10 Easy Ways To Save Money

60% of Americans don’t have enough money to cover an unexpected bill. What’s more, 40% of the population has less than $400 in their emergency savings fund.

Saving money is difficult. 

Whether you struggle to make ends meet or simply tend to spend your money as soon as it hits your bank account, having a money-saving mindset can help you reach your financial goals.

That’s right. Regardless of your situation, adopting the right strategies and mindset can help you make small changes that will add up over time and allow you to save every month. 

So, without further ado, here are ten strategies you can use to save money and achieve your financial goals.

Easy Ways To Save Money

If you want to save money, start with easy ways that you can implement today. As you build momentum, you’ll begin to look for additional ways to save money.

1. Automate Transfers

Level of difficulty: Easy

Setting up automatic transfers from your checking account to your savings account each week, fortnight or month has never been easier. The great thing about this method is that your money will accumulate over time without requiring any work on your part.  

These days, almost all banks provide automatic transfer services to their customers. All you need to do is download your bank’s app, choose the amount you want to save every month and the date you want the transfers to happen, and set up automatic transfers from your checking account to your savings account. 

Also, you can use money-saving apps such as Digit, Qapital, or Acorns to save even more money. For instance, every time you buy something, Qapital rounds up change to the nearest dollar and transfers this extra money into your savings account automatically.

Automating your finances this way will save you time and mental energy and allow you to build wealth over time and achieve your goals.

2. Plan Your Grocery Shopping

Level of difficulty: Easy

According to a study led by the University of Pittsburgh, shopping lists help reduce food expenses by reminding shoppers of their goals and preventing them from making unplanned purchases.

 Research also shows that shopping on an empty stomach costs more. 

Why? 

Because when we’re hungry, we tend to buy more food than we would have if we had eaten beforehand. Besides, the study reveals that hungry shoppers tend to also spend on non-food related items they weren’t planning to purchase originally. Hence the importance of planning your trip to the supermarket at the right time of the day.

Also, note that, on average, people spend $40 more when shopping online. While online grocery shopping is convenient, the convenience comes at a price, so make sure to plan your grocery shopping accordingly.

And if you need to shop online, don’t forget to use cashback websites such as Checkout 51 or Rakuten to get cashback on your grocery and gas shopping.

3. Limit Your Online Shopping

Level of difficulty: Easy

Shopping online has never been easier. Jump onto your favorite website, select a few items, choose the autofill payment option at checkout, click pay, and your order will be on its way.

While as a consumer, you might appreciate the convenience of online shopping, this same convenience also makes spending money easier than ever.

After all, if you had to manually enter your contact information and your credit card details, you’d probably think twice before purchasing something you don’t really need. 

In fact, 39% of mobile shoppers exit a website before finalizing their purchase because they find the checkout process too difficult. This highlights the importance for brands to make their checkout process as easy and seamless as possible. And when that happens, it becomes harder for online shoppers to resist the temptation. 

So, to help you, we’d recommend you don’t save your payment information online. Yes, it’ll take you a bit longer to buy the things you need, but it’ll save you money on non-essential items.

Another thing you can do to avoid shopping online when you don’t need to is to unsubscribe from your favorite brands’ email lists. That’s because receiving a 40% discount offer from your favorite swimwear brand every hour makes it hard to resist. In fact, email marketing is the most profitable marketing tool for businesses. 

So, go through your emails and unsubscribe from all the brands you like. You’ll quickly notice a difference in your bank account. 

4. Cancel Unnecessary Subscriptions

Level of difficulty: Easy

You might have noticed subscriptions you don’t remember signing up for on your phone. 

Or perhaps you signed up for a few streaming services like Amazon Prime, Netflix and Disney during the pandemic. You’re now spending more time out and don’t watch TV as much as you used to but are still paying for all of your streaming services.

If you believe you might be wasting money on unwanted or unused subscriptions, you’re not alone! In fact, 62% of consumers waste money on subscriptions every year. 

What’s more, 70% of them continue paying for these unwanted services either because they believe it takes too much effort to cancel them or because they didn’t know these subscriptions were set on auto-renewal. 

Brands are adept at convincing consumers to sign up for free trials, and before you know it, you end up paying for a service you didn’t really want or need in the first place for years. These subscriptions can be as little as $1.99 a month, but they add up, and if you aren’t careful, you could be wasting hundreds of dollars over time.

So, here’s how you can avoid wasting your money on unnecessary subscriptions:

• If you have an iPhone, jump onto your settings, and click under your profile before clicking the ‘’subscriptions’ option. You’ll then be able to see all of your subscriptions and cancel them manually. 

• If you have an Android, open the Google Play app and jump onto ‘’payments & subscriptions’’. Tap the subscriptions option and cancel them manually.

• If you’ve subscribed for an app only because there was a discount for the first year, turn off the auto-renewal option. And if not possible, add a note in our calendar to remind you to cancel your subscription before the end of the year. Make sure to read the terms and conditions so you know when you need to cancel.

5. Negotiate Your Bills

Level of difficulty: Easy To Moderate

Unless you have a lot of time on your hands, you probably don’t spend time negotiating your bills. The good news is that with bill negotiation services like Trim, someone can do it for you. 

