18 Ways to Save More Money and Pay off Debt Faster

Budgeting is all about making your money work for you, your goals, and the life that you want to live. Most of us want to save more and put more toward paying off our debt. Below are 18 ideas to help you cut out expenses and save money so that you can reach your goals!

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1. Get Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ Bundle

In the online budgeting space, I’ve seen many lists recommend that you get rid of cable in order to cut back on expenses. Let’s be honest, most of us don’t have cable anymore. I know that for me, I cut out cable years ago and stick to streaming services. Netflix, and Hulu can cost around $12-15/month just for one service when you purchase them on their own. Now you can get a bundle of Hulu, Disney+ & ESPN+ for $13/month here. This bundle gives you access to thousands of shows and movies for WAY less than most cable packages.

BONUS: if you have T-mobile, you get Netflix for FREE!

2. Wait 24 Hours Before Making an Online Purchase

We are all well aware of the temptations of the “Buy Now” button on Amazon. It’s just so easy to open the app on your phone and know that what you want/need will arrive within 24-48 hours. (I recently moved to a larger city that has SAME DAY shipping on Amazon items…let’s just say my Amazon budget grew that day). Although, because of how convenient and fast the shipping is, I found myself buying impulse purchases that I wouldn’t end up using. I’m also notoriously awful at returning items, so if it makes it to my front door, chances are it’s not going back.

Once I made a rule that I would sleep on my purchases BEFORE buying them, I quickly realized that I would often forget that I even wanted that item by the next morning, or I would decide I really didn’t need it.

Changing my Amazon purchase habits really increased the amount of money I had left to budget for other goals (like paying off debt, or saving for that bigger Amazon purchase I’ve been budgeting for). The truth is, there’s a lot of emotion connected to shopping for many of us, and sometimes it’s just the thrill of getting a new item, not the item itself, that makes us want it in that moment.

Take the night to sleep on it. If you still want it in the morning and you have the money to move around for that purchase in your budget, then go for it! I promise that extra 24 hours will make a huge difference in your savings goals.

3. Stick to Your Grocery List While Shopping

Those candy bars and travel sized products by the check-out are definitely a weakness of mine. Many of us are guilty of getting to the grocery store and justifying buying WAY more than is on our list.

Avoid going off of your list by taking pictures of your fridge, freezer and pantry before making your grocery list. This ensures that you know what you still have, what you’re out of, and what you want to use up in the next week or so.

THEN when you get to the grocery store, you know that you have all the items you want/need for the next week on that list, so you’re less tempted to stray away from it.

Bonus tip: If you’re like me and HATE grocery shopping with a passion, consider getting an Instacart account. You avoid impulse purchases when someone else is shopping for you! The membership is $99/year, but I’ve found the time and money I’ve saved not going to the grocery store myself makes up for the annual fee.

4. Download Store Apps for Coupons-On-The-Go

CVS, Walgreens, Target, and Kroger all have amazing store apps that bring coupons right to your phone for ease of use at check-out. I have envied Couponers for years, but I just can’t be bothered to cut paper coupons. These apps have made it so easy for me to take advantage of free money and cash back with the ease of scanning ONE barcode on my phone. There’s no worrying about expiration dates or bringing paper coupons with you. For an extra few minutes of your time, you can save money on the things you were already planning to buy!

5. Find the Budgeting Method that Works for YOU

Some people love paying with cash, some hate it. Some need tons of structure in their budget, and some need more flexibility. Therefore, it’s super important for you to find the budgeting method that works for YOU. I wanted so badly to be an all cash spender, but my reality is that I shop mainly online and cash just isn’t convenient for me. I found out that using a budgeting software and sticking to debit/credit cards worked best for me and my lifestyle.

Once I started looking around, I found YNAB and my budgeting game changed forever. YNAB just makes sense to me, and it provides me with the flexibility that I need in a budget along with the ease of inputting my transactions on my phone. There’s definitely a learning curve to the program, but they provide tons of free workshops and YouTube tutorials that break it down step-by-step.

If you are someone who prefers pen and paper, I absolutely love The Budget Mom’s resources. Her Live Rich Planner and Budget by Paycheck Method are fantastic. I still use many of the tools that she provides, including her printables for tracking debt-payoff and savings goals!

Once you find the budgeting method that works for you, you’ll want to stick with it. This is CRUCIAL for reaching your goals and paying off debt.

Related: The Beginner’s Guide to YNAB

6. Invite Friends Over, Instead of Going Out

Right now as I’m writing this, we’re currently under a Stay at Home order, so this is less relevant to life now, but I think that the idea is still important for once the world starts to open back up again. Going out to bars and restaurants with friends can be SO expensive.

