Are you looking to save money?
Have you made the decision to start living in a more frugal way?
Do you want some easy solutions to saving money now, and planning for your future?
I want to help you do that.
That is why I am sharing some of my favourite frugal habits with you.
By adopting these habits, you can spend less time worrying about money, and more time saving it.
Frugal People are always looking for ways to make their money last and make it work for them.
Keep in mind these may not all work for you, so be practical and take what you need.
Coming up in this article:
Top 12 Habits to Help You live More Frugally
- Save For A Purpose
- Check Bank Accounts Often
- Pay Yourself First
- Shop Only When Needed
- Cook Your Own Meals
- Shop With a List
- Good to the Last Drop
- Get the Best Deal
- Track Spending
- Live Below Your Means
- Avoid Debt
- Continue Learning
1. Save For A Purpose
Why do you want to be more frugal?
Frugal people usually have a savings goal in mind. It could be as simple as saving up to buy new shoes or in desperation to afford the next box of diapers for their toddler.
What is your financial goal? Are you trying to tackle your debt? Perhaps you are saving up to buy a house?
The important thing here is to figure out why you are looking to save money.
Make a list of the reasons you want to start saving money.
Common Goals:
- College
- Wedding
- Pay off credit cards
- Pay off car
- Housing costs
- Travel
- Growing family
- Retirment
By having a goal or reason to save, it will help you stay on track.
2. Check Bank Accounts Often
Get into the habit of checking your account balances weekly.
It only takes a minute, and helps you remember where you are at, and what you have to spend.
By checking in regularly , it allows you to check and see if you have upcoming bills or payments coming due, and plan accordingly.
This self monitoring helps keep frugal people in check.
The more aware you are, seeing growth in the right direction, reinforces the good behaviour, and motivates you to continue saving.
I mostly focus on my main accounts, like my checking account where my bills are paid from, as well as my emergency savings account. A few times a month I peek at my Retirement and High Interest Savings accounts to update my budget numbers.
3. Pay Yourself First
This is one of those habits, frugal people swear by.
Even when times are tough they can always find a way to put some money aside.
You should too.
Even if you are in the process of paying down your debt, stashing some cash now, will only help you in the future.
This can be done by setting up automatic transfers from one account to another.
You set an amount you are comfortable with, such as $25, a pay, and have it automatically transferred to a savings account, that you can not easily access.
Pay your bills and do your grocery shopping with what is left. Live off the remainder of your paycheque.
Start with an amount you will not even notice, in time you can increase it as you get better at managing your money.
The same principle can be used if you have a cash paying job. Before you go spreading the money where it needs to go, take a bill from the envelope, and stash it out of sight, or when you go to the bank ask to have some put in your savings account and the remainder in your checking account.
4. Shop Only When Needed
Shopping only when needed is the essence of being frugal. Making the right choices at the right time.
That means going to the grocery store once a week or less often.
Not roaming the malls every Saturday with the intention of some retail therapy.
This also means taking a break from spending money at all. You can participate in a spending freeze.
Whether you call it a break, a freeze, or holiday, put the pause on spending.
This frugal habit gets you into the mindset of a frugal person, and helps to keep you from making those impulse purchases.
It also acts as a great reset after a heavy period of spending, such as back to school shopping, or birthdays.
Want to learn more about spending freezes? Checkout: The Ultimate How to Guide on Spending Freezes
5. Cook Your Own Meals
Who doesn’t love getting greasy food through the drive thru, or enjoying a fun night laughing it up at your favourite restaurant. Or heck those lazy nights of ordering in.
I get it.
It’s fast, easy and delicious.
I am not going to tell you to not eat out.
But keep in mind eating out should be a planned expense. Frugal people tend to have the money set aside, or know they have a certain amount allocated to dining out.
Frugal people know that they can save so much money by making a meal at home.
Sure it may not taste the same, (may be even better if you’re lucky,) but it sure is cheaper!
By planning meals the night before, or even for the week, can help steer you away from those “Let’s just get pizza “nights.
Keep meals simple, with few ingredients, and be sure to batch cook. Doubling the recipe allows for leftovers, lunches and freezer meals.
Those times frugal people do go out to eat, they usually save it for special occasions, such as date nights or birthdays.
The more you can cook your own meals the more money you will save.
6. Shop With a List
I’m sure you know how helpful a shopping list is, to help you remember what to buy.
It also helps keep you on track, frugal people tend to stick to the list, it helps us stay on budget.
Have a plan, get what you need and get out.
Another take on this frugal habit is to have a running list, either in your phone, or on paper of other items you are running low on or wish list items.
