Looking to save money? So am I!
My current family includes me and my husband. We both go to college full-time, which means we can only work part-time or less!
This means that our budget is reeeeaaally small, and if there’s any way to save money, we’re here for it.
Some good news is that we don’t have ANY debt yet (!!!)
Granted, we don’t have a house payment or fancy cars, and we are still on our parents’ insurance.
However, we DO have tuition payments, apartment rent, car payments, utility bills, gas bills, and a monthly grocery budget.
We also like to do fun things like go out to eat, host parties, and get tickets to sports games.
In short, we still have to spend a lot of money, even though we don’t make much! Ah!
Luckily, there are a lot of smart choices we make to maximize life and minimize spending. These are tips that work for ANY family, whether you’re still in college or not!
If YOU are looking to get out of debt, stay out of debt, or just live more frugally, these tips are for you!
1. Pack lunch
In the middle of the day, whether you’re on campus or at work, it’s super fun to go out and grab some fast food for lunch!
However, that takes a big toll on your bank account.
It is much cheaper to pack yourself a lunch.
You can still make delicious packed lunches! Some of our favorite meals to pack are loaded ham+cheese sandwiches (complete with tomatoes, lettuce, avocado, sauce, the works), chicken salad (complete with chicken, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, tortilla chips, carrots, and vinaigrette), and tortilla wraps (tortillas loaded with yesterday’s salad and extra meat + cheese).
Start packing and start saving!
2. Learn to sew and patch those holy pants
Quit throwing out your clothes and make them work instead.
A lot of our old clothes have been saved thanks to a good patch or upcycling!
You might have a friend or family member who will trade a patch job for cookies. Or, you can ask them to teach you how to patch clothes!
You can also find sources on the internet to teach you how to patch or upcycle your favorite apparel items. With a little research, you can teach yourself!
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without”
3. Carpool to school/work
Chances are, there is someone headed in the same direction you are.
You might want to ask around at school or work and figure out if anyone lives near you!
Then, you can ride together in exchange for gas money or breakfast.
I had a neighbor last semester who had the same first class that I did! She drove me to campus and I made her breakfast a few times 🙂 It was a win-win for everyone!
4. Bike to school/work
Even if you don’t have a chance to carpool, there may be an opportunity for you to bike to your location!
Biking is an excellent mode of transportation because you save on gas money and get some exercise!
Biking to class is a great idea because campuses have bike racks everywhere. Just make sure to invest in a good lock!
5. Use public transportation to school/work
If it’s too cold, too far, or too much to bike but you still want to save on gas money, try checking the the local public transportation policies.
In our university town, students get access to FREE public transportation, so we used it a lot. We had a bus stop 2 blocks away from our apartment that left every half hour, it was perfect!
You might have some great routes and rates when it comes to public transportation, so don’t miss out on them!
6. Call your internet provider to cancel, but settle for a lower rate
Did you know that internet providers can sometimes be more flexible with the rates they give you?
This is a trick my dad taught me that has worked SEVERAL times. You sign up with a provider for internet. After a couple of months, you’ll probably start getting ads in the mail from other internet providers that want you as a customer and are offering lower prices!
Call your internet provider and ask them to switch. If they are desperate to have you, they’ll likely lower the price of your internet package!
If not, you can go ahead and switch to the lower-costing carrier anyway.
Try it today and save a few dollars!
7. Cancel your gym membership – workout at home
Going to the gym is super great for your health and can be such a fun activity.
I would recommend going to the gym ONLY IF you can get a discount on the membership – whether that’s through school, work, or a buddy’s discount.
Otherwise? You might want to save your money!
On YouTube there are TONS of workout channels to choose from. You can find a plethora of workouts available for the body parts you want to work, the time you have, and even the equipment you have.
My favorite YouTube workout channel is POPSUGAR Fitness. They’ve got playlists of workouts sorted into both ‘time’ categories and ‘body part’ categories. On any given day I could find a 20-minute workout to try or scroll through all the arm workouts. POPSUGAR even has playlists dedicated to Beginner’s, Dance, and No Equipment Workouts. If you’d like to take a look at this channel, click here.
Even if this channel is not the one for you, there are a lot of ways to workout from home that can save money on gym memberships! Some other ideas are to start a running program, print out a workout infographic to follow, or use a fitness app.
Let me know what workout program YOU try in the comments below!
8. Use blankets instead of the heater, open windows instead of the AC
Electricity bills are often the ones that fluctuate the most!
Whether you’re blasting the AC in the summer or the heater in the winter, it’s almost impossible to get the electric bill to 0.
Instead, try lowering your bill by mastering the weather and air flow through your home!
In the hotter months, try opening the windows, even if just a crack, to let air flow through the house. At night, leave the windows open wider to enjoy the cool, fresh, summer night air.
In the winter, keep your windows closed and get cozy! Make sure to wear layered clothing, even in doors, so that you don’t have to leave the heater on all day. Place blankets throughout your house so that you can use those for warmth before turning on the heater.
Pro tip – leave your blankets ON the heater so when you pick them, they are already oozing warmth.
9. Use your dishwasher, fill to the max
If you have a dishwasher, use it!
