For two years now, we’ve lived quite frugally because of some life circumstances and choices. Such as a child. And a husband getting his PhD. While I start my own business. Go big or go home, baby.
This foray into living more frugally didn’t just start after Gabe and the PhD pursuit, though. I grew up with incredibly frugal parents (who don’t need to be) and a father who is a financial expert, so I had to hear financial advice since I was, like, in diapers. I’ve also known for a few years that venturing into working for myself was something I was interested in, so I made the conscious decision to live within our means with some room to spare. Room that would eventually allow us to pursue our dreams (like a PhD, self-employment, and part-time work).
Between that and never having two full-time incomes between us in our five years of marriage, I’ve learned a thing or two about how to thrive on less money.
I’m not sharing these because I think I have all the answers. Or that I think everyone should do all of these things. I’ve just had several folks ask me how we manage, so I wanted to share a few things that we’ve found important.
My Tips for Living More Frugally:
– Do what works for YOU. I’ve tried the popular cash-envelope system and it was a giant failure for us. Cash seems to burn a hole in our pockets – we spend cash much more quickly than credit cards. Credit cards are not evil. Credit cards are awesome if you pay them off in full each month. We get about $50 every two months to Starbucks via our Discover Cashback rewards. FREE COFFEE. (I could save them and do something really big, like take a vacation, but I have a short attention span.)
– Spend less than you make. Don’t borrow to make up the difference, if you can avoid it. Use Hulu and/or Netflix instead of cable. You’ll save a lot of money, probably watch less TV, and definitely have fewer commercials that make you want to buy more stuff you don’t need. Like a Dairy Queen Blizzard.
– Do not buy new cars. Buy a used car two or three years old and pat yourself on the back for saving a ton of money. New cars are not an investment. They lose 11% in value the moment you drive them off the lot.
– Learn how to cook. You’ll eat out less, buy less (expensive) convenience foods, and eat healthier.
– Don’t go shopping if you don’t want to spend money. Period. (And if you go to Target, stay out of the clothes section!) If shopping is your hobby, find a new hobby that doesn’t involve the accumulation of new stuff. The retail therapy bug will slowly wane.
– Less disposable, more reusable. Aside from saving money on the products, this also means you make fewer runs to Target to pick up diapers, paper towels, etc – thereby saving yourself the collateral damage of just being at Target. (Your shopping bill increases 11% the moment you walk in the door.) (I totally just made that up.) (It’s probably more like 30% for me.)
– The best budget is the one you use. I use Mint. I’ve also used PearBudget and Excel spreadsheets. I’ve had a budget since I was in 8th grade and made $100 a month babysitting. I’m a bit of a Budget Person, but I understand that some people are not. Join Mint. They do all the work for you of tracking your money. But do track your money so you know where’s it’s going. If you like charts and graphs, Mint has all kinds of fun tools to see how your spending or income has changed over time, how compare to others in your area, and so on.
– All of that said, pick your priorities and indulge. It will make you feel like you are living comfortably and not penny-pinching. Penny pinching isn’t much fun. Our priorities are: good coffee, fresh produce, and friend time – which often means going out to eat or somewhere fun. We hardly feel like we are scrimping because we aren’t thinking about how much it sucks to have just one car or how nice it would be to have iPhones.
And that, my friends, is how we manage to live on our tiny incomes and stay happy. I know lots of you are one-income families or live in pricey cities – how do you do it?
This is so timely for me. I’m in grad school and will be unemployed in January. It’s a little panic inducing but I’ve been planning and preparing and this gives me some good ideas. Thank you!
That is a rough combo, Nic. :( I think it’s easier to face impending (or current) poor-ness when I know it’s temporary/will pay off. God, I hope so, anyway!
Not going to Target is the best anti shopping medicine for me! Last weekend I decided to stop in after I went to deposit money in the bank and spent $52 on stuff I didn’t need like cute skirts, new plates and cups just because they were on sale. I then drove back and returned a few things because I had such guilt over it! I kept thinking I could be spending that money on fresh produce at the farmer’s market or a dinner date rather than stuff.
I get giddy when I return stuff! It’s like I’m earning money… That I already spent. Ha.
The no cable thing is something we also do, and I don’t miss it one bit. Since half of us are also surviving on a PhD stipend, we cut money where we won’t miss it. I try to stick to a strict list at Target and the grocery store, and stay away from places that tempt me. We also save like crazy for vacations, because travel is very important to us and we live far from our families. Things that aren’t important to us include new cars/electronics/clothes, and having cable/other expensive subscriptions.
I feel the same way about priorities. We’ve paid off our car, and though it’s getting up there in mileage, I’d rather take vacations than have car payments!
Yeah, stupid as it seems, just NOT GOING TO THE STORE is a great way to save money. It’s amazing how walking down that aisle makes you “need” stuff that hadn’t even crossed your mind before. Right now we only have one vehicle, which obviously helps with the budget, but a good side effect is that while my hubby’s at work, I am literally stuck at home. So I can’t go out shopping “just because I feel like it!” Once or twice a week he is able to carpool to work, and then I use the car for grocery shopping, necessary errands, etc. In all, I have a lot less time to waste at Target, TJ Maxx, and Kohl’s.
I would say that a large chest freezer saves money in the long run, too, if you have space for it… especially if you like to eat quality food, which generally costs more. We buy free-range beef and chicken in huge quantities, and while it’s a lot to swallow up front, it saves cash down the road.
Yes!! I am in the same boat with one car and I swear I go shopping less because of it.
