r/SavingMoney

So like the title says my spouse (28F) only thinks about herself. We are supposed to be saving up money for her green card expenses which is going to be about $2500. She wanted to her feet and hands done and I thought she would at least pay for it, showed up to the nail salon and it was $145. She proceeded to just stand there till I took out my wallet to pay. I ended up telling her in the truck that it was very expensive and we are suppose to be saving up money. She proceeds to throw a fit that last week I charged her the $90 eyelashes she got done, her $87 she spent at skims and I didn’t even charge her the $40 at bath and body she spent or the $150 she sent to her mom in her native country of Mexico.

She got mad today because I told her no when she asked if we could go watch the World Cup game with her friends at this local bar. How can I talk to her about saving? How do I know when just to realize we are very different and call it quits? It seems like she expects her money to be hers and the money I make for us.

We have a joint account but I had to stop using it because she would use whatever I deposited on her purchases she would make. I feel very frustrated and when I was single I never had a problem saving or anything.

So currently I'm in college and I want to save some money(not like an investment) for having a trip or buying something that my parents think is a waste of money. But the problem is I can't save like I just spend that money I have always. Currently I have some money as cash and I want to save it and make saving a habit. Can anyone recommend what are the options I have.

I just paid off about 66k in debt.
I have 0 savings. 0 retirement but I do have a great job that pays me 90k a year.

Without judgement, I’ve made a lot of stupid decisions and was extremely fortunate to have my debts paid by my partner.

I am able to save about $1800 a month. How should I break this 1800 up and what would you do with it to maximize savings and get myself on the right track?

2 years ago my junior year of HS Oct.2024 i was involved in a terrible hit-and-run bike accident in NY which forced me to stop playing Basketball and go to physical therapy for over an year. Long story short driver never found filed a lawsuit already had a lawyer at the time ended up sueing and won. I just graduated high school this past June and also just turned 18 this past may which now that im of age i was able to get my lawsuit check which settled for $25k 7-8k was my attorney percentage and the rest is mine which im left with $17.2k. Now I’ve waited about a month to deposit my check which i did on Wednesday because I didn’t wanna be impulsive with my spending I wanted to sit and think before I do because I don’t know when I’ll ever receive another check like this anytime soon. I’m going to school trade school specifically and only have to take out a $13k loan that i myself have to pay i was qualified for financial aid so that did help a lot with that being said i have a couple of questions

• I have 4 accounts
• TD bank checking & savings
• Chase bank regular checking which is a car maintenance fund i save and put money away for a car or my car I’m considering fixing
• Just created a fidelity brokerage account $0 in there as of right now
• I also got approved day of my birthday for capital one platinum CC $300 limit

• Right off the bat how much do i keep for myself ? Checkings & savings
• How do i set myself up for the future ?
• Do i spread this across different accounts?
• What do i do with this money ?
• how do I make my money earn money ?

For the longest time I kept all my savings in a regular savings account at one of the major banks. We're talking 0.01% APY. I knew it was bad but switching felt like a hassle so I kept putting it off.

A few months ago I finally moved everything to a highyield savings account and the difference is honestly kind of embarrassing. I went from earning basically nothing to earning what used to take me an entire year in about a month, just from interest alone.

The setup took maybe 20 minutes online. Transfers between accounts are straightforward and usually clear in a day or two. I have no idea why I waited so long.

My question for this community is whether anyone else made this switch later than they should have and what finally pushed you to do it. Also curious if people are sticking with one HYSA or spreading money across a few different ones for whatever reason.

For anyone still sitting on cash in a traditional savings account, just look up current HYSA rates and do the math on what you're leaving on the table every month. It added up to way more than I expected once I actually ran the numbers, and that was enough to get me moving.

Would love to hear what accounts people here are using and if there are things to watch out for.

Okay. I had 10k saved then life happened. I got preg, went through an abusive relationship, had to get my own apartment and start from zero.

I really want to get my savings back at 10k. My biggest weakness is DoorDash omg it’s convenient and I love it but I spend way too much on there.

I’m also a business owner so I can’t really set aside a certain amount consistently. My income fluctuates.

Right now I’m at 6k. I plan on hitting my goal around February.
Any tips? I know I can do this. I would love to hear any tips.

