Easy Frugal Living Tips To Save Money Everyday

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Since having children frugal living has become much more of a priority for us a family.

How to be frugal without being cheap - 25 frugal living tips

As well as making it easier financially for me to stay home with our children while they’re small, learning how to be frugal is helping us to save more money, which will help pay off debt quicker, which in turn will improve our finances in the long term.

Dropping down completely to living off one income makes budgeting and being a bit more careful with money more important, and probably one of the easiest ways to live on less is to start making more frugal lifestyle choices.

 

How do you live a frugal lifestyle?

The Oxford dictionary defines frugal as:

  • sparing or economical as regards money or food.
  • simple and plain and costing little.

So frugal living is simply about being careful with your money, knowing where it goes, and finding ways to spend less.

But isn’t frugal living boring and only for cheapskates?

When I used to think of frugal living I would imagine used teabags drying on little washing lines ready to reuse later. You don’t have to go that far though; it’s perfectly possible to be frugal without being cheap.

It took me a while to realise that you don’t have to compromise on every little thing just to be frugal – I still buy my favourite tea bags – I just make sure to buy in bulk whenever they’re on offer.

And actually, it can be pretty simple to just change a few habits or products -once you’ve got into the swing of it, living frugally wont even seem like a challenge anymore , it becomes second nature. Some people have even used frugality to help them reach financial freedom!

And the best part?

Those savings that you make by using these frugal tips all add up over time and can be used to fund things that might not have been affordable before, like days out or even a holiday. Another great way to use frugal savings is to put them towards paying off debt faster.

 

Why live frugally?

There are so many benefits of choosing to live a frugal lifestyle:

  • It gives you more appreciation and value for what’s important to you
  • Helps you save money to achieve financial goals faster
  • Helps to reduce stress over money matters
  • Encourages you to make the most of what you have
  • Frugal living is often more environmentally friendly

There are so many ways you can be a little more frugal in order to make some extra savings; here are some of the easiest and best frugal living tips that provide simple ways to save money at home, on the move and with your grocery shopping.

The Best Frugal Living Tips To Save Money Every Day

 

1. Give your home a frugal makeover

There are so many things you can make some easy changes to that will make your home more frugal. Here’s where to start:

  • Replace your light bulbs with LED bulbs

    Assuming the lights are on for about 4 hours per day, you’ll save about £11 per light bulb per year. My kitchen has 10 spotlights – that’s £132 saved in my kitchen alone!
  • Turn off the lights when you’re not using them. 

    This sounds so simple, but if you have kids anything like mine, you’ll know it’s near on impossible to get them to remember to switch off the lights! We’ve got a timer on some of our lights now, so they go off automatically.
  • Replace baths with showers or take shorter showers

    You could try using a shower timer or choose a water saving shower head.
  • Turn off the radiators in rooms that aren’t used

    If you have thermostatic radiator valves you can set the desired temperature for each radiator, but it’s also easy to just switch off the radiators in rooms not being used to save wasting heat.
  • Wear a jumper
    This one sounds pretty obvious but it’s surprising how many people don’t do this. Put on a jumper or layer up before turning up the heating.
  • Get one of these squeezing tools to make sure you use up all the product in tubes such as toothpaste.
  • Give up your TV licence

    You don’t have to give up TV entirely to give up your licence. Other options such as Now TV or Netflix may work out cheaper and still give you all the TV you want.Check out my post here about living without your TV licence and if you actually need one.
  • Go energy efficient on appliances

    Whilst this frugal living tip isn’t one that you can implement straight away – it wouldn’t be practical to rush out and replace all your appliances – it is one that can make a difference long-term. When it’s time to replace appliances, choose ones with the best energy efficiency ratings. The price is usually only slightly higher, but the cost of energy you will save over the years of use make it a good money saving investment.
  • Always check whether it’s worth switching energy or broadband and telephone provider

    I find that a quick check each year when it’s time to renew usually means it’s cheaper to switch. You can often find good cashback deals for these kinds of providers too. If you’re not signed up to cashback sites, check out this post about using cashback sites. I’ve had hundreds of pounds in cashback over the years, most recently we got £40 cashback just by switching our home insurance. We would have switched anyway as it was the cheapest policy available – so the £40 was a fab bonus just for a quick 5 second check on Quidco.

2. Get Crafty With Your Cleaning

Save money on expensive cleaning products by simply making your own – it works out cheaper and uses less chemicals too!

3. Become a frugal grocery shopper

Grocery shopping is one of the biggest expenditures for any household. Choose to be adopt some of these frugal living ideas for shopping and eating and you can easily cut down on your grocery spend.

  • Make a meal plan each week

    Create a meal plan, to avoid food going to waste and not buying unnecessary extras in the supermarket. See this post for easy ways to get started with meal planning.

