The Ultimate Guide to Money-Saving Tips in Everyday Life
Introduction to The Ultimate Guide to Money-Saving Tips in Everyday Life
Currently, inflation in the UK stands at 7.9%. Prices are rising, and wages are stagnating. According to the Office of National Statistics in the UK, butter costs have increased by 10% from £2.05 to 2.26 and bread rolls by 6% from £1.00 to £1.06. For more information on everyday prices, hicks check out their calculator here or look up the parliamentary report for a more generalised overview here.
Spending money has become easier than ever by simply tapping our mobile or bank card in a shop, and before we know it, we will have spent £20 on mindless crap. Do we always check the amount something costs before we tap or ask for a receipt so we can track our expenditure? No, most of us don’t. There is also online shopping, where algorithms lure us with tailored ads and shops we frequent often retain our bank details for easy shopping.
With the above in mind, it is easy to overspend, and we’d all do good to be more mindful of our spending habits. By making minor adjustments to our everyday spending, we can accumulate healthy savings over time. These savings, be they £50 or £500 a month, can help you through a rainy day, pay to replace a broken appliance or something fun like a holiday abroad.
In this article, we will explore six practical money-saving tips that you can easily incorporate into your everyday routine.
Bring your own lunch to work.
While going out for lunch can be fun as an occasional treat. You can save a ton of money by preparing and bringing your own lunch to work. Going to your local café and having a sandwich and a cuppa can easily set you back £8.
Instead, why not cook food in bulk once a week, freeze some of it and bring the rest in as lunches? Another way is to cook two portions for dinner and bring the leftovers to work. Preparing at home is another excellent way to save a buck. Buy cheese, tomatoes, lettuce or whatever else takes your fancy and make your own sandwiches.
You will not only save money and time by not standing in the café queue, but you will also have a healthier diet as you know exactly which ingredients went into preparing your food.
Don’t buy coffee.
Fancy a cuppa in the morning while getting to work? Are you grabbing one on your way? Starbucks charge £3.36 for a flat white and Costas £4.10 for a latte. Times those by five, and it soon adds up.
Why not invest in a reusable cup, such as these, and make your own coffee before leaving the house? You’ll save on money and waste that would otherwise have gone to landfill.
Get cheap train tickets to avoid ever-rising train fares.
Travelling regularly for work or pleasure and feeling the pinch of train fares ever rising? One thing to do is to buy in advance, rather than at the station just before your journey. In the UK, advance tickets usually go on sale 12 weeks before departure.
Another way to save on travel is to use Split fare tickets. Split Fare tickets can save you up to 26% on some journeys. Here you make the same journey, but instead of buying one ticket from London to Edinburgh, you buy one from London to Newcastle and one from Newcastle to Edinburgh, for example. There are websites such as Split My Fare and Split Ticketing that do the maths for you.
If you are under 26 or over 60, you could get a railcard to get 1/3 off most travel. You can get more info on the different railcard types here.
Cook at home.
I don’t know where you stand on cooking. You might be a hobby cook and find it relaxing or be more like me and see it as a chore. Wherever you stand, cooking at home rather than eating out can save you loads of money and massively improve your diet.
There is nothing wrong with the occasional visit to the local Indian or Italian restaurant. But doing it several times a week soon adds up.
Why not create a weekly meal plan, do your shopping in one go and cook in bulk? This way, you save money and time and take the stress out of cooking and shopping.
Save money by direct debit.
Rather than have money sitting in your current account, why not set up a direct debit to a savings account? This way, you won’t be tempted to spend it and save a fixed amount each month.
Install Ad blockers and deactivate saved bank cards.
Installing an ad blocker like this one prevents you from seeing ads for things that might tempt you into shopping. We’ve all been there.
Another clever way to prevent you from impulse purchases is not to save your credit card details online. This way, you must input them every time you buy something, giving you more space to think whether you need the item you are about to purchase.
Conclusion to The Ultimate Guide to Money-Saving Tips in Everyday Life
I hope the above tips have given you some helpful tips on how to save money in everyday life. Are you doing some of them already, or do you have other ones to suggest? Why not let me know in the comments below?
Need help with budgeting? Get in touch. I offer coaching sessions.
trabantbettina
Bettina Anna Trabant, Founder of Life Organised, your professional organising and decluttering service in East London. Eco-conscious minimalist and avid tea drinker,