You are so smart, Ashley. I wish I was about 15 years younger – you would’ve been a good influence in the years I built up some debt. =) I giggle about Target, because it’s TERRIBLE for me. I can go in without a list, with a list, it doesn’t matter, I always wind up spending 3x what I meant to spend. And I rarely buy clothes. Truth. Go figure that one out. How do we save money? We don’t really – we live within our monthly incomes and try to put my bonus checks / tax return checks away in savings. We also have generous grandparents who help keep Gavin in an excellent daycare. Not something I like to admit, but it’s our truth and it works for us.
I’m also a giant fan of credit cards and the rewards–but it’s definitely crucial to pay them off every month! Over the years we’ve earned almost $3000 total that we’ve just applied to our credit card payments. I mean, FREE MONEY!! Plus I like that it’s a more trackable system of where our money is spent since I’m terrible about keeping an actual budget.
We love not having cable, but nothing is going to stop me from wanting DQ Blizzards! To save our family money, I’m not allowed to grocery shop. My husband does it all because I’m a big stock-upper. “I’ll just grab 10 cans of tuna in case!” “Ooh, we love this and it’s on sale – grab six month’s worth!”
I love posts like this, especially now that we’re cutting costs and saving like crazy to try to make it feasible for me to stay at home full-time once Baby comes :) Cutting cable is a big one (ours is $70/month, and Topher watches it more than either Nathan or I!), but the biggest saver I’ve found is to just stay away from the mall. I don’t even buy things for myself, it’s things for Topher – who has an overflowing closet, more books than will fit on his shelf, and toys he hasn’t touched in months. I just need to stop the insanity!
Use the library! Books, CDs, DVDs, ebooks – whatever you need all for free. I also read blogs like the Non-Consumer Advocate for frugal ideas.
Love these tips. Although I think I’d maybe differ on the owning a new car one since I’ve always bought new. I think part of it though is I feel like with a new car the warranties I’ve received have helped me save if anything’s ever gone wrong and free oil changes and check ups are a huge perk.
Other than that I love your tips. I definitely need to get better at cooking more and not letting my eyes wander at Target, ha.
I am the same way- MUST avoid Target at all costs haha. Also, love getting points on the credit card, but always pay in full. However, I don’t have a kid and we have two incomes so I’m very impressed by you!
LOVE LOVE LOVE this post!!
I am SO not a budgeter and I found myself in a bit of consumer debt on top of car loans and student loans before I got married. But with motivation from financial blogs, good ole Dave Ramsey, and the husband’s love of numbers and Excel we tackled it and started saving! It’s THE BEST feeling in the world.
How we did it? Cash envelopes for me and Discover for Eric (we work entirely differently with money) No cable, limited wardrobe, cloth diapers, hand me downs, cooking at home, packing lunches, carpooling, and selling our extra stuff! And we purposefully planned our purchases, gave ourselves a little splurge money, and dangled a vacation (paid for in cash ahead of time) as a carrot after we paid off the debt. We still live simply and carefully, and I’ve learned to LOVE the challenge because the rewards and piece of mind are worth it.
I thought this might be up your alley. :)
That’s interesting about you and Eric having different spending styles!
I love this post. A lot of the points I already follow because of my current situations but there are some that I need to strictly follow like “don’t go shopping if you don’t want to spend money”.
Thank you so much for this post!
Unfortunately we do have student loan debt, but we still live on a small budget, mainly because we’re paying as much as possible to get rid of that debt. We do have credit cards for the rewards and I pay them off multiple times a month if needed. The rewards are so awesome!
For us, we don’t have cable but use netflix/hulu, we use Sam’s Club for buying in bulk and I use clip coupons and shop at publix for their b1g1f deals, I don’t spend more than $50 a week on groceries and the majority of that is produce.
We try not to eat out and if we do, I aim for cheaper meals.
So nothing new to you, but it’s what we do. I love pearbudget and I’ve done mint too. I am a budgeting geek.
Budget geeks, unite!
Great advice! Money is tight for me and my man right now, so we will definitely be utilizing these tips!
Not going into Target is a big one for me. It’s amazing how many times I’ve walked in there for one simple thing and come out with a bag full of goodies I don’t REALLY need.
Such a great post, Ashley! I think my favorite advice is allowing yourself to indulge in the things you really love, instead of constantly depriving yourself of things you love. For us it’s high quality, fresh food (we both love to cook) and good wine, and good coffee and tea :-)
As for things I do around the house to save money, I reuse lots of stuff like ziploc bags and other plastic items. I try to use as little plastic as possible, but if I forget my reusable grocery bags then I’ll reuse the plastic ones for taking lunch to work, scooping the litter box, etc. And Seattle recycles plastic bags anyway, which I love.
I also buy hand soap and dishwashing soap in bulk, then dilute it with water. It goes much further that way.
I use vinegar and baking soda for EVERYTHING. It works so well and it’s dirt cheap!
Neither of us own a car so we use public transportation to get around.
We don’t have cable or even an actual TV. We just watch stuff on Netflix and Hulu. We use the library as much as possible for books.
I’m sure there are many other things I do, but those are a few off the top of my head!
Great tips for saving money. This for me is a big problem as I love to go shopping and spend money.
I could not agree MORE on the car thing. Used car buyers for life!
My husband and I do lots of the same things. Envelopes didn’t work for us either – just having cash is hard. When we do have it, it’s hard for us to remember how we spent it. We tried Mint and Excel, and they worked to an extent, but what has worked best for us is YNAB (You Need a Budget). Yes, it costs money but it is so much easier to use and it takes us less time to reconcile accounts and do our budget each week.