There are all kinds of ways to save money. You can save money by paying attention to little things like unplugging appliances when you’re not using them.
If you’re really serious about saving big money, though, you need to look at ways to trim your biggest expenses. So, I’m sharing the 5 biggest ways to save money.
Let me just say that all of these things require some amount of sacrifice. They aren’t always convenient or easy to deal with, but they have saved us thousands of dollars over the last six years.
The 5 Biggest Ways We Save Big Money
Inexpensive Housing
If you’ve seen my post on how we live on less than $1500 a month, you know that our mortgage is super low. This is no accident. Yes, we live in a part of the country that has a very low cost of living. However, we could have easily spent 3x what we did on our house.
We knew we wanted a crazy low mortgage payment, so we only looked at the cheapest homes available. Like, the choices of livable homes in this price range were the home we bought and one other decent option.
Our house has had a lot of work done to it since we bought it to make it much nicer than it was. We’re lucky to live in a small town that doesn’t really have a “bad area”, but we certainly don’t live in a nicer part of town. We see police cars drive down our road more than you would in other streets. So while I do feel perfectly safe here, we have made sacrifices for our low mortgage payment.
Before we bought our house, we were careful to find really inexpensive apartments.
Our first apartment was downtown Grand Rapids in an area I didn’t feel super safe in. The apartment was so small that our landlord wasn’t even sure if two people should live in it. But it was the right price and we made it work!
When we first moved out to the country, we rented the basement apartment of a house about 10 miles out of town. It was really remote and the road didn’t usually get plowed in the winter, but it was a great price and we really enjoyed living there.
Honestly, when we’ve looked at houses or apartments, we’ve started by looking at the cheapest options out there to see if we could make them work.
We haven’t always had the nicest places to live in the nicest areas, but we have literally saved thousands of dollars each year but choosing to find inexpensive housing.
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One Car
Since we got married six years ago, we have been a one-car household.
Cars are super expensive! Besides the initial cost of the vehicle (we usually spend about $5000 for a car), there is the cost of insurance, maintenance, and repairs. Each car can easily cost thousands of dollars per year.
There have been a lot of times in our marriage where only one of us was working. When that was the case, the working person took the car to work. If the non-working person needed a vehicle, they had to drive the working person to work and then pick them up so that they could have the car for the day.
When we have both been working, we usually figured out a way for one of us to drop the other one off or else one of us had to walk or ride a bike to and from work.
This hasn’t always been convenient, for sure. Austin walked to work for an entire winter once (in below zero temps) and I sometimes had to wake up at five in the morning to go get him from work when he worked nights.
Since we live in a small town, we have made a point to apply for jobs in our area that are within walking or biking distance when possible.
I feel like only having one car isn’t that terrible when you’re used to it and you just know that you’ll find a way to make it work. If you’re used to having two cars, then it would certainly seem like a major inconvenience. To save thousands of dollars per year, we’ve made it work.
No Smart Phones
I’m just going to say it: Smartphones are not a “need”. They are super convenient and come in handy, but they are not a need.
Someday, I would like to have a smartphone, but it’s not worth the extra cost for us right now. (And I know there are all kinds of inexpensive phone companies these days, but we live in a really rural area and have a hard time getting good service, so we stick with Verizon even though it’s a bit pricey)
Here’s the thing: We have the internet at home. We have always worked at places that have wifi. Most places you go these days have free wifi. We have an iPad and an iPod we can take with us (wifi only).
So really, the only time we don’t have internet access is when we’re driving. We have a super old GPS and often print off MapQuest maps old-school-style when we go someplace new. If we absolutely need to know something immediately and we don’t have internet access, we can “phone a friend”.
Our phone plan would go up a minimum up $50 per month if we both got smartphones, plus the cost of the phones. I estimate that we save at least $800 per year by not having smart phones.
*Update: We now have smart phones! We held out for years after most people had them until the prices went way down. We only pay about $5 more per month than we used to for dumb phones, so it’s worth it.
Eat at Home
We eat almost all of our meals at home. We also pack lunches at home to take to work.
This is one of those “death by a thousand cuts” areas of the budget. No, an $8 lunch here and there isn’t that much. But 2-$8 lunches per week = $64 per month.
We usually spend around $25-30 each time the two of us go out to eat. If we did that just once a week, we’re looking at $100-120 per month.
I know people who regularly spend around $500 per month on takeout, fast food, and other restaurants. That’s $6000 per year eating out! Crazy!