     You don’t save to compromise on your diet either – it’s possible to still live frugally and eat well while spending less.

  • Don’t buy bags at the supermarket

    Avoid the plastic bag charge by remembering to take bags with you when you go shopping. Keep some in your handbag or the boot of your car so you’ve always got some handy.
  • Use supermarket cashback apps

    There are lots of apps you can add to your phone which give you freebies and cashback when you shop.
  • Buy bigger tubs/packets/tubes of things

    Buying in bulk is usually cheaper, so if you’ve got space, it’s definitely worth it. Things like toilet rolls, washing powder and other household essentials are often work out costing much less when you buy in bulk.
    Buy bulk price comparison of branded vs non branded goods showing average saving of 10p per item on toilet roll, baked beans and dishwasher tabs.

4. Experiment with the brands you buy

Take a look at shopping and see what brands you buy. Then buy the next brand that’s less expensive and see if you either notice the difference, or are bothered by it. For example, we were buying Weetabix, and now buy supermarket brands ‘Wheat biscuits’. There’s not much difference in taste, but there’s a lot of difference in price.

However, we tried buying supermarket brand baked beans, and I decided that the difference in taste wasn’t worth the saving in price, so I don’t compromise and carry on buying Heinz. Cola is definitely not the same as Coke or Pepsi, but my children don’t notice a difference between Robinson’s squash and supermarket own brand.

Here are some examples of the difference in prices of branded vs non branded items at one supermarket:

Branded Product
Heinz baked beans tin – 75p
Weetabix 24 pk – £2.50
Hovis wholemeal bread – £1.05
Heinz Tomato Ketchup  – £1.50
Birdseye Fishfingers 10 pk – £2
Total – £7.80
Supermarket Version
Tesco bakes beans tin – 32p
Wheat Biscuits 24 pk = £1.30
Tesco Wholemeal bread – 75p
Tesco Tomato Ketchup – 65p
Tesco Fishfingers 10 pk – £1.20
Total – £4.22
 
 

This is just a quick example of 5 branded products, the more brands you switch out, the more significant your overall saving will be. Start off by just switching one brand/price down – if it works out, you can always then repeat the process switching down again to the Smartprice/Everyday value etc ranges.

If you properly give this a go for all the branded products you buy, there’ll probably be at least a few things you’ll be happy with the downgrade on, and this could make a great saving on your grocery shopping month by month.

Even basic foods like pasta come in a variety of brands and pricing. Give it a try and see what savings you can make – I’d love to hear how you get on.

 

5.  Don’t buy what you can get for free

Before you spend your hard earned money, think about whether there’s a cheaper or free option. For example:

6. Travel frugally

Travel and transport can be pretty expensive, so here are some options to lower the costs:

  • Walk or cycle where possible. This has the added bonus of keeping you fit and well as saving money.
  • Take your own water bottle or even hot drinks flask with you when out and about to avoid getting tempted to buy expensive drinks.Avoid using motorway service stations for food, drink and fuel – you pay a premium.
  • Drive economically

    Try to avoid unnecessary braking, keep car tyres inflated to the required levels. This will save (only a little, but it all helps, right?!) on fuel costs. Also, don’t leave it until the last minute to fill up for fuel. If you’re desperate, you’re more likely to fill up somewhere more expensive.
  • Look into multi travel and discount cards.

    If you use public transport a lot, it’s worth looking into what discounts are available for frequent users. Bus services usually offer cheaper multi-trip tickets and you can get Rail Cards to save on train travel.
  • Be a one car family

    Consider if you could save the the cost of running an extra car by walking, using public transport or even living closer to your work.
  • Don’t pay for things you don’t need to such as toll roads.

    Example: Avoid paying the expensive toll charge (£5.50!) to drive on the M6 toll. If the traffic is clear -ie no accidents etc, the toll road is likely to save you only one minute! You can look on Google maps (if you’ve got someone with you!) to check the time of the journey with and without the toll.Think about it in terms of how much your time is worth – at a 1-minute time saving, your time is equated at being worth £330 an hour! A ten minute delay values your time at £66 an hour. At the National living wage, you’d need there to be more than a 42-minute delay to make taking the toll a cost effective choice.

 

7. Give your finances a frugal overhaul

Frugal living means taking control of your finances and making sure your your income, spending and frugal mindset are all aligned. Here are some of the key things you should do to have healthy frugal finances:

  • Budget

    Budgeting is key, both to living frugally and managing your money in general. If you want to be in control of your money you need to make a budget. This is where you can work out the best places to make savings and adjustments and keep on top of your finances.
  • Build an emergency fund

    Saving an emergency fund means you don’t have to panic and stress when things go wrong. Being prepared in advance for emergency boiler breakdowns, car repairs or needing a new washing machine, helps give peace of mind, as well as meaning you wont need to take on debt if that situation arises.
  • Pay off debt

    Make paying off debt a priority. Living frugally is a great way to try and reach financial freedom, so if you have debt, the best and most frugal advice is to pay it off as soon as you can. The earlier you repay debt (in most circumstances) the less interest you’ll pay, so the more money you’ll save in the long term.
  • Always live within your means

    Living frugally means living within your means. Use your budget to work out what you can afford, but if you don’t have the budget and can’t make room in the budget with a bit of rearranging, don’t spend what you don’t have.