How to make money

I’m 21F and have just about £2,000 in savings. Is that actually okay, or am I really behind?
I work full-time in a school and also have two side jobs because I don’t really have a financial safety net.
Unlike a lot of people I know, I won’t have family to fall back on if things go wrong. There won’t be an inheritance when my parents pass, and my mum actually relies on me financially, so I’m helping support her as well as trying to build my own future.
I sometimes see people my age with £10k-£20k saved and it makes me feel like I’m failing, even though I’m working as much as I can.
For people who were in a similar situation, was £2k at 21 okay? How did you eventually get ahead? I’d appreciate some honest perspectives.

I came here recently and got my greencard last August. It took me a bit to get my first full time job, I started working in march. In the time between August and March I did some marketing consulting for local businesses and it went pretty decent.

Now in April, we already closed on our house. My wife and I make around $8.5k monthly after taxes and I get around $1k from retainer business through the marketing agency. I feel like we never really spent much money before, but now since April our monthly expenses sit between 6-8k. This includes mortgage, student debt of $1k and all other expenses like gas, groceries, dog daycare etc. I track every expense at the moment.

It’s beginning to stress me out because I feel like I’m not moving forward with the $ in my bank account. Besides waiting for salary increases, do you have any ideas on what I could do to make some money?

I’m just going to cut to the point, I grew up with parents who were absolutely horrendous with money and taught me nothing good about it what so ever. I also dropped out of school at 14 and really struggle with math. Luckily I’m now free from that. I’m 19 now, left home at 15 and have been able to save over the past year and have £4500 saved.

I’ve looked online about saving accounts, how to be “smart” with money etc and it’s extremely confusing and overwhelming for me, hence why I’m coming here since I’m embarrassed to need stuff explaining from the people around me.

So basically, I’m with Lloyds and don’t know what savings account to get etc, do I need a credit card and stuff like that, and was hoping if someone could break it down in an easy way for me?

instead of spending here is what I did

1). Sold 1 items on FB marketplace and earned $10 in the process.

2). Last week I purchased 2 containers of organic strawberries for $7. I froze them for our (DH and I) daily smoothies and used the tops to make strawberry syrup.

3). Cleaned and organized the large freezer and fridge freezer. Found frozen jalapeño peppers from our garden from last year and will be making poppers with them. With the frozen cayenne peppers I plan to dehydrate and make a powder form from them

4). Went for a morning walk on a trail near us. Not a lot of people on the trail. Saw Paw Paw fruits slowly forming and making a note on the calendar to come back in August when they have fully formed.

5. We have a galvanized steel pool from Tractor Supply that was used yesterday. Thought we lost our floats but DH looked and found 2 of them.

6). Broke out the Wii to play golf with DH

7). Participating in our libraries reading challenge. Logged in past days that I have read and can pick up small prize next week. For each day a book is read you earn tickets to put in a drawing for prizes.

Too many people spend their time chasing $20 savings while overlooking decisions that could save them thousands. That's not to say the small stuff doesn't matter. It does, but you'll get much better results by focusing on the biggest expenses first.

That's why I decided to put together this list. Instead of ranking tips by how easy they are, I ranked them by how much money they can potentially save you in a year.

Note: Some of these ideas won't apply to everyone, and the exact savings will depend on your situation. The figures are ballpark estimates, not guarantees.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
1	Downsize to a less expensive home or lower your housing costs	$3,000–$15,000+
2	Buy a reliable used car instead of a new one	$3,000–$10,000
3	Pay off high-interest credit card debt	$1,500–$8,000+
4	Own one less car if your household can manage it	$2,000–$8,000
5	Cook at home instead of eating out	$1,500–$5,000
6	Take fewer or less expensive vacations	$1,000–$5,000
7	Shop around for cheaper insurance every year	$500–$3,000
8	Meal plan and stick to a grocery list	$500–$2,500
9	Cancel subscriptions and memberships you rarely use	$300–$2,000
10	Lower your utility bills by reducing heating, cooling, and water use	$300–$2,000

I intentionally put housing at #1 because housing is the largest expense for most households. Saving even 10% there often beats dozens of small frugal habits combined.

Cars deserve multiple spots. Vehicle depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, and maintenance can easily consume thousands each year.

Credit card interest belongs near the top because it's one of the few expenses that gives you nothing in return.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
11	Switch to a cheaper cell phone plan	$300–$1,500
12	Lower your internet bill by negotiating or switching providers	$200–$1,200
13	Buy generic brands instead of name brands	$300–$1,200
14	Stop buying things just because they're on sale	$300–$2,000
15	Bundle errands to save gas	$200–$1,000
16	Buy quality items that last instead of replacing cheap ones	$200–$1,500
17	Refinance or shop around for a lower auto loan	$300–$2,000
18	Reduce food waste by eating leftovers and using what you already have	$300–$1,500
19	Compare prices before making major purchases	$200–$2,000
20	Pause non-essential spending for one month each year	$500–$2,000

#14 is a big one because people often confuse saving 50% with spending 50%. If you didn't need it in the first place, you didn't save anything.

