There are countless ways to save money every month, so no list is going to be exhaustive. That being said, here’s a list of the best ways to save money each month. If you have more ideas, we’ll happily add them to the list.
- Save money when you buy with a rebate app like Ibotta. Ibotta works at over 300 retailers, not to mention your local grocery store, and you can redeem funds once you hit a $20 balance. Shopkick is another excellent app that let you save money at the store. Check out our guide on the other best cash back shopping apps to find a good option for you.
- Save your raise.
- Save your spare change in a change jar – include $1 and/or $5 bills as well. You can do the same thing digitally with CIT Bank – as they have a $100 minimum balance requirement and you can earn 1.80 percent if you choose a money market. If you automate it, then it’s done for you without any effort on your part.
- Take your lunch to work.
- Avoid out of network ATM fees. The average out of network ATM charges nearly $5 per transaction, according to CNBC. It doesn’t make sense to pay money to access your money.
- Start a garden and can or freeze the produce.
- Get free Amazon gift cards by taking surveys with Pinecone Research. If you regularly buy items from Amazon free gift cards can be a great way to save money. Pinecone Research lets you redeem for cash, Amazon gift cards, and more. Taking surveys won’t make you rich, but they can be a great way to monetize your free time by helping you save money.
- Take Uber as opposed to a taxi. In most instances, one or both can be the cheaper option.
- Ditch the whole life or permanent life insurance. You can save significant money by switching to term life coverage. If you don’t know where to start, try PolicyGenius to find the best options available.
- Don’t play the lottery. The average person spends $25 per month on the lottery.
- Refinance your house to get a lower interest rate. Compare rates at LendingTree to get the best possible rate.
- Bring snacks to work so you’re not tempted to go to the vending machine.
- Find cheaper auto insurance. Nearly 40 percent of drivers haven’t compared rates in three years. If that’s you then you might be leaving hundreds of dollars on the table each year. Compare rates at Esurance to see how much you might be able to save.
- Consolidate or refinance your student loans. Not only does this make repayment simpler as you have only one monthly payment to manage, but it also lets you pay them off quicker through the reduced rate. Check rates at Credible to see how much money you can save on student loan payments.
- Buy used when you can, especially clothes. Find the best consignment shops around you and shop at them to save money.
- Break out of the bundle pricing offered by cable companies. Here’s how to get internet without cable and save more money each month.
- Don’t buy extended warranties.
- Use your unused gift cards. $1 billion in gift cards go unused each year, according to Marketwatch. You can use them to buy something you need, sell them or use them to buy a gift for someone. If you like to use gift cards, you can buy used gift cards at Raise at a discount.
- Get rid of unused memberships or subscriptions with Trim. Trim is a free to use app that analyzes and find subscriptions you don’t use and cancels them to save you money.
- Buy a programmable thermostat to save on energy bills. We work from home so don’t have much need for this. Assuming that’s not the case for you, this lets you save money every month on your energy bills.
- Negotiate doctor’s bills. We ask every time we go to the doctor or dentist. We commonly get a reduced rate by offering to pay up front.
- Go to the library. The library offers many ways to save money every month from books and movies to a lot more.
- Consolidate your debt through Even Financial, to reduce the monthly interest you’re paying and they allow you to compare up to 17 lenders at once. If it’s credit card debt you have, get a balance transfer credit card to lower your rate to 0 percent and kill the debt.
SAVE MORE MONEY EACH MONTH: BOTTOM LINE
There are many ways to save money every month; you just have to put some into action. Like I said in the beginning, you won’t be able to do all of them, but even a few of them will help you save several hundred dollars per month – that’s life-changing kind of money.