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The first step in budgeting is to look at incoming and outgoing expenses.
A close look might reveal some unwanted expenses you might be making each month. So today we are going to look at how to stop spending money on things you can do without.
Listed below are free tools and resources to help you gain financial freedom.
Instead of cutting down, we are going to negotiate and find the best alternatives.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read disclosure.
Stop Spending Money
Quit Paying Full Price
Most of us end up paying the full price when we shop.
If we need something, we shop for it right away. While couponing can help reduce the price of items, it can sometimes be time-consuming – finding coupons, clipping them and not to mention remembering to use it!
Here is a free desktop app that takes the stress out of this. Once you download the Honey extension, it will automatically apply the latest and active coupon at checkout, when you shop online.
I was surprised when I found out about this app. I just installed it on my laptop and each time I shopped, it added coupon codes without me doing a thing. Try the Honey app here and see how much you save each month.
Family Organizer
Think about this.
If there were a free phone app that helps you add grocery shopping lists, find recipes to meal plan, set reminders for meetings or school events and also helps you share this info with the rest of your family?
One word – Intelligence!
This is exactly what the Cozi app does.
Once you sign up with the Cozi phone app, you can add other members of your family to the app. Now, the next time there is an event at school or the kids need to add an item to your shopping list, they can do it through their Cozi app and you will see it at your end.
Having a shopping list keeps you on track when you shop and avoids unnecessary spending.
Use Free Gift Cards
Gift cards are great to give away for birthdays or anniversaries.
Did you know there are fun ways to get free gift cards?
Let’s take the Shopkick app for example.
Open this free phone app when you go shopping. Enter the name of the store you are at, and the app will tell you which product to scan to earn points called kicks. Once you accumulate enough points you can redeem it for your favourite gift cards.
You don’t need to buy the items you scan:)
Additional kicks can be earned for walking into some stores. Just make sure you have your Bluetooth and the app opened when you enter the store, so it picks up the signal to receive your points.
Get Paid to Shop
Swagbucks is one of our favourites, as you can make around $200 a month completing little tasks. This can range from;
- Daily surveys worth up to $35
- Get paid to search the internet
- Earn rewards watching short videos
- Play games
- Cashback when you shop with your favourite retailers through Swagbucks
Because Swagbucks allows you to get paid in more than one way, it’s one of the best extra income sites – great for those who want to make cash from home in their spare time.
Yes, you heard me right – cash!
You earn money in the form of PayPal cash for completing these tasks. Sign up for free with Swagbucks here and get a $5 bonus.
Don’t throw Away Receipts
With ReceiptPal you can turn your everyday shopping receipts into gift cards or cash prizes.
So next time you go shop at Walmart or Costco don’t just throw out your receipts.
What receipts can you use?
Receipts can be from any retailer store like convenience stores, restaurants, grocery stores, clothing stores, electronics stores, gas stations, or online retailers, but must be in US dollars.
Instead, scan them into your phone’s Receipt Pal app and earn great rewards for them!
Alternative to Takeaways
While eating out can be an option for one of those lazy days, making it a habit can leave you draining your wallet. If you are lost for recipe ideas or don’t have the time to cook, try the $5 meal plan.
For just $5 a month you will receive weekly recipes along with shopping lists to help you stay organised. This way, you are not only eating healthy home-cooked meals, but the ingredients used are fresh and cheap so it won’t blow your budget.
Here’s a free 14 day trial to the $5 meal plan to see if it is a good fit for your family.
Forget Loyalty cards – Try this instead!
With over 1 million members, the Drop app is the fastest growing app in the market. It allows users to connect their credit/debit cards with the app and gives away rewards each time you use the linked card.
There’s no need to carry a bunch of loyalty cards in your wallet. Each time you use your card linked to the Drop app you earn points that are accumulated to redeem for free gift cards.
Ditch Paper Towels
You might have heard this many times, but limiting the use of disposables can save you money when you shop. Whether its kitchen rolls or disposable napkins, you can swap them for reusable products.
Forget Precuts
Have you ever realised the price difference between buying the whole veg or meat as compared to a precut pack?
Sometimes it can be twice as much, which is shocking!
While it is handy and easy to use precuts, you might forget to realise spending extra money just for it to be cut.
Cut Unnecessary Memberships
Save money cutting out unnecessary subscriptions or find a better rate on cable and internet bills.
Trim app works in automation to find you the best deal by negotiating for the better price on your subscriptions. This free app connects with your bank account to find and eliminate unwanted outgoings. Trim works with over 15,000 financial institutions in the US and has been featured on Fortune, Mashable and The New York Times.
Make use of leftovers
One of my all-time favourites is the Supercook website. If you ever have leftover ingredients in the fridge and are lost of ideas to cook, Supercook will help you.
Its a recipe finder that avoids food wastage by giving you recipes with only the ingredients you have.
So say you have eggs, chicken and asparagus, just enter these into their recipe finder and a list of recipes will show up. How awesome is that!
Never waste food again!
