Little Ways to Save Money
So, anyone that knows me knows the fact that I am a complete and utter cheapskate and I do whatever is in my power to try and save money wherever I go, and I've actually gotten pretty good at saving too! Therefore, I would like to share with you my super simple tips on how to save money here and there and really watch it build up!
Save money when buying online
♥ Always search for discounts before you buy
I live by this rule. Whenever I buy anything online (which could be clothes, shoes, holidays, hotels, anything!), always do an online search first with the brand or site name, followed by discount code. There are so many online sites with codes, but I must tell you, not all of the codes always work. However, a lot of the time I have found codes that have worked a treat and saved me money at the checkout. It only takes a couple of minutes to do a search and with little effort you could make those extra savings.
♥ Look for deal sites
When talking about deal sites, I mean those such as Groupon or Wowcher. I personally love these sites as you can save money on so many different kinds of things, from shopping for general items, eating or drinking out, getting your haircut, to even bigger things such as hotels and holidays.
I also love them, as whenever I'm stuck on where to go or what to do in an area, I generally have a little snoop around one of these sites as they tend to give me some good ideas and help save money in the process.
♥ Get Cash back
There are also a few ways to get cash back when you're shopping online and sometimes even on the high street. Most of these sites are free to sign up and they work by sending you to your desired shopping site through a link on their website. You then instantly receive a notification telling you that they have recognised you used their site, and just like that, you get cash back when you make a purchase. A couple I like to use are Quidco or Top Cashback.
Note - Obviously not every single company is registered on these sites, but there is definitely a huge selection. When using these sites you can't always guarantee that you'll get a payout and don't think of the money as yours until its actually in your account, so you should withdraw it from the sites account as soon as it becomes available.
Save money when you're out and about
♥ Money saving Apps
You can save quite a bit when you're out and about by downloading some money saving apps. These are so simple and can can save you money on things like food, drink and in some shops. A couple I like to use include Voucher Codes and Voucher Cloud. You can also get Groupon and Wowcher as apps, making deals even more accessible.
Another money saving app that is brilliant and saves me so much money is the Meerkat app, which offers 241 on meals and movies. However this amazing perk does cost a bit of money as you must first make a purchase on the price comparison site https://www.comparethemarket.com/. This site compares insurance quotes, and rewards you for using their site with incredible deals on a great app that you can use when you're going out to eat or to the cinema.
♥ Sign up to store point cards
Some shops like to keep you loyal as a customer, so offer up point cards. These cards work by building points up on your card whenever you make a purchase in an eligible shop. It's that simple and you'll be surprised at how quickly you build up points. Dependant on the shop, these points can then either be turned into vouchers or used to pay for a purchase.
A few of the ones I use every month include the Boots Advantage Card, Superdrug Health & Beauty Card, Tesco Club Card and Nectar Card. The added bonuses of the Tesco and Nectar cards is that points can be swapped for different things such as cinema tickets, meals out and adventure days.
Get clever with your banking
♥ Open a savings account and try to contribute to it every month
This one may sound a bit obvious, but you'd be surprised with the amount of people that don't have a savings account, because they think they won't be able to contribute to it so don't see the point. But it really is a good idea to open up a savings account, even if you only contribute £20 a month to it, that's only £5 a week, and before you know it, it's 6 months down the line and you already have £120 to treat yourself to what you like or just save for a rainy day. Once you get into this habit and see the money building, trust me, it's addictive and you'll just want to carry on saving!
Something to look out for when opening up a savings account is one with a high interest rate. These can go from the lower end with your normal current account savings, to a much higher rate with cash ISAs (but note, you can't have a cash ISA if you already have a Help to Buy ISA). Best thing to do is a bit of research and find which would work best for you.
♥ Work out how much spending money you have
When you get paid, you should sit down and work out exactly how much you get and how much will be going out. You should work out how much you will need to spend on bills (this includes any house bills/rent/mortgage, car expenses, phone bill, gym membership,savings and any other bills you may have coming out). Once you have worked this out, deduct it from your income, then with what you have left you can work out how much you have for spending money. This includes things such as shopping (groceries/clothes/toiletries etc), petrol, going out. Anything really that doesn't come under essential bills. I find that by separating my income in two, it means I don't think of that bill money as mine, but with the spending money, I could spend it on whatever I like.
I know this step can be difficult if you don't have a set income or shifts, but you can still work out an average (however, try and underestimate what you'll have coming in so you're not left short). I'm just speaking from experience on this one, as I used to work irregular shifts at a pub and still managed to work out my spending money so its definitely possible!
♥ Look into getting a smart bank account
Smart bank accounts are those that tend to be branchless and are run through an app or online. So I must actually admit, this one took me a while to come round to. I had a slight trust issue with the fact that, for one, its a fairly new concept, and two, the fact I've been with the same well known bank for years. However I took the leap of faith and wow, I'm never looking back!
These smart banks are incredible and really help you watch your spending. They have the ability of sending you notifications every time you use your card to make a purchase, and if you make more than one purchase in a day, it will then send you a total of what you've spent so far that day. These smart banks can also automatically categorise what you're spending your money on.
Personally, I still keep my old and trusty bank account for my bills to come out of. However, when it comes to spending, I like to use a smart account, as it really does help me keep track of my spending.
My favourite has to be Monzo. I was lame and had a few trust issues when it came to putting my money into a branchless lesser known bank, so read through the fine details and was happy with what I saw. But I would definitley always recommend reading these details so you can trust where your money is going.
I hope these few tips can help you saving a little here and there, and if you have any more tips then feel free to pass these onto me as I will always love to find new ways to save money!
All the love and happy saving! x
