10 Eye-Rollingly Ridiculously Cheap Behaviors That Give Frugality a Bad Name

Have you ever witnessed cheap behavior that is just stupid and ridiculous?
What is the cheapest thing you’ve ever witnessed someone else do? There is a fine line between frugal and cheap and these people crossed the line very definitively.

Cheap Behaviors

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I’ve seen my fair share, but at this point, stealing condiments from restaurants is pretty cheap. After someone asked the internet for examples of ridiculously cheap behavior they have seen someone do, they did not disappoint!

These are the top-voted responses.

Just Buy a New Shirt

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One user discussed a guy he knew who had done well with cryptocurrency and house flipping but refused to buy new clothes. “He had this shirt given to him for a promotion that was destroyed with holes and stains.

 

My work for a living self had to give him a new shirt and some shoes I didn’t wear. So I called him out on being cheap, and his rationale was retirement savings.”

Keeping the Tip

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via DepositPhotos.com.

You couldn’t always split the bill at a restaurant like you can now. Before, when you went out with a group of friends, everyone would put in cash to pay the bill. Someone shared how this cheapskate would use the extra tip portion to pay for his meal.

 

He elaborated, “Everyone would figure out how much they owed for food and tip and put their cash in. Then we had one friend that would collect the cash and pay with his credit card.

 

I noticed that he didn’t leave a tip. The first time I thought I must have been mistaken. The second time I was sure I wasn’t. He was using everyone’s tip to pay for his meal.”

Driving To Find Cheap Gas

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olly18 via DepositPhotos.com.

Some people drive around to find the cheapest gas or sit idled in line for cheaper gas. Not considering the amount of gas they are wasting to search for it, not to mention the wear and tear on their car.

 

“My sister drives around the city to get the current prices and then goes home, puts it all in an excel document, and figures out how much a tank would cost for her vehicle and the highway miles per hour,” one confessed.

 

“Then drives back to whichever place she calculated as cheaper. She has no idea of how much gas she burned while driving around or that calculated highway miles mean nothing when you only do city driving.”

Free Napkins

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It’s not unusual for frugal people to try to find ways to save on items for everyday items we use and throw away. For example, they will keep unused napkins for future use when going to a drive-thru. But, unfortunately, some people take this too far.

 

One user admitted, “I know a couple that goes to McDonald’s to get free napkins. Goes home and takes a pair of scissors, cuts them in half, and leaves the stack on top of their toilet to wipe with.”

Produce by Weight

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Many fresh fruits and vegetables are priced by their weight. The bigger the piece of produce, the more it will weigh. Some people go to the extreme and de-stem them before they can be weighed.

 

One explained, “I can’t imagine the stem on a cherry is so heavy that it could up the cost that much, but I’ve been there with someone doing just this.”

Investing Rather Than Fixing

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One has to wonder why someone wouldn’t fix their home when it was damaged. But somehow, in their mind, it’s wasted money when they can make do.

 

Someone stated, “I was never allowed at my grandfather’s house because he had a three-foot-wide hole in his floor leading straight down to the basement. He wouldn’t spend the money to fix it because he could walk around it.”

Use and Return

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Most stores have a return policy, and so long as you are within the guidelines they have set for them, you can return anything. One user confesses, “I have a family member that routinely buys tools, uses them to complete a project, and then returns them.”

 

People who work in retail can confirm this. For example, another user explained, “I was working the customer service desk when someone came in to return a riding lawn mower. They reasoned that it didn’t cut the grass, but I could see cut grass all over the mower.”

Potluck Leftover Thief

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Potlucks are full of different dishes brought by your coworkers. It’s usually a lot of food, so you can expect that whatever you bring, you’ll take some of it home. Or at least that’s how it usually works.

 

One Redditor volunteered, “I worked with someone who would clean up and take the leftovers from the staff potlucks. Unfortunately, they never made anything for the potluck either, just packed up what was left without asking and took it home.”

Eating Your Leftovers

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One of the best parts of eating out is the leftovers you take home and have for lunch or a late-night snack later. After all, it’s your food; you paid for it and already ate from it. So what do you do when someone asks to eat it while still at the restaurant?

 

Another user said, “Had a friend that would come out to eat with us, not order anything, and then ask to finish what we had as leftovers. It was awkward. This person lived with us in our college house and always asked for our food when cooking.”

Subway Coupon

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No rule says you owe someone something when you help a friend move. But it is custom to spring for a pizza and a drink. A final user elaborated, “We helped a buddy move. So instead of unlimited pizza and beer, per the Rules of Life, he gave us 10% off coupons for Subway.”

We hope you enjoyed these Reddit stories of times people witness ridiculously cheap behavior.

This post originally appeared on A Dime Saved.

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Hi! I am a millennial mom with a passion for personal finance. I have always been “into” personal finance but got inspired to start my blog after a period of extended unemployment. That experience really changed the way I viewed my relationship with money and the importance of accessible personal finance education.