99 Ways to Save Money
After that, you can look to invest this money saved for your retirement needs. So how can you save money?
1. call your bank to waive the annual fees
2. get rid of the landline phone and use the free phone that comes with broadband usage
3. get your haircut not at a branded saloon but the ordinary neighbourhood ones
4. Better yet, get it done via the Japanese styled $10 barber
5. buy house brand groceries
6. do your shopping list first before you go to do your shopping and keep to the list
7. clothes like t-shirts which are faded can be worn at home
8. when the heels of your shoes come off, get those superglue and use it to stick it back
9. instead of the branded furniture, get it from IKEA, save a bundle and assemble your own furniture
10. instead of buying a car, use the public transport
11. if you have to have a car, plan your route before leaving home so that you save on going around
12. plan on routes that help you escape the road tolls like the ERPs
13. Drive at the optimum speed of 80-90 on the expressways for fuel economy and also avoid getting the speeding ticket
14. get term insurance instead of whole life, endowment or whatever else insurance there are
15. get the unit trust/mutual funds with the lowest management cost you can find which is normally an index fund
16. On days that are windy and cool, use the fan instead of the aircon
17. get energy saving bulbs instead of the incandescent lamp
18. make sure that the lights are off when you are leaving the room
19. make sure that the main switch for electrical appliances are off instead of just switching off to standby mode.
20. consolidate your bank accounts to one bank and when you are charged for cheque account and so on, call to ask for a waiver or discount.
21. switch off the main switch when you go off for holidays save for the one powering your refrigerator.
22. collect all the dirty laundry and wash them all in one or two sittings, instead of washing it everyday or every two days.
23. Items which you don't need anymore but which are still usable can be auctioned off online.
24. Even if you are not an electrician or plumber, there are simple stuff that you can probably do and become a handyman around the house, saving the money to hire one which can be expensive
25. Buy non-perishable items in bulk when they are for sale, like the toilet paper, tissue box, light bulbs etc
26. consider getting ETFs instead of buying managed funds like the mutual funds/unit trusts as the are cheaper to buy and hold with lower management fees and no sales fees bar the brokerage fees which are similar to that of buying stocks
27. Instead of placing your money in fixed deposits, place them in government issued bonds or money market funds which pay higher interest rates
28. instead of subscribing to the magazines, read them in libraries or purchase only those issues that you find interesting or that you'd keep.
29. Find an inexpensive hobby to occupy your time like gardening or something which you can learn to be good at which can help earn you some money later like photography or web programming. (although photography can be expensive :) )
30. Read a book instead of spending money going out
31. Borrow that book from the library if possible
32. Else get it from second hand bookstores.
33. live in a smaller flat or house which will save you money maintaining it
34. use the water for washing the vegetables to water the plants or flush the toilet
35. Cancel the newspaper subscription and read news online for free
36. hold off expensive purchases for one week later. see at that point in time later whether you still want to get it. If you still do, wait one more week later. If you still do at that point, buy it.
37. Pay off all your credit card bills every month in full.
38. Note when your credit card bill is printed and when you have large purchases, keep it till one day after the bill is printed so that you have more time to pay off the purchase. This only works if you follow point 37.
39. Cancel those channels that you don't watch on cable tv or even every other two days
40. Go to the movies on weekdays
41. If you have a car, get rid of the weight in the car boot so that your car has better mile-age
42. Higher octane fuel doesn't add anything to your mile-age or to the maintainence of your engine, get the cheapest fuel your car can accept.
43. Have two bank account, one is your emergency fund account/savings account and the other is your transactional account. Pay yourself first by transferring money from your salary to the savings account first before putting the money in your transactional account.
44. Be a laggard in the technology wars. If you are a early innovator or adopter, you will pay the full price and have a product that is just out with all the rough edges. Get it a few months or even a year later with all the rough edges smoothen out and best of all- cheaper with more functions
45. Before buying any electronic appliances or gadget, check that the prices you are getting the item at is a fair price and not you are not being fleeced
46. Getting a cheap and good product which has been well taken care of could be as good as getting a new one, like the lens that I got second hand has been permanently fixed on my camera instead of the more expensive new lens
47. Don't buy drinks every time you have meals outside, once in a while or all the time, just get the cold water instead
48. The home cooked meal is cheaper than eating outside and more healthy, so if you can, have a few meals a week at home instead of eating out every day
49. Don't shop on an empty stomach as studies have shown that you tend to buy more and spend more when you are hungry (why do they study such things? Go figure)
50. Before watching that movie or buying the DVDs, you can read the reviews on Amazon or watch excerpts of it or the trailers on YouTube to help you in your buying decision
51. Instead of buying it you could rent it for a few days instead or ask around to see if a friend has bought it
52. Read through the rewards catalogue or brochure to see what the banks offer as their rewards matches what you want to get. Use the credit card that has the rewards you want and you can even use if for groceries, however, watch what you spend and make sure that you do not blow your budget for the month
53. If you cannot keep spending below what you earn because of the credit card, cut it up and pay back what you owe as soon as possible
54. If you find yourself spending more for your credit card, you can ask the bank to put a lower credit limit for your card so that you will not exceed what you earn each month
55. Never use instalment scheme to buy gadgets or items that you want, they cut a part of your salary and you effectively take a pay cut. Also it makes you have the false impression that you can spend like there is no tomorrow. If you have to use it, limit it to one item and finish paying off for that before you even think of getting another.