I’m a social drinker, so when I go out with people I usually want to order a drink or two, but just that can put me back $20-40 a night. What I’ve found is that many people have just as much fun, if not more, staying in for the night. Make your own drinks, play board games or watch something on Netflix.

It’s the people that make the experience memorable, not the bar. Swapping a night out for a get together with friends at home can save you tons of money in the long run.

7. Share a Mobile Plan with Friends or Family

Having 4+ people on a phone plan can SIGNIFICANTLY reduce the cost of your monthly plan. If you are off your family plan, consider asking a few friends to join a plan with you. Choose people that you trust to pay their part every month, and this can save you up to $50+ a month just by bundling with other people. You’ll get the same great plan, just way less expensive. Everyone benefits from joining a plan together!

Related: 5 Quick Ways to Save Money TODAY

8. Learn to Cook a Few of Your Favorite, Quick and Easy Meals

I’m no Bobby Flay. In fact, I HATE following recipes. If I can’t throw something together in less than 15 minutes, then chances are I’m not going to bother cooking and will end up ordering Door Dash again. Once I found 3-4 meals that are quick and easy for me to cook, that I truly LOVE eating, I started getting food delivery way less. Overnight oats and anything rice based are my go-to’s since I can prep most of it ahead of time. Plus, leftovers are great to bring to lunch the next day, so I’m less tempted to get takeout for lunch at work during a hectic day.

If you’re not a fan of cooking and find yourself getting take out a lot due to this, I highly recommend searching for some quick and easy meals that you’ll look forward to eating and DON’T require much energy or brain power to make.

9. Invest in an Air Fryer, InstaPot, or Crock Pot

While spending money on something may sound like the OPPOSITE of saving, investing in a cooking appliance such as an air fryer, Instapot, or slow cooker can be a game changer. This relates back to #8, if you have the ability to quickly and easily cook yummy food, you’ll be less tempted to eat out.

These 3 appliances are great for making quick meals or meal prepping. I don’t have an air fryer or Instapot myself, but I have people in my life that SWEAR by them. A one time investment into a small appliance can end up saving you hundreds in takeout/delivery costs.

Here is a great, budget friendly option for an air fryer .

Pro tip: If you use a crock pot, spend an extra couple bucks to buy these liners for easy clean up. They will cut WAY back on clean up time. I found myself using my crock pot SO much more knowing I don’t have the hassle of clean up at the end.

Related: Amazon Products That Actually Save You Money

10. Reduce Your Budgeting Categories Incrementally

This is one of the biggest mistakes that new budgeters tend to make. We get so excited to start saving and paying off debt, that we dive in to every way to cut back. While budgeting can be exhilarating at first, and it’s awesome that you want to reach yours goals, it’s important to make sustainable changes.

A no-spend week or a challenge to not eat out for a month is a great way to kick start your budgeting journey, but that’s not sustainable for the long term. Start by trying to reduce your budget categories in small increments.

If you are spending $1,000/month on groceries, it’s not a realistic goal to budget only $500. Chances are you will just go over your budget and get really frustrated. Maybe your long term goal IS to only spend $500/month on groceries. In that case, start by making your first monthly goal to spend $900-950 on groceries. As you learn more about your spending and budgeting habits, you can start changing your goals accordingly and keep working toward your goal of $500/month.

Remember: You’re in this for the long haul. Set your future self up for success by making budgeting attainable and fun. It’s not beneficial to budget hardcore for 1 month and then give up from the stress the next month. Smalls steps are the way to go!

11. Get a Library Card

Do you know how many amazing resources public libraries have?? Many public libraries offer so much more than just books. The ones in my area offer free audio books, movie rentals, workshops, yummy coffee shops, and tons of free events throughout the year that you can attend. Libraries are truly under-appreciated. If you don’t already have one, I STRONGLY recommend getting a library card.

Bonus: if you have kids, then the library is an even MORE amazing and free resource for you! Many provide awesome free vents, summer reading programs that partner with local businesses, and so much more for kids.

12. Join Local Facebook Groups for Free Events, Items and Sales

Often neighborhoods or cities will have all sorts of facebooks groups that can provide you with a ton of free resources. There are facebook groups in my area that people can post items they are looking to get rid of (for free) or items they want to trade for. In this day and age we usually don’t know a lot of our neighbors, but pages like these can help us find resources and feel more connected to our community. Plus, if you are ever looking for a great deal, or a free event to go to, chances are someone on that page has answers for you!