#16 buy things that last. A good pair of boots, cookware, or tools can be cheaper over time than replacing cheap versions every year.

18 is underrated IMO. The average household throws away hundreds of dollars worth of food every year.

I'm not a fan of #20 but it works well because it often reveals dozens of recurring habits people didn't even realize they had.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
21	Wait 24–48 hours before making non-essential purchases	$200–$2,000
22	Use cashback credit cards responsibly	$100–$1,000
23	Shop with a grocery list and stick to it	$200–$800
24	Buy secondhand furniture, tools, and sporting equipment	$200–$2,000
25	Make coffee at home instead of buying it every day	$200–$1,500
26	Cancel automatic renewals you no longer need	$100–$800
27	Pack your lunch for work	$500–$2,000
28	Keep your tires properly inflated to improve fuel economy	$100–$400
29	Use the library instead of buying books and magazines	$100–$500
30	Review your bank and credit card fees every year	$50–$500

A couple of notes:

21 is one of the simplest ways to cut impulse spending. Waiting even one day often makes you realize you didn't really want the item.

22 only belongs this high if the balance is paid in full every month. Otherwise, interest charges wipe out any rewards.

24 can save a decent amount, especially on items that lose value quickly but still have years of life left.

27 is still one of the biggest food-related savings for people who work outside the home. For someone spending $12–15 on lunch five days a week, the savings add up fast.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
31	Use coupons only for things you were already going to buy	$100–$500
32	Freeze leftovers instead of throwing them away	$100–$600
33	Wash clothes in cold water whenever possible	$50–$300
34	Skip extended warranties on most purchases	$50–$500
35	Lower your thermostat in winter and raise it in summer	$100–$500
36	Buy seasonal produce instead of out-of-season fruits and vegetables	$100–$400
37	Share streaming subscriptions where allowed	$100–$300
38	Replace disposable products with reusable alternatives	$50–$300
39	Borrow or rent tools you'll only use once	$50–$500
40	Set a monthly spending limit for entertainment	$100–$1,000

These won't save as much as housing or transportation changes, but they can still make a noticeable difference over the course of a year. Ie #39 can save hundreds if you're the type who buys tools or equipment for one project and never uses them again.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
41	Buy store-brand cleaning and household products	$50–$300
42	Plan your errands to avoid unnecessary trips	$50–$300
43	Repair items before replacing them	$100–$1,000
44	Unsubscribe from retailer emails that tempt you to shop	$50–$500
45	Drink more tap water instead of bottled drinks	$100–$500
46	Avoid grocery shopping when you're hungry	$50–$300
47	Compare unit prices instead of package prices	$50–$300
48	Sell items you no longer use and use the money to offset future purchases	$100–$1,000
49	Avoid ATM fees by using in-network machines	$20–$200
50	Keep appliances clean and well-maintained to extend their lifespan	$50–$500

These are solid money-saving habits, but they generally have a smaller financial impact than the first 40.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
51	Avoid paying for overnight or expedited shipping	$20–$200
52	Buy holiday decorations after the season ends	$50–$300
53	Use a programmable or smart thermostat	$50–$300
54	Air-dry clothes when practical	$20–$200
55	Buy gift cards at a discount before shopping	$25–$300
56	Use loyalty programs at stores you already shop at	$25–$300
57	Keep up with routine car maintenance to avoid expensive repairs	$100–$1,000
58	Borrow books, movies, and games instead of buying them	$25–$200
59	Cut your own lawn or do simple yard work yourself	$100–$1,000
60	Buy refurbished electronics instead of new when it makes sense	$100–$800

A worthwhile habits, but for most households the savings are more modest but #57 might deserve to be a little higher because skipping oil changes or basic maintenance can lead to repair bills worth thousands.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
61	Use reusable water bottles instead of buying bottled water	$50–$300
62	Buy toiletries in bulk when they're on sale	$25–$200
63	Pack snacks for road trips and outings	$50–$300
64	Turn off lights when you leave a room	$10–$100
65	Keep your refrigerator and freezer full for better efficiency	$10–$100
66	Use rechargeable batteries instead of disposable ones	$20–$150
67	Buy used books whenever possible	$20–$200
68	Cancel free trials before they become paid subscriptions	$20–$300
69	Avoid convenience stores unless it's an emergency	$50–$300
70	Use cloth towels instead of paper towels for everyday cleaning	$20–$150

At this point, the savings are generally smaller, but these habits can still add up over time.

