Easy Ways to Save More Money

As many of you 90s kids may know, successfully saving money at our age can be a challenge. It’s probably challenging at any age, but it’s definitely so now. Our incomes are generally lower than what they’ll be later on in life, and we have a lot of things to pay for. With that said, it can still be easy to waste money on unnecessary items or overspend and neglect savings.

Try some of these simple tricks for saving money that have worked for others – myself included – in the past.

• Try the cash and envelope method. Paying with cash when you go shopping can help you physically see how much money you’re spending and may help you cut out unnecessary items. You could also try the envelope method, where you place a set amount of cash into designated envelopes for spending and once the money is gone, it’s gone. This is a great way to help budget and avoid overspending at the grocery store or restaurants.


• Save loose change. I’m particularly bad at this one, but saving your loose change in a designated jar can really add up over time. When the jar is full, take it to the bank, put it in your savings account and start over again.


• Pay yourself first. This may seem obvious, and only involves making sure you remember to contribute money to a savings account each month automatically. Building a solid savings fund can be very important for your financial security, whether it be an emergency fund or a retirement account. Setting up automatic transfers or a direct deposit for each paycheck can make it easier.


• Use the 48-hour rule. This will help you avoid buying things out of impulse. Before you buy something you don’t need, think it over for 48 hours. If you’re still thinking about it two days later, it may be worth it. I’ve been trying out this method myself, and have found more often than not, after two days I’ll have forgotten about those nonessential items I thought I wanted so badly.


• Keep a log of your spending. Seriously, writing things down helps you visualize so much better exactly how much you’re spending and what you’re spending your money on. After only three weeks of doing this, I was shocked at how often I go out to eat each week when I know I have plenty of food at home. There are several options to do this online, as well. Platforms like Mint assign a category to your expenses. Then you can see what percentage of your expenses goes toward eating out, etc. By keeping track of your spending habits, you can identify exactly where you should cut back.


• Watch less TV. This probably sounds silly, but watching TV usually means watching commercials, and commercials are really good at convincing people to buy things they don’t need. Instead of watching TV in your down time, opt for reading a book. Or, if you absolutely need TV, try muting the commercials and diverting your attention to something else until your show comes back on.

Hopefully some of these tips will help you with your savings goals. Do you have any additional tricks for saving money? Share them here!

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Categories: Smart Spending , Strategies for Saving , Money Smart Kids