Lots of us want to save money right now. We could have hit financial difficulty due to losing our job. Maybe we simply need to cut back in order to start adding to our savings or finally starting a pension. Perhaps there are improvements we want to make to our home or we want to start saving a deposit for a house? It’s not always easy to find some spare cash though. Whatever the reason, let’s have a look at 8 ways to save money on a tight budget.
1. Downshift Your Brands
Firstly on our list of ways to save money on a tight budget is downshifting the brands you buy. Change your branded products for the supermarket own version and you’ll save a lot of money. You could even change what supermarket you shop at which could save you even more. Budget supermarkets have a wonderful place in society and offer great food at discount prices. We’re talking about supermarket shopping here but you could take on everything you buy with this mindset. Do you need those branded clothes or would another shop’s attire do the job just as well?
2. Cut Your Subscriptions
How many subscriptions do you have? Could you run on the streets for free rather than paying to use a treadmill at the gym? If you have Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Sky & Disney+, ask yourself if you really need them. You can only watch one of them at once! Check those direct debits for subscriptions you’ve forgotten all about. So often we take free trials which turn into subscriptions that we forget about. Save yourself some money and cut out your subs!
3. Sell Your Unwanted Stuff
How much stuff do you have in your house that you no longer use? There are fantastic fee free selling sites such as Facebook marketplace where you can get rid of stuff and earn cash. Try Gumtree too or if you’re happy to pay fees, look for eBay’s £1 selling weekend offers where you won’t pay more than £1 to sell. This money can then be put into your savings fund or help pay the bills. You’ll also make some space in your house. Perfect!
4. Change Your Utilities Supplier
When was the last time you swapped utility companies? if you haven’t for a while, you are likely paying too much for your utilities. If you were on a great offer which has ended, you’ll have been shifted onto a standard tariff and be paying over the odds. Find a new customer offer with a different company is one of the best ways to save money on a tight budget. The great thing about gas and electricity is that we can chose who we pay for ours. This doesn’t apply for water companies, however there are ways to save money on your water bill. If there are less people than bedrooms in your house you might save money by having a water meter installed.
5. Make Your Own Coffee
How many times do you buy yourself a takeaway coffee? That can be at least £3 a time and if you could it 5 times a week that’s £15! You could save yourself more than 80% of that cost by taking a coffee with you. All you need is a flask to pour your coffee in at home. Insulated flasks will keep your drink hot for a number of hours. Much more financially savvy than buying a macchiato every morning on your commute.
6. Transfer Your Debt
Next on our list of ways to save money on a tight budget is transferring your debt. If you are in debt and there is a lot of interest being added to it every month, you might be better to move it. If you move it to somewhere where you’ll be paying 0% interest for a certain amount of time, the money you’re using to pay it off is actually paying off the debt. Not just the mounting interest. This could help you to clear debt quicker and let you save some cash.
7. Holiday At Home
You don’t have to go abroad to have a wonderful holiday. The current situations regarding travel might actually help you save money. Not be 100% sure about going ton airplanes might make you look at staycations instead. from camping to budget hotels, you can have an affordable yet wonderful holidays right here in the UK.
8. Ask Yourself Before You Spend
One of the best ways to save money on a tight budget is to ask yourself before you buy something. It is so easy to tap our contactless card or buy something online. It’s easy because we don’t hand over physical cash. This can lead to financial issues and leave you with less money to save. Ask yourself if you need what you’re about to buy. Leave it in your online basket overnight and sleep on whether or not to make the purchase. You might even be sent a discount code from the retailer! When we start asking ourselves and questioning if we need to spend the money, we’ll have more to save!
There are lots of other ways to save money, including looking at unemployed car insurance if suitable. Hopefully these ways to save money on a tight budget have helped. Good luck with your current financial situation. I hope saving some money and questioning your spends helps you into a better one soon.
