Home
Like most other things in the store, cleaning products are getting more expensive due to inflation. Instead of purchasing them, how about making them from scratch?
“Instead of splurging on expensive cleaning products, embrace the cleverness of making natural cleaning solutions,” says Gavon Barkdull, CEO and co-founder of Zestain. “Simple ingredients like vinegar, baking soda, and citrus can be powerful allies in keeping your home clean and fresh. Not only are these ingredients cost-effective, but they’re also eco-friendly, reducing the need for harsh chemicals in your living space.”
Thrift First
Before you buy something new, see if you can get it used or second-hand. Thrifting items can save you money and is good for sustainability. Try looking online, at thrift stores, at garage sales, or ask friends and neighbors if they have the item you’re looking to buy.
Join Your Local ‘Buy Nothing’ Group
Buy Nothing groups are hyper-local online platforms where people give away or lend items for free to their neighbors. You can get a lot of stuff for free. People give away everything from clothing to furniture and even food.
Buy a Smaller Home
Just because you can afford a larger house doesn’t necessarily mean you should buy one. Buy the smallest house you can comfortably live in to save thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. Plus, you won’t need as much stuff to fill the space.
Be a One-Car Household
Many families have two or more cars. However, you may not need that many. Cars are expensive, not only to buy but also to maintain. Even if you and your partner both work, one of you can take the bus to work or carpool with someone. Besides your home, your car is your most expensive expense, so you could save a lot of money by only having one car for your household.
Buy a Smaller Car
If using just one car won’t work for your household, you could still save money using a small, eco-friendly car for one of your family’s cars. Small cars are usually cheaper to purchase and use less gas.
Eat Out Less
Eating out can be a major expense for some people. You can save significant money (and eat healthier) by cooking at home instead.
Borrow Books Instead of Buying
Your local library has a great selection of online and in-person books. If you are an avid reader, you can save a lot of money by borrowing books for free instead of buying them. You could also purchase the book used if you want to keep it for your collection.
“Take advantage of free library resources,” says Joseph Morgan, money-saving expert at CouponBirds. “For books you must buy, you can choose second-hand books at thrift stores. Or you can even buy second-hand books on Amazon, where you could save up to 90%.”
Sell Unused Items
You probably have items around your home that you don’t use anymore and could sell. Some people create a rule for themselves that if they haven’t worn an item of clothing for an entire season, they sell it. You could also sell outgrown kids’ items, artwork you no longer like or exercise equipment you don’t use. This also helps declutter your home, which makes it a win-win.
Carpool to Work
If you commute to work, try to find someone to carpool with to save on gas and potential parking fees.
Cancel Subscriptions
Go through your bills to ensure you don’t have any subscriptions you are paying for but aren’t using. You might be surprised that you are still enrolled in autopay for a subscription you thought you canceled long ago. You can also see if there are any subscriptions that you can go without. For example, if you have an audiobook subscription, you could instead get the audiobooks for free from the library. If you have multiple streaming service subscriptions, choose one or two you use the most and cancel the others.
Don’t Pay Interest
If you can avoid paying interest, doing so can save you significant amounts of money. Avoid paying interest on your credit card bills by paying your balance in full and on time each month. If you don’t trust yourself to pay the bill in full each month, stick to paying with cash or your debit card.
Use Less of Everything
Using fewer daily items like toothpaste, shampoo and soap can make the items last longer and save money. This may sound like it won’t make a big difference, but small amounts can add up over longer periods.
Hang Dry Your Clothes
Instead of drying your clothes in the dryer, hang them to dry on a clothesline or drying rack. This will save you money on energy costs to run the dryer. Plus, it will prolong the life of your clothes, so you don’t have to replace them as frequently.
Overall, if you’re looking to stretch your budget further and become more frugal, try implementing a few of these tips.
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