Photo by Micheile Henderson

Originally Posted On: https://thesavingsjournal.com/save-money/easy-ways-to-save-money/

 

If you need extra money, one of the quickest ways to doing it is by saving on your monthly expenses. The majority of people end up overpaying by thousands of dollars each year when they could be keeping a large portion of that. Here are 9 easy ways to save money in 2020!

1. Save Money on the Grocery Store!

Sometimes you go to the grocery store and don’t realize the different coupons available for the products you are buying and these can add up up!

Ibotta is a free cash back rewards and payments app that gives you real cash for not just when you are in the grocery store, but when you’re buying clothing, electronics, or even wine and beer. In fact, Ibotta has paid out over $600 million in cash rewards to more than 35 million users since its founding in 2012. Here’s how it works:

1. Find Offers – before you shop, add offers on the products you want by completing certain tasks
2. Go Shopping – buy the products you selected on any of the supported retailers and save your receipt after paying
3. Redeem – redeem the offers by taking a photo of your receipt, the app will match the items purchased to the offers you selected and give you cash for it
4. Get Cash – you cash back will be deposited into your Ibotta account within 48 hours

2. Quit Smoking

If you’re a regular smoker (a pack a day), you’re definitely spending a lot of money! Quitting smoking doesn’t only improve your health, but it saves you money on a daily basis. The average package a day smoker can save anywhere from $1,600 up to $3,800 each year.

3. Save on Subscriptions

Over 80% of people have subscriptions that they don’t even remember! These can add up and end up costing you hundreds of dollars on a yearly basis.

Truebill gives you an easy way to figure these out by connecting your bank accounts so the app can figure out which subscriptions you are paying for every month. You can then identify the ones you don’t use and cancel them. Truebill also lets you know if a subscription increases their monthly price.

Cancel Unused Subscriptions Today >>

4. Annualize Your Spending

Do you keep spending $5 a day on that morning latte? That’s over $1,000 a year you’re cutting away from your budget.

Start by reducing the amount of times you do it on a weekly basis and you’ll see how it starts to add up.

5. Cut the Cord

Cable subscriptions tend to tie you up for long-term contracts. This gives you little to no flexibility when deciding to make changes in your monthly expenses.

With different online streaming services you can continue to watch your favorite shows, series and sports. Some alternatives are these:

• Netflix – It has a 30-day free trial and plans start from $8.99 per month
• Hulu – It has a 1-month free trial and plans starting at $5.99
• Disney+ – Has a 7-day free trial with plans starting $6.99 per month
• Amazon Prime Video – Has an introductory price of $2.99 per month for the first 6 months and then goes up to $5.99 per month

6. Pack Your Lunch

One of the first things you can cut costs on is by bringing lunch from home. This is mentioned over and over, but it is because it’s one of the things people spend more money on. If your lunch costs you $8 per day, over the course of the year you can save over $1,200 that can be used for an emergency fund, paying off debt, among others.

7. Save Money by Adjusting Your Thermostat

Many people don’t think about adjusting their thermostat when they are not home. This is one of the easiest ways to control your energy bill.

Using a smart thermostat like Nest you can control the temperature of your home even when you’re no there. This will allow you to increase the temperature when no one is there helping you reduce your energy consumption.

8. Bulk, Bulk, Buy in Bulk!

Buying in bulk is easily one of the easiest ways to save money. You get multiple benefits from it:

• Products last longer in your house without having to buy more
• The cost per unit is significantly less
• You reduce the amount of time you spend going to the grocery store
• You reduce the mileage and gas needed to go shopping that frequently

But keep in mind what you buy in bulk. If you buy produce or any perishable items you may end up losing a significant portion of it if not consumed quickly.

9. High-yield Savings Accounts

If you’re currently paying a monthly fee for having a checking account with your bank, it’s time to look for options.

In today’s world, we have multiple banking options that provide up to 20x the interest rates of the national average. Some these banks are the following:

• Ally Bank – Annual percentage yield of 1.60% with their online savings account
• Wealthfront – Annual percentage yield of 1.78% with their online cash account
• Personal Capital – Annual percentage yield of 1.55% with their online cash account
• Marcus by Goldman Sachs – Annual percentage yield of 1.70% with their online savings account
• Capital One – Annual percentage yield of 1.70% with their online savings account
• American Express Personal Savings – Annual percentage yield of 1.70% with their online savings account
• HSBC Direct Savings – Annual percentage yield of 2.00% with their online savings account

Conclusion

There are many many ways to save money, but you have to start with the basics. The easiest of them are the ones you can start by changing a habit of just 1 day a week and then build it until you eliminate the habit completely. Those will build up throughout time and help you get where you want to be.