Washing your dishes in the sink actually takes a TON of water, because it’s just running on full blast the whole time!
If you have a dishwasher, learn how to fill it up to max capacity. Group similarly shaped dishes together so that they fit into the dishwasher well. Don’t start the dishwasher until it’s completely full.
We have not lived in an apartment that uses the dishwasher yet 🙁 but we’re so excited for the day we do! Until then, we try to wash the dishes with the faucet half-on so that we aren’t going through gallons of water every time we wash.
10. Talk to your landlord about maintenance/yardwork/upgrades for a discount on rent
Some landlords are open to giving a discount on rent when their tenants do some sort of work for them!
In our last apartment, our landlord lowered rent for whoever mowed the lawn.
Our neighbors get a discount on rent when they babysit their landlord’s special needs child.
A friend of mine did handyman work around the apartment complex for a rent discount.
Some apartments give a discount on rent to the apartment owners that do cleaning checks or apartment check-ins.
Talk to your landlord about possible ways to save on your rent. You might be surprised at the available opportunities!
11. Learn to take care of your car
Car problems are the worst, and they’re often pretty pricey.
Though you might not be interested in becoming a mechanic, by learning about your car you might be able to avoid the mechanic shop more often.
Cars have more problems the older they get. While that can’t be stopped, some of these problems get worse when we don’t take care of our cars. If you do learn to care for your car, you might slow down the accumulation of problems.
This care varies with each car, but some good ideas are to keep the oil changed, wash the car frequently, and drive safely in general.
Look up your car today and figure out what you can do to make it last!
12. Shop at thrift stores
I’ll admit, many thrift stores are full of junk. However, they also usually carry a hidden gem or two.
I had some friends who got engaged and shopped at some thrift stores before setting up a wedding registry. They found some handy kitchen appliances, gently used pots/pans, and cute plates for their kitchen. Instead of filling their registry with brand-new kitchenware, they were able to put more fun items on their registry, including climbing gear, gift cards, and games!
Before you run to get something brand new, think about whether or not it might be at a thrift store. You might find some nice house items, potential gifts, hobby materials, or a good winter coat.
13. Make a meal plan and buy it in bulk
Buying food in bulk can be tricky, but when you do it right, it can save so much money!
One quick example is that the bread I buy is about $2, but one day it was on sale: 4 for $4! That day, I bought 4 loaves of bread and froze 3 loaves. Every time we ran out of bread (about each week), we pulled a new loaf out of the freezer. The thawed bread was amazing – totally fresh and not stale or soggy.
That month, I save $4 on bread. That’s not a ton of money, but if I managed to do that every month for 5 years – we’d be looking at an extra $240! That’s more than an entire month of groceries for the 2 of us.
Also, that’s just bread! Imagine how much money you can save when you start buy bulk on all your favorite things – freeze some extra bulk cheese, veggies, or chicken. Grab the big box of granola bars, fruit snacks, or protein shakes instead of getting a little box every week. And when your favorite pasta goes on sale 10 boxes for $10 – please get it!
It’s easier to buy in bulk when you know which foods you’ll want to be eating a few months from now, so start tracking which foods are your staples. Plan out yummy meals with those foods, and you’ll be able to use everything you buy in bulk.
This tip is one that I will probably be working on for FOREVER, but every time I put effort into it I get better, so you can too!
14. Pay memberships/insurance in bulk
Another thing you can pay in bulk is some of your memberships or insurance statements.
Take a look at the plans you’re subscribed too and check for a year vs. a monthly subscription. Chances are, the plan will even list how much you save for paying an entire year of membership up front!
We ended up saving a few hundred dollars on our car insurance when we realized we could pay for the insurance on a year-to-year basis. Although it’s hard to lose a chunk of money all at once, in the end it’s smarter to save on that when you can.
Double check all your subscriptions today to make sure you aren’t overpaying monthly!
15. Utilize leftovers
Ugh, leftovers. Who wants to eat the same meal twice in a row?
We have struggled with leftovers for a long time. No salad is as fresh as day one, and warmed up lasagna just isn’t the same as the lasagna out of the oven.
However, every leftover you throw away is money out of your pocket. While I never recommend eating food that’s gone bad, there are some ways you can eat leftovers before they go bad!
Try setting out all of your leftovers at once for a nice big buffet style meal.
Throw leftover fruit or veggies into a smoothie.
If you have a salad for dinner one night, try throwing it into a salad wrap for lunch the next day.
Or, dice up your leftover chicken and throw it into a new salad.
My biggest, most expensive tip is this: save up for an air fryer. An air fryer is this machine that warms up food in a way that makes it crispy. Yeah, you heard me. Crispy. Air fryers are perfect for leftover chips, fried food, or frozen leftovers. We’ve even successfully used our air fryer to make cook chicken, sausage, and s’mores. Friend-to-friend, I highly recommend you look into saving up for an air fryer!
That’s all for today!
There are many ways for each of us to save a little bit of money, and these are all ideas you can start today!
Cheers to every family working to be financially stable.
Which one of these tips will you start today? What are YOUR best tips to saving money? Let me know in the comments below!
Read next: Tips to Save Money in College