Ie. #64 is one of the most talked-about money-saving tips, but the actual savings with modern LED bulbs are much smaller than many people think.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
71	Make your own cleaning solutions with common household ingredients	$20–$150
72	Use a clothesline or drying rack when the weather allows	$20–$150
73	Bring your own reusable shopping bags where stores charge for bags	$10–$100
74	Keep your freezer organized so food doesn't get forgotten	$20–$150
75	Avoid buying single-serving snacks and drinks	$25–$200
76	Set up automatic savings so you're less likely to spend extra money	$50–$500*
77	Buy wrapping paper and gift supplies after the holidays	$20–$100
78	Use public Wi-Fi instead of mobile data when appropriate	$10–$100
79	Wait for major sales before buying non-urgent items	$50–$300
80	Grow a few herbs or vegetables at home	$20–$150

These are still worthwhile, but for most people they'll have a relatively small impact compared to the higher-ranked tips.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
81	Unplug electronics you rarely use	$5–$50
82	Reuse gift bags, boxes, and packaging	$10–$50
83	Print double-sided to save paper and ink	$10–$100
84	Use rags instead of disposable wipes for cleaning	$10–$100
85	Bring your own coffee or water bottle when traveling	$20–$150
86	Refill your soap dispensers instead of buying new ones	$10–$50
87	Use washable food storage containers instead of disposable bags	$10–$75
88	Turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth	$5–$50
89	Use natural light during the day whenever possible	$5–$50
90	Reuse shipping boxes and packing materials	$10–$50

These are the kinds of tips you'll often see near the top of generic "save money" lists, but in reality, the savings are fairly small.

Rank	Money-Saving Tip	Estimated Annual Savings
91	Reuse aluminum foil when it's still clean	$5–$25
92	Wash full loads of dishes and laundry instead of partial loads	$10–$50
93	Use both sides of scrap paper for notes	$5–$20
94	Reuse glass jars for storage	$5–$30
95	Turn off your computer instead of leaving it on overnight	$10–$50
96	Skip bottled water at restaurants	$10–$100
97	Borrow party decorations instead of buying them	$10–$100
98	Save and reuse rubber bands, twist ties, and gift ribbon	$5–$20
99	Cut open nearly empty toothpaste and lotion tubes	$5–$20
100	Skip the straw and disposable utensils when ordering takeout	$1–$10

Yes, these tips save money. But if you're spending hours worrying about #99 while ignoring #1–10, you're focusing on the wrong things.

So I finally sat down last weekend and went through three months of bank statements to list every recurring charge hitting my account. I knew I had a few subscriptions but had no idea how bad it had gotten.

Final count: 14 active subscriptions totaling around $187 a month. That's over $2,200 a year on stuff I barely use. A couple I had completely forgotten about. One was a free trial that converted to paid eight months ago and I never noticed.

I canceled seven of them immediately. A few others I downgraded to cheaper tiers. I kept the ones I actually use weekly or more.

What got me was how easy it is to let these pile up. Each one feels small on its own, five bucks here, twelve bucks there, but it adds up fast.

My question for this community is how do you stay on top of subscriptions long term? Do you do a regular audit, use a specific app, or just set calendar reminders? I tried an app once but it missed some charges, so I went back to manual checking.

Would love to hear what actually works for people here, because clearly my system of ignoring it for months at a time is not cutting it.

Hi everyone hope you are all good!

I’ve had a moneybox Lisa since 2019.

I’ve managed to accumulate an amount of £31k in there. Through government bonuses and interest.

However I’ve noticed my interest amount for the account has gone down to 2.8 or something,

Plum are offering 4% or more.

Is it worth transferring to see better interest returns.

I feel like it is. Nothing better than watching your money grow faster.

Or should I stay loyal to

Moneybox,

Any advice is much appreciated thank you!

Hi looking for a counter depth, higher cubic feet, silver fridge with best warranty and most economical.

Been looking online at Home Depot, but could go elsewhere

I've been tracking my spending for about 6 years now, and I actually started with a self-made spreadsheet. I used that spreadsheet for roughly 5 years and honestly, I wouldn't have had it any other way when I started.

So this isn't a "spreadsheets are bad" post. They worked extremely well for me.

My setup was pretty simple:

• Monthly fixed bills
• Variable/personal spending
• Income
• Net savings calculation

I wasn't doing anything crazy. I mainly wanted to know:

"How much am I spending in different areas, and how much am I actually saving each month?"