I keep multiple lists:
- Birthday/holiday shopping lists
- What food is running low
- Items that will need replacing soon (Think worn out clothes or houseware items)
Be on the lookout.
This allows me to keep my eye out for sales and not buy on impulse. In turn saving me money on items I would have bought eventually anyway.
7. Good to the Last Drop
Besides keeping a list of items running low, frugal people also will use something down to the last drop. Scrape out the last of the jar. They make sure to get the most out of their purchases.
They will use an item until it can not be used anymore, then will try to repurpose it.
That tomato sauce jar can later be used to store rice or other bulk items.
That favourite t-shirt, turned pajama top, has too many holes now? Stretch it’s life a little longer by turning it into a rag.
I know I can’t be the only one to snip into a container to get that last bit of hand cream, or toothpaste.
By using an item up completely, you are getting the most out of your hard earned dollars.
8. Get the Best Deal
When frugal people do go shopping, they tend to buy used first, if possible.
After that frugal people look for the best deal, now that does not always mean the cheapest price, they pride themselves in getting quality products or services at a discounted rate.
Buy things that last
They prefer quality things that last, and will not need to be replaced often (hence saving money in the long run).
Instead of buying those $15 dollar shoes that will barely make it through the season, they rather save up and invest in a quality pair that they can wear for years, it just makes more sense, getting the best value for their money.
Coupon codes
Another frugal habit is looking for coupons or promo codes.
Better yet, stack deals.
For example if there is an online sale of clearance and a welcome bonus or free shipping, by all means add them up.
I once got 6 bras for the price of one while stacking. There was a flash sale of 40% off, which also applied to clearance. You bet I only bought the lowest priced bras. Better yet shipping was free. And to top it off I used Rakuten for cashback. One of my proudest moments.
DIY
Now getting the best deal, sometimes means Doing it yourself.
Frugal people enjoy a good DIY. A lot of the time they research how to do something themselves, before looking into buying, or hiring.
Know how to put oil in your car?
Good, you just saved yourself a trip to the service centre.
Seen a cute sign at HomeSense, try getting some wood and paint and replicating it for a fraction of the cost.
9. Track Spending
Another frugal habit to live by is tracking your spending.
You don’t even need to worry about a budget right away, just start logging down the totals of your receipts.
Log your spending on paper, in your phone or in a spreadsheet, just the act of tracking your expenses brings awareness.
This highlights to your brain where your money is going.
Evaluate regularly, where and how much is spent or saved and what is left in your accounts.
10. Live Below Your Means
This one may seem obvious, but live below your means.
If you bring home $2,000 dollars a month, that means all your bills and additional purchases must total up to below $2,000.
Easier said than done.
But this is one of the main things frugal people aim to achieve every single day. Spend less than they make.
Never spend more than you have.
Learn to say no.
Not all the time, but to unplanned expenses.
If it doesn’t fit in your budget, wait, or just say no.
Remember your why. Frugal people have the habit of putting their goals at the top of their list. Choose your goals over the moment of pleasure.
Remember you are in it for the long hall, doing it for the greater good.
11. Avoid Debt
Avoid debt like the Plague, or in modern times, like Covid-19.
One of the hardest things to get rid of is debt.
It just seems to keep growing and growing. Requiring more and more of your money to go towards it to get rid of it, money you don’t have, requiring you to… you guessed it, accumulate more debt.
If I learned one thing from my highschool math teacher, it is that debt with interest is the worst thing. It just compounds and before you know it, has grown out of control.
Now don’t get me wrong, compound interest is great, when we have it on our side.
But credit card companies and other lenders know that those struggling will just pay the minimum balance, which allows them to hit you with the interest charge on the remaining balance, in turn adding to your total spent.
To avoid the scary situation of being in the red, frugal people are responsible when it comes to paying their bills, they do it on time and in full.
12. Continue Learning
One of the most important habits frugal people live by is they never stop learning.
They are always looking for a new way to cut costs, save a penny or stretch their dollar.
Scouring the internet for tips and tricks, or finally listening to your grandmother’s advice. Reading financial books, and learning new lingo, will only help you further on your journey to financial freedom.
The more new information, the more motivation. In turn more money saved.
Win wIn.
Are you feeling frugal yet?
Incorporate a few of these frugal habits into your life today, try them out, see what works for you. After that implement a few more, in no time you should see some savings.
It’s not too late to start changing the way you manage your money.
Looking to start saving today? 5 Steps You Need to Take to Start Saving Money
You got this.
What frugal habits do you live by? What is your go to money saving habit?
Let me know in the comments below.
Stay Frugal,
Connie xoxo
