Do you have any money saving tips?

lynxbbgirl · August 2012

What tips do u have to save some money? We aren't brand specific on most things. We have a Sams club membership, so we do buy somethings from there that won't go bad (this includes our dog's food, dish soap, washing powders, etc..), we are eating mostly at home as that saves a lot. I use coupons. I'm just wondering what others do, TIA!

ky29 · August 2012

We do Sam's Club for some things also. My mom has a membership, so we'll shop whenever I need to go - which is really nice! I also use coupons. Look at the ads before I go & make my list/meal plan based off what's on sale.

Where do you grocery shop? We usually always go to kroger. We have a kroger plus card, and they send coupons (based on what you shop for) every couple months. Plus monthly mailers that always have coupons. And if you have a kroger gas station (or I think Shell is partnered with them), your card points can take up to $1.00 off each gallon of gas.

We try to not eat out much - usually just once a week. And we both usually take our lunches to work. That's made a big difference!

olywillis · August 2012

I do a lot of what you do as well except I am a Costco member as opposed to Sam's. I try to bring my lunch most days except sometimes I run out of time in the morning and I end up getting something small. But I only get paid once a month, so I really have to budget. I pay all the important things first (mortgage, student loans, insurance, bills, etc.) then I put some away in my savings every month. My 401k savings comes right out of my paycheck before taxes so I don't even see it. Little things like that seem to help.

athlete010688 · August 2012

Let's see....our 401K comes directly out of our paychecks. We also have 3 different bank accounts. The checking acocunt that he had before we got married has money for the mortgage, car payment, and to accrue money to pay the bills that occur every 6 months or a year (automobile insurance, car registration/plates), as well as saving up for Christmas gifts. So much money out of his paycheck gets direct deposited into that account, so I never have to do anything with it. I just keep an eye on it. We have a savings account where so much of my paycheck gets direct deposited into. We do not touch the savings account unless we absolutely have to. Everything else out of our paycheck gets direct deposited into our other checking account. I try to use coupons as much as I can. We honestly don't eat that many meals together because He works at a restaurant and works alot over the dinner hour. That'll probably change now that he got a promotion. So, I'll try and meal plan more. We try and not eat out much, but sometimes that fails :-)

PattyandAlan · August 2012

The only thing I do other than the things already suggested is I have a $5 envelope. Every night when I get home, I take any $5 bills in my wallet out and put them in an envelope in our fire safe. It doesnt save up a ton of money, but I find I don't miss the occasional $5 out of my wallet, and it's definitely a bit of extra cash I would spend if it was in my wallet.

ky29 · August 2012

Oh.. another thing to add. Not sure if you have car payments, student loans, etc. But I went to david ramsey's website.. and entered all my info into the debt snowball program thing. It really helped showing the breakdown & if I added in 'x' amount of extra dollars each month. That motivated me to get moving & now I have no car payment or student loan payments!

lynxbbgirl · August 2012

Thanks for the site idea, I hadn't heard of it before and plugged in our information. That will be helpful as I'm going back to school later this month, it will help me figure out where to put a few extra dollars here and there, thanks!

Scarlet Starlet 31 · August 2012

We are also Costco members-DH works there so we get a free membership. He usually only buys stuff there when it's on coupon or clearance and has scored some really great deals-he just got a huge 5 pound bag of mini-snickers for $4, and it's in the freezer so we can give it away for Halloween candy (let's be real though, that sh*t will be gone by the end of the month).

We ask for restaurant gift cards or Target gift cards for Christmas/birthdays. We save them up for nights we don't feel like cooking, and are saving the Target ones to buy diapers while I'll be on maternity leave next year, since I'll only be getting half my salary during that time.

We drive together so we save on gas money 3-4 days a week. The crappy part is he starts at 5 and I don't start until 6, but since my job is on the way to his work, he drops me off at 4:30. I like having the extra time together with him and I know I won't be late for work, so I don't mind it so much.

I used to coupon but have pretty much given up on it. We have started eating better and our grocery bill consists of fresh produce and fresh meats, we don't buy boxed/packaged foods hardly at all anymore.

olywillis · August 2012

Oh the website reminded me of something I recently tried too - it's called YNAB - You Need a Budget - basically a software program my friend used in conjunction with David Ramsey I believe. She paid off some major bills!

ldawngirl · August 2012

We do the pay yourself first thing, so money goes into various savings account automatically, as well as paying the bills. After that, we live on the leftovers.

scamberlous3000 · August 2012

I third Dave Ramsey! If you have access to or are able to get your hands on his Total Money Makeover book, it really is amazing! The man is a genius and has really helped us with our finances. Also, we are members of Costco and get necessities and things I use a lot from their i.e. TP, paper towels, dried cranberries, bread, OTC medications, etc. Lastly, we shop at Bi-lo for the fuel perks! It's amazing how quickly they add up, and right now I have accumulated $0.45 off of every gallon for my next fill up!

scamberlous3000 · August 2012

OH! Another thing I've done is things I've found on Pinterest! I make my own laundry detergent, Febreeze, foaming hand soap, vanilla extract, etc. I made a giant batch of liquid laundry detergent that may have cost me like $8 (if that) for the supplies and we haven't bought laundry detergent in AT LEAST 7 months!

herb0622 · August 2012

DH and I have a 401k account that automatically comes out of our checks every week. We also try to stock up on food and household supplies when they are on sale (our grocery store often does a buy , get 2 free sale once a month, so we try and stock up on those products that are on sale that we use). We try to limit eating out to once a week, too.

Do you have any money saving tips?

Re: Do you have any money saving tips?

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