13. Start an Herb Garden

My partner and I live in an apartment, so there is no room to make an actual garden, but even in an apartment space you can build a simple herb garden on your counter! Herbs can be so expensive and really add up. Once you follow a couple of YouTube videos, you can keep up your own little herb garden to have all of your favorite herbs whenever you want! Herbs are such a simple way to add TONS of flavor to food. So when you’re looking to make super yummy dishes with minimal effort, herbs are your BFF.

14. Have Iced Coffee/Tea on Hand

I made a promise to my readers that I wasn’t going to tell you to stop drinking iced coffee or eating avocado toast, and I’m sticking to that! I truly believe that you can and should budget for Starbucks runs if they are important to you.

With that being said, I found out that my daily Starbucks runs were more about getting an easy burst of caffeine, rather than really enjoying my drink. Once I started keeping cold brew and iced tea in the fridge, I found myself making WAY less trips to Starbucks.

That doesn’t mean I deprive myself, or that I NEVER go to Starbucks, but when I do I TRULY enjoy it. I go because I really want a Pink Drink in that moment, not because I’m exhausted and caffeine deprived.

15. Download Ibotta, Fetch Rewards, and Honey

If you’re going to spend money, you might as well get the best deal for what you are buying! Ibotta and Fetch Rewards are both great cash back options for purchases. You just scan in your receipt and it calculates your points. These points can be redeemed for gift cards and other purchases! And it barely requires any effort, just scan and BAM!

If you use this link to download Fetch Rewards, you’ll get $2 just for scanning your first receipt!

Honey on the other hand is a browser extension that searches the web for coupon codes and tries them all out to get you the best deal. It automatically applies the best option for you at check out!

I love the idea of Retail Me Not, but 99% of the time the coupon codes never work. Honey takes the guess work out. I have saved tons of money on purchases that I already planned on making that I didn’t know had coupons available!

16. Prep Emergency Freezer Meals Ahead of Time

You know that feeling after a long day at work where you are just DONE. You have nothing left to give the day and you certainly don’t have the energy to go home and cook a 5 course meal. You’re exhausted, hungry, and ready to just chill. This is usually when we turn to takeout or delivery. If one of your goals is to eat out less, these can be the times you are most tempted to go over budget in the “eating out” category.

I highly recommend always having an emergency freezer meal on hand for these moments. It doesn’t have to be the most frugal meal, it just needs to be easy and yummy and less expensive than that takeout or delivery. YNAB introduced me to this idea and it’s stopped me from eating out due to convenience more than once.

This meal is different for everyone. It could be a yummy frozen pizza, stuffed shells, your favorite soup, or in my case…crab legs. I LOVE crab legs. They aren’t cheap, but after delivery costs, throwing crab legs on the stove is much cheaper than getting a $30 delivery. Most importantly, I WANT to eat crab legs. I don’t feel deprived by turning to that emergency meal.

Brainstorm some ideas and keep a couple of these meals on hand. Then you can save your “eating out” budget for when you REALLY want to eat out.

17. Post Visuals of Your Financial Goals Around the House

Sometimes looking at how far you have to go makes you forgot about how far you’ve come. On top of that, it can be hard to remember your goals and your WHY for budgeting when life starts to get hectic. Post visuals around the house to remind you of your goals and to visualize your progress can help keep you motivated to stick to budgeting.

It’s a great reminder of WHY you are doing this in the first place and can help when you’re just feeling overwhelmed or unmotivated with budgeting.

I’m a visual person. Therefore, using free visual debt and savings trackers really help to keep me motivated. They help when I’m feeling like I’m not making progress by giving a visual representation of how far I’ve come, which can help get me out of a budgeting funk.

You can download my free printables here!

18. Have FUN with Your Budget

Break up the monotony of budgeting by finding ways to make it fun! Savings challenges are a great way to make saving fun. Right now, my partner and I are doing the 52 Week Savings Challenge. We made it more interesting by putting the numbers 1-52 on a piece of paper and pulling a number out of the jar every week. I actually look forward to Fridays when we get to pull out and see how much we are going to save that week!

Finding Budget Buddies is another great way to make budgeting fun and keep you inspired. Get a friend hooked on budgeting, or connect with others online who have similar goals as yours. This is a great way to connect, get inspiration, and also to find support for some of the challenges that can come with budgeting.

Budgeting is a lifelong journey, so you want to make it enjoyable and look forward to coming back to it again and again. There will of course be ups and downs in your budgeting journey, but you’ve got this.

Comment below and let me know what some of your money saving tips and tricks are!