We usually try to keep our budget for eating out between $30 and $80 per month depending on our income at the time. Other than that, we eat at home. And you know what? I like eating homemade food most of the time and I like the occasional treat of going out because eating out is a treat, not a daily occurrence.
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No Cable TV
The average cable bill is around $100 per month. That means well over $1000 per year is being spent on TV by a whole lot of people.
We have paid for cable once in our marriage. We lived in an apartment for about four months where it was literally cheaper to have cable and the internet than to just have the internet. I don’t know how, but that’s how it was.
Maybe it’s just me but after about a month of catching up on HGTV and episodes of Pawn Stars, it seemed like there was never anything good on! We’d sit and flip through the channels looking for the least stupid-looking show to watch.
We actually just hooked up the antenna on our roof so that we could watch the Olympic trials. We usually don’t watch regular TV at all.
We enjoy Netflix and a few things on Amazon Prime. We don’t mind being a little behind on the new shows out. We’re just used to it. Plus, I’m a major binge-watcher and I can’t stand the suspense of waiting another whole week for the next episode!
We have on occasion paid for a month of PlayStation Vue, which is actually really cool. You get access to a ton of cable channels (depending on what package you pick) and you stream them. It can record shows for you and there isn’t any contract. You can just get it for a month and then stop. We plan on getting a month of it in August so we can watch all of the Olympics.
I know cutting cable is one of the first, most obvious places to cut your budget, but so many people are still playing over $1000 per year for TV.
Those are definitely the five biggest ways that we save thousands per year.
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Free Customizable Budget & Spending Tracker Spreadsheet
Stress less about your finances today with the spreadsheet I use each month to create our budget and track our spending!
Great ideas! Just some ideas I would like to share. If you make sure you don’t have a prepayment penalty on your mortgage and print out an amortization list, you can see how much you can save by paying ahead on your mortgage. Even a little bit helps. We did this on both our homes. It is a great feeling to be debt free including a mortgage. I also wanted to let you know about Republic Wireless. I have a cell phone through them for $12.71 a month. It uses wi-fi whenever possible. (I don’t have the internet on it. I’m not sure how much it is for that.) By the way, I love your blog!
Thanks Chris!
I haven’t had cable for YEARS. I had it briefly when living with a roommate a few years ago, but when I live alone, I really don’t miss it. I got myself Netflix but am thinking of cancelling for awhile as it’s such a time suck for me and an expense that I really don’t NEED right now. I’d rather put that money towards my smartphone or an extra audiobook. 🙂
That’s awesome Katie. I love that there’s no contract with Netflix. I know some people to don’t get it for the summer because they’re so busy outside.
OUCH! Everything on your list hits home because I do the opposite. And we’re in a season of life where we need to pare down. The only thing we can’t change is the housing cost, because we are in a high COL area. Even cruddy 2 bedroom apartments here run over $1300 a month. Sigh. But the others…yeah…I need to examine.
You can do it Georgiana! A little sacrifice now will totally be worth it later.
We cut out satellite TV and eating out as much, so we save a lot with those two alone. We still have a few bills, but many of them will be paid off within the next couple of years. Saving 10% off the top of your check is a great way to save money for emergencies or investments. That is how we purchased our two previous mortgages. The best part is you never miss it, because it does not touch your regular accounts!
Saving 10% is an awesome idea, Erin!
I honestly which I was more frugal like you guys, we spend so much money eating out, on cable, smart phones, etc. We do only have one car but we live in the middle of Philly so even having one car is kind of a luxury because we definitely don’t need two! I will try to implement packing my lunch more!
Laura | Laura Aime Vous
You can do it Laura! Making little changes here and there will start to make a big difference over time.
I’m struggling with not buying new smartphones, but I’ll give this tip a try with buying a less expensive one instead. ????
Sorry to comment twice, I used an emoji that wasn’t shown. 🙂
haha, totally ok!
That would be a great way to save money!
The no cable tv is such an easy one! I did that last year and rarely missed since I had my Apple TV!
That’s great Monica! There are so many ways to watch shows, so you don’t have to miss out without cable.
Great tips! We haven’t had cable in forever, and I don’t miss it at all. We also have saved money by saving up and then paying cash for our cars.
That’s awesome Shani! I feel like everyone who gets rid of cable doesn’t miss it.
I saved over $200,000 on interest by refinancing my home 4 times in 4 years. I’m just doing another refinance now, and the last two were no-cost refinance is. Check the interest rates everybody.
Wow, that’s amazing! What a good thing to check on.
