A Reddit user was curious to know the extremely frugal things people did that they didn’t tell people about. He gave an illustration that he used to collect promotional coffee sachets on top of car windows and that saved a ton of money.
He wanted to know whether other Reddit users did extremely frugal things that they did not want other people to know.
Here are some of the best responses from this conversation.
Took Home Leftovers From the Hospital Kitchen
One user who worked in a hospital kitchen did not buy food for a whole summer, “Worked at a hospital kitchen one summer. After dishing out all the food to be brought to the rooms everything that remained we were allowed to take. I bought almost no food that summer.”
Lived Out of the Car
This is a common thing as one user illustrates, “I had a bit of a layover between college apartments. Next place had my deposit down but wouldn’t let me in for a month; first place was clearing out in a week. So, parked my stuff at a friend’s place (she owed me a favor) and lived out of my car for three weeks. My school had a good gym facility, the library was open, and the beach shower was less than a mile from campus.”
Crashed Parties To Drink for Free
One user had a unique style of having fun during college, “Kinda gross looking back, but in college I had $0 sometimes and still wanted to attend all the same parties my friends were going to. The parties had kegs and it was usually about $5 for a cup to drink all night. Well I would wait/hang out around the party until someone would leave and throw their cup on the ground. I would pick up their cup and drink all night for free.”
Stole Neighbors’ Pens
One user had a rather weird initiation into the frugal lifestyle as he narrated, “Once when I was like 9, someone came around the neighborhood and dropped a paper with a pen attached to advertise their business. My mom knew the house next door was vacant so she asked me to go grab the neighbors too. I thought it would have please her if I took everyone’s in the whole neighborhood. It was pretty early on a Sunday so nobody had really come outside yet. I can home with around 50 pens. I started being frugal pretty early.”
Walked for Over an Hour to Work
Walking to work is a great way to save money (and be a little more eco-friendly). Many people walk to work, but one user takes this to the extreme, “Everyone at work knows I commute on foot every day, I’ve never mentioned that I live an hour’s walk away.”
Used the Bathroom at School To Save On Toilet Paper
Why buy toilet paper when you can poop at school, as this user did for a year? “When I was doing my master’s degree I bought one packet of toilet paper for the whole year – since I was usually at university 9-9 I tore off what I needed from there and took it home. I had a packet around unused so when I had friends or dates over I didn’t look completely mental.”
Tore off Vegetable Stems
Who knew you could save some money if you ripped vegetable stems at the store before buying? “When I go shopping at the grocery store, I rip the stems off of the vegetables to save ¢.0001,” said one user
Manipulated Time Clock
A college student has found a way to manipulate the clock at work to make some extra money, “At work, there is a terminal to clock out in our break room and by the entrance/exit. Most of my co-workers clock out in the break room, but I always do so a little later by the exit in order to make a few extra dollars/cents. I always make an effort to do this. As a college student I’ll take whatever I can get.”
Picked Up Free Newspapers From Neighbors’ Driveways
One user found a way to use what would have ended in trash creatively, “In a slightly gray area of frugality, I used to pick up those free shopper newspapers out of the driveways of unoccupied houses in our neighborhood. It kept the neighborhood from getting cluttered with trash and I used the papers and the plastic bags they were in doing messy jobs around the house and bagging up soiled cat litter.”
Skipped Food for the Family
One user barely has enough to eat at the end of the month. They skip food so that the family can eat, “At the end of most months I barely eat anything for lunch so I have enough food for my wife and kids.”
Ate Leftover Steaks
A taxi driver would not let good steak go to waste, “Someone left a doggie bag from a top steak house in my taxi. It contained three half eaten steaks. I made them into stew after trimming.”
Made Reusable Pads
OlgaZakrevskaya via DepositPhotos.com.
A user found a way to handle their personal hygiene and remain frugal, “I sewed myself some reusable cloth menstrual pads. Some are colorful, some have candy pattern, some have deadpool on them (red for a reason lol), and they are super comfy. I don’t have to buy pads or tampons anymore; these are easy to clean and kinda fun.”
Didn’t Flush
To save money, some people wait until the toilet starts to smell, “When I go pee at home, if it’s light enough, I don’t flush and wait for the second time I have to go to the bathroom to flush.”
Another user added that they also use the same strategy, “We’re a family of four. We often don’t flush the toilet if it just has pee in it. We just keep adding pee and flush at the end of the day (or if it gets smelly).”
12 Frugal Hacks That Make All The Difference
A Reddit user who started the frugal journey with his wife a couple of years ago wanted to know the frugal hacks people had that made all the difference.
According to the OP, shopping grocery sales every week and planning their meals helped cut their bill from $250 to $100 per week. Other users shared their stories about frugal hacks they had that made some difference in their lives. Here are some of the best ones.
12 Frugal Hacks That Make All The Difference
12 Items Frugal People Proudly Exclude From Their Shopping List
Frugal people are known to spend their money wisely. They live within their means and don’t spend a lot of money. According to a thread on Quora, here are some common things frugal people never buy.
12 Items Frugal People Proudly Exclude from Their Shopping List
23 Side Hustles You Never Considered That Make More Than Your 9 to 5
Have you ever wanted to make a lot of money from a side hustle and quit your 9 to 5? You may know about the typical side hustles, but I bet you never even heard of these lucrative side hustles!
23 Side Hustles You Never Considered That Make More Than Your 9 to 5
9 So-Called “Frugal” Habits That Are Actually a Waste of Time and Money
Not everything is frugal! I am sure you have read articles and tips that promote frugal living and give some ideas that are just not frugal! These frugal myths float around and sometimes even cost people a lot of money!
9 So-Called “Frugal” Habits That Are Actually a Waste of Time and Money
10 Stupid Scams People Won’t Stop Falling For
It seems like every day there is a new scam popping up, promising to make you rich or solve all of your problems. Yet, despite the prevalence of scams and the numerous warnings about them, people still fall for them.