The reason I think spreadsheets worked for me is because I knew how to build something that matched the way I wanted to think about money.

But over time I started noticing some downsides.

The first is setup.

If you're comfortable with Excel or Google Sheets, building something for yourself can be great. But if you're new to budgeting, creating a spreadsheet from scratch can feel like work before you even begin budgeting.

The alternative is downloading someone else's spreadsheet, but I often found those to be:

• overly complicated
• designed around someone else's system
• difficult to learn

The bigger issue for me was consistency.

With a spreadsheet, I had to sit down at my computer and enter transactions later. That usually meant going through my bank statements or transaction history and trying to remember what I spent money on.

And if you're someone who only has short bursts of motivation to track spending, that timing can matter a lot.

Eventually I switched to using an app.

The biggest difference wasn't dashboards or analytics.

It was simply that my phone was always in my pocket.

Buy coffee → track it.

Fill up gas → track it.

Buy groceries → Already tracked before the clerk gave me my receipt.

For me, the habit became:

"Just get the expense in."

I can review reports, budgets, and trends later.

Curious what everyone else uses:

Spreadsheet, app, both, or something else?

And why does that approach work better for you?

I’ve had a past of very poor judgement when buying cars. Bought a Tesla back in 2021, put many many miles on it quickly, and the battery shit itself at 177k miles. It was $15k to fix it immediately and I thought it wasn’t worth it so I let the bank take it. I thought I was just unlucky, but apparently this is common with Teslas. I got another one (without knowing about the 200k mile thing) with much less mileage on it, and I don’t really drive far anymore. I still owe a good amount on it, and it’s at %15.67 APR for 7 years.

I never knew selling your car to get out of the loan was always an option. I can get rid of the car if I pay $7k. I was thinking of getting some POS off fb marketplace, but would I be in the shop often? And how much would gas be?

I could always trade-in next year, but that wouldn’t rid me of horrid rates of APR because my credit is absolutely horrible.

Sell the car and save up to pay off debt? Or use this shit loan to help my credit a little?

I recently finished reading a book about personal finance and investing, and it genuinely changed the way I think about money.

It isn't one of those "get rich quick" books. Instead, it talks about how to invest wisely, recover from debt, stop wasting money, build long-term wealth, and still enjoy your life instead of working nonstop.

One of my favorite ideas was that your income should have a purpose: part for investing, part for living, and part for emergencies. It also explains why some people earn a lot of money but still end up broke, while others with average incomes quietly build wealth over time.

I honestly think many people in this community would find it valuable.

If anyone is interested in reading it, just comment 'GUIDE' below and I'll send the link directly to your DMs so I don't violate any community link rules here. 🥰"

Alright so here's just a thought I'd like put out while I'm killing time at work today and wanted to start the conversation.

So I work a pretty straight forward white collar job as a compliance regulator (aka guy who goes around your jobsite with a clipboard and documents compliance issues). It's really easy, I'm not a jerk, I get along with everyone and I meet my monthly quota without issue. I don't even really need to wotk that hard since I have no chance of a promotion, just keep the client in compliance and I won't get fired. Most days I just hide somewhere and read reddit. I make roughly 6 figures but I live in an area where that's basically just making ends meet. I can afford rent, insurance and food for the month while putting a little bit towards savings.

I guess my statement is that I've effectively stopped contributing to the economy for the most part. Aside from rent which goes to my landlord, Wi-Fi, cell phone, insurance which goes towards those entities and whatever groceries I buy from grocery outlet or save mart. I've stopped all my subscriptions, I torrent everything now to entertain myself. I guess the only subscription I have is my VPN so I can torrent without fear of losing my wifi. I take public transit to work so I know my fare goes back to that program which I use every day. I don't go to restaurants anymore, I don't drink either. I buy a few indie games here or there on steam and I know that the majority of the profits are supporting those artists and then the rest of my entertainment goes to a few Patreons I support like podcasts which I can listen to for hours.

I still socialize too, I have movie nights over discord with friends. I just cast the movies I pirate straight from my hard drive, skirting the streaming black screen issue entirely.

Sometimes I go out and walk around with friends, we'll smoke some weed but I get it from my cousins who grow it so I'm not spending money there either.

While I'm technically still on the grid, I'm really not supporting the greater economy at large anymore. And I know that a lot of data points to the upper 10% basically holding up the economy, I just wonder who else lives like I do? Are there other ways you feel like you're living as the "Modern Frugality" if we can even call if that? This is basically just survival for me.