Eating at home really really really does make a HUGE difference! Ugh. It gets slightly annoying when my fiance only wants to eat out – however, I think he is catching on to the I LIKE TO EAT AT HOME idea! 😉
Haha! My husband loves getting takeout, but he’s gotten used to the idea that it’s a treat, not an everyday thing. When you find a few things you really like to make at home, you start to enjoy eating at home more than anywhere else.
We do many of these same things. We’ve been a one car family for a long time but my husband just got a new job and our daughter needs to go to school and there is no bus so we are breaking down and getting a second car.
That’s great you’ve lasted this long with one car!
Owning a home is cheaper where I live over renting right now. We always eat at home which saves a bunch.
It’s a lot cheaper to own here as well Candy.
Great list! We do most of these, but I just can’t make myself give up my smartphone. I’ve been looking into dropping our cable, and PlayStation Vue sounds like an awesome alternative!
Thanks Marissa! Playstation Vue is pretty awesome! We’re happy with just having Netflix most of the time. I don’t miss watching regular tv at all.
I find it amazing how many people still pay for cable TV when there are so many cheaper and free options to go with. Great post and very helpful 🙂
Thanks, Debra! I completely agree. Cable is SO expensive. You could probably have Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and Playstation Vue for the same price.
Eating out at restaurants is definitely where a lot of my money goes… Every month I resolve to cook at home more but I work in the restaurant industry and there’s always a new place to try that everyone is talking about! But you’ve definitely strengthened my resolve to keep trying to cut back!
Good luck Nellwyn! That’s got to be tough when you hear about so many amazing places!
I will be implementing the no cable tv VERY soon!! I’m currently researching local internet companies to make the best decision. Also, there’s NO way I could live without my smartphone! I do too much on it everyday for my business. It’s my mini computer. 🙂 I’ll splurge there for sure!
Hey, it’s all about priorities. Save on the cable and splurge on your phone!
These are great ideas! With the right mindset, anyone can make these work!
Thanks Angela. They all take some sacrifice, but that’s where we get the biggest savings.
Oh wow. I don’t know how you guys do it! I am constantly on my phone and addicted to cable TV. We do try to eat at home as much as possible. Still. Well done you!
Thanks Jolina! We’ve never really had cable or smart phones so we’re fine without them. We are both on our tablets at home a lot though.
NO SMARTPHONES?! (I’m sure I’m the tenth person to comment this) BUT I can’t imagine MY life without a smartphone. I do think you’re right though- since wifi is EVERYWHERE, there’s really no need to invest so much money into a phone. I never understand the people who try to get more than 10GB of data. Spending $100+ a month for your plan is RIDICULOUS.
Overall though, I thoroughly enjoyed your post 🙂 Great tips <3
Haha, I know most people can’t imagine not having a smart phone. There are times it’s inconvenient, but for the most part we do just fine.
Mortgage and rent costs are such a budget killer! This is a great list of places to cut back.
Mortgage or rent is definitely the biggest part of most people’s budgets! Thanks!
Wow! You’re AWESOME! You know how to simplify living. I like the practical reasons you gave therefore you saved a lot of money. I just don’t know if I can live without smart phones though. All in all these are amazing tips! Thanks for sharing. xx
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Haha, thanks Kandja!
Great list! I think it all comes to down to prioritizing. If you spemd money on one think you’ll have to omit something else. If you find out what really matters to you, the rest isn’t that hard to give up. That’s what I do at least.
Absolutely Hanna. It’s all about priorities. You’ll pay more for what’s most important to you.
Love these! You are so right. Now, to start giving a few of them up…. 🙂
Thanks Kyleigh! You can do it!
These are really great tips! No smart phone would be a TOUGH one for me!
We’ve all gotten so used to smart phones that they seem necessary, for sure. I’d like to have them eventually, but we’re fine without right now to save a bunch of money.
These are great tips – and we utilize most of them. I find you make not having a smartphone work because you have an iPad/iPod/and gps instead. If someone didn’t have those other devices to rely on, do you think basic low data plans are worthwhile? iPads aren’t cheap.
My husband has an Amazon Fire tablet, which was only $50 (and he says it works great), so I think that would be the cheapest option. From what I’ve seen, any data plan is expensive, but it depends on your situation and if it would be worth it to you.
I would love to cut expenses. We are talking about downsizing and simplifying. We can’t cut the cars down cause hubs is a traveling sales rep, we already cut the cord to cable, I need the smart phone cause that’s how I work/access the internet, and we mostly eat at home already. But – love this list and love the brainstorming!
Thanks Mickey! Sounds like you’re doing some good, money saving things already.