56. Do not withdraw money from your credit card account as this will ensure that you will start paying interests on the money withdrawn plus all current outstanding amounts in your credit card.
57. Collect water from washing vegetables to water the plants in your house
58. If you buy stuff, you should take in the opinion of your spouse or family member which should limit the items you buy as they will have a different opinion on it
59. For any purchase which is not a necessity, you should delay it one week to see if you need it and want it
60. This has been repeated on various blogs before and written about- it is the latte factor, where authors have advised that you should stop drinking all the latte and do your own coffee, saving you that $5 each day which translated to 200 working days will mean $1000 saved. Small things count.
61. Have fun trying to save money and organise a picnic at the beach or park instead of that high class restaurant that cost an arm and leg. Save the expensive restaurant on special occasions
62. If you have a car, consider if you really need it. If you don't sell it and take the public transport if applicable to your situation, you can save a lot of money during your daily commute. Rent one when you need it
63. When travelling consider a motel or student hostel instead of that 4 or 5 star hotel.
64. You can save a night stay by travelling in the night and sleeping on the plane/train/bus
65. Some of the best travel stories you obtain is when you are walking around exploring the area rather than spending the time on more shopping
66. Sometimes, things can be much cheaper overseas, so if you are going to certain countries, it will be good to see if prices of things you get normally is cheaper there and buy them there. The savings could pay for your travel expenses
67. When shopping for travel packages, look for discounts during travel fairs or promotions by trusted travel agents
68. Get travel insurance for your luggage so that you are covered in case you lose them in transit and there are valuables like your electronic gears, cameras, camcorders etc
69. Bring some instant noodles and instant food like snickers bars which you can eat in case you go hungry and the nearby food outlets don't look appetising or are expensive
70. Bargain and compare prices at different shops to see if you are being taken for a ride
71. Instead of buying the ordinary holiday souvenir to decorate your house, consider taking a photo instead of it and storing it in your computer
72. Consider your mortgage interest payable and shop around when you are able to redeem it in full without any penalty
73. Get a separate savings account and pay yourself every month first and that will be your retirement money and investment money- make sure it is a bank that doesn't charge you a fee for not maintaining a minimum amount like what banks here in Singapore do
74. When you receive extra money other than your normal salary, use the majority of the extra money for investment rather than to spend it. You decide if you want it to be 80-20 or 50-50 or any proportion you like, ie 80% for investment or 50% for savings and investment while you spend the rest.
75. Makes sure you get the right insurance, and once you are covered, separate your insurance from your investment
76. Paying too much insurance premium will eventually mean that you give up the policy later in you life, so be sure to get one at the amount you are comfortable with ( it shouldn't be more than 10% of your salary) as your savings and investment amount increases, your insurance needs will go down
77. Stay at home, go to the public library instead of window shopping. Window shopping is not a recreational activity, and you will not be able to stop yourself spending if you treat it as a recreational activity
78. Be prepared to cut and run- I just cancelled the credit cards from Citibank because they no longer serve my needs of being a public transport card as their card is no longer valid and they didn’t bother to replace them with new cards. I can start looking to see which banks have better deals to help me save money on groceries and stuff
79. Cut down the number of new clothes you buy. Do you really need that new shirt, dress or blouse when your wardrobe is choke full of clothes?
80. Don't be late paying the bills from banks or any billing companies as they often have late payment fees. It can come to quite a lot especially for mortgages
81. Plan your route, arrival early so that you don't rush and sped and get a tick or waste fuel by stepping on both the accelerator and brakes hard
82. Save money but don't skip the maintenance bill for the car or the servicing which can cost you a new engine if you forgo the change of engine oil and maybe be slapped with a huge tow truck service bill too.
83. Look to pay off the debts that charge you the highest interest first, not the one which is the biggest.
84. Instead of that a bath in the bath tub, use the shower instead, it is cheaper
85. Quit smoking
86. Stop gambling- yes, including buying lottery ( I can't help buying those which have high payouts though)
87. Limit your clubbing and the nightscene- it saves a lot of money in the long run. Do you need need the headache from all the flashing lights?
88. Avoid the keeping up with the Jones, if you can't take the emotional battle, move to a cheaper neighbourhood. Better than to get the latest BMW just because the neighbours just got the latest Mercedes
89. If you cannot find interesting things to do instead of spending money, surf the internet, or better still write a blog
90. Join the International Buy Nothing Day
91. Read the ads before you start buying your groceries, as there may be items on special offer.
92. Get the coupons for discounts if they are available
93. Don't assume it is cheaper by just the price, see if the quantity is the same, often times, the bigger sized item is cheaper even though it costs more
94. Look out for discounts on clearance items that the grocer is trying to clear as they may be expiring. You can get it and put them in the freezer
95. Talk with your family members on how you can all help to save money. Put it down as the plan you will all follow
96. Take a walk in the park, its free. Instead of paying for that exclusive gym membership
97. Draw up a monthly budget and stick to it
98. Some of the movies you want to watch can be seen in the free to air television instead
99. Instead of trying to save money, make money roll on for you by investing it and compounding it for many years
Source: How to Save 10,000 in 2009
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