Your budget may well be tight right now. As the cost of living continues to rise, we’re all looking for more ways to save money. By now, we know you’ve tried all the usual ways. So, here at All Things Money we’ve compiled a list of five out of the box ways to save more money.
Getting flexible can be a great way to save more money – and no, we don’t mean taking up yoga!
If you are not wedded to particular times or locations, you can end up saving a lot of money while still doing the things you enjoy and/or need to.
For example, off peak fares on public transport can be a lot cheaper than peak fares. You can save even more on trains if you have a young person’s railcard. It may be worth speaking to your employer to see if you can be flexible in the times you come into the office to take advantage of off-peak fares.
Leisure activities, including cinema tickets and exercise classes, can also be cheaper during less popular times. Try swapping your date night for a date day instead and you could find yourself saving a lot of money.
You won’t be alone in wanting to save more money. Your friends and family are also likely to want to cut back a bit too. Work together to save some extra cash.
There are plenty of ways you can team up. For example, if you’re traveling somewhere, share lifts and split the petrol costs between you.
Equally, we all know buying in bulk works out cheaper in the long run. But, it can be expensive to start with and who really needs 3kg of pasta?
Consider buying these things with your housemates or a friend that lives near you and splitting both the cost and the product. This way you can benefit from the savings without the initial outlay.
The average car now costs over £100 to fill up. It’s only natural to want to make your tank last longer when the cost is so high.
Driving less might not be an option for everyone if you rely on your car as a mode of transport. However, you can still make your tank last longer.
Driving at 70 miles per hour uses 9 percent more fuel than driving at 60 mph, according to research by the car insurer, GoShorty.
That would be the equivalent of saving £9 on every £100 spent on fuel. It also won’t impact the length of time your journey takes significantly.
Some people swear by only using cash as a way to save money.
If you know you get carried away when you’re out, you could try leaving your card at home and just take out the cash you want to spend. This way you have no option to spend more, even if you want to.
The only thing to make sure with this money saving method is that you make sure you stay safe. Always have some emergency cash for a taxi if your planned way home falls through.
Some people prefer to make all their purchases on their card so they can track how much they’re spending on a budgeting app, however.
Slowing down is becoming a theme of this past. It may seem odd, but it really can help. Slowing down purchases will help anyone with a bit of an online shopping habit.
If you see something you like the look of online, don’t just add it to your basket. Instead, create an event in your calendar for two weeks’ time and copy the link into it. When the event reminder pings up, take another look and see if you really want the item.
You’ll be amazed how many times you don’t end up buying it or even remember why you wanted it in the first place!
Let us know if you try any of these out of the box ways to save more money and how much you manage to save using them. We’d love to hear from you!
If you enjoyed this post and want more money saving tips, check out the All Things Money podcast.
The All Things Money Podcast is a personal finance podcast designed to help kickstart your personal finance journey.
Join me for light-hearted and chatty conversations as I cover a wide range of personal finance topics we weren’t taught at school from budgeting, saving, investing and everything in between!