Now, you might be wondering how these companies make money. They charge you a percentage of your savings when they successfully negotiate your utility bills, including phone and internet and, in some cases, medical bills, memberships and various subscriptions. 

Even though you can get on the phone with each of your providers and negotiate yourself for free, not everybody is a shrewd negotiator or has the time to scour savings opportunities. And if that’s your case, considering using a bill negotiation service might be worth it.

6. Reduce Your Restaurant Spending

Level of difficulty: Moderate

Sure, eating out allows you to indulge in delicious food and spend quality time with your loved ones. And more importantly, it means that you don’t have to cook.

But what if we told you that a $13 meal at the restaurant costs you 325% more than a $4 meal cooked at home?

It’s a fact. Cooking at home is much cheaper than eating out. So, if you’re one to order takeout or go out for lunch or dinner, one of the best ways for you to save money is to reduce the number of times you do so. For instance, to minimize your spending, you could define a takeout or dining out budget for the week or for the month. 

And if you do decide to order or dine out, here are a few strategies that will help you reduce your bill:

• Use Cashback websites like Fetch Rewards
• Check for happy hours
• Look for coupons on popular websites like BeFrugal, Groupon, or LivingSocial
• Follow your favorite restaurants on social media to keep up to date with their specials

7. Create A 50/30/20 Budget

Level of difficulty: Moderate to Hard

The first rule of personal finance is to follow a budget. Yet, creating a budget and sticking to it can be challenging. Where do you even start? What limits should you set for your spending? How much should you be saving every month?

These are all legitimate questions that can be easily answered by using the 50/30/20 budget rule. This technique breaks down your necessary expenses, leisure expenses, and savings into a percentage of your earnings. 

Following this rule, 50% of your salary after tax should go towards necessities such as rent, public transportation, or groceries.  

30% of your earnings should be allocated to leisure spending like going out for dinner with your friends, traveling, or going to the movies.

Finally, the remaining 20% of your earnings should go towards your savings, including retirement accounts like 401k or an IRA, an investment account, and an emergency savings fund.

Creating a budget requires a little bit of effort initially, but it’s the only way for you to have clarity on what you’re spending and where you could save money.

8. Use A Budget App To Track Your Expenses

Level of difficulty: Moderate

What if we told you that people who install a budgeting app on their phone reduce their discretionary spending by 15%?

Temptation is everywhere, and even if you’ve created a budget and set realistic goals for each spending category, it can still be hard to resist the urge to buy the latest iPhone or book your next holiday.

Using a budget app can be an effective way to help you stick to your budget over time. Why? Because being able to see in real-time the money you spend every day and your balance going down immediately prompts mindful spending. 

For instance, having a budget app on your phone will allow you to see at a glance how many times you’ve eaten out in the last month and help you decide whether you should refrain until the end of the month based on your monthly saving goals.

Some of the best budget apps include:

• Personal Capital
• Honeydue
• Stash
• Mint
• YNAB (You Need A Budget)
• PocketGuard

9. Reduce Your Electricity Bill

Level of difficulty: Hard

Heating and cooling represent 48% of your electricity bill. This means that if you want to save on energy costs, you need to reduce your heater or air conditioning usage. According to the department of energy, turning back the temperature in your home by 10 degrees for 8 hours can help you save 10% annually on your electricity bill. For instance, in winter, you could set your thermostat to 72°F during the day when you’re home and turn it back to 62°F at night when everyone is asleep. 

Another thing you can do is invest in a smart thermostat. Research shows that you can save up to 12% annually on heating costs and 15% on air conditioning costs by using a smart thermostat. All you need to do is program it by entering your daily schedule and the desired temperature. The device will then ensure the room is at your comfort temperature when you’re inside while keeping the temperature as low or high as possible – depending on the season – while you’re away.

Using cold water when washing your hands, investing in energy-efficient appliances, and insulating your house properly are a few other things that’ll make a big difference in your energy bill. 

10. Pay Off Your High-Interest Debt

Level of difficulty: Hard

High-interest debt includes things such as payday loans and credit card interest debt. Because of the unusually high-interest rate this type of debt carries, you’re spending your hard-earned money on repaying high interests, which compound every month and make it impossible or very difficult for you to repay your debt if you’re making minimum repayments. 

So, to save on total interest paid and pay off your debt faster, you’ll need to make higher repayments every month. And once you’re free from this burden, you can start saving the money that used to go to repaying your high-interest debt towards your financial goals instead. 

Are You Ready To Achieve Your Financial Goals?

Whether you want to purchase a home, pay for your children’s education, save for retirement, or pay off debt, following these ten strategies can significantly help you achieve financial milestones.  

Sure, it will require a few lifestyle changes, but believe us, it’s all worth it in the end.

Do you love your takeaway coffee? You could be saving between $1,000 and $2,000 a year by making coffee at home.

Do you love having baths at the end of a long day? Having a shower instead could save you up to $700 a year.

Keep these numbers in mind and start working on your savings. You’d be surprised how easy it can be to save once you know exactly where and how to cut down on your spending.