How To Live Frugally Without Being Tight

So can you be frugal without being cheap?

Absolutely yes.

Hopefully from the tips above you can see that you don’t have to be a cheapskate or tightwad to live frugally. You just have to be more intentional with your finances.

For example, being frugal wouldn’t necessarily mean you stop donating to a charity you support – if you decide that giving is a priority, then you might look for an area that’s less important and make savings there, perhaps cancelling a gym subscription or buying less take out.

It doesn’t mean not being able to do anything or having to say no all the time either – if a friend invites you to go out for a meal you could still go but be a bit more frugal about it – perhaps suggest a less expensive restaurant, or even just buy a starter. Or if finances are really too tight for that right how, how about inviting them to your home for a meal instead?

Trying to find a frugal alternative usually means you can still enjoy the things you want to, just by being a bit more creative about it.I’m sure there are many, many, more frugal living tips out there, from the simple to the much more extreme (family cloth anyone?!) Do you have any other tips for frugal living that help save money?

Read More:

How To Live Frugally On One Income >>
17 Things Frugal People Never Do >>
How To Be A Frugal Family >>

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How to be frugal without being cheap

Quick FAQ:

What is a frugal lifestyle?

A frugal lifestyle involves being careful with money, spending less where possible and making economical choices.

How do you become frugal?

You can become frugal simply by deciding to make more cost effective choices in the way you live, shop, eat and spend money.

What is the difference between being cheap and being frugal?

Being cheap is about always choosing the cheapest option, whereas being frugal means spending intentionally, considering quality, value and time alongside price.

24 thoughts on “Easy Frugal Living Tips To Save Money Everyday”

  1. Great practical advice on cutting costs! I’m a big fan of cashback too. I like using a cashback credit card too, so I get a bit of extra money back on all my shopping. Only a good idea if you’re sure you can pay off your bill in full every month, but I end up with an extra £90 or so every year, and I don’t even do much shopping! Thanks so much for taking part in #MondayMoney.

  2. Fantastic tips that cover so many areas of life – love it! I try to do a lot of these myself, and I’ve learned a lot over the years so I can safely say it becomes easier to be frugal with practice. Brilliant post!

  3. Thanks for sharing! I like your brand switch experiment. For some brands, it makes a difference on taste or quality, but other things the difference isn’t there.

  4. There are so many ways to save money and live a better life. You have a great list to start saving and doing.

  5. In the last year I have cut our family grocery bill almost in half! Meal prepping and bulk really help. Thanks for all the other tips!

  6. So many great ideas for saving money. The little things really do add up! After getting tired of always reminding our kids to shut off the light when they left a room, we installed timers on them. If the kids forget, they at least shut off automatically!

  7. Great tips!!! Turning off the lights when you leave a room is a big struggle with my kids and husband. It’s a daily battle that I fight.

    1. Me too! My kids are constantly leaving the bathroom light on if they get up in the night.

  8. These are some great tips – some are so simple, and you wouldn’t notice much of a change – except that you’ll be saving, which is always good!

  9. These are all great tips. I already do some of them, but a few of your ideas are new to me. I’m always looking for easy ways to save money each month!

  10. I agree that loving the life you’re living is the goal, so with that in mind, you have shown us ways to be smarter about it. Thanks for sharing awesome tips.

  11. Great money-saving tips. I think more people really need to take a look at their local library to save some money as you mentioned in number 5.

    I have been using my library for a few decades now. Free books eventually led to free movies. Now my library even offers streaming of some movies for free. The selection they have is even of newer releases.

    The library is a great resource to save.

  12. Thanks Lee, hope your frugal living goes well for you and you save tons of money! I love how much just switching subscriptions can save in just a few minutes (confession – we do have prime, but then we save by not having a TV licence, so different things definitely work for different people, even though both are frugal choices!)

  13. These are all great ideas! I have been buying supermarket brand in most items for a while now. My husband called our cable company and threatened to leave so we got a better deal on our internet/phone. We also haven’t had cable TV for a few years now. I don’t miss it at all!

  14. Great list. Decluttering your home and selling items you don’t need is a favorite of mine. You can then reallocate the money you earn towards your important budgeting items.

  15. These tips are great, I will definitely signup for ibotta and Ebates. I am just starting my debt free journey and I am excited to see where it leads.

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