Frugal Living
Looking for ways to save money? Check out these 60 frugal living tips that can help you save big… plus find a FREE frugal living guide.
Let’s face it, we all want to save money. I’ve been interested in living a frugal lifestyle since college and I have read a ton of articles on the subject. Since then, I’ve gotten married, bought a house and have four little boys! We definitely practice a lot of these frugal living tips in our own lives and I want to share my favorite frugal living tips to help you save, too!
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How do I live a frugal life?
Being frugal is not necessarily just pinching pennies and stretching your dollars. It’s being financially responsible and making the most of things you have.
Living frugally doesn’t mean that you will never have fun or splurge on anything. It’s living within or below your means to make the most of your money.
What are the benefits of frugal living?
Living a frugal life will keep you from being a slave to your money. It will give you the freedom to do what you want with your life, which is one of the big reasons the tiny house movement is so popular – imagine what you could do with low or no rent/mortgage payments!!
Retire early! This is another benefit of frugal living. You can choose when to retire instead of working until you are old enough for social security (if it’s even there for us at that time, anyways!). It can help you live comfortably well before typical “retirement age”.
Another benefit is having more money to save or invest. Having a fully funded emergency fund is a goal of ours, and pinching pennies now is helping us move toward that dream (right now it’s going toward debt!). You also will have less stress about money, because you won’t be living paycheck to paycheck, except in certain circ*mstances.
Over 60 of the BEST Frugal Living Tips
Do as much as you can yourself.
- Make your own laundry & dish soap
- Make your own cleaning products
- DIY Baked Goods
- Make your own convenience mixes
- Cut your own lawn
- Repair everything you can on your own (Youtube is your friend!!) -car -clothes -appliances
- Take your lunch to work
- Grow a garden and plant fruit trees and bushes
- Handmade gifts
- Take your coffee with you from home instead of buying it out
- Dye your own hair and do your own nails (Youtube it or have a friend help)
- Cut your kids’ hair yourself
- Make your own smoothies and juice instead of buying it
- Do your own taxes (it’s a pain but so worth it!)
Save money on food.
- Weekly Meal Planning
- Plan for Leftovers
- Budget-Friendly Recipes
- Switch to water instead of buying drinks
- Work at recreating restaurant favorites at home
- Have kids? Take advantage of all the Kids Eat Free promotions!
- Use a slow cooker to tenderize cheaper cuts of meat and save electricity
Save on heating and cooling your home
- Bundle up before turning up the heat
- Seal your windows and doors (tip: use plastic wrap!)
- Buy a programmable thermostat and set it to save money when you are not home
Reuse everything you can
- Freeze leftovers for later (DIY frozen dinners!)
- Freeze vegetables for soup and fruit or greens for smoothies
- Turn leftovers into compost and use it for the garden
Give up what you don’t really need
- Cable (use Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Prime)
- Gym (work out at home!)
- Combine trips in the car to save on gas
- Cut down on dry cleaning – don’t buy dry clean only clothes and start cleaning most things on gentle in the washer or by hand
Buy in bulk or on sale
- Items that freeze well
- Budget friendly items at Sam’s Club
Buy used, rent or borrow
- Buy secondhand clothes
- Rent a prom dress
- Rent tools you don’t use often
Find free or cheap things to do
- No Spend Challenges
- Budget Friendly Family Activities
- Free or Cheap Date Night Ideas
- Visit the library – free books and movies
Trade services or goods
- Trade babysitting with friends to make date night even cheaper
- Start or join a monthly freezer meal club to share the meal planning burden with others
- Consider starting a clothing exchange or toy exchange with other parents you are friends with
Always buy some items at places like the Dollar Tree
- Gift bags and tissue paper
- Greeting cards
- See a comprehensive list here!
Don’t shop unless you need to, and always shop for deals
- Shop online and make sure you are getting the best deal (use ebates and also use an app like honey to find the best promotional codes!)
- Look for things like “oops” paint, clearance flooring, etc when you know you will want to remodel your home
- Check the outlet stores and scratch and dent stores when you need large items
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Whew!! That’s a lot of ways to save money! Have any frugal tips that I’ve missed? What are some ways YOU save money? Comment below!
