Tired of hearing the same old advice about saving money and living frugally? It turns out that sometimes, being anti-frugal can actually pay off. Here are eleven financial tips people tried that may go against the grain but paid off.
Frugal for You
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What goes against all the frugal advice but is frugal for you? Here are ten examples of people who went against the grain of frugal advice and had it worked out for them. They broke the mold when it came to frugal living tips, and it worked for them!
Gym Membership
Someone shared their experience, “Paying for an expensive gym membership. I go more than if it were the YMCA, and there are mental health benefits to being able to use a sauna, which the YMCA doesn’t have. It’s a bit twice the price per month as YMCA and ten times that of Planet Fitness.”
Perform Your Own Vehicle Maintenance
“I can do an oil change and change the brake pads myself. But I NEVER do it. It got to the point where I drove the car twice as long as it was supposed to between changes and started to get worried, but I still didn’t seem to do it. So paying a mechanic to do it is much more frugal than me ruining my car through negligence,” confessed one.
Avoid Meal Prep Services
Another admitted, “I don’t like cooking, and I’m not good at it, but a meal delivery service is still faster than fast food, and they make it, so we go to the grocery store every other week instead of weekly.”
“I budget $600/mo for groceries, and with this service, we are coming right in at that much more easily AND not going over the eating our budget.”
Do Not Drink at Bars
“I only drink in bars. It might run up a regrettable tab sometimes, but having and drinking beer at home almost always leads to me buying Warhammer or Vinyl online until I pass out,” confessed one.
“I’m so glad I’m not the only one,” another admitted. “I’ve done more financial damage drinking at home than at bars. Buy weird stuff on Amazon, and decide I want chicken wings at 1:00 am but can’t drive. So I Uber eats and make donations to GoFundMe’s that pull at my heartstrings.”
“Plus, I like the atmosphere of the bars. And to be honest, I usually drink less out. A few 8-dollar pints are pricy enough. At home, no issue drinking the whole 8-dollar six pack.”
Don’t Have a Car Payment
Someone explained, “Getting a car payment. I was in a tough spot a few years ago, my car was totaled in a city with very poor public transit, and my options were either spend all my savings on a 20-something-year-old death trap for $1k that would have countless problems and breakdowns or get a $15k car payment for a used Corolla with low mileage.”
“Unfortunately, the dealership would only approve me for something cheaper. My APR was super high because my new credit score was deficient. I have no major regrets, and I’m glad I went with the low mileage car rather than trying to find a beater.”
Make Recipes That Are $1 per Serving
“I like making recipes with a higher price than $1/serving. I used to be invested in making recipes that were always under $1/serving, but making things that are slightly more expensive (without being overly expensive, still) results in the food I want to eat,” admitted one.
“This means making beef stew occasionally (cuts of beef are more expensive than ground beef, and both are more expensive than chicken, but sometimes beef stew is what we want, instead of chicken and rice) or other ‘more expensive’ recipes.”
Buy It on Sale
“Buying things because they are on sale. But if I wait for another season, I may find it at a bigger discount at a mark-down sale, thrift store, or marketplace,” one explained.
“So I wait, put off buying things it would be nice to have now and find them cheaper later. My husband’s family is super frugal. They put I.O.U.s under the Christmas tree and go shopping between Christmas and New Year to buy things on end-of-year sales.”
Don’t Pay For Cleaning Services To Eliminate Chores
HayDmitriy via DepositPhotos.com.
“Not currently in use, but a cleaning service. Especially if two or more adults are splitting it, stop fighting about most of the chores. Roommates, partner, or a parent living with you? Adult children at home? Split a cleaner—same with Fluff and Fold service.”
“I would not use one, for I am the laundry champ. Still, for people who genuinely can not abide laundry, $100/mo (less in urban areas) for clean, folded laundry is a huge time and mental saver,” another volunteered.
Related: Messy House? Super Easy Ways To Keep It Clean
Dry Cleaning Will Help Extend the Life of Your Clothes
“I was spending a lot on dry-cleaning, so I bought a top-of-the-line washing machine that can wash suits, woolens, cashmere, and dressy clothes without damaging them,” one replied. “It paid for itself in about two years, and launders dress shirts better than the corner shop that was three dollars a shirt.”
Always Support Local Mom and Pop Shops
“Chewy delivery services,” another admitted. “I support the local family-owned pet store when I can. Still, I’m not getting any younger, and hauling cat litter killed my sciatica. A slightly-higher unit price on EverClean is cheaper than the 20% coinsurance for destroying my back.”
Don’t Pay For Budgeting Apps
I pay for a budget app called You Need A Budget. Could I sit down each week to log all my transactions and my wife’s transactions? Yes. Could I take what I know and do it all in Excel? Also Yes. But the ease of use/entry that You Need A Budget provides makes my budgeting a routine habit.”
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This post originally appeared on A Dime Saved.
A Dime Saved
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.